Rounds 4/5/6 - Mondello Park

[Dave Clark]

1st Session - Practice Times

1 James THOMPSON SEAT Leon 1:46.057
2 Matt NEAL GBR Honda Integra 1:46.273
3 Colin TURKINGTON GBR MG ZS 1:46.448
4 Gordon SHEDDEN GBR Honda Integra 1:46.593
5 Jason PLATO GBR SEAT Leon 1:46.823
6 Robert COLLARD GBR MG ZS 1:46.995
7 David PINKNEY GBR Honda Integra 1:47.061
8 Fabrizio GIOVANARDI ITA Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:47.785
9 Mike JORDAN GBR Honda Integra 1:47.832
10 Gavin SMITH IRL Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:47.881
11 Tom CHILTON GBR Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:47.893
12 James KAYE GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:47.948
13 Jason HUGHES GBR MG ZS 1:48.475
14 Mark PROCTOR GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:49.041
15 Fiona LEGGATE GBR Vauxhall Astra Coupe 1:50.482
16 Martyn BELL GBR BMW 320i E46 1:53.694

[Dave Clark]

2nd Session - Practice Times

1 Jason PLATO GBR SEAT Leon 1:45.433
2 Matt NEAL GBR Honda Integra 1:46.043
3 Gordon SHEDDEN GBR Honda Integra 1:46.206
4 James THOMPSON GBR SEAT Leon 1:46.831
5 Gavin SMITH IRL Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:46.960
6 Robert COLLARD GBR MG ZS 1:46.961
7 Colin TURKINGTON GBR MG ZS 1:47.061
8 James KAYE GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:47.259
9 Fabrizio GIOVANARDI ITA Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:47.569
10 Tom CHILTON GBR Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:47.570
11 Mike JORDAN GBR Honda Integra 1:48.484
12 Jason HUGHES GBR MG ZS 1:48.671
13 Fiona LEGGATE GBR Vauxhall Astra Coupe 1:49.141
14 Mark PROCTOR GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:49.406
15 Martyn BELL BMW 320i E46 1:52.065
16 David PINKNEY Honda Integra 1:55.346

[Dave Clark]

Absentee - Mark Smith - Infront Motorsport - Alfa Romeo 156 (S2000)

Currently having a sequential gearbox fitted and will return at Oulton Park.

[Jerry Zedman]

Qualifying positions for tomorrow's opening race:

POS NO CL DRIVER NAT CAR TIME LAPS GAP MPH
1 1 I Matt NEAL GBR Honda Integra 1:45.333 15 74.39
2 4 Jason PLATO GBR SEAT Leon 1:45.388 13 0.055 74.35
3 14 James THOMPSON GBR SEAT Leon 1:45.494 14 0.161 74.27
4 52 I Gordon SHEDDEN GBR Honda Integra 1:45.526 13 0.193 74.25
5 6 I Colin TURKINGTON GBR MG ZS 1:45.568 15 0.235 74.22
6 11 Fabrizio GIOVANARDI ITA Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:45.960 7 0.627 73.95
7 5 Tom CHILTON GBR Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:46.009 11 0.676 73.91
8 7 I Robert COLLARD GBR MG ZS 1:46.307 15 0.974 73.70
9 10 Gavin SMITH IRL Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 1:46.406 14 1.073 73.64
10 55 I David PINKNEY GBR Honda Integra 1:46.890 15 1.557 73.30
11 77 I Mike JORDAN GBR Honda Integra 1:46.966 15 1.633 73.25
12 20 I James KAYE GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:47.047 12 1.714 73.19
13 12 I Mark PROCTOR GBR Honda Civic Type R 1:48.260 13 2.927 72.37
14 82 I Fiona LEGGATE GBR Vauxhall Astra Coupe 1:48.628 9 3.295 72.13
15 28 I Jason HUGHES GBR MG ZS 1:48.650 14 3.317 72.11
16 15 I Martyn BELL GBR BMW 320i E46 1:53.054 2 7.721 69.31

[Dee-Jay]

Mmm...

Not great.

[Tony]

Front row would have been nice, but on the plus side, Turks has only been beaten by the SEAT's and Dynamics Honda's.

[Dave Clark]

And with the rocketing starts he was pulling off at Brands Hatch I'm sure he can get to 3rd!!

I wonder how well Rob will do tomorrow - he has admitted to not liking the circuit - but who knows how well the ZS will perform??

And what happened to Jason. 13th, 12th and then.... 15th. I was expecting 11th! Has he now got the 4-pot. If so Mondello is always strong for him so here's hoping for an even better chance of results!

Good luck to Colin, Rob, Jason and all the guys and girls at Team RAC and Kartworld Racing tomorrow!!

:car2:

[Dawn]

Yes good luck to all the Mg drivers ..we'll be watching it tommorrow on Motors TV ......probably with a drink or two :flag1:

[Dave Clark]

Just noticed that Vauxhall are quietly protesting about the weight disadvantage SEAT have because they are S2000 spec and not the heavier BTC-Spec that Vauxhall have run with the Astra. Look on the sunstrip of the Astra Sport Hatches this weekend and it has a small "+65kg" on the top left of the screen - sore loosers??

On the other hand ToCA cant seem to get it right with the weight differences between S2000 and BTC spec cars! 2004 the Toledos run and they were too light and won races, so they whack a weight penalty on it and they slow down, but they're just right. Then in 2005 they make them heavier and the Toledos are far too slow. Then SEAT change to the Leon and once again, out of the box its a quick car - lets wait - I bet if this continues they'll lighten the Astras or put weight on the Leons! :shrug:

[Tony]

My guess would be lighten the BTCC spec cars as the Leon's should be running the same spec/weight as the WTCC cars.

[Jerry Zedman]

From Team RAC:

Round 2 – Mondello Park – Qualifying

Turkington 'chuffed' with qualifying performance
Despite driving the heaviest car on the circuit, Colin Turkington still impressed in the Team RAC MG ZS to qualify fifth for the opening race at Mondello Park in tomorrow's 2006 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

With an additional 36kgs of weight, carried over from his second place Championship position following the Brands Hatch meeting, Colin showed that he was still on the pace with a best lap time of 1:45.568s. On lining up on the third row of grid he said: "It's strange to feel so chuffed and not be P1, but considering I'm in the heaviest car I'm really pleased. Every session today has just got better and better with improvements in every sector. I'm in a strong position for the race tomorrow."

In his Hibernian Rescue branded car Rob Collard gave a strong performance in qualifying to secure 8th on the grid. With little changes to be made overnight Rob said: "I'm very happy with the car, it feels very good and has a good balance. It was frustrating that on my fastest lap with new tyres I got held up in traffic, but these things happen. We'll study the data between the cars and take a look at which areas I can possibly pick up the pace."

Running 36kgs lighter than Colin Turkington, Matt Neal secured pole position with a lap time of 1:45.333s for Team Halfords.

Race two's grid is decided by the finishing order of race one. Race three's grid is decided by the finishing order of race two, but with the leading positions reversed. The number of positions to be reversed will become known only after race two when the winner draws a random number between six and ten.

Qualifying grid and times can be viewed at http://www.teamrac.com/btcc_qualifying.asp

The second round at Mondello Park will be transmitted on ITV on Sunday 23 April starting at 15:00hrs. The programme will include highlights from race one and two with race three being shown live in its entirety. Satellite viewers can watch all three races live on Motors TV commencing at 10:45hrs. Further information on programme replays can be found at http://www.teamrac.com/btcc_tv.asp

Photos care of Team RAC:

[Dawn]

I think Guiness should sign him up ..........:happy1:

[Jerry Zedman]

Funny you shoud say that (care of Team RAC):

Turkington takes time out to experience Dublin

Team RAC's Colin Turkington took time out from racing to visit Dublin prior to this weekend's Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship round at Mondello Park.

The visit included a tour of the Ireland's number one attraction, the Guinness Storehouse, where Colin and his guests were given the full experience tour of the brewery process before sampling the goods.

RAC sponsorship manager, Tanya DuRose joined Colin in starting the brewing process for a Team RAC batch of Guinness. The special batch was given a unique identification number and will be traced through the factory right up until point of distribution. After pressing the button Tanya said: "What a fantastic opportunity for Team RAC to have their own unique batch of Guinness. We'll now wait to hear from the Guinness factory to see where the brew is distributed. We'll keep you posted as it could be heading to a bar near you!"

The tour continued with Colin being awarded a ‘Perfect Pint' certificate after his bar man duties were put to the test. With pint pulling duties complete, the group resided in the Gravity bar to enjoy the 360-degree views of the city.

On learning a little about this Irish legend Colin said: "It's been a fantastic day and really interesting to see how Guinness is made. I took on board a small sample and was tempted to go back for more." As for Colin swapping his driver skills to become a barman, he added: "I got a taster as for what it's like to make your own brew so you never know, it's a possible opportunity for the future!"

[Matt Lynham]

"We'll now wait to hear from the Guinness factory to see where the brew is distributed. We'll keep you posted as it could be heading to a bar near you!"

Keep your ears open, chaps, I feel a Brit-car night out coming on!:woohoo: :drink1: :drunk:

[Jerry Zedman]

"We'll now wait to hear from the Guinness factory to see where the brew is distributed. We'll keep you posted as it could be heading to a bar near you!"

Keep your ears open, chaps, I feel a Brit-car night out coming on!:woohoo: :drink1: :drunk:

Or a few!!!!! :drink1:

[MaddAussie]

Pint of Colins sump oil anyone :D:D:D:D

[AndrewM]

Just watching the 1st support race on Motors TV, Dunlop Supercars and Fiat Arbath Puntos. Some good racing (all the Supercars are on Leda's, and I believe all the Arbarth are as well, if not all then most). The Supercars are the same as the T-Car in the UK. Had the pleasure of meeting Rod McGovern (who looks like he has just lost the race on the last lap), lovely bloke, nice couple of pints in Dublin with him. :drink1:

[Dave Clark]

Finishing results for Round 4

1 Matt NEAL GBR Honda Integra 25:04.534 14 Laps
2 Jason PLATO GBR SEAT Leon 25:05.034 14 Laps
3 James THOMPSON GBR SEAT Leon 25:14.212 14 Laps
4 Colin TURKINGTON GBR MG ZS 25:14.764 14 Laps
5 Gordon SHEDDEN GBR Honda Integra 25:19.819 14 Laps
6 Tom CHILTON GBR Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:23.331 14 Laps
7 Fabrizio GIOVANARDI ITA Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:25.835 14 Laps
8 Gavin SMITH IRL Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:26.326 14 Laps
9 Mike JORDAN GBR Honda Integra 25:32.987 14 Laps
10 James KAYE GBR Honda Civic Type R 25:33.329 14 Laps
11 Jason HUGHES GBR MG ZS 25:43.138 14 Laps
12 Mark PROCTOR GBR Honda Civic Type R 25:44.189 14 Laps
13 David PINKNEY GBR Honda Integra 25:52.412 14 Laps
14 Fiona LEGGATE GBR Vauxhall Astra Coupe 25:59.745 14 Laps
15 Martyn BELL GBR BMW 320i E46 26:25.195 14 Laps

Not Classified
16 Rob Collard GBR MG ZS 6 Laps

[BeverleyM]

Shame Colin didn't manage to get 3rd, full marks for trying though :ukwave: :dancing:

[Tootall]

Whay happened to Rob in race one then :confused: .

[AndrewM]

Rob has an engine failure, so has to swap. Just gone out in race 2 as well with another engine or gearbox problem, which is a shame cos he had got up to 4th!!

[Pam]

What happened to Jason Hughes?? No-one mentioned it throughout the race build up but he wasn't on the grid at all. :confused:

[Tony]

JH was mentioned on the grid run down for race one, but not heard anything since. The said he still had the V6 engine.

[Tootall]

Race 2 Results;

1 Matt Neal Honda Integra 17 34:09.627 1:47.089
2 Jason Plato SEAT Leon 17 +0.998 1:46.544
3 Colin Turkington MG ZS 17 +1.681 1:46.670
4 Gordon Shedden Honda Integra 17 +11.244 1:46.833
5 Dave Pinkney Honda Integra 17 +16.704 1:47.939
6 Gavin Smith Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 17 +18.721 1:48.571
7 James Kaye Honda Civic Type R 17 +20.842 1:48.604
8 Mike Jordan Honda Integra 17 +21.677 1:49.273
9 Mark Proctor Honda Civic Type R 17 +36.350 1:48.958
10 Martyn Bell BMW 320i E46 17 +38.754 1:51.174
11 Rob Collard MG ZS 17 +1:01.849 1:46.836
Not Classified
- 82 Fiona Leggate Vauxhall Astra Coupe 6 DNF 2:07.412
- 5 Tom Chilton Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 0 DNF
- 11 Fabrizio Giovanardi Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 0 DNF
- 14 James Thompson SEAT Leon 0 DNF

No mention of JH.

[AndrewM]

I see Jason is on the grid for Race 3.

Also, Gordon Sheddon has been excluded from Race 2, so he is back of the grid for Race 3. Despite the rights and wrongs for what Sheddon did, and Rob at Brands it doesnt seem fair that if you are punished for something in Race 3 then you have time to appeal to the MSA, and have any punishment suspended (so retaining you grid position), but if the incident is in Race 1 or 2 you lose the grid position.

Colin has a good grid position, first of the 'serious' condentors (if you discount Smith in the Vauxhall, and neither Smith or Vauxhall have shown anything to be counted as 'serious' yet) :uj2:

[AndrewM]

Congratulations to Mike Jordan (Age 48).... Fantastic result for a privateer.

Well done Colin, 2nd place... not sure of the Championship standings but that may give him the lead. Not sure about Rob's 'incident'... looked to me like he may have been at fault for that one.

[Dawn]

Congratulations to Mike Jordan (Age 48).... Fantastic result for a privateer.

Well done Colin, 2nd place... not sure of the Championship standings but that may give him the lead. Not sure about Rob's 'incident'... looked to me like he may have been at fault for that one.

Colin is now 2 points behind Matt Neal :thumbs2: Colin on 62 ,matt on 64 points

[MaddAussie]

Top race! Well done Mike on a well deserved 1st place, good on ya Turky for a valiant chase!

[Pam]

Race 3 results

2006 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship - RACE CLASSIFICATION - ROUND 6
POS NO CL DRIVER NAT CAR TIME LAPS GAP MPH BEST
1 77 I Mike JORDAN GBR Honda Integra 25:12.335 14 72.53 1:46.788
2 6 I Colin TURKINGTON GBR MG ZS 25:13.391 14 1.056 72.48 1:46.721
3 1 I Matt NEAL GBR Honda Integra 25:24.939 14 12.604 71.93 1:47.211
4 14 James THOMPSON GBR SEAT Leon 25:25.413 14 13.078 71.91 1:46.643
5 11 Fabrizio GIOVANARDI ITA Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:27.898 14 15.563 71.79 1:46.856
6 52 I Gordon SHEDDEN GBR Honda Integra 25:30.315 14 17.980 71.68 1:46.952
7 10 Gavin SMITH IRL Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:32.219 14 19.884 71.59 1:47.244
8 4 Jason PLATO GBR SEAT Leon 25:32.419 14 20.084 71.58 1:46.886
9 5 Tom CHILTON GBR Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch 25:33.835 14 21.500 71.52 1:47.239
10 55 I David PINKNEY GBR Honda Integra 25:34.280 14 21.945 71.50 1:47.336
11 15 I Martyn BELL GBR BMW 320i E46 26:10.499 14 58.164 69.85 1:49.716

Not Classified
7 I Robert COLLARD GBR MG ZS 16:20.017 9 D.N.F. 71.96 1:46.535
28 I Jason HUGHES GBR MG ZS 11:08.215 6 D.N.F. 70.35 1:48.311
12 I Mark PROCTOR GBR Honda Civic Type R 7:40.999 3 D.N.F. 50.99 1:51.751

Fastest Lap
7 I Robert COLLARD MG ZS 1:46.535 3 118.36kph 73.55
14 James THOMPSON SEAT Leon 1:46.643 3 118.24kph 73.47

Despite his DNF, Rob set the fastest lap of the race. :music049:

[Dawn]

I want to know what happened to Collard after the sandwich incident in race 3 ?
Even the commentators didn't mention him after that !

[Tony]

A good oportunistic move from both Rob and Colin to get past Matt Neal, and a strong chase from Colin to keep Mike Jordan honest.

Re. Collard/Giovanardi... It looked to me as though Giovanardi was allready in trouble with the back wheels locked before Rob tried to dive up the inside, Once the two cars came together, neither seemed to loose any more speed and couldn't make the turn.

Sheddon may have lost out after his race two incident, but we don't know how clear cut (or not) the telemetry from his car was. It looked to me as though he forgot that his brakes don't work as well when cold and braked at his normal point instead of braking earlier and just went in too fast. Something similar happned to Anthony Reid at Rockingham a few years back after the safety car had been out. Maybe Dynamics are finally accepting something going against them and have decided not to appeal.

[Dave Clark]

Did you notice how Vicky tried to get Giovanardi to say it was Collards fault? Very aggressively worded interview. I think looking at that incident it probably was Rob's fault - more so than that of the one at Brands - but Giovanardi did seem to be squirming under braking and squeezed Rob, right at the last point which made the incident worse than it should have been.

Once again all the bad luck falls on Rob, engine problem, accident damage and a 10th place.

Anyway, well done to Colin for the excellent results throughout the weekend to enable you to keep 2nd place in the overall championship, keep Team RAC ahead of VX Racing in the teams championship, keep Team RAC ahead of Team halfords in the Indipendents Teams Championship, and to retain your Independents Driver's Lead!!!

And two of the three rounds had fastest laps by Team RAC!!! Well done guys. Look forward to seeing you again at Oulton Park! :music049: ::woohoo:

(Suprisingly Jason Hughes has jumped ahead of Rob Collard in the Independents Driver's Championship - so well done Jason!)

[Dave Clark]

Oh and another fact - Colin remains so far in 2006 the only driver to have finished all 6 rounds in the top 4! Another great achievement :dancing:

[DEBBIE]

Gotta say, I'm really pleased to see Mike Jordan win that last race. Would have been better if it had been Colin but for a privateer to get pole via a reverse grid and hold on to it with style deserves a :clap: :cheers:

Rob, not a good weekend chap, keep your chin up.
VX weren't having a good time either (Not that I'm sorry about that)

Colin a good consistent drive yet again, but that top step still evades him. Early in the season though yet and plenty of time.

Formula Sheane - very good, much better than Formula BMW/Renault, lots of action, well done to Trevor Duffy?? in car 4 who held out despite losing his nose cone and despite losing 1st managed to literally hold on to second by the skin of his teeth - almost a photo finish - good hard racing right to the line :beerchug:

[Tony]

Caught a bit of the Forumla Sheane race, very close with the front two swopping places constantly until they bumped. Would make a better support than some of the other formula that the BTCC drags around.

[DEBBIE]

Formula Sheane - forgot to mention the cars are all to a standard with Rover 1800cc K series engines.

[Matt Lynham]

How annoyed am I??

Just settled down with a cuppa this morning, 10.20, when the phone rang and I was called into work! Had to take a van load of stuff to Telford International Centre! Got back home at about 2.30, just in time to remake the coffee and sit down to the ITV coverage! Must thank my darling wife who kept ringing me up to let me know the updates and positions:love2: :love2: . Must also apologise to anyone intimidated by a white Vito bombing down the A46, A47, M1, M69, M6, M54 and back again! Saw loads of MG-R's too! Must find out when the full replay is on Motors TV!

[Pam]

Must find out when the full replay is on Motors TV!
5.30pm tomorrow (then loads of times again over the next 2 weeks)

[Matt Lynham]

Ok, so I'll have to miss the Paul O'Grady show, and The Simpsons on C4 I've probably seen before (am a bit of a fan!), but trying to pursuade Chris to miss Emmerdale and Corry?:starwars:

[Pam]

Do you mind missing sleep???
It's on again at 1am Tuesday. Then again at 1pm & 9pm Tuesday

Just found the TV listings on their website and you can search for what you want.
Result of your research

Sunday 23 april 2006

00:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...
10:45 (Live) BTCC Live coverage from all three races from each round...
13:10 (Live) BTCC Live coverage from all three races from each round...
15:40 (Live) BTCC Live coverage from all three races from each round...

Monday 24 april 2006

17:30 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...

Tuesday 25 april 2006

01:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...
13:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...
21:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...

Wednesday 26 april 2006

03:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...
08:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...

Thursday 27 april 2006

01:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...
16:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...

Friday 28 april 2006

05:00 BTCC REPLAY The full race replay from all three races from eac...

[Jerry Zedman]

From TeamRAC:

Round 2 - Mondello Park - Race Report

Team RAC's Turkington keeps the pressure on Championship title
Warm Irish weather and matching hospitality greeted Team RAC at the second round of the 2006 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. It was a weekend of mixed fortunes on the track as Colin Turkington (Portadown) left Mondello as Independents Trophy leader and second in the Drivers Championship whilst Rob Collard suffered early retirements and an engine failure.

Race 1

Despite 36kgs of success ballast, carried over from the last meeting at Bands Hatch, Colin Turkington still gave a strong performance in the Team RAC MG ZS. Colin closed down and hassled James Thompson (SEAT) all the way to the chequered flag securing a fourth place finish. After the race, Colin said: "The car is running really well and I felt I had the legs on James (Thompson), but it's just so difficult to pass here. I'm pleased with the result and it will be good to get some of the ballast weight off"

Team RAC driver Rob Collard was running well until he was forced to retire from the race when his engine failed after six laps, the first engine failure since Oulton Park 2005. Rob explains: "I was in the middle of a Vauxhall sandwich and Gavin (Smith) was defending very hard. Gradually his lines were becoming untidy and I was just waiting for the right moment to make my move and suddenly there was no power." Team RAC were forced to change the engine in time for race two where Rob started from the back of the grid.
Team Halfords Matt Neal secured the win, with SEAT's Jason Plato and James Thompson completing the top three.

Race 2

The second race of the day was full of action with the safety car deployed on two occasions. Now running an 18kgs lighter Colin Turkington claimed the third place silverware for the second race of the afternoon. Delighted with stepping onto the podium in front of a home crowd Colin said: "It's another step forward and the car has improved again. It's really nice to be on the podium as I've got quite a few supporters here today. The reverse grid now means I'm lining up sixth so I've got it all to do."

Team RAC mechanics did a sterling job in changing the engine for Rob Collard to line-up on the grid for the second race. Rob gave an outstanding performance to cut his way through the pack taking him up to fourth, but three from the end of the race Rob suffered an electrical gremlin, which meant he lost power momentarily. The problem rectified itself but it was too late to make any impression on the finishing results. Rob said: "The car was running really well and the safety car actually played in my favour. I was into fourth when the car backfired and I lost power and lap time. It's just really unfortunately as I was determined to collect some points from this race."

Race 3

Colin Turkington picked up his second podium in the final race of the day, finishing second only to Mike Jordan (Team Eurotech Racing). After making his way from sixth on the grid though the field there just wasn't enough laps remaining for Colin to close the gap on the eventual race winner. Pleased with his second podium of the day, he said: "Two podiums and a nice collection of points, I can't really complain. Mike (Jordan) drove fantastically well and even when I was starting to reel him in, he still didn't put a foot wrong. The car has run really well all weekend and I'm hoping to carry the momentum onto Oulton Park."

Having secured the fastest lap of the race (1:46.535s), Rob Collard was then forced into retirement when an ambitious move on Vauxhall's Giovanardi ended his race prematurely. With damage to the steering, Rob had no option but to bring the car home early. Stepping out of the car Rob said: "What a weekend. Before I came to Mondello I said that it wasn't my favourite circuit and I think I've been jinxed. I'm really disappointed not to have collected more points but I'll put this weekend behind me and focus on Oulton Park."

After experiencing mixed fortunes at Mondello Park, team principal Dick Bennetts: "I'm pleased for Colin and his two podium places but it's a shame that Rob has experienced such bad luck. The MG is clearly much quicker than some of the cars out there and Rob proved that with a fastest lap in the last race." Looking ahead to the next meeting at Oulton Park, he added: "Rob and Colin have both achieved previous success at Oulton Park but Colin will once again be qualifying and racing with 36kgs of success ballast."

RAC and Hibernian Rescue guests enjoyed their day with the team. Abu Shafi, RAC director of corporate sales said: "RAC is truly back in Motorsport. They have proved themselves to be an impressive team again today with more podium finishes. You've just got to attend a race to appreciate how people get behind Team RAC."

The next BTCC meeting takes place at Oulton Park, 13/14 May.

Many thanks to Mrs DMcK for keeping me updated re races 1 and 2 - much appreciated.

I can't add anything else to what's been posted above by others...so I won't! :happy1: Oh, apart from, well done CT and unlucky RC.

[Matt Lynham]

Ahh, thanks guys, its like having my own personal TV guide!

:offtopic: Are there any repeats of Inspector Morse??:lol2: )

From what I saw of the ITV coverage, JT was holding the field back to allow Plato to have an uninterrupted run at Neal which turned the whole thing into a bit of a procession; the second race was much better; and Who'd have thought Jordan would have done it in the third? Well done Fella!:drink1: We were joking they probably had to borrow a "1" from another team for the pitboard:lol2: Must find time to watch the repeats!

[Jerry Zedman]

I have just spoken to Rachelle at Kart World re Jason's performance. He still had the KV6 in it as he was unable to get the engine changed to the K2000 before this weekend. After finishing 11th in Race one, his engine blew up during race two and....that was it! :cry2:

Jason is currently driving down to WSR in order to get the engine changed this week. Hopefully it will be a great success and he'll be in the top ten come Oulton Park.

Once Rachelle find out more she'll let me know.

If anyone who watched MotorsTV can add to what happened (if they (MotorsTV) could be bothered to comment on it, that is) please add to this thread.

Ta. :D

[yellowtrophy]

Didn't Jason start race 3?

[Mat C]

Well it must be just me but i think ALL of last Sundays racing was boring and procesional. Formula 1 was the most boring race for a long time, Alonso who was 2+ seconds a lap quicker than Schumy then couldn't get by in 30+ laps ??!! What a load of rubbish. Then i thought at least the BTCC will sort it out. WRONG. Appart from an incident on the 1st corner wiping out the Vauxhalls (nice one Gordon Sh!theap !) all 3 races were cr@p and having the reverse grid once again proves how pointless an excersice it is. No offence to Mike Jordan who did a grand job but he's not going to be challenging for out-right drivers championship and to me the 3rd race is just taking away the serious players points. And what of the promised 20+ cars grid ? It's not materialised in 6 races !!! BTCC is DEAD.

[Jerry Zedman]

Didn't Jason start race 3?

I can't remember Paul! I only typed up what Rachelle told me. That's my excuse anyway!!!:angel:

Mat, sorry to read you didn't enjoy Mondello on TV. I'm sure it will be lots better at Oulton Park - plenty of overtaking opportunities there!!! :car2:

As for car numbers - two teams haven't materialised, DW Racing and Xero Competition, whilst Speed Equip pulled out due to lack of sponsorship. with these cars (possibly up to 6 cars) there would have been more than 20 on the grid.

Hang in there bud!

[Ted]

I agree Matt it was a bit of a procession. To me this is caused by the "qualifying" why should the winner of race 1 start race 2 from pole? At a track like Mondello you can seldom overtake and as such the winner of race 1 is likely to be the same for race 2.

And as for Mike Jordan - what did he actually do to win that race? OK he drove for 14 laps and didn't get overtaken, but he didn't earn pole and only started first because Proctors car was damaged as was Kayes so why does everyone think it's such a big deal?

I watched Mike in the BGT last year and he is a good racer - I just hopes he wins one of the first two races of the day and proves he is as good as he is as race 3 is just a lottery.

Let's just hope it was because of Mondello and Oulton is much better. After Brands this race weekend was a let down.

[GT]

You say he didnt earn his win, but isnt retirement of other cars a natural part of the race event?

He still managed to get himself in second, which earnt him the first place. Reliability and an undamaged car are still key elements to a team sport such as this :)

[Mat C]

He didn't earn it though Rob, no one does on race 3 - it's just a pure lottery ! The whole current system of BTCC stinks. My thought's is it should go back to roughly how it was in 2003 but with a few minor differences. Have 2 qualifying sessions on Saturday, one for race 1 the other for race 2 regardless of the finishing results of race 1. Cars should have ZERO ballast. Race 1 is a sprint race , similar in length to the current ones, race 2 is the feature race with tyre changing pit stops and is nearly double the length of race 1. And as for race 3, well it simply doesn't exist ! All grid places are earnt and the team are involved with the car in race mode.

[GT]

It may be a lottery, but IMHO its better and more interesting than seeing the same result every time in a boring presession as the same car qualifies on pole every time and stays there the whole race. :)

That sounds like F1 to me, which is more about politics these days than racing...

[Mat C]

So you agree then that Jordan DIDN'T earn pole ?

[DEBBIE]

I still think Mike Jordan deserves a pat on the back for his win, lets look at it from a different angel, that pole position because of the reverse grid could quite easily have been Jason Hughes (Fiona leggett).......do you think he(she) would have been able to hold on to the lead with Colin turkington on his(her) heels for a whole race??? It's nice to see the underdogs getting a chance instead of the same old, same old.

[Mat C]

Yes, that's a valid point Debbie but my point is that by giving these underdogs the winning chance and points it is taking away the points that the serious title contenders could have earnt.

[GT]

He earnt it within the rules of the system, which is surely the only way to measure whether he 'earnt' it?

As Debbie has said, it could easilly have been someone else, but it wasnt...

Anyone remember the old saying "It doesn't matter whether you win by an inch or a mile" ? Surely the principle is the same... if you win and you won by playing by the rules then its a win and its earnt?

I'm not saying it was an enthralling race, but unless foul-play was involved I'd say he still earnt his result.

[DEBBIE]

Yes, that's a valid point Debbie but my point is that by giving these underdogs the winning chance and points it is taking away the points that the serious title contenders could have earnt.

I can see it from both sides of the coin Mat, just playing devils advocate. With circuits like Mondello where overtaking is difficult you could end up with the same person (Or couple of cars) on pole / winning all three races which would make the whole days racing boring.

[Tony]

With regards ballast, I'd prefer to see it based purely on championship position, and cumlative over the year. 1 or 2 kilos for every point scored during the season would see the faster cars/drivers paying gradually for thier sucess over the season. It'd help the drivers and team adjust to the weight too as the cars wouldn't be heavy one race and lighter the next.

[Dave Clark]

I have to agree with Mat to a degree. I think that race 2 should have its own qualifying session. I like the idea of the reverse grid because it gives the underdog - if he/she is skillfull enough to block - the chance of being at the front of the grid in a points paying position (otherwise whats the point of the slower cars racing!?). What I'd like to see is longer races too! The BTCC used to have two longer races in the 90s now its packed into three shorter races. I am pleased for Mike Jordan to win and break new records, but I think that the BTCC has seen better coverage than Mondello - and have come away now really looking forward to Oulton because I think Mondello was just pathetic (for racing and coverage of it).

[Tony]

Being a bit controversial, why does the BRITISH touring car championship go to that part of Ireland anyway as it's not really part of Britian. There are so many good tracks on the mainland that miss out that would be cheaper for the teams to attend and possibly get a better turn out from the public. Of course I'll shout the case for Rockingham as it's only 20 miles from here, but there are others too.

[Mat C]

You could ask the same of the DTM series, why's it going to the Le Mans Buggatti circuit and over here to Brands Htach ? Universal appeal my friend !