Power Maxed TAG Racing were riding the crest of a wave ahead of Rounds 10, 11 and 12 of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park, with Josh Cook just a point off the Drivers’ standings summit and the team leading both the Manufacturers' and Teams' tallies.

Results didn't quite follow for the outfit, though, with ballast always costly around the undulating Cheshire circuit and clear air in qualifying hard to come by.

Cook managed two clear runs and just 20th position – though only 0.8 seconds from pole, such was the competitiveness of the session – while Senna Proctor took up 26th ahead of the opener.

Cook found himself alongside then-standings leader Adam Morgan – damage limitation would be the watchword. He passed the Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport man in race one, finishing 17th and holding station in the championship running. Proctor fought hard before technical issues saw him slip back to a frustrated 28th.

Both drivers started the second encounter well. Contact at turn one, though, had Cook off and into the gravel at Cascades. He rejoined but the damage was done, forcing him into a precautionary pitstop. Conversely, Proctor was able to make good on his start, keeping out of trouble in tight surrounds at Oulton Park as he sliced his way from 28th to 16th.

After a red flag caused a restart in race three, Cook scythed his way through from the back of the pack to 12th place – an indicator as to why he is where he is in the championship running. Proctor's progress was also strong – making up yet more ground to an eventual 12th spot.

Power Maxed TAG Racing finds itself right in the hunt for honours – second in the Manufacturers' championship, third in the Teams' with Cook fifth and Proctor 11th in the Drivers' chase.

“We knew from Thruxton that the weight I’d be carrying into this weekend was going to slow us down," said Cook.

"It’s a shame that we had a component failure during qualifying, but the guys did really well to get me back out for the last two laps.

"I think if I’d had more track time I could’ve bettered my time, but with the company I was in, I was fairly happy with 20th.

"Race three, the car really came alive, and I’m happy with the ground I made up after the restart. On the good side, we bagged some more points and haven’t lost too much in the championship hunt.”

Proctor added: “An electrical fault in the opener caused me to drop back to 28th, but finishing 12th in the last race was a great result for all the team and my sponsors.

"We struggled with the weight around the hilly circuit on Saturday, which made Sunday that bit more difficult. However, I’m now looking forward to my home circuit, Croft, in just two weeks-time.

"It's one of my favourites on the calendar, so I’m really champing at the bit to get back out next weekend and bagging us some more points”

Technical Director Martin Broadhurst added: "Even if a race event doesn’t go our way, we can draw a number of positives from it.

"Every weekend is an opportunity for us to learn and gather information, and the relentless heat and uphill nature of the weekend has given us invaluable data.

"Croft is notoriously a rear wheel drive circuit, but I’m confident that we can make up the points we missed out on at Oulton Park."

Jake Hill held a slender four-point advantage atop Dunlop’s #ForeverForward tally heading to Oulton Park for the fourth meeting of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship campaign and leaving Cheshire, he still holds top spot with Stephen Jelley taking weekend honours.

Oulton is one of the more difficult circuits on the calendar for overtaking, as evidenced by the total pass count topping 200, rather than the 400 we saw over the opening three weekends.

In qualifying, Matt Simpson put in the perfect lap, two-tenths of a second ahead of Sam Tordoff to secure his maiden pole position, with Tom Chilton third.

All three race winners in 2017 used Dunlop’s Option-Soft tyre, and three of the top four went down that route for the opener on Sunday. The only top-four driver on the medium compound tyre, Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher's Chilton, started well – moving beyond stablemate Tordoff at lights out and off after race leader Simpson.

Simpson kept his head down into Knickerbrook and set about sealing his first BTCC win. In the pack, there were notable manoeuvres from Rob Austin on Brett Smith, and a clinical move from Colin Turkington on James Cole which was voted the #ForeverForward fan-favourite in race one.

Simpson kept his cool and completed a dream triple-header; qualifying on pole, securing the fastest lap and scoring a lights-to-flag maiden victory. Chilton held on to second to take his and Motorbase's first rostrum of the season.

Chilton inherited race two pole for Motorbase after Simpson's weekend was brought to a premature end thanks to engine trouble. Clinical and decisive overtaking moves by Turkington saw the champion quickly climb the order – passing Tordoff, Andrew Jordan and Chilton to steal the lead, ahead of a charging Matt Neal on Option rubber. Chilton produced a stellar performance, holding third for the remainder of the race.

Neal looked strong in second but Turkington was a level higher still as he secured an emotional first win of the season. Fans voted Tom Ingram’s move on BTC Norlin Racing’s Chris Smiley as their #ForeverForward overtake of race two, while Rory Butcher made the most ground, claiming 12 places.

Austin was drawn as reverse grid pole-sitter with Rob Collard the only driver in the top three running the Dunlop Option-Soft tyre. As ambient temperatures pushed 27 degrees, things were hotting-up on the grid for the race, and Collard produced a trademark swashbuckling start to steal the lead from Austin. 

A red flag and restart handed Austin another chance but Collard flew off the line once again and into first, with stablemates Jordan and Turkington following Collard through – earning West Surrey Racing and BMW a podium lockout. Fans voted Turkington’s lap six move on James Cole as their #ForeverForward favourite.

Stephen Jelley left Cheshire as top mover with a total of 19 places gained across the three rounds. Race three produced the most overtaking action (119), while Josh Cook made the most ground in one race (15).

Jake Hill, meanwhile, retained top spot in the overall running.

 #ForeverForward – Oulton Park

1.   Stephen JELLEY, 19
2.   Josh COOK, 18
3.   Tom BOARDMAN, 16
4.   Senna PROCTOR, 15
5.   Mike BUSHELL, 15
6.   Sam SMELT, 13
7.   Adam MORGAN, 13
8.   Rory BUTCHER, 12
9.   Jake HILL, 12
10. Colin TURKINGTON, 11

#ForeverForward – Overall Standings

1.   Jake HILL, 70
2.   Tom BOARDMAN, 65
3.   Tom INGRAM, 64
4.   Ollie JACKSON, 61
5.   Senna PROCTOR, 59
6.   Adam MORGAN, 59
7.   Mike BUSHELL, 57
8.   Rory BUTCHER, 53
9.   Josh COOK, 51
10.  Ash SUTTON, 49

Daniel Lloyd battled his way through a tricky return to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at the weekend, with contact in the final round at Oulton Park curtailing his race-day progress.

After inking a late deal with BTC Norlin Racing on Wednesday last week, the Huddersfield driver had to contend with 45 kilograms of late entry ballast aboard his Honda Civic Type R. Driver and team worked hard to find the best set-up for the Yorkshireman and the best solution to manage the additional weight. This effort was rewarded a competitive car, closely-matching his team-mate Chris Smiley on race pace.

Despite the added ballast and with the Honda struggling with a gear cut issue, Lloyd managed to secure a creditable 22nd in qualifying.

“Unfortunately, we picked up a gear cut issue in Free Practice and qualifying so that dropped us back a bit, but the team did a great job to get it sorted for Sunday and the Civic was handling really well,” said Lloyd.

The weekend’s opening race was damage limitation for Lloyd, who raced to 25th at the flag.

“Race one was hard going with the weight and we just lost the brakes at the end,” explained Lloyd. “We had good pace in race two though – it’s just so tough to overtake there, but we managed to stay out of trouble and all things considered, finishing 17th was a great result.”

Free of the weight for race two, the 26-year-old made progress on the narrow circuit, cutting his way cleanly through the pack to claim 17th in the #26 Type R – just outside of the points.

Sadly, a start-line incident in the final race of the day put paid to Lloyd’s progress, with both BTC Norlin Racing Hondas unavoidably caught up in the melee and taken out of the contest with race-ending damage.

“We were really optimistic for the final race as we’d been getting quicker all day and closer to the points so it was such a shame to get caught up in someone else’s incident. I don’t know what caused the crash, someone just came across and into me on the start/finish straight and wiped myself and my team-mate Chris (Smiley) out of the race.”

Next up, it's Lloyd’s home circuit – Croft in North Yorkshire – for Rounds 13, 14 and 15, 22/23 June. Heading into the pivotal mid-season meeting free of any weight, Lloyd is hopeful that he’ll be able to challenge for points to help the BTC Norlin team’s championship campaign – and he's qualified on the front-row there before during his time at Eurotech Racing, again in the Civic Type R.

“I’d like to say a big thanks to Bert [Taylor] for offering me the chance to join the team and also massive thanks to the guys for making me feel so welcome. I really enjoyed working with them all this past weekend.

“I feel like we made some positive changes to the car to fit me better and I’m really looking forward to heading to Croft without the weight on-board, and seeing what we can do."

Thruxton doubles up in fresh look for next season

Series organiser, TOCA, has today (13 June) released the official calendar for the 2019 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

Britain’s biggest motor sport series is in the midst of its 60^th anniversary season and is already in the position of being able to confirm its calendar for next year’s campaign, which most notably will see Rockingham not included, as the possible impending sale of the facility didn’t provide TOCA with sufficient clarity at the time of finalising the calendar.
 
Whilst Brands Hatch will still bookend the season, Thruxton has been rewarded with a second event – adding an August summer visit to its regular May date – with the additional visit to Hampshire replacing Rockingham on the roster.
 
The BTCC is firmly established as the UK’s flagship motor sport series and its highly successful run of ten events will continue, with Croft and Oulton Park changing berths in the order of events – the latter now following on from the trip to North Yorkshire.
 
The 2019 season will commence on 6/7 April on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit, moving on to Donington Park, Thruxton, Croft and Oulton Park. Then it’s time for the traditional summer break prior to the trip to Snetterton, with the second Thruxton weekend taking place before the series heads north of the border to Knockhill in Scotland. Silverstone hosts the penultimate event, ahead of the season finale back in Kent on the legendary Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit.
 
For its 30 rounds, the BTCC selects the most renowned circuits with the best facilities to ensure as many spectators as possible are afforded a special, enthralling trackside experience. Throughout the season, hundreds of thousands of fans experience the action first hand, ensuring the package is the UK’s biggest most alluring motor racing offering. Each of the ten weekends on the calendar comprise three BTCC races of equal distance.
 
ITV4 continues as the BTCC’s long-term broadcast partner and it will broadcast every race-day live, free-to-air and in high definition throughout 2019, with live streaming also available via the ITV Hub. Highlights programmes follow each event and are screened on ITV, ITV4 and on demand via the ITV Hub.

2019 BTCC Calendar:

Rounds          Date                                                    Circuit, County
1,2,3               Sat 6/Sun 7 April                             Brands Hatch (Indy), Kent
4,5,6               Sat 27/Sun 28 April                        Donington Park, Leics
7,8,9               Sat 18/Sun 19 May                         Thruxton, Hampshire
10,11,12        Sat 15/Sun 16 June                        Croft, North Yorkshire
13,14,15        Sat 29/Sun 30 June                        Oulton Park, Cheshire
16,17,18        Sat 3/Sun 4 August                        Snetterton, Norfolk
19,20,21        Sat 17/Sun 18 August                   Thruxton, Hampshire
22,23,24        Sat 14/Sun 15 September            Knockhill, Fife          
25,26,27        Sat 28/Sun 29 September            Silverstone, Northants
28,29,30        Sat 12/Sun 13 October                  Brands Hatch (Grand Prix), Kent

Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher celebrated a double podium and six top ten finishes via Tom Chilton and James Cole as it kickstarted its campaign over Rounds 10, 11 and 12 of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park.

Chilton led the charge for the Motorbase-run outfit, claiming the squad’s first two podiums and a maiden Independent win of the season, with team-mate James Cole delivering a trio of top nine finishes to help propel them up to fourth in the overall Teams’ Standings.

A strong qualifying performance from the duo on Saturday afternoon saw Chilton snatch third in the session’s closing minutes, just 0.332 seconds off pole, with Cole placing a solid eighth.

Chilton stormed to second off the line in the opener and deflected a robust challenge from Andrew Jordan’s fast charging BMW with an excellent defensive drive. He eventually brought the #3 Focus RS home in second for the team’s first podium of the season.

Cole also pulled off a textbook start launching the #20 Focus RS up into sixth on the opening lap. Chasing down Matt Neal’s Honda, the Liverpool-based driver looked set to deliver a strong top six finish before losing out to a brave lunge from Colin Turkington on the penultimate lap which dropped him back to seventh at the flag.

With race one winner Matt Simpson unable to start race two due to engine trouble, Chilton was promoted to pole position. Running on the softer option tyre with 66kg on-board, the 33-year-old had a task on his hands against the lighter competition but another strong showing from the Reigate-based driver was rewarded with third, an Independents' race win and his second rostrum visit of the day.

Also running on the soft compound tyre, Cole battled to hold off the charging pack and after trading places with his Motorbase stablemate Sam Tordoff on lap seven, managed to retain his fifth spot to the flag.

After an initial race three red flag, starting from third and laden with 48kg of ballast, Cole was bested by Jordan’s fast-starting BMW off the line. A hard-fought race followed with the #20 coming under persistent challenges from the lighter pack before contact on the final lap forced Cole onto the grass. He recovered well but dropped back to claim ninth overall.

Chilton’s strong weekend was sealed with seventh in race three. Despite picking up a mechanical issue on the warm-up lap, he served up a steadfast defensive drive. Whilst under pressure, he managed to salvage another credible points haul to complete his best weekend of results so far this season.

As the highest scoring Independent team of the weekend, Oulton Park’s results have launched Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher into fourth place in the overall standings and third in the Independent Teams’ standings.

Chilton has also moved up into eighth place overall and fourth in the Indy Drivers’ tally, with James Cole in 15^th and ninth respectively as the team heads to Croft in North Yorkshire for Rounds 13, 14 and 15 on 23-24 June.

“It’s been a great weekend for Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher," said Team Principal David Bartrum. "We’ve bagged a really good haul of points, which is exactly what we needed to turn our championship challenge around.

"We’ve moved forward in the standings as a team and also with Tom in eighth and James in 14th now. It gives us something solid to go to Croft with and get ourselves into a strong position at the half way point of the season.

“We had the pace again this weekend. Oulton Park can be very difficult with the heat, but I’m very happy to say that we delivered a car that was very competitive. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the performance of the whole team this weekend.”

Tom Chilton added: “This has been the best weekend of the year for me and the team. I’m really happy to get the first podium - not one but two – and an Indy race win as well. We came here 11^th in the standings and leave in eighth so we’re getting a lot closer to where we should be.

“We had a very unusual mechanical issue in race three which caused a few problems and without that I think we could have finished around fourth but we managed to hang on in there and get a good result.

“The team have all worked really hard since Thruxton so it’s great to get some silverware! Roll on Croft.”

Oulton local James Cole said: “It’s been a good weekend, all credit to the car #20 crew.

"I’d have liked to given them a podium but it wasn’t too be. Race three was a frustrating end to the day, going from sixth with a lap to go to ninth, but I can’t really complain with qualifying in the top ten and then following that up with three top ten finishes.

"We’ve come away with a great points haul from the weekend and moved up in the standings. We bounced back from our horror weekend at Thruxton which is what we planned and we can carry this into Croft now in two weeks’ time.

"If we can finish every weekend in the top five or six then eventually we’ll get our podiums and wins.”

Team BMW’s Colin Turkington took a commanding Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race two victory at Oulton Park earlier today (10 June), moving to the standings summit in the process.
 
The two-time BTCC champion immediately dedicated his first win of the season to his late mother, who sadly passed away last week. 
 
The Northern Irishman was also part of an historic 1-2-3 finish for German manufacturer BMW in the final race, as Rob Collard headed home stablemates Andrew Jordan and Turkington.
 
Matt Simpson kicked off a memorable day of racing in Cheshire as he converted his first BTCC pole position into a dominant lights-to-flag victory in the opener.
 
The Honda Civic Type R driver made a steady getaway off the line, as Motorbase duo Sam Tordoff and Tom Chilton swapped positions on the run down to Old Hall Corner for the first time.
 
Whilst Chilton, Tordoff and the Pirtek-backed BMW of Jordan kept Simpson honest throughout the 15-lap contest, it was ultimately only a scrap for second place that was ever on the cards.
 
Chilton held position in second for the entire race but he first had to fend off an attack from the sister Ford Focus RS of Tordoff, and then from Jordan’s BMW 125i M Sport after he had scythed by the Yorkshireman across the start/finish line on lap eight.
 
Jordan’s best chance of dislodging Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher’s Chilton came on lap 12 at the Island Hairpin, as things bunched up at the tightest corner on the track. Former champion Jordan touched the rear of Chilton’s striking yellow machine, but the latter held on, exiting the turn still in charge of the position.
 
There was a brief scare for Simpson in the latter stages with smoke coming from his front left wheel as Chilton closed in, but the Simpson Racing driver wouldn’t be denied what he called a ‘dream come true’ maiden victory.
 
Turkington’s win came next after he made up good ground from the start. He was into second early on, but it was his textbook pass by then-leader Chilton that secured the deal. Chilton’s ballast-laden Ford Focus couldn’t hang on as Turkington fired his BMW 125i M Sport down the inside at Lodge Corner.
 
The BMW star never looked back as he claimed a comfortable win ahead of Halfords Yuasa Racing’s Matt Neal, who also got by Chilton in the second half of the contest. The Motorbase man held on impressively for third, however, as he claimed his second podium of the day.
 
The racing concluded with a sensational 1-2-3 finish for BMW as Collard grabbed his first win of the season ahead of Jordan and Turkington.
 
Collard blasted his Team BMW 1 Series off the line and immediately past pole-sitter Rob Austin in the DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing Alfa Romeo Giulietta. Austin kept the pressure on Collard in the early stages before heartache cost him the chance of a second podium of the season. A broken differential forced Austin into retirement and promoted BMW Pirtek Racing’s Jordan into second.
 
Championship leader Turkington was now up to third after he had made a number of stellar passes, most notably by the Motorbase Ford duo of Chilton and James Cole. WIX Racing with Eurotech star Jack Goff followed Turkington through and eventually claimed fourth place.
 
The fight for fifth was an enthralling one and it went the way of local racer Adam Morgan. The Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport man started the race in 11th place but made early progress in his Mercedes A-Class, and then benefitted from a number of scraps towards the end of the race.
 
Toyota hotshot Tom Ingram and three-time champ Matt Neal went wheel-to-wheel at Druids on lap eight, which allowed Morgan through as the Honda of Neal ran wide and tumbled down the order. Morgan then made his own move by Chilton’s Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher car and the Lancastrian would go on to end a challenging weekend on a high.
 
After the huge crowd left the circuit and the dust settled on another exciting BTCC race day, it was Turkington leading the standings by 12 points from both Morgan and Goff, with Ingram a further nine points in arrears.
 
Team BMW heads the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ standings, whilst Jack Goff and his WIX Racing with Eurotech squad top the Independents’ tables.
 
Ollie Jackson and Mike Bushell shared Jack Sears Trophy honours at Oulton Park, but Honda rookie Dan Cammish is leading that particular contest overall.
 
The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship returns in two weeks’ time (23/24 June) at Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire.
 
Matt Simpson said: “We had mega pace yesterday in Free Practice 2 and qualifying and I would just have been happy to finish this race as it was already a massive achievement from where we’ve come from. I had to get away cleanly into turn one and managed to get there in the lead. I saw Tom (Chilton) looming but I held on – I’m over the moon as it’s a dream come true. It was the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had I think last night after the concentration yesterday. When I saw the smoke coming off the car, I didn’t want to look at my lap board as the minute you start overthinking is when you start to make mistakes. My brakes were fading and I knew I had a bit of a cushion and used that so I didn’t make a silly error.”
 
Colin Turkington said: “Winning always feels good, especially in the BMW. Around here, we’ve found the magic ingredient for race two. I didn’t see it coming. Starting fifth, there are a lot of fast guys out front. My pace in race one was good but it wasn’t winning pace. We’ve improved the car a lot and it merits all the hard work we’ve put into it. I enjoyed being out front and in the groove. I sensed soon on I had a strong car and it was time to strike. I’m over the moon for everybody. I just want to dedicate this one to my mum, who’s not here for the first time. Mum, that was for you.”
 
Rob Collard said: “I’m so pleased with that. We knew we had it in the car yesterday and I didn’t maximise our potential in qualifying. I knew, though, if I was two tenths off the quick guys then it’d be all to play for on race-day. It’s a great feeling to see all three BMWs on the podium. It doesn’t happen very often, so congratulations to BMW – it’s a great achievement. We had a win here last year, and we were right there until that horrible accident at Silverstone, which ruled me out of the championship. I’ve struggled for form since then but any win in the BTCC leaves you walking on water. When I saw the red flag I thought it was just my luck but to then repeat my great start was ideal. I just focussed then on pulling out a gap.”

Micky Butler, Manager, UK and One Brand Motorsport Events, said: “Overall, very pleased. The Option tyre performed as expected, with both compounds running well on a hot track. The drivers said the softer compound gives the feeling of the car coming alive, which creates confidence to charge forward. Again, the Option-Softs won two out of the three races… onwards and upwards to Croft.”  

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 10 – Oulton Park

1 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing 15 laps
2 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +0.265s
3 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +0.630s
4 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase +1.630s
5 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +2.828s
6 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +3.165s
7 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +5.127s
8 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +6.587s
9 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +7.125s
10 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +7.485s

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 11 – Oulton Park

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW 15 laps
2 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +5.372s
3 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +7.800s
4 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +8.598s
5 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +13.121s
6 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +13.347s
7 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +15.304s
8 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +18.205s
9 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +18.308s
10 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +18.493s

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 12 – Oulton Park

1 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW 12 laps
2 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +3.881s
3 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +7.647s
4 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +9.333s
5 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +13.385s
6 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +15.374s
7 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +16.360s
8 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +16.786s
9 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +18.153s
10 Jake HILL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +18.403s

Penalties

Weekend
Adrian Flux Subaru Racing has had 10 points deducted from the Manufacturers' and Teams' Championships having changed an engine above the number permitted

Race 1
Rob Collard received a verbal warning for an incident involving Brett Smith

Colin Turkington received a verbal warning for an incident involving Brett Smith

Race 2
Chris Smiley received a verbal warning for an incident involving Brett Smith

Race 3
Dan Cammish received a verbal warning for an incident involving Ollie Jackson

Jake Hill was penalised by the addition of one second to his overall race time after gaining an unfair advantage in an incident with James Cole. This does not count as a strike

 

German marque BMW scored a sensational 1-2-3 finish in the final Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race at Oulton Park as Rob Collard headed home stablemates Andrew Jordan and Colin Turkington.

Collard blasted his Team BMW 125i M Sport off the line and immediately past pole-sitter Rob Austin in his HMS Racing Alfa Romeo Guilietta. Austin kept Collard honest for much of the contest before heartache cost him the chance of a second podium of the season. A broken differential on the Alfa forced Austin into retirement and promoted BMW Pirtek Racing's Jordan into second.

Championship leader Turkington was now in third after he had made a number of stellar passes, most notably by the Motorbase Ford duo of Tom Chilton and James Cole. WIX Racing with Eurotech star Jack Goff followed Turkington through and would eventually claim fourth place, although ended the bout with a slow puncture and could count himself fortunate to reach the chequered flag. 

The fight for fifth was an enthralling one and eventually went the way of local man Adam Morgan. The Ciceley Motorsport man started the race in 11th place but made early progress in his Mercedes A-Class, and then benefitted from a number of scraps towards the end of the race.

Toyota hotshot Tom Ingram and Matt Neal got into eachother at Druids on lap eight, which allowed Morgan through whist the recovering Honda of Neal tumbled down the order. Morgan then made his own move by Chilton's Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher car and the Lancastrian would go on to end a challenging weekend on a high.

Ingram grabbed sixth ahead of Chilton, whilst Mike Bushell and Jake Hill secured some much needed respite for Team HARD in eighth and ninth respectively. The VW CCs has progressed in terms of pace throughout the weekend and Bushell would be further rewarded by sharing the Jack Sears Trophy with Ollie Jackson.

James Cole completed a good day for Kent-based Motorbase by taking tenth in front of his home fans. The Liverpudlian was muscled down the order in this one but a trio of top ten finishes proved to be a productive day for the BTCC race winner.

The race was originally red flagged when a huge accident off the line sent Chris Smiley, Tom Oliphant, Daniel Lloyd and Rory Butcher immediately into retirement. All drivers involved were unharmed in the crash, with the delayed race being run over a reduced distance of 12 laps.

Rob Collard said: "I’m so pleased with that. We knew we had it in the car yesterday and I didn’t maximise our potential in qualifying. I knew, though, if I was two tenths off the quick guys then it’d be all to play for on race-day. It’s a great feeling to see all three BMWs on the podium. It doesn’t happen very often, so congratulations to BMW – it’s a great achievement. We had a win here last year, and we were right there until that horrible accident at Silverstone which ruled me out of the championship. I’ve struggled for form since then but any win in the BTCC leaves you walking on water. When I saw the red flag I thought it was just my luck but to then repeat my great start was ideal. I just focussed then on pulling out a gap."

Andrew Jordan said: "That was a cracking result for the team, West Surrey Racing and BMW. To get a 1-2-3 with the championship as strong as it is now is a great achievement and it’s capped a very good day for us. A second, third and fourth for me has got to be up there around Colin (Turkington) for top points-scorer of the weekend. Croft should favour us. I scored my first ever touring car win there and my first car win full-stop there – so hopefully we’ll be on for a first win of the year."

Colin Turkington said: "It feels great to be top of the pile. It’s been such a strong weekend for Team BMW. It’s only normally Croft where we can match this kind of result but all three West Surrey Racing cars were in the groove, so it’s a big pat on the back for the guys behind the scenes doing all the engineering. We’ve got the easy job bar the heat! It’s a nice thought leading the championship into Croft but we go there with a heavy car. We hope we’ll be able to get a few more points in the bag. I think we’ve all earned a cool beverage today!"

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 12 – Oulton Park

1 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW 12 laps
2 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +3.881s
3 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +7.647s
4 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +9.333s
5 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +13.385s
6 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +15.374s
7 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +16.360s
8 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +16.786s
9 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +18.153s
10 Jake HILL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +18.403s
11 Josh COOK (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +18.910s
12 Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +18.974s
13 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +19.206s
14 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +19.559s
15 Tom BOARDMAN (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +21.584s
16 Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +21.944s
17 Sam SMELT (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +25.031s
18 Brett SMITH (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +26.111s
19 Michael CAINE (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +41.924s
20 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +42.622s
21 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +1m21.197s
22 Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1 lap
23 Josh PRICE (GBR) Autoglym Academy Racing +3 laps
24 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +3 laps
25 Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +8 laps
26 Rory BUTCHER (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +12 laps
27 Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Ciceley Motorsport +12 laps
28 Chris SMILEY (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +12 laps
29 Dan LLOYD (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +12 laps
DNS Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase
DNS Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing
DNS Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars

Team BMW's Colin Turkington took a commanding race two victory at Oulton Park and immediately dedicated the win to his mother, who passed away last week.

The two-time BTCC champion had been looming ominously in the overall standings coming into the Oulton Park weekend and now the Northern Irishman has hit the top after his latest superb success, his first victory of the 2018 season.

"Winning always feels good, especially in the BMW," said Turkington. "Around here, we’ve found the magic ingredient for race two. I didn’t see it coming. Starting fifth, there’s a lot of fast guys out front. My pace in race one was good but it wasn’t winning pace.

"We’ve improved the car a lot and it merits all the hard work we’ve put into it. I enjoyed being out front and in the groove. I sensed soon on I had a strong car and it was time to strike. I’m over the moon for everybody.

"I just want to dedicate this one to my mum, who’s not here for the first time. Mum, that was for you."

Turkington made up places from the start and was into second early on, but it was his textbook pass by then leader Tom Chilton that secured the deal. Chilton's ballast-laden Team Shredded Wheat with Gallagher Ford Focus couldn't hang on as Turkington fired his BMW 125i M Sport down the inside at Lodge Corner.

The BMW star never looked back as he claimed a comfortable win ahead of Halfords Yuasa Racing's Matt Neal, who also got by Chilton in the second half of the contest. Chilton held on impressively for third, however, as he claimed his second podium of the day.

There was drama from the off further down the field as the Honda of Dan Cammish bounced across the grass and collected Aiden Moffat's Laser Tools Racing Mercedes when it returned to the track. In a separate incident the WIX Racing with Eurotech Honda of Brett Smith slid wildly across the track at Island Bend, thankfully avoiding all oncoming traffic.

When the dust settled it was BMW Pirtek Racing's Andrew Jordan that was the best of the rest in fourth, whilst James Cole hugely impressed in fifth place.

Rob Collard produced a very Rob Collard performance with a number of eye-catching moves, none more so than his last gasp pass by Rob Austin going into turn one. The HMS Racing Alfa Romeo of Austin held on for seventh, and with it pole position in the reversed grid race draw.

Jack Goff grabbed eighth ahead of the squabbling duo of Ollie Jackson and Tom Ingram. AmD man Jackson had earlier got the better of Speedworks Motorsport's Ingram when snatching a place at the finish line in race one, and the likeable Audi driver repeated the trick in the second bout to take ninth by less than two tenths of a second.

Just 16 points separate the top six drivers in the overall standings with Turkington holding an eight point advantage over Adam Morgan at the championship summit. With one final race to come at Oulton Park, it's likely that the title picture will take yet another twist later this afternoon.

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 11 – Oulton Park

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW 15 laps
2 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +5.372s
3 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +7.800s
4 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +8.598s
5 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +13.121s
6 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +13.347s
7 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +15.304s
8 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +18.205s
9 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +18.308s
10 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +18.493s
11 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +18.582s
12 Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +18.922s
13 Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Ciceley Motorsport +19.497s
14 Rory BUTCHER (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +19.798s
15 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +21.984s
16 Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +22.438s
17 Dan LLOYD (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +23.292s
18 Chris SMILEY (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +24.115s
19 Brett SMITH (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +24.959s
20 Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +25.854s
21 Jake HILL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +27.549s
22 Michael CAINE (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +30.056s
23 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +34.586s
24 Josh PRICE (GBR) Autoglym Academy Racing +38.931s
25 Tom BOARDMAN (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +39.965s
26 Josh COOK (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +2 laps
27 Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +2 laps
28 Sam SMELT (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +3 laps
29 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase +5 laps
30 Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +13 laps
31 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +14 laps
DNS Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing

Pole-sitter Matt Simpson produced a dominant lights-to-flag performance in the opening Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race at Oulton Park, securing his first ever victory in the UK's toughest motorsport series.

The Honda Civic Type R driver made a steady getaway off the line, as Motorbase stablemates Sam Tordoff and Tom Chilton swapped positions on the run down to Old Hall Corner for the first time.

Whilst Chilton, Tordoff and the Pirtek-backed BMW of Andrew Jordan kept Simpson honest throughout the 15-lap contest, it was ultimately only a scrap for second place that was ever on the cards.

Chilton held position in second during the entire race but he first had to fend off an attack from Tordoff's sister Ford Focus RS, and then from Jordan's BMW 125i M Sport after he had scythed by Tordoff across the start/finish line on lap eight.

Jordan's best chance of dislodging Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher's Chilton came on lap 12 at the Island Hairpin, as things bunched up at the tightest corner on the track. 2013 champion Jordan touched the rear of Chilton's striking yellow machine, but the latter held on, exiting the turn still in command of the position.

There was a brief scare for Simpson in the latter stages with smoke coming from his front left wheel as Chilton closed in, but the Simpson Racing driver wouldn't be denied what he called a 'dream come true' victory.

"We had mega pace yesterday in Free Practice 2 and qualifying and I would just have been happy to finish this race as it was already a massive achievement from where we’ve come from," said Simpson. "I had to get away cleanly into turn one and managed to get there in the lead. I saw Tom (Chilton) looming but I held on – I’m over the moon as it's a dream come true.

"It was the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had I think last night after the concentration yesterday. When I saw the smoke coming off the car, I didn’t want to look at my lap board as the minute you start overthinking is when you start to make mistakes. My brakes were fading and I knew I had a bit of a cushion and used that so I didn’t make a silly error. Who knows where I’ll go from here? Watch this space!"

Chilton was equally delighted with his first podium of the season, "I gave it a good go," he said. "I was aware I was on the medium and not the more ideal soft tyre but I knew I’d be better at the end as a result. I was trying to save the brakes but went for a big push at the end and I could see that smoke coming off his car. I went for the dummy up the inside to flick left on the exit of the last corner and hopefully get him over the line.

"It was his first win and I’m very happy for him. It’s our first podium this year and I’m so pleased to have got it. I held Andrew (Jordan) off too, he was scrapping hard – it was a dream result for us as a team really."

Matt Neal started fifth and ended in the same position as the Halfords Yuasa Racing man experienced a rather lonely race, whilst Team BMW's Colin Turkington surged to a sixth place finish. Turkington made eye-catching passes by both WIX Racing with Eurotech Hondas with his final manoeuvre relegating James Cole's Ford down to seventh.

Turkington was the fastest car on the circuit in the closing laps, whilst Cole held on to seventh from Jack Goff's Honda – ensuring that all three Motorbase cars were at the sharp end of the final classification.

Rob Collard's BMW and Rob Austin's Audi muscled their way by Eurotech's Brett Smith to round out the top ten positions.

The championship top two – Adam Morgan and Josh Cook – failed to score a point in their ballast-laden machines, whilst third placed Tom Ingram could only manage a solitary point after he was beaten to the line by the AmD Audi of Ollie Jackson.

2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 10 – Oulton Park

1 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Simpson Racing 15 laps
2 Tom CHILTON (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +0.265s
3 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) BMW Pirtek Racing +0.630s
4 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team GardX Racing with Motorbase +1.630s
5 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +2.828s
6 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +3.165s
7 James COLE (GBR) Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Gallagher +5.127s
8 Jack GOFF (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +6.587s
9 Rob COLLARD (GBR) Team BMW +7.125s
10 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) DUO Motorsport with HMS Racing +7.485s
11 Brett SMITH (GBR) WIX Racing with Eurotech +16.644s
12 Chris SMILEY (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +16.831s
13 Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +17.035s
14 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +17.375s
15 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +17.423s
16 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +17.545s
17 Josh COOK (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +18.138s
18 Adam MORGAN (GBR) Mac Tools with Ciceley Motorsport +18.884s
19 Mike BUSHELL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +19.618s
20 Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Ciceley Motorsport +20.197s
21 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +20.554s
22 Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +20.633s
23 Jake HILL (GBR) Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing +22.934s
24 Tom BOARDMAN (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +27.475s
25 Dan LLOYD (GBR) BTC Norlin Racing +27.937s
26 Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +28.173s
27 Rory BUTCHER (GBR) AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing +28.342s
28 Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Power Maxed TAG Racing +28.777s
29 Michael CAINE (GBR) Team HARD with Trade Price Cars +32.235s
30 Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux Subaru Racing +32.779s
31 Sam SMELT (GBR) AmD with Cobra Exhausts +33.643s
32 Josh PRICE (GBR) Autoglym Academy Racing +7 laps