An Interview with 328 Daniel Lathan
(interview published February 25 2014 in the lead up to the 2014 Unlimited Banger BBA Supreme Championship)

Age: 22
Home Town: Attleborough
Occupation: Car breaker
Family: Girlfriend Vicki and daughter Amelia-Lilly
Racing career: Started racing aged 16

This is the second year in a row that you have qualified for the Supreme Championship, are you pleased to have qualified again and are you looking forward to it?
I’m really pleased and I’m definitely looking forward to it, especially because it is unlimited.

Given your success at Mildenhall in National Banger format meetings, are you pleased the meeting is now unlimited?
I think being unlimited is better for the meeting although I admit I personally would have had more chance had it still be (National Bangers) because I do feel I get on well with a Mondeo round Mildenhall. But unlimited bangers are a lot more fun, a much bigger challenge and we don’t get to race them at Mildenhall that often so any unlimited is a little special and this one in particular because it’s the championship and there will be a lot of top drivers in it. It makes the whole thing a lot more challenging but then if you do well it’s a bigger achievement as well.

You made your debut in the championship last year, how difficult was it racing in the snowstorm?
It was awful, probably the worst I have ever raced it. The cold was a big part of it because I’ve raced in a lot of wet meetings but that was absolutely freezing and it wasn’t so much mud but more muddy and dirty water so it was just diabolical. I hit the wall early on and damaged my steering and so I managed about four or five laps before calling it a day and I didn’t even think about fixing it and that is one of the first times I’ve ever done that. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I won’t do a DD and save a car for another meeting but I always try and do all the races and I took that car that night with the intention of wrecking it and after those laps I just didn’t have the heart. Looking back, if I’m honest I don’t think my heart was in it from the start because I was so disappointed by the weather, maybe it was because it was my first time in the race and I’d really been looking forward to it. That’s part of the reason why I’m so glad to be back in the race this year and I just hope the weather is good for us this time because if it is I think it will be good.

Have you decided what car you will be racing?
Yes, I’ve got a Frog eye (Scorpio) estate which I raced a couple of times last year including at the Suffolk Open. I know there will be some who will question bringing a used car to a meeting like this but the car is there and I know it’s good round Mildenhall so I honestly think I would be silly not to bring it. It went really well at the Suffolk Open and then I used it at the Rear Wheel Drive (Championship) but had to put a 2litre in and it wasn’t as good so I’ll swap the engines back and hopefully it should be as good as before, it was brilliant at the unlimited. Knowing that you should have a good car does give you a bit of a confidence boost as well as it takes away a little part of the unknown.

The early indications suggest we might see a large field of cars in the race and many predict an unpredictable race, what kind of race do you think it will be?
If there is a massive grid it’s very likely there will be a blockage and also a stoppage. If that is the case I think it will be a matter of surviving and getting to the restart with all four wheels still going the right way because it’s likely a lot of the field will get wiped out at the start. But I like it that way, it levels it out for everyone, gives everyone a chance and makes it a bit more about the driver than anything else.

Is there anyone who you fancy for the honours this year?
I honestly haven’t looked at the list (of qualifiers) that much but I think the weather and the car choice will make a big difference myself. Look at last year and Chubby (382 Jack Foster Jnr) was flying in that Lexus and I think they are an excellent car if it’s wet so if it’s wet again I suspect a Lexus will win but it it’s dry I think it will be a Frog Eye that will win, or even a Volvo because they got really well round Mildenhall when the track is in good condition.

Looking back to 2013, you had a tremendous season winning the RDC Drivers and Mildenhall Track Points Championships and the TSR World Final, did any of these achievements stand out for you or do you look back at the season as a whole?
For me, it was the whole season and I was so pleased and proud at what I managed to do, it was far beyond what I expected and excellent given the amount of work me and the boys put in because it was hard but when you get results like that it does help make it feel all worthwhile and keeps the enthusiasm up for the next meeting. My only disappointment was getting the puncture when I was leading the British (Championship) because I honestly think I could have won that race and I badly want to win a championship race at Mildenhall, it’s probably now the think that is top of my ‘to do’ list.

Is that to say the British Championship is a priority for 2014 and what other plans have you got for the coming season?
I would never say that I’m going to try and win something like that, that’s just asking for trouble (laughs) but yes I want to get in the race again and have a really good go at it. My intention at the moment is to have another full year, I know it’s going to be very hard to come close to doing what I did (last year), both starting at the back and I think when you have a gold and silver roof it immediately makes you more of a target so I know it will be hard. I’m not hell bent on winning the points again but I do want to try and stay close enough to the top of the points so I can qualify for some championship races elsewhere because I would like to represent RDC some more in those races. I won’t be going too far like Scotland but I would like to do things like the World Finals at Hednesford and Arena and also the Masters at Dover because it’s probably time I try and get down there but we’ll see how the season unfolds.

You’ve certainly made a good start to the year, winning the Winter Series. Having come close to this title for a couple of years were you especially pleased to finally win it?
Yes I was. I don’t think people realise how hard the series is to win. Not only are the conditions usually tricky but you get a lot of different guys out there and there is always some quick drivers who start near the front while I was coming from the back. You get guys like (Peter and Dave Lewis) who we don’t see very often and they are excellent in small cars and at Mildenhall so beating drivers like that is really hard and I didn’t think I would do it so I was very pleased to win the series, it was a great way to start the season.

You’ve been a regular in the Winter Series, do you enjoy these meetings despite them often being held in less than ideal conditions because of the winter weather?
I do, one of the things I like about them is you get a lot of different drivers racing which makes things a little different to a normal meeting at Mildenhall. And I’m not sure what it is but the atmosphere is a little different and actually very enjoyable, even though like the meetings in January, it is often pretty wet. Even though it was rather wet this year, most of the drivers were clearly enjoying themselves and the crowd were as well. I watched a couple of races in January and while compared to the action you get when the conditions are right, these races were a bit tame, the people watching seemed to be really enjoying it. I don’t know what it is but the series is usually good fun.

A new aspect for you in 2013 was you organising your own team for team races under the Team Motorbitz banner, was that something you enjoyed?
I did, it was good but it’s quite stressful trying to get things organised as every time we did a meeting we seemed to have a problem at the last minute. I’m looking forward to Good Friday (1400cc Suffolk Open Team Championship), I’ve won it before with (Norfolk N Good) but to win with my own team would be fantastic but that certainly won’t be easy with so many teams out there, it’s usually a great meeting and I’m looking forward to that one.

At the very end of 2013 we saw you race a Saloon Stockcar at King’s Lynn, could we see more of this in the future?
Yes, you will. I absolutely loved it and I’ve got a car now and I hope to have it ready for some meetings this year, if not ready for next year. I’ve still not decided how committed I will be to the stockcars and whether I’ll do that and bangers or what exactly but with the World Final at Mildenhall next year I very much want to just race at the meeting because I think that will be an awesome thing to be a part of. Hopefully I might have the car ready so I can do the World Final meeting at King’s Lynn this year but we will have to see how it goes.

Finishing with National Banger related questions, have you any thoughts on the 2014 technical rules which have just been confirmed by the ORCi?
I’ve honestly not looked too much but I don’t think it is going to have much effect on me at all, I think the only thing is I’ve got to change my roof plate a bit but that’s not the end of the world and easily done.

Anyone you would like to thank or mention?
My misses, the whole Motorbitz team and Daniel Weavers.

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