James Thompson claimed pole position for VX Racing ahead of round 13 of the 2003 Green Flag BTCC, however he will not have things all his own way racing gets underway this afternoon as Honda Racing will line-up in second and third on the grid. Following the 20-minute qualifying session, Thompson commented, “The car’s handling really well, but I’m still pleased to be on pole despite carrying 30Kgs.” He continued, “We used both sessions yesterday to work on the race set-up, so this is the first time we’ve run in qualifying trim.”

Matt Neal lines up alongside Thompson in his Honda Civic Type-R and is confident of being able to overcome his former teammate. “I’m very pleased to be on the front row. The ballast is a big disadvantage around here and I think we should be able to get the better of the Astras down the straights.”

Neal’s Honda Racing team-mate, Tom Chilton, put in the best qualifying performance of his touring car career to start from third on the grid. “I’m over the moon. The car is strong and the team have done a great job setting it up. Hopefully we can go out there and beat James [Thompson].”

Championship leader Yvan Muller starts a somewhat disappointing seventh on the grid after lapping almost 0.6 seconds behind Thompson. Lead Hilton Independents Cup driver is Carl Breeze in ninth, with James Kaye in tenth. Points leader Rob Collard is suffering from a cold and put in what he described as his “worst qualifying performance of the season”, claiming 13th on the grid.

Luke Hines was quickest in the Production class, whilst returnee Mark Fullalove piloted his Peugeot 306 around the Norfolk circuit quicker than either of the newer 307 models run by Team Varta.