NEAL NEW LEADER WITH TWO WINS AS MULLER ALSO TASTES VICTORY
Team Halfords’ Matt Neal and Vauxhall’s Yvan Muller were the winners of yesterday’s three Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship races at Brands Hatch, Kent. Neal won the first two races to take the championship lead from Dan Eaves, while Muller tasted victory in the third race – which received live ITV1 coverage – to keep up his chase of the title.
Neal and Eaves arrived at Brands with the heaviest cars, their Honda Integras carrying more success ballast than their rivals due to their top two places in the championship. But that did not stop them qualifying first and second fastest on the starting grid for race one.
Neal led into the first corner and held the position to the chequered flag. But Eaves became trapped behind Muller and in his frustration to get past slid off the track and out of the race. With no points, he thus relinquished the championship lead to Neal.
Muller was later passed for second by VX Racing team-mate Colin Turkington and in the closing stages the Frenchman's Astra Sport Hatch also came under attack from fourth-placed Jason Plato’s SEAT Toledo. SEAT’s James Pickford, although back in ninth, set the race’s fastest lap.
Race two saw Neal, despite carrying maximum ballast, repeat his earlier performance. Again he led off the start line and was still in front when he crossed it 27 laps later at the finish. Plato, the 2001 BTCC champion, came out on top of some dramatic place swapping in the closing stages to finish second but was under pressure from Eaves who, with the aid of the race’s fastest lap, had risen from last on the grid to finish a fine third.
Muller and Turkington finished fourth and fifth, just ahead of Rob Collard in the WSR team’s MG, the latter having held second spot with three laps to go before a big slide lost him momentum. Turkington’s drive to fifth was a highlight after he had spun on lap one in a collision with Collard.
The starting grid order for race three was the result of race two but with the top ten reversed and this meant that in pole position would be Ian Curley – making his BTCC debut at Brands for local Kent-based team HPI Racing with Friends Reunited. In front of the live ITV cameras, though, Curley’s moment of fame was short-lived as his Lexus, in contact with Eaves' Honda, was sent into a spin at the very first bend.
Pickford, from second on the grid, led the opening laps until being overtaken by Muller who held the position to the end for his second win of 2005. Throughout, Muller was under attack from Eaves who needed to overcome a sticking throttle on his Integra. Plato was third with James Kaye, in Synchro Motorsport’s Honda Civic, enjoying by far his best result of the season so far in fourth. Turkington just fended off Neal to finish fifth. Seventh-placed Tom Chilton, in the Arena Motorsports team’s Civic, set the race’s fastest lap.
The three results mean Neal leads Eaves by seven points in the title race as the BTCC now looks forward to its next three races at Oulton Park, Cheshire on 18-19 June. Muller is third and Plato fourth.
Neal, now with four wins to Eaves’ three, said: “It’s been an excellent weekend for the team. To be leading the championship feels great but what has also impressed me has been the performance of the Integra with maximum ballast. It just seems to be competitive no matter what the situation. In the third race, there was a lot of action ahead of me and I just wanted to keep my nose clean. Sixth isn’t ideal but it got me some important points.”
Although he has lost his points lead to Neal, Eaves remained upbeat. Eaves said: “My results today don’t reflect how quick I was. It’s a shame about the throttle sticking in the third race because it meant I couldn’t keep the pressure on Yvan as much as I’d wanted. When I did get close to him in the end he decided to be a very stubborn Frenchman! I was disappointed with what happened in race one, but I bounced back with two podiums. I’m only seven points behind Matt and it’s not now that leading the championship is important.”
Muller knows he will have an opportunity to keep up the pressure on Neal and Eaves at Oulton – the circuit where he won the BTCC title in 2003. “The Hondas are very quick, but my win in race three today will give VX extra confidence. It shows we are going in the right direction with the Astra Sport Hatch which is still a new car to us. I really didn’t think after qualifying we stood a chance here so to win the last race was a really nice surprise.”
Meanwhile, Vauxhall has extended its lead over SEAT in the BTCC’s Manufacturers’ championship to 42 points. The gap between Team Halfords and VX Racing at the top of the Teams’ title race remains at 42 points as both achieved identical scores at Brands Hatch. Neal and Eaves and Team Halfords have opened substantial leads in the Independents Trophy’s championships for drivers and teams respectively.
