Dan Eaves | |
---|---|
Nationality | British |
Born |
Evesham (England) |
3 June 1975
British Touring Car Championship | |
Years active | 2000–2005, 2009 |
Teams |
Team Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing Team Dynamics Vic Lee Racing Bowman Motorsport |
Starts | 145 |
Wins | 6 |
Poles | 1 |
Fastest laps | 7 |
Best finish | 3rd in 2005 |
Previous series | |
1999–2000 | National Saloon Cup |
Dan Eaves (born 3 June 1975 in Worcestershire) is a British auto racing driver. He competed in the British Touring Car Championship between 2000 and 2005, and again in 2009, winning a total of six races (including a triple-race clean sweep at Thruxton in 2005) and claimed a best finish of third place in the drivers' championship in 2005.
Eaves started racing karts in 1990 before switching to the Halfords MG Midget Challenge in 1994, finishing 3rd. In 1995 he came second in the Caterham K Series Championship. In 1998 he won the Renault Spider Cup and earned a test with the Williams touring car team and the nickname Spiderman because of his dominance in the series.
He raced in the National Saloon Cup in 1999 and 2000, finishing 4th in the series both times with a Bowman Motorsport Peugeot 306. In 2000 the British Touring Car Championship ran a Class B for these cars, and Bowman Motorsport under the name of Touring Car VIP Club had Eaves entered 2 rounds in his 306.When Vic Lee took over the team, renaming Vic Lee Racing, Eaves was retained to drive in a new factory Peugeot entry for the 2001 BTCC, in a Peugeot 406 coupe.
This was a transitional year for the championship, and Eaves finished 5th out of a fairly thin field, although he beat veteran team-mate Steve Soper. For 2002 Peugeot pulled out but the team remained, with Halfords backing and now with Independent status. Eaves won Indy honours ahead of former Superbike racer Aaron Slight, and team-mate Tim Harvey. For 2003 his team-mate was Carl Breeze and later Danny Buxton, this time in a VLR-built 307, and after a slow start he was Independent class winner several times. The team pulled out before 2004, but Dan was given a drive with Team Dynamics in a Honda Civic. He was 8th in the standings that year, taking his first ever championship win.