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Thruxton 2004

Green Flag

11/04/2004

Race 1 Report

James Thompson lead from start to finish in the British Touring Car Championship opener at Thruxton this morning. Having made a great start in the cold over-cast conditions, Thompson pulled away from the chasing pack in the early laps, as Muller, Neal and Reid bumped and barged for second spot.

Matt Neal in his bland mustard coloured Computeach/Halford Honda Civic Type R (take a breath), finally made his position count and gradually pulled away from the chasing Vauxhall of Muller. Reid drove a fairly lonely race in the new four cylinder engined MG but showed enough to suggest that the MG could well be a fly in the ointment of the leading Vauxhall and Honda teams.

Jason Plato impressed in the early stages of the race in the ETCC spec SEAT, initially hanging onto the back of the group scrambling for second place. The lead SEAT driver gave the impression of backing off in the latter stages of the race, enabling his team-mate, Robert Huff, to pass him whilst having a tremendous scrap with Michael Bentwood in the Junior Vauxhall Astra. Plato finished the race in 8th place whilst trying his utmost to fall back to 10th, this would allow him to start from pole in the second race. (Race 2 has a reversed grid for the top ten finishers in race one).

Tom Chilton in the sole factory Honda Civic Type R came home in tenth, much to the disappointment of Honda and Plato no doubt. The fire breathing Honda (all the Honda’s spat out flames on the over-run, somehow managing to bypass the catalyst in the process), had an eventful time as Chilton struggled with the ill handling car through out the race. On several occasions the youngster demonstrated the off road abilities of the not so-red-but-very-black looking Civic and even found time in the race remove his nearside front wing. (That is the left side to those of you who live outside the UK, Australia….).

Of the rest, Shaun Watson-Smith impressed in the updated Proton, Luke Hines in the third of the factory Vauxhall’s retired early to the pits presumably in the search for more chewing gum, whilst Carl Breeze demonstrated just how quick the beautiful looking Sureterm Alfa Romeo 156 could be driven backwards across the infield. Colin Turkington in the second MG ZS also had go but lost out for artistic impression.

So the BTCC is back and as dramatic as ever. Race two should be even better as a certain Monsieur Muller will presumably being trying to pass the man with his nose in front, Jason Plato. So sit back, grab a beer and enjoy!