Chaos reigns in first race at Oulton Park

Dramatic scenes graced round seven of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Oulton Park. James Thompson, Rob Collard and Colin Turkington all missed the pitlane window ahead of the race and were unable to take up their positions on the grid as a result. Polesitter Jason Plato made it out onto the grid, but his SEAT team changed the tyres on the Leon Cupra after the three-minute board was shown, landing Plato with a 30-second stop-go penalty. The penalty curse continued among the frontrunners, as Martyn Bell was handed a drive-through penalty for starting out of position on the grid.

When the race actually started, Plato led through Old Hall for the first time, from Bell, James Kaye and Gordon Shedden. Plato pitted for his penalty and Martyn Bell lost traction when he ran wide on the grass, spinning out of the race before taking his drive-through.

So, when Shedden passed James Kaye on lap two, it put the Team Halfords driver into the lead of the race. Kaye was not in second for long however, as Mondello Park race winner Mike Jordan also found a way past the Synchro Motorsport Civic.

Further back, Thompson, Collard and Turkington were making their way up through the pack after being forced to start from the back of the grid. By lap five, they were up to sixth, seventh and eighth respectively. The pace of the Team RAC MGs was too much for Thompson, and both Collard and Turkington passed the former champion on the following lap.

Halfway through the race, Shedden continued to lead from Jordan. Kaye was third, under pressure from Matt Neal, while Fabrizio Giovanardi, fifth, was successfully keeping Turkington and Collard at bay.

The remaining laps were dominated by the battles between Jordan and Neal and Giovanardi, Turkington and Collard. Turkington tried a move around the outside of Giovanardi on the penultimate lap, but it merely allowed Collard to gain a place.

Back at the front, there was a scare for Gordon Shedden as he went straight on at Knickerbrook, allowing Mike Jordan to close right up on his tail. However, he was able to hold on and took the chequered flag for his first BTCC victory. Jordan finished second, with James Kaye third, securing his first ever visit to the podium. Matt Neal finished fourth, with Fabrizio Giovanardi fifth. Collard and Turkington were sixth and seventh respectively for Team RAC. Gavin Smith, Tom Chilton and Dave Pinkney rounded out the top ten.