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British Touring Car Championship

It's not often that the series crosses these pages, but there's no getting around the fact that UK racing fans have enjoyed an unprecedented level of competition in the British Touring Car Championship this year. No season in BTCC history has had a bigger or more varied field of entries, the lead in the standings has changed hands a head-spinning eleven times this season, and with one last stop on the calendar at England's storied Silverstone circuit, it's down to a whopping five-car showdown for the title.

Still in contention for the championship this late in the season are Jason Plato (the Fifth Gear host who drives the Chevrolet Cruze touring car), Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden (both in Honda Civics), Mat Jackson (Ford Focus) and James Nash (Vauxhall Vectra). Although Neal, Plato and Shedden are very much in the lead (with 225, 220 and 220 points, respectively), Jackson and Nash (189 and 181) are both still in the running as domination at Silverstone could still catapult either to the crown.

The contest was left open after an exciting stop at Brands Hatch, where Plato took the checkered flag in both the first two races. The Civics were relegated further behind in the record 29-car field in those first two, but returned for a 1-2 finish in the third and final race of the weekend. Follow the jump for more details and start crossing off squares on your calendar until the championship wraps up with three races at Silverstone two weeks from now.

Continue reading British Touring Car Championship down to five-way title fight at Silverstone finale

British Touring Car Championship down to five-way title fight at Silverstone finale originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 05 Oct 2011 07:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>british touring car championshipbtccgordon sheddenjames nashjason platomat jacksonmatt nealplatosilverstonetouring carWed, 05 Oct 2011 07:59:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20072208/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2011/10/05/british-touring-car-championship-down-to-five-way-title-fight-at/20072208/article-detail.xml 20072208 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/10/65529btcc-start-plato_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/10/65529btcc-start-plato.jpg <![CDATA[BTCC season-opener ends in dramatic 0.055-second photo finish]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/20/btcc-season-opener-ends-in-dramatic-0-055-second-photo-finish/http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/20/btcc-season-opener-ends-in-dramatic-0-055-second-photo-finish/http://www.autoblog.com/2011/06/20/btcc-season-opener-ends-in-dramatic-0-055-second-photo-finish/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Matt finish at BTCC Croft
Matt finish at BTCC Croft - Click above to watch the video after the jump

To the casual observer, it might appear that there's only a handful of racing series in the world. F1, NASCAR, maybe WRC. But the true racing fanatic knows there's a lot more than that. There are open-wheel series (such as Indy Car) at different levels in countries around the world. There's motorbike racing, ice racing, truck racing, and, of course, there's touring cars.

The European equivalent to stock cars, touring cars account for some of the most down-to-the-wire, wheel-to-wheel racing action known to man, from DTM in Germany to V8 Supercars in Australia. But this weekend's season-opener in the British Touring Car Championship was about as nail-biting as it comes.

The race at Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire this weekend was punctuated by intermittent rain as various drivers in the expanded field opted for different tire choices. Some went for rain tires, some went for slicks, but Mat Jackson, piloting a Ford Focus, put slicks on the driving wheels up front and wets on the rears. After a mid-race accident, the safety car was withdrawn as the track began to dry and Jackson's gambit paid off as he climbed up the field.

With just a few laps to go, Jackson climbed up to fourth behind Jason Plato (he of Fifth Gear fame) in the Chevy Cruze, Rob Collard in the BMW 3 Series and two-time series champion Matt Neal in the Honda Civic. Jackson picked his way past Plato and then past Collard, but coming down the front straight to the finish line it was as close as it gets: a photo finish of 0.055 seconds. So which Matt took the win? Follow the jump to find out, and in the process witness some of the closest racing action you'll ever see.

Continue reading BTCC season-opener ends in dramatic 0.055-second photo finish

BTCC season-opener ends in dramatic 0.055-second photo finish originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 20 Jun 2011 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>british touring car championshipbtccciviccroftfocusfordhondamat jacksonmatt nealtouring carsMon, 20 Jun 2011 09:58:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/19970785/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2011/06/20/btcc-season-opener-ends-in-dramatic-0-055-second-photo-finish/19970785/article-detail.xml 19970785 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/06/btcc-matt-finish_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/06/btcc-matt-finish.jpg -1 2