A day of mixed fortunes for Egg Sport drivers.

Egg Sport drivers experienced a day of mixed fortunes at the fifth round of the 2001 BTCC Championship in the Emerald Isle. The jewel in the team's crown went to James Thompson who took second position in the Sprint and third in the Feature Race.

He clearly enjoyed the racing and is settling into an ongoing battle with Jason Plato which should see the pair producing some thrilling driving until the end of the season. "I just have to keep up the pressure on that boy and was very pleased to be able to take advantage of Plato's flat in the Sprint," said Thompson.

Things didn't go quite to plan for Egg Sport team-mate Phil Bennett who during the course of the 15-lap Sprint race suffered a front tyre flatter than the local Guinness. "When the tyre punctured, it felt as though the car had spent the night on the wrong sort of black stuff. It was a case of staggering into the pits for a freshen up," comments Bennett. In the Feature, it didn't look like Phil Bennett's luck was going to improve. No sooner had he left the grid, than Kurt Luby's Lexus was punting him off into the lush Irish grass. However, never one to say die, Egg Sport's man pulled out all the stops and was heading for a podium finish until he was struck again - this time suffering at the bumper of Peugeot's Dan Eaves. The cheeky Midlands chappie still managed a creditable fourth in the Feature and managed to maintain his overall place in the Championship.

Bennett mused: "It did feel like things were going from bad to worse during the course of the Feature. The only 'craic' that I saw, was the one in my rear after the Lexus punted me off into the grass. That set off a chain reaction and I received dents from what seemed like everyone in the race. Still, the sun was shining and the grid girls....Well, you know the old song, In Dublin's fair city, where the girls are so pretty...."

The Egg Sport drivers, who both sport physiques that are honed to within an inch of perfection, agreed that the extra ballast loaded onto all four Vauxhalls in the championship had an effect. "It felt like I had a boot loaded with soda bread, bacon and cabbage," said super-slim Thompson.