Cataclean Plato Racing will look to contend for front-running honours this coming weekend (23-24 May) as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship heads to Snetterton for the third meeting of the season.
Following on from a challenging outing at Brands Hatch a little more than a week ago, the Mercedes-AMG A35 Saloon duo of Dan Rowbottom and Adam Morgan are ready to bounce back and ignite their respective campaigns at the popular Norfolk venue.
Rowbottom began the year in emphatic fashion as he claimed a historic victory in the series’ first-ever ‘Race To Pole’ at Donington Park, before exploratory developmental work with the car took precedent at Brands Hatch.
Now with a clear direction on how to further evolve and improve his front-wheel-drive machine, the 37-year-old is relishing the prospect of taking on the 2.97-mile challenge that Snetterton presents - especially given that he was victorious at the circuit last year.
On the other side of the garage, Morgan has his tail firmly in the air after producing an impressive race day fightback at Brands Hatch that saw him go from the gravel trap in race one to the fringes of the podium in race three.
Like Rowbottom, the Lancastrian has showcased plenty of pace and potential, something he’ll be optimistic of converting into a stellar result around what is the longest circuit on the BTCC calendar.
Track action will commence on Saturday morning with an hour-long practice session at 10:40 before both drivers then contest qualifying and the aforementioned all-new Qualifying Race from 14:00 later that afternoon.
Sunday at Snetterton will see the team go for glory with race one scheduled to take place at 11:30, race two at 14:30 and race three at 17:20. All three contests will be broadcast live on ITV4 and ITVX.
Jason Plato, Cataclean Plato Racing Team Principal: “We learnt a huge amount at Brands Hatch and since then we’ve had time to unpack that data. Covering the ground we did on both cars has meant that we’ve now got a better idea of what the cars do and don’t like - which is great.
“Snetterton is somewhere we’ve tested at already and while I wasn’t there on the day, I know that everyone came away feeling really good with how it went. Naturally we’re feeling optimistic that we can be in mix; the key is to have a strong Saturday and that will set us up nicely for Sunday.”
Dan Rowbottom, #32 Cataclean Plato Racing: “Snetterton was a happy hunting ground for me last year so it would be great to be up there and challenging once again. It’s a long lap and we’ve got a full allocation of TOCA Turbo Boost so we have to maximise that.
“We’re all fierce competitors so it’s easy to forget that this will be just the third event for the team; every time we hit the track we’re learning a huge amount. Things are starting to click now and if we can hook things up in qualifying then I don’t see why we can’t be a force on race day.
Adam Morgan, #33 Cataclean Plato Racing: “Now that we’ve had a few days to digest what we learnt at Brands Hatch I’m feeling confident that we can have a strong weekend at Snetterton and nudge the car further into that sweet spot that we’re all working towards.
“As a circuit, Snetterton has it all - long straights, heavy braking zones and plenty of overtaking spots. We enjoyed a productive few days there before the season began so we’ll lean on what we learnt there to help our cause across Saturday and Sunday.”