Matt Neal won the third round of the Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship in spectacular fashion from Yvan Muller and Paul O’Neill after 35 breathtaking laps of the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit. The 36-year-old Honda Racing driver took a superb victory after leading the first half of the race and then making up the ground he lost during his pit stop.

Neal stole the holeshot from pole position James Thompson on the uphill thrust into Paddock Hill Bend and gradually pulled out what looked to be a winning 4.7-second advantage before he took his mandatory tyre change at the end of lap 20. However, a slow stop left him fourth and 2.6 seconds down on new leader Paul O’Neill.

With the Civic Type R in full cry, Neal powered to the fastest lap of the race to take advantage of a collision between Yvan Muller and Warren Hughes. Six laps from the chequered flag, Neal started to close the gap on O’Neill with 0.5 seconds separating the two drivers as they embarked on the last lap of a superb race.

Then came the decisive moment with Neal thrusting his car under O’Neill at Clearways to take a deserved and popular victory. O’Neill lost control of his car and second place to his team-mate Muller after Neal’s overtaking manoeuvre.

Alan Morrison took seventh place in his Honda Racing Civic Type R after twice charging through the field. He suffered from a poor start and then a slow pit stop, which hampered his progress towards a possible podium finish.

Matt Neal: “I thought that I had the race in the bag before the pit stop. Then, I had to compose myself, wait for the tyres to warm-up and defend my position from James Thompson. Once I had seen him off, it was a case of working as hard as I could for the remainder of the race. I thought that the Muller-Hughes battle would end in a dust-up – and it did. Fortunately, I just squeezed past Hughes in the aftermath and on the approach to Druids. Then, it became a chase for the lead.

“My tyres had picked up some dust, so I gave them some time to clean up and then set about O’Neill. On the last lap, I thought that he had it in the bag, but he left the door open for me. I didn’t need a second invitation and just got through the gap. There was some contact, but I feel that it was a fair move. I am delighted for the whole team who have worked so hard to get me into this position after the disappointment of Mondello Park.”

Alan Morrison: “The driver in front of me was slow off the line and I had to take avoiding action. That left me 11th into the first turn but I was able to pick off the guys in front of me, only to lose the advantage once again after the pit stop. That left it even more difficult for me, but I feel that I drove well under the circumstances and gave it everything in the closing laps to make up for lost time.”