The countdown has begun: there are now less than two weeks to run before the UK’s most popular motor racing series, the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), headlines at the South-East’s premier motor sport venue of Brands Hatch on Sunday 24 September. The event, being broadcast live on national television, will host the penultimate three rounds of this year’s BTCC and could see Matt Neal crowned the 2006 Champion.
Brands Hatch, in Kent, is always a favourite fixture on the BTCC calendar – the circuit’s short lay-out surrounded by high spectator banks enables those watching to see virtually the whole lap. The BTCC also delivers the UK’s most exciting motor racing and is geared towards entertaining the public. And with race day admission free for those aged 12 and under and just £20 for adults booking in advance, a bumper Brands crowd is expected.
Booking a ticket is easy – www.btcc.net homepage or brandshatch.co.uk or call the hot line 0870 950 9000. Prices include access into the Pit Lane at lunchtime on race day when the public can meet the drivers for plenty of give-aways during a special autograph session.
It was at Brands in April that the 2006 BTCC got under way. Reigning champion Neal’s title defence got off to a dreadful start when his Team Halfords Honda crashed at high-speed at the notorious Paddock Hill Bend corner but he will return to Brands now holding a commanding 53-point lead over nearest challenger Colin Turkington.
If Neal maintains that advantage he will have provisionally won the most prestigious title in UK motor sport.
A second consecutive title would also put him in the history books as the first driver for 20 years to successfully defend his crown. Neal would also become the first driver in the BTCC’s two-litre era, established in 1991, to win two championships in a row.
But Team RAC MG driver Turkington and third-placed Jason Plato, in SEAT’s striking Leon, will not give up the chase easily. Plato won at Brands in April in a clean sweep of victories for the SEAT team and Turkington was also twice on the podium ahead of Neal.
BTCC Series Director Alan Gow says: "This is crunch time in the BTCC and I cannot think of a more dramatic venue to bring the title race at such a crucial stage. Matt has everything to lose and Colin and Jason have everything to go for.
"Matt more than anybody knows how quickly fortunes can change so I’m sure he will be taking a risk-free approach. There are a dozen or so other driver-car combinations out there easily capable of taking points away from him. Furthermore, we anticipate one of our largest grids for a long time, all racing around on what is a very tight and action-packed lap. It is going to be an intriguing contest at one of the UK’s great sporting venues."
In addition to the BTCC’s three rounds, there will be nine supporting races for the crowds to enjoy, including: Porsche Carrera Cup, Renault Clio Cup, Formula Renault, SEAT Cupra and Historic Touring Cars
