Alan Morrison looked on course for his first British Touring Car Championship win of the season at Snetterton before a snapped alternator cable put him out of the race with only four laps remaining. Following an accident at the start that held up some of the front runners, Morrison was able to jump from eighth place on the grid to second behind his team-mate Matt Neal at the end of a frantic opening lap.

Neal had also had a great start and got ahead of pole position James Thompson, but Morrison was right behind him and keeping the pressure on. Neal was the first of the Honda drivers to pit when the window opened on lap 10 and it was from then that Morrison took the advantage. He came back into the field after his pitstop one lap later ahead of O'Neill, Thompson and Neal. It looked as though everything was in place for the Ulsterman to claim his first race win of 2003. But it was not to be and electrical problems forced him to retire.

Matt Neal also had a frustrating race. Having led at the start he lost time on the pit stop after a slow out-lap and then he ran wide on the exit of the chicane on the next lap. That mistake lost him crucial time and he came home in fourth position.

Tom Chilton, who had achieved his best ever grid position of third in this morning’s qualifying, was unlucky to be caught up in the debris of the start line accident. The youngster from Surrey felt a hard tap on the left side of his car and thought that the damage was enough to put him out of the race. But he managed to keep the car going for an early stop to repair the damage. It was another brilliant drive from the 18-year-old that saw him characteristically work his way skilfully through the field to finish the race in sixth place.

Matt Neal: “I’m obviously disappointed with that. I just seemed to loose time after the pit stop and then I was mindful of the tyres because of the heat. I lost three places after the stop and just couldn’t seem to get my way back. Now I’m just looking forward to the second race.”

Alan Morrison: “I really thought I had my fist win in the bag. Everything was going well. I had a good stop and got ahead of Matt but then I just started loosing power. First the dash lights went out and then I lost more and more power until the car stopped. I’m going to do the best I can in the second race but it’s going to be really hard work from the back of the grid.”

Tom Chilton: “How unlucky was that! I knew that a few cars would try and go for the same gap but I didn’t expect to get caught up in it. I ended up at the back of the field and what a job it was on such a hot day. But I just kept going like I always do, so overall I was pleased to finish sixth.”