Norfolk based circuit, Snetterton, saw a heated weekend for British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) Independents, Team Halfords, as it battled on to regain 4th position in the Touring Teams Championship above two works teams and pile on the pressure for the Independents Cup. With solid performances in the Sprint race earning Dan Eaves and Carl Breeze 13th and 14th places respectively, it was the Feature race that proved to be the team’s highlight of the weekend.

Local boy and current Formula Renault Champion, Carl Breeze, drove his best race yet to finish 6th in the Feature race with team mate, Dan Eaves, on his heels in 7th. Breeze commented: ‘My 6th place finish is a really good end to a tough weekend. I finished the Sprint race but had a fuel pressure problem that was dropping me slightly off the pace. The Feature race was great. I had a good start from the back of the Touring grid and my pit stop moved me up three places and held my advantage to the end. It’s a real bonus for the team to have two top ten finishes from what proved to be an exhilarating race for both drivers and spectators.’

Both Breeze and Eaves were on a constant attack in the Feature race, steadily ascending the field despite the surrounding chaos. The Peugeot lions were hunting down the MG kittens, and by lap 28 Team Halfords was running 6th and 7th, up from the starting positions of 15th and 16th.

The team’s most experienced driver, Tim Harvey, drove consistently in Qualifying to finish in 12th position for both the Sprint and Feature races. A stop in the pits on lap 6 of the Sprint race with an engine misfire was revealed to be terminal, meaning Tim was not only out of the Sprint race, but unable to start the Feature race, leaving the touring car legend out of the points. Watching from the pit wall, Harvey himself confirmed how exciting the BTCC is to watch this year.

Final standings for Team Halfords are 2nd, 4th and 7th respectively for Eaves, Harvey and Breeze in the Independents cup, and 4th in the teams Championship after this the 7th round in this 10 round Championship.