Shaun Watson-Smith: winning new admirers already
By Dave Brockman:
“I get recognised every now and again, but not to a great extent! It’s quite nice actually, because when it happens it’s a nice feeling, certainly not a pain in the arse like it would be if you were really famous!" Shaun has a long history of success, and it was only natural that he should come to the attention of team bosses the world over. It was Mike Carroll, now the head of Team PSP, who was quickest to realise that potential and build up a working relationship that continues even to this day. “For quite a few years in South Africa I worked with Mike. We won quite a few championships together and we were involved quite a few times in taking a car from scratch, developing it and going on to win races with it. “We’ve got a lot of experience in developing a racing car to its full potential together; we speak the same language and have a really fantastic working relationship. Sometimes I say things that maybe even I don’t know what they mean, but he just understands! “We have a brand new car for this year which obviously requires quite a lot of development, but Mike knows what to expect when he works with me, we’ve got a long history together and he’s got a lot of faith in me, so that’s why I’m here.” ‘Here’ of course being the British Touring Car Championship, recognised the world over as one of the most fiercely contested titles. Given the chance to race in the UK Shaun needed little encouragement, and his lifestyle would barely suffer.
“I am away from home, I miss my animals – I’ve got two Labradors and two cats – I’m looking forward to getting back there in June. I have a great life in South Africa but I’ve always dreamed of coming over here to go racing. “I’ve got BTCC highlights tapes going back to 1994, and my relationship with Petronas goes back a long way: I raced with them in Malaysia and South Africa for a number of years so the whole team relationship isn’t that new. It’s just the British Touring Car part that’s new.” If there was any doubt as to Shaun’s experience and racecraft, one only needed to examine his first ever BTCC race to see that he was no pushover. He qualified a respectable 12th out of 20, but it was in the last lap that he was really tested. The 2004 rules say that the finishing order of the first race determines the grid for the second – but with the top ten reversed. With precious few points difference separating the lower half of the top ten, a new tactical game would develop. SEAT’s Jason Plato was the instigator, at one point running in 6th but gradually letting cars past in a bid to grab that all important pole position. Shaun takes up the story: “I didn’t expect it, but we had a lot of talk about strategy before the season began. At Thruxton we were making improvements all weekend as we went along, and I really wanted to get a good result in the race – our pace was very good – so I thought I’d get myself a good grid position for the second race.
And so it proved to be. Proton had bagged a front row start in only the second race of the season, and with team mate Fariqe Hairuman sidelined by engine problems the hopes of the entire team would rest with Shaun. Any chances of a podium finish were soon dashed, however, with a typically physical first lap. 
“It was very disappointing to get hit before the brake markers in the first corner, I was already lining up a pass and I was sure I could finish strongly. We had new tyres on the car, I felt really confident and maybe we even had a shot at winning that race. But to get hit on the first corner, and then another two times in the race, it just went from bad to worse.
“But my views on our chances were confirmed, we set the second fastest lap of the whole race – so very disappointing to have that happen.” 8th place was poor reward for a race which won Shaun many new admirers, but compared to the engine problems of his team-mate it was an encouraging result for the team. “That was very strange, because in testing we ran with no reliability issues. It was very surprising; we’ve had no problems with my car other than being smashed off the road! “In terms of the set up it’s difficult for Fariqe, he’s only done a couple of years of production car racing in Malaysia. But I’ve been impressed, he’s actually done well. From a set up point of view though, he’s still really getting himself up to speed.” No such worries for Shaun, who really has taken to the BTCC like a duck to water. Two more finishes in the points at Brands Hatch were further evidence of this, but a potentially strong finish to the second race was denied when Anthony Reid’s MG pushed him into the gravel at Paddock Hill bend. Nevertheless Shaun had already recorded the fastest lap of the race, further proof not only of his skills but also the progress which PSP have made in developing the car. Shaun has based himself near the team’s headquarters so that he can be on hand to assist in this process, but living away from home must surely take its toll? Not so, he reckons. “Well I’ve got a couple of businesses back in South Africa, so I spend a lot of time with email communicating with the managers back there. I’ve been pretty busy, I go to the gym every day. We’re staying in a really nice area of Norwich near the university grounds so I can go running and cycling there by the river – it’s very beautiful. “I haven’t been bored so far, as I say it is away from home but I have my girlfriend with me and we’ve having a lot of fun. We’ve done a lot of exploring and we plan to go travelling; it’s very cheap to see Europe from here and I’m feeling really good about things.” |
Shaun Watson-Smith has brought plenty of experience to the BTCC, but given the performance of the Protons last year it was unclear to what extent he would trouble the scorers.
