Driver Martin Byford backed by the Z Speed Racing Team finished 3rd overall in this years 2008 SEAT Cupra Drivers Championship.

SEAT Cupra quartet impress at Leon TDI test

The top four finishers in this year’s SEAT Cupra Championship underlined their potential as top touring car drivers when Jonathan Adam, Robert Lawson, Martin Byford and Carl Breeze each gave a very professional and impressive display when they tested SEAT Sport UK’s Leon TDI as part of their end-of-season prize. In doing so, they joined a small and elite group of drivers in the world who have driven SEAT’s diesel-engined touring car.

The test took place on the 1.6 mile Silverstone National Circuit on Monday (29th September) – a track which had hosted rounds of the 2008 HiQ MSA British Touring Car and SEAT Cupra Championships in August. Each driver was given two familiarisation runs in the morning, while the afternoon included a 22-lap simulated race distance stint.

Conditions were dry, except for one light shower of rain during Byford’s 22-lap run. Each driver had a one-on-one technical briefing and debrief before and after each session with SEAT Sport UK’s engineering team and whilst lap times will remain secret, each driver lapped consistently quickly and set times comparable to leading BTCC drivers.

Jason Plato was also on hand throughout the day to offer advice and discuss the unique driving techniques associated with the Leon TDI.

Adam said: “Having driven the petrol-engined Leon in 2006 and ’07, it was very interesting to compare it to the Leon TDI. Reading what Jason Plato and Darren Turner have said about the TDI is correct, because it really is a very different car to the petrol-engined Leon. The engine note is very quiet, so that is quite unusual, there is a lot more weight over the front axle, so the handling characteristics are quite different, and you have to be very precise accelerating out of corners because there is a lot more torque from the turbo diesel engine.

“It was great to do a full race distance, because you could feel the front tyres go off a little and you had to make adjustments to your driving style to maintain consistent lap times. I’m very proud to be one of only a handful of people to have driven the Leon TDI.”

Lawson (31, from Barton, near Richmond, in North Yorkshire) has only been racing for three years, and after two seasons in the Renault Clio Cup he instantly became a SEAT Cupra Championship title contender by winning the opening round of the 2008 series in his Bardon/JHR Leon Cupra. He repeatedly qualified on pole with just one hot lap, and went on to take to the podium 15 times – one of only four drivers in the six year history of the Championship to do so in one season – and set three fastest lap times and win six races.

Lawson said: “It was a great experience for me, as I’ve only ever driven a Clio and a SEAT Cupra, so to get the opportunity to drive a works Leon TDI touring car was something I wanted to grab hold of with both hands. It just goes to show what phenomenal value the SEAT Cupra Championship was, because to race those cars was a fraction of the price of a touring car, but there isn’t a huge amount of difference in performance. Although I’ve never driven a petrol-engined touring car, I felt I had something to compare the Leon TDI to.

“It was important in the TDI not to rev beyond the peak torque range and that meant changing gear at a lot lower revs than in the Cupra. That was quite strange because some engines rev to between 7-8,000rpm, but to get the most out of the Leon TDI it was vital to operate within the optimum rev range all the time. It was good to have a race distance run because it gave you plenty of time to think about things and adjust your driving style. It was a very enjoyable experience and I feel very lucky to have driven the Leon TDI.”

Byford (36, who lives in Colchester in Essex) has been racing for 16 years and has won titles in both single-seaters and saloons. He joined the 2008 SEAT Cupra Championship with his family run team Z Speed Racing and in his first season finished on the podium 12 times, with six fastest lap times and winning three out of four races at Brands Hatch.

Byford said: “For me to get a chance to drive a works touring car is a one-off opportunity; I’d like to think I’d do it again, but there again I prefer to live in the real world! But for one day I was treated and felt like a works driver, and I really enjoyed it. We had technical briefings and data to go through with a race engineer, which is something I’ve never done before. I engineer my own car and decide on set-up changes and try and figure out how to make the car go faster on my own, so to have that technical support took everything to a new level.

“The speed of the Leon TDI wasn’t that different to my Cupra, but the diesel did demand a different driving style to my petrol-engined car. The clouds looked a bit dark when I sent off on my race distance run, and fifteen laps out of twenty-two it started to rain on one side of the track. I had to ease off for three laps, but it dried fairly quickly and I was able to pick up the pace again. It was a fantastic experience driving the Leon TDI and I didn’t want to stop.”

Breeze (29, from King’s Lynn in Norfolk) has been racing for 18 years, with a long list of achievements including the 2001 Formula Renault 2000 title, International Sports Car Race winner at Le Mans in 1998 and three years racing in the BTCC (2002-’04), which brought four Independent Trophy race wins and a highest overall placing of 7th. He moved to the SEAT Cupra Championship in 2005, completing four seasons during which he has finished 29 times on the podium (nine of which were this year in his Blue Chip/Welch Motorsport Leon Cupra) and has recorded eight wins. He has never failed to finish outside the top four at the end of the season and is the only Cupra driver to win a place testing a SEAT Sport UK Toledo, Leon and Leon TDI.

Breeze said: “I’ve been very fortunate to drive all of SEAT Sport UK’s BTCC cars and it was especially nice to be able to compare the petrol-engined Leon to the Leon TDI. You certainly need to take corners differently with the diesel and turn in deeper, square the corner off as much as possible and concentrate more on exit speed and using the torque of the engine to pull you out, rather than work on the entry and apex speeds.

“The race distance runs where very good and I made no mistakes and was pretty consistent over the twenty-two laps. I feel very fortunate to be given the chance of driving the Leon TDI because not many drivers in the world have had that experience. It was a very interesting day and I thoroughly enjoyed it.”

Dave Ward, SEAT Sport UK BTCC Team Manager, said: “All four guys impressed me from the start with their enthusiasm and professional approach towards the test day. I was very pleased to see them make the most of the valuable experience we were able to offer. Very few drivers have, at this point, experienced a diesel S2000 touring car and to drive the car, for a race distance, in a fully competitive set-up, was well received by all.

“The level the guys performed at during the day was true testament to the value of racing within the 2008 SEAT Cupra Championship and proof that this Championship, along with the opportunity to test with the touring car team, will be a valuable addition to their racing resumes. “Lap times were not the focus of our attention, but we did look at the driver’s technical ability, their enthusiasm, professionalism and general approach towards the test. On this alone they all passed with flying colours and I'd like to take this opportunity to wish Jonathan, Robert, Martin and Carl the very best with their future motor racing careers.”

Piers Phillips, SEAT Sport UK Chief Race Engineer, said: “This is the fourth time the top four finishers in the SEAT Cupra Championship have been invited to drive the team’s BTCC car, and from a driver’s point of view I think this was the best day yet, as they each got a lot of track time and gained a lot of experience. Jonathan Adam was the consummate professional, with consistently quick lap times and good technical feedback. Robert Lawson was very impressive; a pleasure to work with and amazing ability considering this is only his third year of competition. Martin Byford is the easiest driver I have ever worked with and is an excellent driver and a real gentleman, and Carl Breeze pushed hard, gave it everything and certainly ticked all the boxes. It’s clear that all four drivers would do exceptionally well in the BTCC.”