Following a remarkable opening trio of encounters at Brands Hatch, the second event on the 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship calendar proved a more than worthy sequel with three more captivating races at Donington Park. It was Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing's Jake Hill that made the most passes on a thrilling race weekend.
Rain prevented teams from utilising the Dunlop SportMaxx prime or option hard tyres during Saturday’s running, creating a level playing field on a green track for Sunday’s races.
Following BTCC organisers' objectives for Dunlop to create a 0.8-1.0 second delta between the option and prime tyres, a range of strategies came into play over the three races, treating fans to gripping drives throughout the field.
With only six drivers opting for the harder compound in the opening race, it provided the perfect opportunity for those who had not qualified as expected to make their way through the field. Both Jake Hill and Rob Collard made their way to the sharp end of the grid, overtaking 14 cars apiece. Upfront, Josh Cook continued his dream weekend, converting his maiden pole to his first ever BTCC win.
The second race of the day proved to be a valuable recovery drive for the Motorbase team. With problems in the first race for both Sam Tordoff and Tom Chilton, the pair carved their way through the field to gain 20 and 18 places respectively. The Mercedes-Benz of Adam Morgan also recovered from earlier incidents to finish fifth, which would prove pivotal for the final race of the day. After electing to run the hard compound tyre in the opening race to limit the damage of carrying success ballast, championship leaders Tom Ingram and Jack Goff decisively made their way onto the podium. The pair made the most of the medium compound while others were still bringing the harder compound tyre up to temperature in the cold conditions.
Fourteen drivers ran the harder compound in the final race of the day, which saw Morgan and Aiden Moffat utilise the prime tyre to their advantage to finish first and third respectively, while Josh Cook took his second podium of the day. Following an engine change after the second race, James Nash rewarded his team’s hard efforts by gaining 20 positions from the final spot on the grid to come home in 12th.
A number of drivers will have wished they could have run the hard compound for more than one race, with Ollie Jackson gaining 13 places, Matt Simpson (11 places), Colin Turkington and Rob Austin (10 places), throwing a spanner in the works for those that thought the prime was the only competitive tyre at Donington Park.
#ForeverForward – Donington Park
#ForeverForward – Overall
