Btcc 2018 At Thruxton

This year, the MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) celebrates its 60th anniversary. The lastly number took house at Thruxton on the weekend of the 19th-20th of May, and our manager Jude went along to accept inwards some of the action!

Thruxton held its outset BTCC race dorsum inwards 1968, as well as with xi corners over 2.36 miles, this rail sees the highest average speed of whatsoever circuit visited past times the BTCC. 2018 saw novel records ready for the circuit, with Matt Neal setting a novel fastest qualifying lap with a fourth dimension of 1min 15.612s (112.17mph), as well as Tom Ingram setting a novel fastest race lap with a fourth dimension of 1min 17.060s (110.06mph) – beating Yvan Muller's 2002 longest standing lap tape recorded on the BTCC calendar.

Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport's Adam Morgan moved to the summit of the BTCC standings with victory inwards the lastly race inwards front end of a tape crowd, next on from points scoring finishes inwards the outset 2 bouts inwards Hampshire.

Matt Neal claimed the early on bragging rights equally he converted pole seat into a race win, before Josh Cook scored his 2nd victory inwards equally many meetings with victory inwards the adjacent contest. Halford Yuasa Racing's Neal produced a commanding lights-to-flag surgical physical care for inwards the opening race, later on seeing off race-long pressure level from squad BMW's Colin Tarkington.

Despite the flavour thence far largely beingness dominated past times a number of immature drivers, it was the multiple BTCC champion duo of Neal as well as Turkington that fought dorsum at the UK's fastest circuit. Neal took a first pole seat for the all-new Honda Civic Type R during qualifying on Saturday, as well as he duly converted that payoff into a 62nd career victory. Turkington pulled his BMW 125i thou Sport with the Honda off the line, but Neal hung inwards at the Complex equally all 32-cars made it through for the outset time. Turkington kept Neal honest throughout the 16-lap duration, but their positions remained the same until the finish.

The Team GardX Racing with Motorbase Ford Focus of Sam Tordoff hounded downwards Dan Commish's Honda for the lastly house on the podium, but the latter fended off every advance, as well as grabbed the 2nd outright rostrum of his debut season. Power Maxed TAG Racing's Cook thence followed upward his recent Donington Park success with some other stellar display at the Hampshire speedbowl.

Pole-sitter Neal couldn't hang on off-the-line equally Turkington's BMW blasted ahead of the Honda Civic Type R on the run downwards to the Complex. Commish's Honda bogged downwards at the start, which allowed Tordoff's Ford Focus as well as Andrew Jordan's Pirtek Racing BMW past times inwards a tussle for third.

Progress was shortly beingness made behind, however, equally the Power Maxed TAG Racing duo of Cook as well as Senna Procter slipped past times Team Shredded Wheat with Gallagher's Tom Chilton. Procter's advances were halted at that signal but teammate Cook was on a accuse equally he saw off Tordoff as well as Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan inwards quick succession.

Cook's Astra thence surged roughly the exterior of Neal's Honda at the lastly chicane as well as past times lap 10 the local hero was challenging for the lead. The instant of truth came at the terminate of the adjacent tour equally the Bath driver pulled an most identical movement on Turkington's BMW 125i thou Sport.

Team GardX Racing with Motorbase's Tordoff held onto 4th from Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan as well as Procter. Morgan's 2nd win of the flavour came inwards dominate fashion equally he commanded the lastly race from start-to-finish inwards his Mercedes-Benz A-Class. The Lancastrian driver got a proficient getaway from pole seat as well as he was able to defend good from an early on ready on from the Vauxhall Astra of Procter.

Morgan's project was made slightly to a greater extent than comfortable when a charging Jack Goff hauled his Honda onto the dorsum of Procter's Astra, as well as a squabble for 2nd ensued. Goff made his movement stick on Procter inwards the lastly 3rd of the contest, but it was also belatedly to construct whatsoever inroads into Morgan's advantage. The 29-year-old took the chequered flag as well as with it the Pb inwards the overall driver's standings.

Tordoff completed a corporation solar daytime for Team GardX Racing with Motorbase past times taking fourth, whilst squad BMW's Turkington fired himself dorsum into entitle contestation with some other hap v finish, next on from his double podium before inwards the day.

Morgan leads the standings past times only a signal from Cook, with previous entitle leader Tom Ingram a farther 10 points inwards arrears. Speed plant Motorsports' Ingram endured a challenging solar daytime later on a non-finish inwards the opener, but the Toyota star provided some reveal with a 7th house as well as a brand-new lap tape inwards the finale.