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 Fabrizio Giovanardi has won the second of today’s three HiQ MSA
British Touring Car Championship rounds at Brands Hatch – adding to his
victory in the first.
Italian Giovanardi, the
reigning champion, led from start to finish in his Vauxhall Vectra VXR
to already begin drawing clear in the standings on this, the first day
of the new season.
BMW Dealer Team UK driver Mat Jackson (BMW 320si) looked to be on
course for second but messed up his re-start following a safety car
period. This allowed Gordon Shedden (Team Halfords Honda Civic) and
Jason Plato (SEAT Leon TDI) to close in and then sweep past into second
and third places which they held to the finish.
Setting
the race’s fastest lap was Plato’s team-mate Darren Turner, underlining
the pace of SEAT’s new diesel-powered Leon on his way to fifth overall
ahead of VXR pair Tom Onslow-Cole and Matt Neal who swapped places on
several occasions.
The reversed grid draw for
today’s third race has now been held with the top nine positions being
switched around, giving Mike Jordan (John Guest Honda Integra) – ninth
in race two – the pole position starting slot.
Meanwhile,
today's second race produced several skirmishes. Tom Chilton retired
his Team Halfords Honda Civic when its suspension broke in a clash with
Colin Turkington's Team RAC BMW - Turkington went on to finish a strong
20th after starting back in 20th thanks to a disastrous race one.
This
time it was rival BMW team Motorbase's turn to hit problems as both its
cars retired: Robert Collard spun out after a light brush with with
Stephen Jelley (Team RAC BMW); team-mate Steven Kane then spectacularly
slammed backwards into the pit wall after contact with Jordan turned
his car around at high speed along the start-finish straight.
Missing
from the race - as he will be from race three - was Chris Stockton
after his BTC Racing Lexus IS200's rev limiter failed in race one.
BTCC Round 2 Result (provisional):
1. Fabrizio Giovanardi (ITA), VX Racing/Vauxhall Vectra VXR, 24 laps in 20m15.564s
2. Gordon Shedden (GBR), Team Halfords/Honda Civic, +0.942s
3. Jason Plato (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon TDI, +1.413s
Fastest lap: Darren Turner (GBR), SEAT Sport UK/SEAT Leon TDI, 49.491s
For full times click on this link :
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