Thruxton race 3: Victory for Plato

Jason Plato has won the third of today’s three Dunlop MSA British Touring Car rounds at Thruxton in Hampshire to keep control of the championship lead.

SEAT driver Plato took several laps to pass the A-Tech Alfa Romeo 156 of early leader, Luton Town football club chairman Dave Pinkney, but once ahead stayed there. Plato also set the race’s fastest lap, but Pinkney, in tyre wear problems, fell to 13th.

The victory was Plato’s 36th in the BTCC – an achievement that puts him second equal with former team-mates Yvan Muller and Alain Menu on the championship’s all-time winners chart.

Gordon Shedden’s Team Halfords Honda Civic and Mike Jordan’s Eurotech Honda Integra eventually finished second and third.

Leaving Thruxton, Plato provisionally leads the standings by nine points from Vauxhall’s Italian driver Fabrizio Giovanardi who won the day’s earlier two races.

Vauxhall’s Tom Chilton is third, another 30 points adrift but only two ahead of Team Halfords’ reigning champion Matt Neal.