Darren Turner secured his maiden win in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship in round eleven at
Croft, after
Jason Plato slowed on the run to the line as SEAT played the team game.
In an action packed race – which saw ten retirements – Turner had led the race before allowing Plato through to give both drivers a bonus point for leading a lap. However, as Plato looked set for his fifth win of the year to extend his lead over Fabrizio Giovanardi, he pulled to the left as the leading duo exited the final hairpin for the last time to give Turner the win. Second for Plato however still strengthens his place at the head of the championship with Giovanardi only able to finish in sixth.
When the race kicked off – without
Matt Neal who was pushed off the grid - it was
Mat Jackson who made the best start to jump from ninth to fifth on the run to Clervaux, but out front
Colin Turkington maintained his pole position from Gordon Shedden and Darren Turner.
An incident at the hairpin, where Giovanardi tagged the rear of Turner while trying to pass Mike Jordan, would prove to a sign of things to come, with the Italian getting through into fourth at the end of the opening lap with Jordan fifth and Jason Plato sixth – Jackson having slipped back into eighth by the end of the lap.
On lap three, seventh placed Tom Chilton dived inside Plato going into Clervaux in an effort to take the place but then ran wide through Hawthorn as he carried too much speed in the Vectra – a mistake that not only allowed Plato back through but also gave Jackson the chance to go into seventh.
The following lap saw a change for the lead as Turkington ran wide after locking his tyres up going into Tower which allowed Shedden into the lead of the race, while later on the same lap, Chris Stockton and Gareth Howell swapped positions at the final Hairpin – Stockton enjoying arguably his best race of the season in the BTC Racing Lexus.
