WINS FOR GIOVANARDI & TURKINGTON AT BRANDS HATCH - TITLE RACE ON KNIFE EDGEFabrizio Giovanardi won twice and Colin Turkington once in today’s three Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship rounds at the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent. Crucially, Italian Giovanardi’s two wins have helped him slash the gap to championship leader Jason Plato down to just four points as the race for Britain’s premier motor racing title next heads to the Knockhill circuit in Fife for its penultimate three rounds on Sunday 2 September.

Vauxhall driver Giovanardi finished all three of today’s races in front of Plato, following up his victories in races one and two with a fourth place in race three. Plato finished both races one and two in second and was fifth in race three.

Plato, looking for a second BTCC title to add to the one he won in 2001, said: “It should have been a great weekend, but it’s not been all bad. A few things didn’t go our way today and Fabrizio got a few breaks, but we’re still leading this thing. Sure, he’s closed up, but I’d rather have a four-point advantage than be four points behind. Knockhill will be a real crunch meeting, though. We need to start beating him again but with the SEAT and the Vauxhall so evenly-matched on just about every type of circuit we seem to visit it’s going to be another very hard day in the office.”

Giovanardi, who now has eight wins this season to Plato’s six, added: “The two wins today were perfect – for me, for my team and for the championship. Consider we were 25 points behind six races ago, we have had a great run of results and we must keep the pressure up on Jason. But he is a very clever driver – everywhere I finish, he is right behind, making sure I don’t take away too many points from him. I think we both have great respect for each other. It’s going to be very close and will probably go right to the final lap of the season.”

Meanwhile, Vauxhall has extended its lead over current title-holder SEAT in the Manufacturers’ Championship. In the Teams’ standings, its VX Racing outfit has also closed to within seven points of SEAT Sport UK at the top of the table. Mat Jackson has taken over the lead of the Independents Drivers’ championship – although the youngster left the circuit requiring medical treatment after his car filled with exhaust fumes in race three. Team RAC has further stretched its Independents Teams’ championship lead and is in a strong position to provisionally clinch that title at Knockhill.

BTCC points after Brands Hatch, rds22, 23 & 24 (provisional):

Drivers:

1. Jason PLATO, 239 points

2. Fabrizio GIOVANARDI, 235

3. Gordon SHEDDEN, 161

4. Matt NEAL, 154

5. Colin TURKINGTON, 142

6. Mat JACKSON, 1297. Darren TURNER, 118

8. Tom CHILTON, 115

9. Mike JORDAN, 109

10. Tom ONSLOW-COLE, 106

Manufacturers:

1. Vauxhall, 522 points

2. SEAT, 484

Teams:

1. SEAT Sport UK, 342

2. VX Racing, 335

3. Team Halfords, 300

4. Team RAC, 230

5. Jacksons MSport, 127

6. Eurotech/John Guest-Speedfit, 105

Race reports…

Round 22, 22 laps (26.3692 miles)

Weather/Track: Overcast/Wet

GIOVANARDI WINS, TURKINGTON SPINS

In difficult wet conditions Giovanardi took victory after Turkington, who had led from pole position in his Team RAC BMW, spun away first position while under pressure from the Vauxhall driver. Plato and SEAT team-mate Darren Turner, who had initially challenged Turkington for the lead until running wide off the track, finished second and third.

Turkington recovered to make up several places and finish fourth ahead of team-mate Tom Onslow-Cole and Vauxhall’s Tom Chilton.

A fine eighth on his return to the series was Irishman Gavin Smith in GR-Asia’s SEAT Leon, while an ecstatic tenth, achieving his first BTCC points finish, was Turkish driver Erkut Kizilirmak in Arkas Racing’s Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch.

Notably, the race had to be stopped and later restarted following a dramatic 11-car pile-up on the opening lap which eliminated reigning champion Matt Neal’s Team Halfords Honda Civic and Dave Pinkney’s Alfa Romeo 156. Both drivers required medical treatment for whiplash injuries. The incident was triggered when Jackson spun his Jacksons MSport BMW at the first corner across the bows of the 24-car field. He was later fined £1,000 and had his competition licence endorsed.

Result:

1. Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, 20m00.886s2. Jason Plato (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, +3.119s3. Darren Turner (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, +4.108sFASTEST LAP: Turner, 53.401s (80.80mph)

Round 23, 27 laps (32.3622 miles)

Weather/Track: Overcast/Damp

NO STOPPING GIOVANARDI

In a race that depended heavily on the right choice of tyres on a damp but drying track surface, Giovanardi was left to ‘cruise’ to his eighth win of 2007 after his chief rivals hit problems on the opening lap, chiefly Plato who spun off the track in a collision with Chilton but still managed to work his way back through the field to finish second.

Third was Team Halfords Honda driver Gordon Shedden. Jackson, Jordan in his Eurotech/John Guest-Speedfit Honda Integra and Adam Jones’ Team Air Cool SEAT Toledo completed the top six, the latter having run third until a clash with Shedden in the closing stages put him off the track.

Ninth, with the race’s fastest lap time, was Turkington, but he finished a lap down after making a pit stop for repairs to damage to his car caused in a start line collision with team-mate Onslow-Cole and Turner who both retired from the race.

Following his race one joy, Kizilirmak added a second BTCC point to his name with another tenth place finish.

Result:

1. Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra, 26m08.333s2. Jason Plato (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon, +9.271s3. Gordon Shedden (GBR), Team Halfords/Honda Civic, +13.319sFASTEST LAP: Turkington, 50.268s (85.84mph)

Round 24, 27 laps (32.3622 miles)

Weather/Track: Overcast/Dry

TURKINGTON A CLEAR WINNER

After his race one and two troubles, it finally came good for Turkington in race three. Jordan and Giovanardi led initially, but the pair tangled and, together, span wildly across the circuit in front of the BMW driver. In what will stand as one of the season’s most dramatic images, Turkington somehow drove his car between them and into first position.

Jackson pressured him but, mid-race, with fumes from his car’s exhaust system – damaged in that race one pile-up – leaking into the cockpit, he started to drop back and ultimately surrendered second to Shedden. Jackson, unable to take the podium, would later require medical treatment for the effects of smoke inhalation.

Giovanardi recovered to finish fourth – although was later fined £500 and had his licence endorsed for the earlier incident with Jordan who trailed home a wounded eighth. Fifth was Plato who, in the closing stages, made up three places in one move as Jones, Onslow-Cole and Smith tangled ahead of him. Jones, who had started the race from pole position thanks to the reversed grid rule, retired with accident damage, although Onslow-Cole and Smith continued in sixth and seventh respectively. In tenth, achieving his third points finish of the season, was John George in his TH Motorsport/JAG Honda Integra.

Result:1. Colin Turkington (GBR), Team RAC/BMW 320si, 23m54.988s

2. Gordon Shedden (GBR), Team Halfords/Honda Civic, +7.490s

3. Mat Jackson (GBR), Jacksons MSport/BMW 320si, +8.143s

FASTEST LAP: Mike Jordan (GBR), Eurotech-John Guest-Speedfit/Honda Integra, 49.953s (86.38mph)