The plus side, Jordan’s BMW teammate Colin Turkington also took a sixth place in race one, a third in race two and another sixth place in race three to keep up the pressure on new standings leader Ash Sutton, but fellow title challengers (and “Cobra drivers”) Gordon Shedden and Rob Collard both endured a miserable afternoon.
Qualifying was a very close affair. On a track where ballast really hinders you, Matt Neal did very well to qualify in 7th place with 33KG onboard, whereas a much heavier ‘Flash’ – carrying 57kg of ballast could only manage P16. The top 27 cars were covered by less than a second in the session – that is what you call a competitive field!
In race one, three-time champion Neal converted seventh on the grid into a solid fifth at the chequered flag– setting the fastest lap along the way for good measure – but fellow multiple title-winner Shedden’s hopes of adding to his points tally were dashed by a puncture on lap 11 that prompted an unscheduled trip to the pit-lane. Victory in the British Touring Car Championship can never be said to be easy, but Andrew Jordan’s win in race three was emphatic as he headed the race from start to finish after firing his BMW 125i M Sport off the line and into a solid lead. Even a late safety car didn’t threaten his lead with Jordan making a good getaway once the safety car was called in to take victory by just under two seconds.
So, as we look forward towards the penultimate meet at Silverstone, Colin Turkington is in second place in the Driver’s championship trailing by just twelve points, whilst reigning champion Gordon Shedden has slipped 55 points behind in third and Rob Collard is just one point further behind in fourth. “Cobra drivers” Tom Ingram, Andrew Jordan and Matt Neal fill the fifth, sixth and seventh places respectively.
West Surrey Racing and Team BMW still top the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ standings and Cobra’s Tom Ingram in his Speedworks Toyota tops the Independent Drivers’ standings by 24 points.
