“I’m the guy they’re all going to want to beat….but I’ve got just as a good a chance as anyone else” says 2015 British Touring Car Champion Gordon “Flash” Shedden as he prepares for a brand new season, which promises to be one of the best yet.
I caught up with Gordon at his day job as one of the management team at the Knockhill Race Circuit in Fife where wife Jillian –Twitter name @mrsflash52 (Gordon’s race number) – is managing director.
I caught him at lunchtime and he took me by surprise. I always thought elite sportsmen, even the ones who rely on automotive power for part of their success, have to follow a strict regime to stay in peak condition.
But I was pleased, delighted even, to see him tucking into a big plate of pasta….and chips.
I know he keeps himself fit as well and with only a couple of weeks to the opening round of this year’s championship at Brand’s Hatch he was fired up for the challenge of this year’s 33 round series at 11 circuits, including Knockhill on August 14th.
The 37 year old who lives in Auchterarder, is aiming to hold onto his 2015 title which he first won in 2012 but he admits this season could be interesting right from the start not least because of new regulations from championship administrators TOCA.
“The regulations controlling some of the components go in a five year cycle and we’ve just finished the first run,” he explained. “They cover things like the front subframe, wishbones, steering arms and uprights so that we’re all competing to the same standards. All the teams will have made changes to meet the new regulations so it’ll be a bit like going back to scratch seeing how the car handles and works during the races. We do loads of testing over the winter but it’s not until we actually start the championship that we find out how it’s going to work out. Of course every team’s the same!”
Alongside fellow Halfords Yuasa Racing team members Matt Neal and newcomer to the squad Andy Neate he’ll be at the wheel of the latest Honda Civic Type R which this year has the 2 litre K20C engine with new technology. This year battery manufacturer Yuasa is being joined as joint sponsor by Halfords, who make a return to the BTCC grid after a seven-year absence.
“It’s like going back to the start of my racing career,” says Flash, who raced a Honda Integra with Halfords sponsorship in 2006. “It’s good to see Halfords back in which shows the strength of the championship.”
Yuasa’s familiar vivid red, black and white brand colours now sit alongside Halfords’ bright orange.
As part of the sponsorship deal he’ll be doing promotional events around the country but his focus is firmly on the track.
How did he feel about the arrival of third driver Neate, who he’d competed against years ago in Fiestas?
“He’s got a lot of experience and it’ll be good to have three cars out there in the team. Matt and I get on well and we wanted someone who we could both work with and understands the commercial as well as competitive nature of what we do.
“We didn’t want some 18 year old who just wanted to beat us to hold onto his place in the team.”
So the prospects are good for a thrilling championship and Flash is determined to add to his total of 41 wins and 111 podiums from almost 300 BTCC races…and of course two championship glories.
Last year’s championship saw Flash produce one of the most spectacular pieces of driving I have ever witnessed on a BTCC track.
It was the final round at Brands Hatch and after a tough season, he was in sight of grabbing the championship but it was going to the wire in the last round, with no fewer than three drivers in contention.
The odds seemed stacked against him, having to start the race away down the field in a lowly 19th place, but he went on a relentless attack and after 18 laps of nerve-racking action played out in front of a record 42,000 crowd, he managed to slice his way up to 4th place and win the title on points. He pushed his Civic Type R to the limit, with the disc brakes glowing red hot as he steamed to the finish.
On paper that sounds straightforward but it has gone down as one of the most sensational drives in the history of the championship and made him a well-deserved British champion.
So who’ll be his biggest challenger? He’s not saying but certainly one guy to watch will be the wily Jason Plato who’ll be part of a four-car BMR team marking Subaru’s entry to the championship with special rear wheel drive versions of their new Levorg.
Meanwhile the Knockhill circuit has added five of the sensational road-going Honda Civic Type Rs to their stable of machinery for their racing courses.
Their Honda Type R Performance Drive Course gets you behind the wheel of the 306bhp machine with expert instruction and around fifteen laps of the circuit where you can really enjoy the amazing car at its full potential.
If that’s not enough, they’ve also secured a fleet of 14 Van Diemen formula racing cars for the full single-seater experience. The big red machines really look the business and with the 130 bhp Audi TT 1.8 engines let you enjoy seat-of-the-pants thrills.
