With Giovanardi having looked at Jackson for third, Neal saw a chance to try and take fourth from the Italian at Riches but only succeeded in tagging the back of the Vectra to send Giovanardi into a lurid slide. However, not only did Giovanardi manage to save the slide, he also managed to keep the place with Neal and Turner remaining behind – the SEAT having closed up as the two cars ahead made contact.
Turner would lament not being able to make up places there as on lap 13 he dropped two places to Turkington and Shedden – with Shedden then going back ahead of Turkington a lap later at The Esses, albeit after a trip across the infield after running out of road while trying to go round the outside of the
BMW through the left-hander.
With Onslow-Cole leading from Plato, Jackson and Giovanardi, the result looked more or less settled – until Jackson elected to go for second on lap 16.
Getting a run along the Revett Straight, he went side-by-side with Plato through the left-hander which gave the BMW the inside line for the right-hander that completes the corner. However, contact as the BMW was squeezed towards the tyres on the inside of the bend saw the two cars run slightly wide and gave Giovanardi the chance to go past both. However, as Plato fought back and got ahead of Jackson, the SEAT and the Vauxhall found themselves going for the same piece of tarmac with the result that both ended up on the grass on the inside of the Bomb Hole. Coming back onto the track, they forced Jackson wide to take avoiding action, with Neal suddenly finding himself in second place after driving through the middle of the melee he found in front of himself. Giovanardi was now third with Plato fourth, while Jackson had been the big loser and rather than move up to second as he hoped, the impressive rookie was now seventh.
