Britain's Adam Carroll is relishing the opportunity to shine on "home" ground at the wheel of his Audi this weekend (8-10 June) at Brands Hatch.

The former BAR Honda Formula One test driver is this year contesting his maiden season in the German Touring Car Masters (DTM) - Europe's most competitive and popular touring car series.

Carroll drives a 2005-specification Audi A4DTM around the 1.198-mile "Indy" circuit at the Kent venue aiming to score his first top-eight, point-scoring position in Sunday's 82-lap race.

The 24-year-old Ulsterman is no stranger to the compact Brands "Indy" track - the shortest circuit on the 10-race DTM calendar.

"I've raced on the Indy circuit on four previous occasions ranging from Formulae Ford 1600 to Three," remembers Adam.

"I've also won various scholarship races there and was third in the annual Formula Ford Festival in 2001 so I've fond memories of this track which stages the only British race on this year's DTM calendar."

Carroll is expecting an action-packed, incident-filled one-hour race at Brands and predicts a very close encounter.

Adam added: "The Indy circuit is pretty good. It's only a short lap with only six corners, albeit some of them being long turns.

"You always get tightly packed grids on the Indy circuit and in the DTM it's away close anyway so that guarantees Saturday's qualifying will be ultra, ultra close.

"At least the top-15 qualifiers, possible all 20 cars, are likely to be within one second of each other so it's incredibly tight and the race, featuring two compulsory pit-stops for tyres, will be the same."

The average DTM race attendance in 2006 was over 83,000 and peaked last season at almost 150,000 (Hockenheim) leaving Carroll excited about the prospect of so many British fans watching him in action.

"I'm really looking forward to racing at home'," he continued. "There will be more British support than usual. My sponsor, Ethos Organics, is taking almost 100 guests so I hope to give them and all the British public something to shout about.

"I have not driven my Audi at Brands previously. Tom Kristensen was on pole for Audi in last year's corresponding Brands race with six Audis in the top-10. In the race, Audi's Mattias Ekström won with five Audis finishing in the top-10.

"My ultimate aim is to try and get points for the team. In qualifying I'd like to get into the third and final session which essentially means a place on the first four rows. The higher up the grid I can start will give me the best possible opportunity in the race.

"But of course driving a 2005-spec car means that it's likely the latest 2007 & last year's spec Audi A4DTMs could have the edge but everyone in the crowd can rest assured I'll be giving it my best shot."

Carroll drives for the Futurecom TME team as does Vanina Ickx, the daughter of six-time Le Mans 24 Hour race winner Jacky Ickx. Meanwhile Ekström (Sw) and "factory" Audi driver Martin Tomczyk (D) will start the Brands race lying second and fourth respectively in the series after three races.