Turner joins Aston Martin team
The Warwickshire-based Briton, who has driven more miles in an Aston Martin racing car than any other of the marque’s drivers, will be joining Team Modena’s Antonia Garcia (E) and Liz Halliday (USA) for the 12 Hours of Sebring in Florida on 17th March, and Darren will be aiming for a repeat of his historic GT1 victory there in 2005.
“Sebring 2005 was the very first race for the DBR9 and no one really expected us to win," recalls Darren. “It’s such a hard circuit for cars and drivers as it’s so bumpy and can also be very slippery, but we just chipped away all week at making progress with the car and finding a good set up for the race, getting better and better each day, and it really paid off.
“That’s exactly what we’ll be aiming for with Team Modena, and I hope I’ll be able to bring all my Aston Martin experience to bear to help them achieve success in their first American Le Mans Series race."
This is not the first time Turner has driven for Team Modena’s Team Principal, Rik Bryan. As owner of the very first customer Aston Martin DBR9, Bryan placed the car in the hands of an existing team for an exploratory entry in the Nürburgring round of the 2005 Le Mans Series. Darren co-drove the car to victory with GT debutant Rob Bell, to the delight of the car’s owner and all involved with Aston Martin Racing.
Rik Bryan says: “I am delighted to have Darren joining Team Modena for Sebring. He has phenomenal experience in the DBR9 and has won Sebring with the car – such experience will be a huge addition to the already strong team of Antonio and Liz. In addition, it will be nice to have Darren back in DBR9/101 since he drove it to its first race win in September 2005 – a race that I will never forget!"
Although his main racing focus for 2007 will be with SEAT Sport UK in the British Touring Car Championship, Darren is planning to dovetail as many GT events as he can into his busy schedule, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.