Croft Race Three: Jason Plato takes the win in a flame fuelled third race

Jason Plato has won the final Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race of the day at Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire, bringing Honda’s dominance of the weekend so far to an end. Tom Onslow-Cole drove well to finish in second, with Andrew Jordan closely following behind rounding off the podium finishing positions.

     Nick Foster was chosen to start on pole position from the reverse grid draw, ahead of KX Momentum Racing driver Andy Neate in the MG6 – who was looking to have a good race to bring home strong results.
     Nick Foster made a strong start off the line, as did all three eBay Motors BMWs, with Rob Collard and Tom Onslow-Cole moving up the order. Tony Gilham had a spin in his Team HARD Honda, which left him in the gravel at turn one and the safety car called out on track. At the restart, Foster pulled out ahead of Andy Neate and the battling BMWs of Rob Collard and Tom Onslow-Cole.
     Having started in fourth, Jason Plato was down to sixth, whilst Rob Austin was battling with the two Hondas of Gordon Shedden and Matt Neal, with Shedden making a move of the inside of Tower to take Austin for ninth.
     Although Neate was getting closer to Foster in his MG6, the eBay Motors driver was doing a good job to keep Neate at bay, however couldn’t hold on for long, as Neate jumped into the lead at Tower followed closely by Fosters team mate Rob Collard who took advantage of this manoeuvre by Neate.
     With Mat Jackson up into seventeenth having started down at the back of the field, it was his Redstone Racing team mate Liam Griffin causing a stir on track. Contact between Griffin and the BINZ Racing Vectra of Lea Wood saw them both have heavy impacts with the safety barriers at Tower. With fuel still running through the battered Focus, the front end of the car caught fire. Liam was out of the car in no time – and both drivers were unharmed in the incident – whist marshals were quickly on scene and had the fire out in no time at all. Naturally, the safety car was called out to clear the scene, and also to repair the barriers before racing recommenced.

Not in the game plan: Liam Griffin and Lea Wood escape this fiery encounter unharmed.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

A lengthy safety car period came to end on lap twelve, and it would be a seven lap sprint to the end of the race. Andy Neate made another good restart, and got on the gas, whilst team mate Plato was up alongside Frank Wrathall on the start finish straight. The two Honda Racing boys Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden were lying seventh and ninth respectively, the Civic of Shedden possibly struggling with the maximum ballast from his race two win. Wrathall then goes wide at Tower due to the track surface still being a little slippery after the early incident. This led to the Dynojet driver losing places as a result, with Plato now tackling a feisty Collard – who was now sitting in a MG sandwich – for second. A lock-up from Collard saw Plato take the position, who was now holding a KX Momentum 1-2 with five laps remaining.
     Whilst Shedden was fighting at the bottom end of the top ten with pole sitter Nick Foster, Aron Smith came into the Redstone Racing pits to retire his Ford Focus, with team mate Mat Jackson now up into twelfth.
     Despite running so well throughout the duration of the race, Andy Neate went wide at the chicane, allowing Plato to get up close and personal with the MG6’s gearbox, before finally making his move at Tower to take the lead of the race, with Tom Onslow-Cole in the eBay BMW also taking advantage to get into second. A whole gaggle of cars battle through the chicane, with Andrew Jordan coming through the pack to take third place. Rob Austin was running well in the top ten with the BMW of Nick Foster.
     Andy Neate went wide again at Tower on the following lap, this time unable to hold on to his position – and lost a number of places down the field. Chris James was out of the race after a double whammy of contact with Ollie Jackson heading onto the final lap. A less chaotic final lap saw Jason Plato take the chequered flag ahead of Tom Onslow-Cole in the eBay BMW and Andrew Jordan, who had a great drive in the Pirtek Racing Honda Civic. Andy Neate ended up ninth having led the race early on, whilst Dan Welch also drove well to finish in the top ten.
     Paul O’Neill finally had some luck in the Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis, and finished in a point scoring thirteenth place on his return to the championship.

O'Neill overcame technical gremlins to get his first points scoring position of the weekend.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

One point now separates the two Honda drivers Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden in the standings, as the championship heads into the seven week summer break. It’s all to play for in the second half of the season – you won’t want to miss it.

Final Results:

1) Jason Plato

2) Tom Onslow-Cole

3) Andrew Jordan

4) Matt Neal

5) Rob Collard

6) Gordon Shedden

7) Rob Austin

8) Nick Foster

9) Andy Neate

10) Dan Welch

11) Jeff Smith

12) Mat Jackson

13) Paul O'Neill

14) Adam Morgan

15) Frank Wrathall

Fastest Lap: Jason Plato - Lap 6 - 1:26:026

Croft Race Two: Shedden leads a Honda 1-2 in the second race of the day

Gordon Shedden has won the second Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race of the day, holding off from his team mate Matt Neal, making it another Honda 1-2. Rob Austin drove to the limits and beyond to achieve his first podium of the season, finishing the race in third. Mat Jackson didn’t start the race after his team had not yet finished installing another engine to his Redstone Racing Ford Focus.

     Rob Collard led the way at the start from Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden, whilst behind them; Rob Austin in the Audi A4 was up into fourth, whilst Tom Onslow-Cole had a moment into the first corner resulting in a slight spin.
     It wasn’t long before Matt Neal retook his lead, with team mate Shedden following suit to take second place. Andrew Jordan was lying in fourth behind Collard, but looked to be eyeing up the place going into the second lap.
     Midfield, Lea Wood and Will Bratt were battling for position, whilst Adam Morgan was in the pits due to a problem with his Toyota Avensis. Andrew Jordan soon took third from the eBay Motors BMW – the NGTC Honda Civic looking quick on the Croft Circuit.
     Gordon Shedden was looking racy in second – the Scot was looking to take the lead from his team mate to take his Honda Racing Civic to the top step of the podium for the first time today – and soon took the lead of the race.
     Contact between Aron Smith and Nick Foster left Dan Welch taking advantage, making up track position after his race one dilemmas. Jason Plato, who was running in this race having not been able to start race one, was running down the pack, and hadn’t yet entered the points finishing points. With twelve laps left to run, could Plato turn this race to his advantage?
     Paul O’Neill was running well again in race two, and was no in eleventh ahead of Will Bratt in the second RAR Audi, whilst team mate Rob Austin was fighting with eBay Motors’ driver Rob Collard on the start finish straight. Another move on Lea Wood through the chicane saw O’Neill move up into tenth, but ended up pulling off the side of the track after yet another problem in the Speedworks Toyota.
     Will Bratt, who was running well in the top fifteen, skated off the track at the complex due to a puncture, whilst Aron Smith also suffered from car failure and ended his race at Hawthorne.
     Whilst Tony Gilham was going wide coming out of the final hairpin, Jason Plato had made up four places in one lap to put him into seventh place and into the points having started from the back of the pack. Neate followed his team mate in ninth, with the Toyota of Frank Wrathall splitting the two MGs with just over five laps remaining.
     Dan Welch was running well in the Proton to hold off from Nick Foster in the BMW, however couldn’t take on the eBay Motors driver’s speed over the start finish straight, whilst a battle was breaking out between eBay team mate Rob Collard and Tony Gilham for tenth.
     Andrew Jordan, who was having another quiet race, seemed to be struggling with his Pirtek Racing Honda, as Rob Austin was closing in with his Audi A4. Ducking and diving for position, Austin took third over the start-finish straight on the second to last lap, whilst the two BMWs of Rob Collard and Tom Onslow-Cole were now battling with Andrew Jordan for position.
     Nothing could stop Gordon Shedden’s and Honda in their domination of Croft, as he crossed the line to take his first win of the day. Matt Neal, who’d been suffering from a misfire and then a oil pressure warning light, came over the line in second, but was told by the team to park the car on track soon after. A feisty drive from Rob Austin sees him score his first podium of the year – a much deserved result for the privateer team, who have had their fair share of bad luck throughout the season.

Austin took the RAR Audi to it's first podium of the season.
Photo Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Gordon Shedden leads the championship to Matt Neal with just two points separating the two Honda drivers, whilst Jason Plato – despite finishing this race in the points – was now lying forty points down in third.

Shedden increases his championship lead with a win at Croft.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Gordon Shedden

2) Matt Neal

3) Rob Austin

4) Andrew Jordan

5) Rob Collard

6) Tom Onslow-Cole

7) Jason Plato

8) Frank Wrathall

9) Andy Neate

10) Nick Foster

11) Tony Gilham

12) Dave Newsham

13) Jeff Smith

14) Liam Griffin

15) Ollie Jackson

Fastest Lap: Andrew Jordan - Lap 3 - 1:26:098

Croft Circuit: Race One - Matt Neal wins a chaotic race one at Croft

Matt Neal has won the first Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race of the day at Croft Circuit after a somewhat chaotic start to the day. Neal hung on from Rob Collard and team mate Gordon Shedden to take his fourth win of the 2012 season.

     Jason Plato, who stopped out on track during the end of qualifying yesterday, again stopped his KX Momentum MG on track whilst making his way to the grid. The MG was returned to the pits, and the Triple Eight team tried to find the issue.
     The start of the race saw Andrew Jordan make a fantastic start off the line, however couldn’t hold on to Shedden’s start, as the Scot went into the lead ahead of Jordan and team mate Neal – making it a Honda 1-2-3  going into the first lap.
     Further down the field, slight contact between Dan Welch and Dave Newsham, saw the ES racing Vectra hit the start-finish start wall hard – with Nick Foster in the eBay Motors BMW also becoming tangled up in the incident. The safety car was called out whilst the track was cleared.

Newsham retired early on in the race - the ES Vectra suffering heavy damage from the start-line incident.
Photo Credit: Anthony Keenan.

After a lengthy safety car period, the race was restarted on lap five. With Gordon Shedden leading, it was Matt Neal in the second Honda Yuasa Racing Civic in third, and was battling to keep the position from fourth place man Rob Collard as they headed through the chicane.
     Redstone Racing driver Liam Griffin was issued with a drive through penalty, whilst the third eBay Motors BMW of Tom Onslow-Cole was having a great on track battle with MG’s Andy Neate, who was having his most successful race of the year so far.
     Matt Neal was starting to close on the Pirtek Racing Honda of Andrew Jordan, who gets pushed wide by Neal at the final hairpin. Neal takes the place, and Rob Collard takes advantage of this manoeuvre to take third.
     One lap later and Tom Onslow-Cole makes a similar move at the hairpin on Mat Jackson’s Redstone Racing Ford, whilst behind them, Frank Wrathall has a bit of a moment and ends up on the grass.
     Adam Morgan was rejoining the field, having had to pay a visit to the pits after getting on the grass and blocking up his radiator. Having made the move on Jackson, Tom Onslow-Cole spins at Tower and loses a lot of places. Race leader Gordon Shedden was now falling into the clutches of Matt Neal, with Rob Collard sticking to the back of the two Hondas in his eBay BMW.
     On his return to the British Touring Car Championship, Paul O’Neill had had a great start to his race and was up into tenth position on track – however soon stopped out on turn one with another issue with the Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis. Rob Austin was also running well in his RAR Audi A4, and was battling with Aron Smith for seventh place.
     Frank Wrathall was running well, despite his early excursion, and was running in tenth position, whilst down at the complex, Pirtek Racing’s Jeff Smith had a spin and had a big impact with the safety barrier. Honda team mates Neal and Shedden were still fighting with each other for the lead of the race; however Rob Collard was not giving up his chances of a top step podium.
     With Jason Plato out of the race, it was up to Andy Neate to bring home a strong finish for the Triple Eight team, and he wasn’t disappointing – he was up into fifth position and running well.
     Matt Neal made a feisty move on Shedden for the lead, with Collard yet again taking advantage, leaving Shedden in third after the Jim Clark Esses. Tom Onslow-Cole was up into eighth position after his early spin at Tower cost him dearly. Although running well, Andy Neate couldn’t hold on to his fifth place, and soon lost out to Rob Austin at the final hairpin, who took the position in the Audi. RAR team mate Will Bratt was also having a fantastic race, and was up into tenth having started twenty-first.
     Four laps left to run, and Frank Wrathall was off again in his Dynojet Toyota – forcing him to retire - whilst the top three were separated by less than a second heading into the final stages. Tony Gilham was now under pressure from the AmD Tuning VW Golf of Ollie Jackson, who was closing on the HARD Honda for eleventh. The Redstone Racing boys were also running well. Griffin was in the points in fifteenth after his early drive through penalty, Aron Smith was up in ninth and Mat Jackson seventh, although had lost some ground early on the race to the leaders.
     Back to the leaders, and Rob Collard was really pushing hard for the race win, and was 0.6 seconds behind Matt Neal with two laps left to go – a two car race for the finish looked set to be on the cards.
     Rob Collard couldn’t quite get past the Honda, as Matt Neal crossed the line to take his fourth race win of the season to Rob Collard and team mate Gordon Shedden in third – with Andrew Jordan having a quiet race after the start to finish fourth. A great first race for the Rob Austin Racing team saw both of their cars finish in the top ten, finishing fifth and ninth respectively. Andy Neate also had his best race of the season, finishing in sixth ahead of Tom Onslow-Cole – who finished the race with significant damage to his eBay BMW. Aron Smith had a moment on the final lap, which saw him take a trip across the gravel. He recovered from this to finish in tenth.
    Paul O’Neill and Nick Foster finished a lap down from the rest of the field, after their race dilemmas.

Winning streak: Matt Neal continued the success from Oulton Park to take his fourth win of the season.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Matt Neal

2) Rob Collard

3) Gordon Shedden

4) Andrew Jordan

5) Rob Austin

6) Andy Neate

7) Tom Onslow-Cole

8) Mat Jackson

9) Will Bratt

10) Aron Smith

11) Ollie Jackson

12) Tony Gilham

13) Lea Wood

14) Liam Griffin

15) Adam Morgan

Fastest Lap: Tom Onslow-Cole - Lap 6 - 1:25:927

Qualifying Update: Matt Neal takes pole position at Croft

Matt Neal has taken pole position for the first Dunlop MSA British Touring Car race of the day at Croft Circuit. The action gets underway at 11:30am on ITV4 with round thirteen starting at midday. Here is the line up for race one...

1) Matt Neal

2) Andrew Jordan

3) Gordon Shedden

4) Frank Wrathall

5) Jason Plato

6) Rob Collard

7) Rob Austin

8) Mat Jackson

9) Andy Neate

10) Tom Onslow-Cole

11) Adam Morgan

12) Jeff Smith

13) Aron Smith

14) Dan Welch

15) Dave Newsham

16) Nick Foster

17) Lea Wood

18) Paul O'Neill

19) Tony Gilham

20) Ollie Jackson

21) Will Bratt

22) Liam Griffin

23) Chris James

Fans favourite O'Neill to drive at Croft

It was announced this morning, that Paul O'Neill will race alongside Adam Morgan in the Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis at Croft in two weeks time.
     O'Neill - who last raced in the British Touring Car Championship back in October - will take to the wheel of Tony Hughes' car for the weekend. Having recently been working with ITV4 and their coverage of the championship, the weekend's unfoldings will be seen my avid viewers in the weeks to come.
     A proven race winner within the championship, Paul will be looking to race the Toyota up in the midfield, with the goal of getting into the top ten.
     With the new NGTC regulations, plus a turbo engine, this experience will be a learning curve for O'Neill, but will, as ever, be pushing as hard as possible for some good results.

Tony Hughes' Speedworks Toyota Avensis in action last weekend at Oulton Park.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Oulton Park - Race Three: Honda rule the roost at Oulton Park in a dramatic final race

Honda Racing proved to be unbeatable this weekend, as Matt Neal makes it a double win i the final Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race of the day at Oulton Park. The reverse grid, selected by Coronation Street actor Tony Hurst, saw Tom Onslow-Cole start from pole position ahead of Redstone Racing’s Liam Griffin.

     The two eBay Motors BMWs of Onslow-Cole and Rob Collard both made good starts, whilst a tangle between Adam Morgan and Will Bratt saw Adam with no windscreen, and the likes of Andy Neate and Jeff Smith all spinning whilst trying to avoid the incident.
    Whilst Mat Jackson battled with Tony Gilham’s Team HARD Honda, a fight was breaking out between Neal, Plato and Foster for third place.
     Whilst Andrew Jordan was struggling with damage to the front of his Pirtek Honda, it was Redstone Racing’s Liam Griffin who was causing a stir on track. An spin at Druids saw him spear off the track and hit the wall heavily, creating significant damage to the front. Meanwhile team mate Mat Jackson was also causing a storm, as slight contact during a move on Dan Welch, saw the Proton too go off the circuit.
     Naturally, a safety car was deployed to clear the track of debris. The lead that Tom Onslow-Cole had developed in the opening laps in his BMW would result for nothing once the restart got underway. Dave Newsham wasn’t having a weekend to remember as he entered the pits. He would retire his ES Racing Vectra a few laps later.
     The restart was set for lap ten, but before the racing fired up again, Triple Eight’s Andy Neate was in the pits yet again with engine issues, and was forced to retire the car. Tom Onslow-Cole made yet another good start once the safety car was in, whilst a nudge between Rob Collard and Andrew Jordan led to Pirtek racing driver hitting the tyres and out of the race immediately. His frustrations were clear for all to see as he walked back to the pits. This incident brought the safety car out for a second time, whilst Ollie Jackson and Aron Smith had tangled down at Island. Jackson was able to restart his AmDtuning.co.uk VW Golf, whereas Aron Smith’s Ford had too much damage to continue.
     Despite losing his windscreen in his earlier shunt, Adam Morgan was still running in his Speedworks Toyota. The race was restarted on lap thirteen, with Onslow-Cole still holding his lead to Matt Neal and Jason Plato. Despite Neal gaining the lead at Island, the race for the eBay Motors star was not over yet.
     Lea Wood was running strongly in fifth position, with Jason Plato making a feisty move on Tom Onslow-Cole out of lodge for second place. Championship leader Gordon Shedden was too closing in on Onslow-Cole for third. Running wide at Cascades didn’t hamper Mat Jackson’s performance, as he took eighth from HARD man Tony Gilham.
     Adam Morgan and Will Bratt came together again on lap sixteen, as Bratt’s RAR Audi looked to drive up the side of Morgan’s Toyota. This proved too much for Morgan and he retired the car at the end of that lap.
     Jason Plato was starting to pile the pressure on Matt Neal for the lead of the race going into the penultimate lap, whilst Tom Onslow-Cole was not giving up any hopes of a possible victory from third, despite being hounded by Scotsman Shedden in fourth.
     But it was Matt Neal who took his second win of the day, as Plato heads up Tom Onslow-Cole and Shedden for second. The top three were covered by no less than nine tenths of a second coming across the finish line. Lea Wood achieved his best BTCC career finish of fifth, with Will Bratt recovering well to finish eleventh for Rob Austin Racing.
     Gordon Shedden will now go to onto Croft leading the championship with 173 points, with his team mate Matt Neal creeping up behind in second, whilst Plato lies in third with 161 points. In the Independent standings, Andrew Jordan leads the way to Rob Collard with 164 points. After his unfortunate weekend, Mat Jackson now lies in third with 153 points.

Can you spot what's not right with Adam Morgan's Toyota?
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Matt Neal

2) Jason Plato

3) Tom Onslow-Cole

4) Gordon Shedden

5) Lea Wood

6) Rob Collard

7) Mat Jackson

8) Nick Foster

9) Frank Wrathall

10) Tony Gilham

11) Will Bratt

12) Jeff Smith

13) Chris James

14) Tony Hughes

15) Ollie Jackson

Fastest lap - Tom Onslow-Cole - Lap 16 - 1:27:878

Oulton Park - Race Two: Shedden maxes out at Oulton as Plato storms through the field

Honda Yuasa made it two out of two at Oulton Park for round eleven of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. Gordon Shedden held off Andrew Jordan to take the win, whilst Jason Plato – who started the race at the back of the grid amid his race one suspension issue – drove a storming race to finish on the podium.

     Rob Collard made a mighty start, and soon made places on both Andrew Jordan and Matt Neal to take the lead. Mat Jackson also took advantage of his good start to get into second place behind the eBay BMW. Gordon Shedden soon took fourth place from Andrew Jordan and was soon pressuring team mate Neal for third.
     With Collard still leading, eBay team mate was running down in eleventh after his race one incidents forced him out of the race. Dan Welch’s Proton was now starting to put pressure on the Honda of Matt Neal, whilst Will Bratt, who was running eighth, crashed out at Knickerbrook and was out of the race.
     Whilst Mat Jackson was closing in on Rob Collard for the lead of the race, Wrathall’s Toyota was battling with Andy Neate’s MG for eleventh – with team mate Plato was up into twelfth by lap five. Having taken the place away from Wrathall, the Toyota ended up going across the grass. This affected his intercooler – and scuppered his race. Speedworks driver Adam Morgan had to retire early on in the race, after a heavy spin at Cascades cost him a second points finish.
     Mat Jackson was starting to look very racy in his Redstone Racing Ford behind the BMW of Rob Collard, whilst heartache for Andy Neate saw him have to retire his KX Momentum MG with engine issues. Contact between Rob Collard and Mat Jackson handed first and second place to Shedden and Jordan, whilst both cars suffered from punctures which put them way down the field. This incident allowed Dan Welch to get into third position – could the Proton be heading for its first ever podium finish?
     Jason Plato was on a charge, and had soon taken rival Matt Neal for fourth place, and was now on a mission to relieve Welch of his third position. With Shedden still leading to Andrew Jordan, Welch was doing well to maintain a gap between himself and the MG. Welch was seven seconds of the lead pair heading into the final few laps of the race.
     As team mate Adam Morgan was forced to retire, Tony Hughes was running well in twelfth, and looked set for a second consecutive points finish in his Toyota Avensis. eBay Motors’ Nick Foster was also having a good jostle with Lea Wood for sixth.
     Despite a valiant effort to maintain the gap between himself and Jason Plato, Welch ran wide coming out of Lodge, which allowed Jason to pass the Proton coming across the start/finish line.
     The Honda domination continued in the second race of the day, as Gordon Shedden took his fifth win of the 2012 season – extending his lead of the championship in the process. Andrew Jordan finished on the podium again in second place, whilst Jason Plato drove from the back to a third place finish. Rob Collard recovered from the earlier incident with Mat Jackson to finish fourteenth, whilst Mat Jackson - who wasn't having a birthday to remember - had to retire his Ford a handful of laps from the end.
     Dan Welch brought the Proton home in an amazing fourth place ahead of Matt Neal’s Honda Civic – resulting in the team’s best ever BTCC finish. Liam Griffin shone for Redstone Racing, with his best ever finish of eighth, whilst Lea Wood equalled his best finish from Oulton Park 2011 with seventh.

Pirtek Racing's Andrew Jordan drove to his second consecutive podium of the day.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Gordon Shedden

2) Andrew Jordan

3) Jason Plato

4) Dan Welch

5) Matt Neal

6) Nick Foster

7) Lea Wood

8) Liam Griffin

9) Tom Onslow-Cole

10) Dave Newsham

11) Tony Gilham

12) Tony Hughes

13) Chris James

14) Rob Collard

15) Ollie Jackson

Fastest Lap - Gordon Shedden - Lap 4 - 1:27:690

Oulton Park - Race One: Matt Neal soars to victory for Honda Yuasa Racing

Matt Neal has taken the first win of the day at Oulton Park in Cheshire for the return of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

     The dramas began even before the lights had gone out, as Jason Plato’s KX Momentum Racing MG was wheeled off the grid due to a component failure. Coming into Oulton Park leading the championship, this was a huge blow to Plato’s charge for the title.
     Rob Collard in the eBay Motors BMW made a demon start from the second row to take the lead ahead of Matt Neal and Andrew Jordan who lay in third. Birthday boy Mat Jackson, who’d had a torrid Saturday during free practice and qualifying, was battling with Team ES Racing driver Dave Newsham through Cascades for seventh.
     Having jostled through the first lap, Tom Onslow-Cole in the second eBay Motors BMW re-took fourth place from the NGTC Honda Civic of Gordon Shedden, whilst Collard still led to Neal and Jordan.
     Down the bottom end of the field, Chris James looked to be having trouble with his ES Racing Vauxhall Vectra, whilst Mat Jackson was getting closer to the back of the Toyota Avensis of Frank Wrathall heading into Lodge. A drag race between the two saw Jackson have to give Frank room heading into the first corner, resulting in giving up the position. This action also saw Dan Welch getting closer to the pair.
     Matt Neal soon made a classic move on Collard to take the lead of the race, whilst third place man Andrew Jordan was looking racy in his Pirtek Racing NGTC Civic.
     The lone Triple Eight MG of Andy Neate was running well, and was dicing midfield with Aron Smith’s Redstone Racing Ford Focus. A big moment at Cascades for Jeff Smith saw him throw a lot of mud onto the track, but remained on course albeit a few places down.
     An overheating issue saw Tony Gilham’s Team HARD Honda prematurely retire from the race, whilst the drama was heating up at the front of the pack for second place. With Jordan reeling Rob Collard’s BMW in with every corner, a small tap from Jordan saw Rob suffer from some over-steer, leaving the path clear for the Pirtek racer to take the position.
     Questions were being asked of Gordon Shedden’s performance during the race. Although the Scot was sitting in a strong fifth place, he had made no considerable ground upon fourth place man Tom Onslow-Cole. Was the success ballast from Thruxton hurting the Honda?
     Dave Newsham had off at Lodge, which saw him dive straight into the pits, whilst Jeff Smith in the second Pirtek Honda Civic was also in for repairs. Andy Neate was still battling hard on track, this time for tenth with eBay Motors’ Nick Foster, who was having a strong weekend so far at Oulton Park.
     For team mate Tom Onslow-Cole, lap nine of the fifteen lap race saw drama, as his BMW speared off the track at Cascades, leaving him stuck in the water-logged grass. This incident moved Shedden up to fourth as the safety car was deployed.
     A lengthy safety car period was extended, as Liam Griffin’s Redstone Racing Ford Focus had stopped out on track. Jason Plato made an appearance on track as a test session in his KX Momentum MG.
     Matt Neal retained his lead to Andrew Jordan on the re-start, with Rob Collard still clinging on to his third place, whilst Dan Welch was still running well in the Proton in sixth. Will Bratt, Rob Austin Racing’s newest recruit, was also running in a strong thirteenth place, and was fighting Herefordshire racer Lea Wood for twelfth.
     Pirtek’s Jordan was not giving up a fight for the win, however, and was getting closer and closer to the back of Neal’s Civic in the final stages of the race. Team ES boss Chris James was running down in fifteenth place, however serious bodywork damage was hampering his Vauxhall’s performance. Contact between eBay driver Nick Foster and Aron Smith’s Ford Focus saw a handful of drivers, including Andy Neate and Frank Wrathall, take a trip across the grass. The main victim of this was Aron himself, who pulled off the track with a right rear puncture as a result from the contact.
     No longer had Wrathall maintained his position on track, the man who got on the podium at Thruxton was in the pits with an overheating issue with his Dynojet Toyota, whilst Tom Onslow-Cole, having got back on track after his earlier excursion, was off again at Cascades coming into the final lap.
     With Andrew Jordan pushing Matt Neal hard for the lead, it was Adam Morgan in trouble, as his Speedworks Toyota Avensis ended up in the tyre after a slight tap from Foster’s BMW. Chris James was also in the tyres, as a high speed incident at Druids brought his race to an abrupt end.
     But it was Matt Neal who took the chequered flag, closely followed by Andrew Jordan’s identical Pirtek Civic and Rob Collard – who took his first podium since winning back at Brands Hatch. Andy Neate finished in a strong seventh place for the Triple Eight Racing team, whilst there was smiles all round at Rob Austin Racing, with Will Bratt bringing the Audi A4 home in eighth. Dan Welch also performed well, finishing in sixth behind the Ford Focus of Mat Jackson.

Matt Neal puts his stamp on Oulton Park in the first race of the day.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Matt Neal

2) Andrew Jordan

3) Rob Collard

4) Gordon Shedden

5) Mat Jackson

6) Dan Welch

7) Andy Neate

8) Will Bratt

9) Nick Foster

10) Lea Wood

11) Ollie Jackson

12) Frank Wrathall

13) Tony Hughes

14) Adam Morgan

15) Chris James


Fastest Lap - Andrew Jordan - Lap 2 - 1:28:207

Qualifying: Pole position for Plato in an exciting qualifying session at Oulton Park

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship roared back into life today at Oulton Park in Cheshire with the season getting back under way after a six week break. Thorney Motorsport will not take part in this weekend’s action due to continuing engine issues, and Rob Austin will also be sitting out Oulton Park due to extensive damage from Thruxton. Single seater star Will Bratt will be taking the reins of the second Audi A4 for this coming weekend. 

     The morning’s free practice sessions brought drama, when Mat Jackson, Andy Neate and Ollie Jackson all had hefty incidents which left a lot of work to do on their cars over the lunch break.
     The first person to set a fast time during the half an hour qualifying session was Tom Onslow-Cole in the eBay Motors BMW – which is sporting a Best of British “Touring Cars” livery this weekend – with eBay team mates Rob Collard and Nick Foster followed closely behind.
     In the early stages of the session, the majority of drivers were in the pits changing tyres after a trial lap before heading out again to start setting some quick times. Rob Collard briefly took the provisional pole, however quick laps from both Pirtek’s Andrew Jordan and the Honda of Gordon Shedden saw him drop to third.
      Jason Plato was next up to top the time sheets, whilst Dave Newsham in the Team ES Racing.com Vauxhall Vectra currently lay in sixth, with team mate Chris James down in fifteenth.
     After only ten minutes of track action, fast times were being set left, right and centre from the drivers. Jordan now led from Collard and Neal, with the Proton of Dan Welch in a strong tenth place. Honda Racing’s Matt Neal took over the times sheets with a 1.27.424, with his team mate Gordon Shedden now lying in second.
     Frank Wrathall’s number 11 Toyota Avensis was currently in sixteenth place, whilst the Speedworks Motorsport Avensis of Adam Morgan was sitting pretty in seventh.
      The Redstone Racing team had done a huge amount of work over the lunch break to get Mat Jackson’s car back out on track for qualifying after his free practice shunt earlier on in the day. The incident didn’t dampen Jackson’s spirits however, as his first flying lap of the session put him in fifth place. Team mate Aron Smith was also running well in seventh, with Liam Griffin in seventeenth.
     Lea Wood was also running well in the session, getting his Vauxhall Vectra up into a solid sixth place, having set the fastest third sector of the session so far. Jason Plato, who was sitting in the top ten, seemed to be having mechanical issues, as his Triple Eight run MG looked to be smoking from the bonnet on track. The issue didn’t seem to affect Plato’s momentum however, as he soon improved his lap time to go fifth.
      Cascades still appeared to be causing some problems for drivers on track. Jeff Smith was the first to make a half slide on the slippy surface, with Nick Foster’s BMW and the Ford Focus of Aron Smith also having moments.
     With ten minutes of the session remaining, no major improvements of lap times were being made, with Neal still topping the times ahead of team mate Shedden and the identical Honda Civic of Andrew Jordan in third. Could Honda Domination be on the cards as the session entered its final stages?
      Andy Neate in the second KX Momentum MG was running down in fourteenth place with the end of the session looming. The Triple Eight team had done a superb job in getting the car back out for qualifying after a heavy incident during the second free practice session.
     Rob Collard was now in fourth, with team mate Onslow-Cole in fifth. After his moment at Cascades, Nick Foster was down in sixteenth place, and looking to make improvements. Meanwhile at the top of the table, Matt Neal dramatically improved his time to a 1.26.949 – a new Oulton Park lap record!
     With the clock ticking, lap improvements were being made throughout the field, with Frank Wrathall jumping into sixth, and Tom Onslow-Cole, who after a flying lap came through the third with a handful of minutes remaining. Dan Welch was now in a career best qualifying position of eighth, with Nick Foster also improving to eleventh.
     Jason Plato stormed through to second place with just one minute to go; however, he and Rob Collard were both on their final attempt at knocking the Honda of Matt Neal off the top spot.
     A mighty drive from Plato saw him clinch pole position with a stunning lap time of 1.26.872 – beating Matt Neal’s lap record time a little earlier on. Matt Neal will start from second place on the grid, whilst another bold drive from Rob Collard sees him starting in third.
     Problems with the Ford Focus saw Mat Jackson only manage one flying lap during the session, but this time was still good enough for tenth on the grid for tomorrow’s opening race. Will Bratt, who is stepping from single seaters into touring cars for the first time this weekend with Rob Austin Racing, finished his first BTCC qualifying session in eighteenth place.
     Team ES Racing boss Chris James had an incident on track during the final stages of qualifying, which sees him start tomorrow’s first race from twenty-first. Tony Hughes also had an incident on track – the Speedworks Motorsport driver starting from the back of the pack.

A flawless drive from Plato sees him start Race One at Oulton Park on the front row.
Picture Credit: Anthony Keenan.

Final Results:

1) Jason Plato 1.26.872

2) Matt Neal
3) Rob Collard

4) Andrew Jordan

5) Gordon Shedden

6) Tom Onslow-Cole

7) Frank Wrathall

8) Dan Welch

9) Dave Newsham

10) Mat Jackson

11) Aron Smith

12) Andy Neate

13) Nick Foster

14) Lea Wood

15) Liam Griffin

16) Adam Morgan

17) Tony Gilham

18) Will Bratt

19) Jeff Smith

20) Ollie Jackson

21) Chris James

22) Tony Hughes