VIDEO: Jason Plato makes epic save during BTCC race at Brands Hatch
Click above to view the video after the jump
Those of you familiar with Fifth Gear have undoubtedly enjoyed Tiff Needell and Jason Plato's powersliding shootouts, and at this weekend's British Touring Car Championship, Plato had the opportunity to show off his sideways skills at Brands Hatch.
At the beginning of the second lap, Plato was leading in his Lacetti as Jonathan Adams in the #12 BMW came up strong behind him. The two drivers entered the Paddock Hill Bend and Adams, who apparently misjudged the braking pointing, slammed into the left side of Plato's bumper, causing the Lacetti to rotate nearly 90-degrees. Plato kept the throttle planted, had the steering at full lock and was able to recover from the slide with the kind of minimalist drama only a seasoned veteran (in a front-driver) can deliver.
The BTCC organizers eventually penalized Adams four seconds, delivering the win to Plato. Check the video of Jason's epic save after the jump.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Mehdi Cheddadi 3:06PM (4/06/2009)
OMG , I can wait till next season of fifthgear begins!!!
Jason Plato is AWESOME
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TexRob 4:10PM (4/06/2009)
I can't believe this is at two pages and no comments about the incident? At first I thought the BMW driver was at fault, but that side shot clearly shows Plato locked up coming in too hot for his comfort level causing the BMW to hit him.
dosahut 4:34PM (4/06/2009)
TexRob - you're exactly right. In one of the shots, you definitely see smoke from Plato's wheels BEFORE Adams taps him on the bumper. Regardless, it was still some excellent driving to save the car.
Rich 7:12PM (4/06/2009)
Oh yah, because when you're in front, you have to remember to drive the car behind you as well.
This type of race is all about contact, but it's kinda stupid to say it was his own fault that he got rear-ended. No, not "kinda stupid", *really* stupid.
tankd0g 8:15PM (4/06/2009)
Meh. I've seen the exact same save on the exact same corner at least a half dozen times. Those FWD cars have awesome diffs.
ij70 9:23PM (4/06/2009)
@ tankd0g
FWD do not drift. We power slide!
Andrew da Silva 10:49PM (4/06/2009)
@ij70
I think he meant "differentials" not.. "drifts"....
dosahut 11:10PM (4/06/2009)
I find the frequency with which people call other people stupid is inversely proportional to their own level of intelligence. In other words, what the hell are you talking about? If the car in front locks its wheels because of over braking, I don't think the driver behind should be penalized when he taps the front car. And certainly, the race shouldn't be decided on that basis.
oldraven 10:08AM (4/07/2009)
WTF?
"FWD do not drift. We power slide!"
That would be drift. FWD's can't power slide... because there's no power at the rear wheels to make them slide. Think about it for a minute.
Quattroporte 3:08PM (4/06/2009)
So what, I can and actually have demonstrated the same level of car control...in Race 07.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RACE_07_-_The_Official_WTCC_Game
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Kevin 3:12PM (4/06/2009)
What do you want? A cookie?
Protzenegger 3:21PM (4/06/2009)
Quattroporte was clearly joking.
Quattroporte 4:09PM (4/06/2009)
@Kevin
Yes, chocolate chip.
Is it coming to where one cannot mention a fun-to-play racing game and what one may have accomplished on said game that relates to a real life scenario without being ridiculed? Blatantly sacarstic comments seem to be taken too seriously sometimes here on autoblog.
Quattroporte officially apologizes for what he has commented, is commenting, or will comment on autoblog that is sacarstic.
ermax18 4:31PM (4/06/2009)
Hahaha.. Yeah I saw that a thought, "Hey that reminds me of one of
the times I got punted on a public server and managed to pull it
off". But it is more impressive in RL.
rFactor is my sim of choice though. :)
http://www.rfactorcentral.com/
Just add the RaceX or WTCC E90 mod.
harumph 3:10PM (4/06/2009)
It didn't hurt that he had a bend coming up that turned in the correct direction either. Totally brilliant save though.
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chconline 5:51PM (4/06/2009)
+1. To those teenagers who think they are great drivers... call me back when they can do this. I'm very impressed and those are some incredible skills I cannot achieve even in a video game.
Egon 3:10PM (4/06/2009)
Even though he driving from the wrong side of the car, those are still some pretty righteous skills. :)
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Kevin 12:42PM (4/22/2009)
One of the few times you will ever say that you're glad you have FWD. Haha.
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izorro 3:11PM (4/06/2009)
Wow that was pretty cool :D
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Max 3:13PM (4/06/2009)
I dunno how much of that was skill or luck. He had very little steering input....its like he was anticipating going all the way around.
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