Round nine of the Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship at Rockingham will start with two Honda Racing drivers on the front row. The Civic Type Rs of Alan Morrison and Matt Neal took the top two positions after a closely fought qualifying session. Their young team-mate Tom Chilton qualified in sixth.

Morrison is delighted to have claimed his first BTCC pole position for Honda Racing. He did this in fine style after dominating the earlier free practice sessions, consistently putting in the fastest times over both days of testing before recording the fastest ever touring car lap of the Rockingham International Circuit (1:42:246).

Alan Morrison: “I’m delighted to have my taken first pole position. The car has showed really good pace all weekend – I was fastest in practice on Friday and again this morning. It’s great having Matt on the front row alongside me and it really shows the potential of the Honda Racing Civic Type R. I just hope that everything goes as well tomorrow!”

Matt Neal: “It’s fantastic to have two Hondas on the front row. I’m just as happy for Alan to be on pole as I would be if I was there myself. It’s nice to give Honda Racing something back after all the bad luck we’ve had so far. We’re working on the car all the time – which is a real team effort – and we’re starting to understand what makes it tick now.”

Tom Chilton: “I’m really pleased for Alan, Matt and Honda Racing. It’s brilliant to have all three cars in the top six but it would have been fantastic to get the top three positions. Unfortunately I got held up on sector two when I caught one of the production cars. I’m just hoping for a fast start and some good results tomorrow.”