Team BMW's Rob Collard topped Dunlop's #ForeverForward honours at Croft this past weekend with 18 positions gained in typically swashbuckling style. Tom Boardman, meanwhile, rose to the top of the overall running.
Adrian Flux Subaru Racing duo, reigning champion Ash Sutton and stablemate Jason Plato, locked out the front row in qualifying – the former producing a carbon copy of his 2017 performance. Andrew Jordan qualified third – right in the mix in the BMW Pirtek Racing 1 Series, with Sam Tordoff, Tom Ingram and Colin Turkington next on the grid.
Sutton elected to run Dunlop’s Sport Maxx Option-Hard tyre in the opening race, as he looked to pull off a repeat performance of his charge in 2017. Plato and Jordan both started on the Primes, with Ingram also electing to run the Option-Hard.
After an early safety car, track action was relatively subdued until lap 11 when Plato rounded Jordan on the outside at turn one and made it stick at turn three to complete Subaru's one-two.
Elsewhere on the grid, AmD Tuning with Cobra Exhausts' Sam Smelt gained seven positions on the Option-Hard, while fans voted Plato’s overtake on Jordan as the #ForeverForward favourite.
Race two fired into life with a stunning double-pass from Speedworks' Tom Ingram seeing him sweep past both Subarus at Clervaux and into take the lead.
A ballast-laden Sutton eventually stole back the position, though, while team-mate Plato served a drive-through penalty for a jump-start. Impressively, he did manage to climb from the back of the grid to 14th position come the chequered flag.
Rob Austin scythed through the pack, gaining 17 positions, Aidan Moffat and Stephen Jelley made up 11 spots. Fans voted Matt Neal’s lap 14 overtake on Senna Proctor as their #ForeverForward pick.
BTC Norlin Racing’s Dan Lloyd started on pole for the reverse grid race three, and went on to produce a lights-to-flag victory for the first time in his BTCC career.
Sutton made a move on Matt Neal on lap eight at the Hairpin, only for Neal to return the favour into Clervaux, with Sutton ending up in the gravel and losing ground. Renowned race-day specialist Collard gained 17 positions – a total of 18 across the weekend – while Josh Cook overcame race two adversity to gain 14 positions.
#ForeverForward – Croft
1. Rob COLLARD, 18
2. Rob AUSTIN, 17
– Adam MORGAN, 17
4. Josh COOK, 16
5. Stephen JELLEY, 15
6. Tom CHILTON, 13
– Tom BOARDMAN, 13
8. Matt SIMPSON, 12
– Bobby THOMPSON, 12
10. Aiden MOFFAT, 11
– Chris SMILEY, 11
#ForeverForward – Overall Standings
1. Tom BOARDMAN, 78
2. Adam MORGAN, 76
3. Jake HILL, 74
4. Josh COOK, 67
– Tom INGRAM, 67
6. Ollie JACKSON, 66
7. Senna PROCTOR, 65
8. Rob AUSTIN, 62
9. Stephen JELLEY, 60
10. Rob COLLARD, 58
