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British Touring Car Championship
Brands Hatch (GP) - Race 1 Report - 13/10/13

By MJP Media | 13 October 2013

Jason Plato wins the first race of the day at a wet Brands Hatch to keep his championship hopes alive. Four drivers can still lift the trophy as we head towards the penultimate race of the 2013 season.

Jason Plato being chased by Gordon Shedden

Brands Hatch is the venue for the final meeting of the 2013 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship and with five drivers capable of lifting the prized BTCC Trophy later today there was an atmosphere of excited anticipation as the teams, drivers and fans arrived at the Kent circuit. Andrew Jordan started his weekend with a 34 point lead over Matt Neal with reigning BTCC champion Gordon Shedden just 1 point further behind. Currently 4th and 5th in the standings, Colin Turkington and Jason Plato could also win the championship.

Following an eventful qualifying session, MG KX Momentum Racing's Jason Plato and Sam Tordoff secured a front row lockout for the first race of the day, with Plato taking pole position and the first championship point of the weekend. Andrew Jordan qualified his Pirtek Racing Honda Civic 3rd with Gordon Shedden 4th. Matt Neal's qualifying session ended abruptly when his Honda Yuasa Racing Civic hit the barriers at Paddock Hill, temporarily halting the session. Although winded, Neal was not injured and had set a lap time sufficient to put him 16th on the grid.

Andrew Jordan maintains his lead in the championship

In torrential rain, Jason Plato led from start to finish to record his 7th victory of the year, keeping his championship hopes alive. Fellow championship contender Gordon Shedden got a good start and swiftly moved up to 2nd place ahead of Sam Tordoff and Andrew Jordan. In the treacherous conditions, the cars were struggling for grip, causing a number of cars to slide and spin off the track. After a brief period under the safety car, racing resumed and Plato re-established the lead he had previously built over Shedden.

eBay Motors suffered a disastrous opening lap with both Nick Foster and Colin Turkington retiring their BMW 125i M Sports. This immediately ruled Turkington out of the 2013 BTCC title battle. Dynojet's Frank Wrathall also failed to complete the first lap. Championship leader Andrew Jordan held on to 4th place until lap 7 when he was passed by the Airwaves Ford Focus of Tom Onslow-Cole. Further down the field, Matt Neal had made his way up to 6th place from 16th on the grid behind Jordan.

Jason Plato celebrates keeping his championship hopes alive

The leaders continued to circulate without further incident as the pressure of defending championship points became paramount. At the chequered flag it was a dominant victory for Jason Plato and MG KX Momentum Racing with Honda Yuasa Racing's Gordon Shedden 2nd and Sam Tordoff 3rd in the other MG. Tom Onslow-Cole finished a strong 4th with Andrew Jordan 5th and Matt Neal 6th.

In terms of the Drivers' Championship battle, Andrew Jordan retains his lead but with a reduced margin of 29 points. Gordon Shedden is now 2nd in the standings with team-mate Matt Neal 6 points behind in 3rd. With a maximum haul of 23 points, Jason Plato is still in contention, just 2 points behind Matt Neal and 37 points behind Jordan with 44 points available from the remaining two races.

Touring Car content supplied by MJP Media