Title race intensifies

Vauxhall’s Fabrizio Giovanardi and SEAT’s Jason Plato (Oxford) again shared the victories in yesterday’s three Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship rounds at Thruxton in Hampshire – the fastest track on the BTCC calendar. Just as at Rockingham a fortnight ago, Giovanardi won twice and he has now slashed the gap to championship leader Plato from 18 points to just nine as the BTCC prepares for its next meeting, at the Croft circuit in North Yorkshire on 3 June.

Plato’s victory in today’s third, his 36th in the BTCC, moves him into second equal on the championship’s all-time winners’ chart with former team-mates Alain Menu and Yvan Muller. But just as in 2001 when he beat Frenchman Muller to the title, Plato, himself one of the world’s top touring car drivers, knows that a second crown will again require him to eclipse another class act, this time Italian ace Giovanardi.

Plato said: “I’m actually quite pleased with my results today – a second, a sixth from the back of the field and a win on what we know is a circuit that is better suited to the Vauxhalls. Our SEAT Leon will be a stronger at Croft which is a twistier circuit, but Fabrizio is a class act and this is turning into one heck of a fight. It’s noticeable that Finals Day will be here at Thruxton in October – it would be nice to have the title sewn up before then…”

Giovanardi, with seven Italian, Spanish and European touring car titles to his name, is confident of his chances. He added: “Jason and I both now have four wins this season and if I hadn’t had a bad couple of opening rounds at Brands Hatch I would probably be in front. But as a team we are performing superbly at the moment and I’m really pleased with the development of the Vectra. We have it working well with or without success ballast through the corners, on the straights, on a single qualifying lap and over a long race distance. But we have to keep pushing because everyone will have made more improvements for Croft.”

Giovanardi and team-mate Tom Chilton (Reigate) who took three strong finishes today have helped Vauxhall extend its lead over SEAT in the Manufacturers’ championship. Similarly, Vauxhall’s VX Racing squad has moved further ahead of SEAT Sport UK in the Teams’ standings. Meanwhile, Mike Jordan (Sutton Coldfield), who came close to victory today in his Eurotech/John Guest-Speedfit Honda Integra, was twice the top-scoring privateer to move to the head of the Independents drivers’ table. BMW outfit Team RAC is now the leading Independent team.

BTCC points after Thruxton, rds7, 8 & 9 (provisional):

Drivers:1. Jason PLATO,  107 points2. Fabrizio GIOVANARDI, 983. Tom CHILTON, 684. Matt NEAL, 665. Colin TURKINGTON, 446. Darren TURNER, 407. Mike JORDAN, 388. Mat JACKSON, 359. Tom ONSLOW-COLE, 3410. Gordon SHEDDEN, 32

Manufacturers:1. Vauxhall, 209 points2. SEAT, 164

Teams: 1. VX Racing, 158 points2. SEAT Sport UK, 1393. Team Halfords, 964. Team RAC, 765. Eurotech/John Guest-Speedfit, 386. Jacksons MSport, 34

Race reports…

Round 7, 16 laps (37.696 miles)Weather/Track: Overcast/Dry

GIOVANARDI TAKES CLEAR VICTORYStarting from his first BTCC pole position, Giovanardi took advantage of his rivals’ fighting behind to achieve his third win in four races. But the Italian was fortunate as he explained: “In the final five laps my car’s water temperature was really high and as soon as I crossed the line I pulled off the circuit. I don’t know if I could have completed another lap.”

On a circuit notoriously tough on tyres, Plato, even in a car laden with maximum success ballast, used his experienced to come through from seventh on the grid and then pass his team-mate Darren Turner and Jordan on the final lap to take the runners-up spot. Jordan, having fought through from fifth to second, was being cruelly slowed by a punctured tyre and dropped to tenth by the finish.

Turner took third ahead of Colin Turkington’s Team RAC BMW 320si E90, reigning champion Matt Neal’s Team Halfords Honda Civic and Chilton who, while lying second early on, set the race’s fastest lap before fading with tyre wear problems.

The Motorbase SEAT Toledo of Matt Allison was a career-best equalling seventh, while Jason Hughes, although out of the race, drove a strong race from near the back of the 24-car grid to finish 12th in his bio-ethanol-powered Kartworld MG ZS. Notably, Mat Jackson’s Jacksons MSport BMW 320si E90 and Gordon Shedden’s Team Halfords Honda retired on the opening lap with accident damage after colliding together.

Result:1. Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, 21m41.754s2. Jason Plato (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, +4.358s3. Darren Turner (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, +4.972sFASTEST LAP: Tom Chilton (GBR), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, 1m19.106s (107.20mph)

Round 8, 18 laps (42.408 miles)Weather/Track: Sunny/Dry

GIOVANARDI MAKES IT A DOUBLEGiovanardi, his car carrying maximum success ballast, made it two wins out of two races to move within a point of championship leader Plato who finished a recovering sixth after serving a drive-through penalty in the pit lane.

The opening stages were led by a fast-starting Turkington before Giovanardi burst past into first position. Giovanardi looked to be safe, but in the closing stages he came under pressure from a fast-closing Neal who had overtaken Chilton for second.

Jordan made up for his race one disappointment in fourth, followed by a fading Turkington and Plato. The latter’s penalty, due to a grid rules infringement, dropped him to last position, but after making up several places a safety car period then enabled him to get within striking distance of the mid-field bunch.

The safety car was required following a spectacular, high-speed accident at the chicane involving Turner, Allison and his team-mate Gareth Howell as they fought for fourth place. Allison’s and Turner’s cars crunched into the barriers and Howell, who would retire later with damage to his SEAT, was later fined and had penalty points put on his competition licence for his part in the incident.

Result:1. Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, 25m41.800s2. Matt Neal (GBR), Team Halfords/Honda Civic, +0.285s3. Tom Chilton (GBR), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, +4.357sFASTEST LAP: Giovanardi, 1m19.791s (106.26mph)

Round 9, 16 laps (37.696 miles)Weather/Track: Overcast/Dry

PLATO REDRESSES THE BALANCEDrawn to start from pole position after finishing a points-scoring tenth in race two was Luton Town football club chairman Dave Pinkney in his A-Tech team’s Alfa Romeo 156 and for the first five laps the 50-year-old led. But as his car started to suffer from worsening tyre wear – he would eventually fade to a distant 13th – Plato was able to sweep by for a vital victory.

Shedden, a winner at Thruxton in 2006, and the spirited Jordan finished second and third for their first podium results this season. Jordan’s result moved him to the top of the Independents drivers’ standings, his task made easier by previous leader Jackson’s failure to score in any of the three races.

Fourth, again with a fully-ballasted car and having started back in tenth, was the sensational Giovanardi. Neal and Turner, the latter up from 20th after his race two crash, completed the top six. Of note, Hughes took a fine ninth having also achieved the position in race two.

Result:1. Jason Plato (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, 21m45.119s2. Gordon Shedden (GBR), Team Halfords/Honda Civic, +1.413s3. Mike Jordan (GBR), Eurotech-John Guest-Speedfit/Honda Integra, +4.966sFASTEST LAP: Plato, 1m19.690s (106.42mph)