The race for Britain’s biggest motor racing title – the Green Flag British Touring Car Championship – will reach boiling point when the series makes its final visit of the year to the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent on 22 August. An enormous crowd is expected at the event, for not only has the BTCC re-asserted itself as one of Britain’s major sporting spectacles but all the action from Brands Hatch will be broadcast live to potentially millions of viewers on ITV1.
Brands Hatch in August has traditionally witnessed some of the BTCC’s most memorable moments – and the four drivers currently leading the championship have all been at the centre of the controversy in recent years.
At the top of the table, just one point separates Vauxhall team-mates Yvan Muller and James Thompson. Behind, and closing fast, is Anthony Reid in the WSR team’s MG. SEAT Sport UK’s Jason Plato – who escaped a massive crash at Brands in April – also remains an outside bet for the title and has taken more race wins than any other driver so far this season.
In 2001, Plato won the BTCC title at Brands when then team-mate Muller’s engine caught fire. In 2002, Muller forced new team-mate Thompson to crash as they fought for the crown. Last year, Muller again caused the event’s biggest talking point by getting physical with Reid in the Brands paddock after their cars had collided on the track.
This time around, Muller and Plato return with penalty points on their competition licences after clashing twice in the latest round at Knockhill, Scotland. Reid will be racing under the threat of a one race ban after he also got involved in argy-bargy at Knockhill.
But Reid is on a roll: he won twice at Knockhill whereas Muller and Thompson suffered a disappointing weekend. As a result, Reid slashed the gap to Muller from 45 to 23 points and with nine rounds still to go the MG man has emerged as a serious title contender. Brands is also a proven hunting ground for the MG ZS as Reid and team-mate Colin Turkington have shown with wins at the circuit over the last three years.
BTCC Series Director Alan Gow says that Brands Hatch has a great chance to benefit from three action-packed races at Knockhill which enjoyed its biggest BTCC crowd since 1997.
Gow said: “I’m sure Brands Hatch will be telling the whole world about its BTCC race weekend. The circuit must have been delighted by the drama that unfolded in front of a live ITV1 audience at Knockhill for it gives it a tremendous opportunity to make sure its BTCC weekend is one of the South-East’s biggest sporting occasions of the year.
“The action in the BTCC has been dynamite in the middle part of the year: not only has the racing been amazing, but there is also a lot of tension building on and off the track among what are some of the finest racing drivers in the world. The title race is reaching a critical stage and it’s coming to Brands Hatch – a circuit with a history for producing close racing. It’s going to be a fantastic weekend.”
In addition to the three BTCC rounds on the Sunday there will be eight more races from the championships that compete at every BTCC meeting run by prestige manufacturers BMW, Porsche and Renault.
Advanced tickets are available by calling the hotline 0870 950 9000*.
Advanced prices are:
Weekend ticket £25
Qualifying/Saturday 21 August £8
Race day/Sunday 22 August £20
Non-advanced prices are:
Qualifying/Saturday 21 August £10 – Grandstand Free
Race day/Sunday 22 August £25 – Grandstand £10
Children aged 15 and under Free
* Ticket hotline closes Monday 16 August
