Photo: btcc.net

Milestones for Neal and Plato as BTCC hits Donington

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Two legends of the British Touring Car Championship will celebrate major milestones this weekend as the second round of the 2013 series takes place at Donington Park.

Fierce rivals Jason Plato and Matt Neal will chalk up their 400th and 500th BTCC races respectively, three weeks after sharing the wins in the season’s opening round at Brands Hatch.

For Plato, the Leicestershire circuit holds fond memories dating back to the very start of his tin-top career, having made his BTCC debut at Donington in 1997, and taking pole position in the Renault Laguna. He has since gone on to record four wins at the track.

And Neal also provided one of the BTCC’s all-time classic moments at the circuit in 1999, when he memorably became the first independent driver to win a race outright, taking with it a cheque for £250,000.

This weekend, Plato will be the man to beat, heading into the meeting leading the standings after two commanding victories in Kent in his Triple Eight MG.

Eurotech Racing’s Andrew Jordan is second in the standings, following two second places, with the equally impressive Sam Tordoff third after his first weekend in the second MG. Jordan’s team-mate Jeff Smith and Honda Racing Team’s Neal round out the top five.

Donington is a home race for several of the drivers, including Neal, who hails from Droitwich Spa; Jordan, from Lichfield, Staffordshire; Mat Jackson, from Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire, and Rob Austin, from Pershore, Worcestershire.

Form-wise, Donington has proved a very happy hunting ground for Honda and Ford drivers in recent years, with 10 of the last 12 races at the track being won by Civic or Focus drivers.

Action gets under way with free practice at 10:00 BST and 12:30 BST on Saturday, followed by qualifying at 15:40 BST.

Sunday’s races take place at 11:37 BST, 14:27 BST and 17:15 BST.