Croft

As the 2003 season moved in to its second half, 20,000 fans flocked to the Croft circuit in early July, making the most of the British summer at its best. They were not disappointed either, as two action packed races were to follow.

Championship leader Yvan Muller was carrying maximum ballast for qualifying after winning last time out at Rockingham and could only manage sixth on the grid for the first race on the fast Yorkshire circuit. James Thompson claimed pole position, but it was the three Honda Racing Civic Type-Rs of Neal, Morrison and Chilton that filled the next three grid slots.

Honda’s impressive form continued as round 11 got underway. Matt Neal soon took the lead and he did not look back. A problem-free pitstop helped Neal on his way to victory, but the Honda’s impressive pace never really looked under threat. However Neal’s teammate, Alan Morrison, didn’t enjoy quite such good luck. Also running well in second position, he suffered from a runaway wheel soon after his mandatory pitstop, forcing him in to retirement and denying Honda a deserved one-two finish. Muller’s 100% finishing record came to an end after a first corner clash with Paul O’Neill, sending the Frenchman in to the gravel trap.

Race two was a somewhat different story. The maximum ballast hit Neal hard and his first race domination was not to be repeated. A tight battle at the front between Reid, Neal, Thompson and O’Neill saw Reid score the first victory of the season for MG. Yvan Muller made impressive progress from 16th on the grid to finish the race in third, only losing out on second to Thompson after a troublesome pitstop.

At the end of the weekend, it was still Muller who led the championship from Thompson, Neal and O’Neill. Rob Collard moved in to the lead of the Hilton Independents Cup after an impressive weekend.

Also:
First Independents Cup victory of the year for Team Halfords
Two safety car periods in race one
Jason Hughes debuts with Production class Nissan Primera

Snetterton

A compact one-day formula for rounds 13 and 14 saw qualifying and racing take place on the same day at Snetterton, making for a day a extreme entertainment for the fans and hard work for the teams and drivers.

The first race of the day brought a huge start-line shunt as Warren Hughes attempted to squeeze through a small gap on the tight Snetterton straight. Turkington, Breeze, and Bentwood were amongst those most severely affected by the incident, which saw the safety car brought in to play.

Alan Morrison once again encountered misfortune as he retired from the lead of the race, allowing Paul O’Neill to take his first victory of the season, heading a VX Racing 1-2-3.

Round 14 took place in the early evening as the sun was starting to set. Starting from pole, Paul O’Neill was forced to take a drive-through penalty early on after creeping on the grid. The VX Racing team continued to suffer as first Muller slowed before retiring, and then on the final lap, Thompson suffered the same fate when looking good for second position, which would have seen him take the championship lead from Muller. Matt Neal took his fourth win of the season, with Alan Morrison finishing second following Thompson’s demise.

Also:
First mechanical failure of 2003 for Muller
Collard extends Independents points lead

Brands Hatch

Controversy was rife as the series made its second trip of the year to Brands Hatch. Yvan Muller set the pace in qualifying, before converting pole position to the race lead in round 15. Poor pitstops for both Muller & Thompson allowed Warren Hughes through to take his first win of the year, with Muller second and Turkington third.

Round 16 was to prove one of the most controversial races of the season, right from the start. Matt Neal was forced out on the first lap after coming together with James Thompson on the exit of Paddock Bend. Thompson himself spun shortly afterwards, following contact with Warren Hughes. He was however able to rejoin towards the back of the pack. Following the mandatory pitstops, Yvan Muller led from Colin Turkington, before the safety car was deployed, controversially, to allow the removal of a bumper from the circuit.

Whilst under the yellow flags accompanying the safety car, Anthony Reid exited the pitlane and passed Carl Breeze, allowing him to close up on the leading duo of Muller & Turkington. After initially making a good restart, Muller locked up in to Paddock Bend, allowing Turkington to take the lead. On the entry to Druids, Reid then made an ambitious lunge up the inside, sending himself and Muller in to the gravel. Whilst both were able to continue, Muller could only finish fifth.

It was not the first time that the pair had come together on track, and then in parc fermé after the race, Muller confronted Reid, which led to the VX Racing driver receiving an 11-day ban and sitting out free practice next time out at Donington. The results from the weekend were enough to hand Vauxhall their third consecutive manufacturers championship.

Also:
First BTCC win for Colin Turkington
Howell & Collard clash at Paddock Bend

Donington Park

With Yvan Muller having to sit out free practice at Donington Park, rounds 17 and 18 were likely to be make or break for the Frenchman in the title battle. Even when he did get out on track for qualifying, he was unable to set a time, with his Astra Coupé engine giving up early in the session. To confound Muller’s bad luck, Thompson took the bonus point for pole position. Matt Neal took second spot, whilst Rob Collard put in his best performance of the season to qualify third.

Once racing, Muller did not take long to move through the pack, climbing from 17th to third by the end of the race. An aggressive move from Matt Neal on the last lap saw him deprive Thompson of victory.

In round 18, Muller continued his impressive run, to take the lead on lap one and there was no looking back as he stormed to victory, with Thompson in third. With just two races remaining, this gave Muller a lead of 29 points over his teammate. Luke Hines was crowned Production class champion after taking first and second places in the two races. The Independents championship was also set to go to the wire, with Rob Collard having just a single point lead over James Kaye.

Also:
F3 joins BTCC for three-day meeting
Proton impresses with Bennett 4th in free practice

Oulton Park

Going in to the final round of the season, Muller needed just to finish in the points to claim the title, but it was sure to be far from easy for the Frenchman. He qualified fifth, whilst Thompson would start the penultimate round from pole position. Also still up for grabs was third position in the championship, with Matt Neal and Paul O’Neill fighting it out. O’Neill’s task was made considerably more difficult when he retired from round 19. Thompson did all he could to compete with Muller, taking victory in the race, however Muller had done enough to finally bring home the title that he had so narrowly missed out on in each of the previous seasons.

In round 20, the new champion was edged out for race victory by Matt Neal, who successfully took third position in the championship from O’Neill. The Independents championship went right to the wire, with the hard work and dedication of the Collard Racing team paying off right at the end, with an ecstatic Collard claiming the title.

Also:
Howell puts in dominant Indy performance
Morrison stranded in pitlane ahead of final round
Neal’s victory equals Muller’s win tally for the year

The end of another season of frantic BTCC action, but it was undeniably one of the most competitive in recent years, with Matt Neal equalling Muller’s tally of six race wins. The season was full of highlights; stunning action in front of a packed CART crowd at Brands Hatch and amazingly close racing at Rockingham amongst the most memorable. However little can match the emotions of the champions at the end of the season. Both outright winner Muller and Independent champion Rob Collard made the Oulton Park finale a raceday to remember.

There’s sure to be more of the same in 2004…

2003 Champions
BTCC Drivers Champion – Yvan Muller
BTCC Manufacturers Champion – Vauxhall
BTCC Teams Champion – VX Racing
Hilton Independents Cup Champion – Rob Collard
BTCC Production Class Drivers Champion – Luke Hines
BTCC Production Class Teams Champion – Barwell Motorsport?

You can re-live the excitement of 2003 with the official season review DVD/VHS from Duke Video. Visit www.dukevideo.com to order your copy today.
Photography by Peter Still & Andrew Jackson.