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British Touring Car Championship
Oulton Park - Race 2 Report - 10/6/12

By MJP Media | 10 June 2012

Gordon Shedden extends his lead in the championship by winning the 2nd race from Oulton Park as Jason Plato takes 3rd from the back of the grid following a suspension failure before race one.

Gordon Shedden celebrates his 5th race win of the 2012 season

Matt Neal started the 2nd race from Oulton Park in pole position alongside fellow Honda Civic driver Andrew Jordan however Rob Collard once again got a blisteringly quick start and passed both of them to lead the race into the first corner. Following a suspension failure which put him out of the first race, Jason Plato started from the back of the grid.

On the first lap, Mat Jackson in the Redstone Racing Ford Focus passed the Honda Yuasa Racing Civic of Matt Neal to take 2nd place. Meanwhile, Gordon Shedden in the other Honda Yuasa Racing Civic passed the Pirtek Racing Civic of Andrew Jordan to take 4th place.

From the back of the grid, Jason Plato finished 3rd

Gordon Shedden was clearly on a charge and passed his team-mate Matt Neal on lap 2 to take 3rd place behind race leaders Rob Collard and Mat Jackson who were engaged in an exciting battle for the lead. Matt Neal, now down in 5th place, was being chased by Daniel Welch who was also on a charge in the Welch Motorsport Proton Persona.

Whilst all this was happening, Jason Plato, who started at the back of the grid, was carving his way through the field and by lap 4 was up to 10th place. As the race settled down, Rob Collard was still leading in the eBay Motors BMW 320si, closely followed by Mat Jackson who was putting immense pressure on Collard. On lap 7, Jackson attempted to pass Collard however the two cars collided and slid off the track loosing both drivers many places. Both cars sustained damage to their wheels following the incident.

Daniel Welch finished 4th after a thrilling battle with Plato

With Collard and Jackson out of contention, Gordon Shedden now led the race from Andrew Jordan. Jason Plato was still making his way up through the field and by lap 9 was up to 4th place behind Daniel Welch in 3rd. In the closing laps, Plato passed Welch to take 3rd following a thrilling battle. At the chequered flag it was victory for Gordon Shedden with Andrew Jordan 2nd and Jason Plato 3rd - a magnificent result for Plato and the MG KX Momentum Racing Team after starting from the back of the grid. Daniel Welch finished a well-deserved 4th with Matt Neal 5th and Nick Foster 6th.

The reverse grid system will reverse the top 9 places from race 2 to form the grid for the final race of the day. Tom Onslow-Cole will start on pole alongside Liam Griffin with Lea Wood and Nick Foster on row 2. Matt Neal will start on row 3 alongside Daniel Welch.

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