Silverstone up next for pivotal penultimate BTCC round

The BTCC returns to the home of British motor racing at Silverstone this weekend as the 2013 season reaches a pivotal point.

With just two meetings and six races to go, Pirtek Racing’s Andrew Jordan has opened up a 30 point lead at the top of the standings, after taking two wins at Rockingham.

But as with last season’s champion Gordon Shedden 12 months ago, he is heading to comfortably the worst track for the Honda Civic as he looks to defend that lead.

The Civic looked as if it was pulling a trailer around last year, such was its lack of straight-line speed on the short, power-dependent National layout.

But as Jordan said after Rockingham, his main challengers are also driving the same car, and it is simply about maintaining the gap to them.

The flies in the ointment will undoubtedly be the outstanding Colin Turkington, who has maintained a serious championship assault in his new BMW 125i, and the ever-present Jason Plato, who should fly at this circuit in the MG6.

And one of Jordan’s main competitors, Matt Neal, will again be handicapped by broken bones, after continuing an unwanted habit he has picked up in recent seasons. Neal has broken the middle finger on his right hand in a martial arts session, but believes he will still be able to compete.

The meeting should also throw up a few surprises, as chassis performance comes a distinct second to engine power around the minute-long lap.

Neal is due to see a specialist today to discover the full extent of his injury, while team-mate Shedden is concentrating on closing the gap at the top.

He said: “I’ve certainly not given up hope on retaining my championship that’s for sure – the key is getting to Brands Hatch still in with a chance, which has been my aim all year.”

Triple Eight’s Plato, on the other hand, is shooting for race wins, having all-but conceded the championship is out of sight.

He said: “The championship is a long shot for us, so my target has to be to push my victory total towards the 100 mark. I love big shiny trophies and big bottles of champagne – that makes me very happy.

“Silverstone is a really tough circuit because it is so short and that means the order can get mixed up. One of the important things will be the aerodynamics of the cars, which will play to our strengths.”

Another man who will again be shooting for the top step is new film star and maiden BTCC winner, Rob Austin.

An overwhelmingly popular victor in the second race at Rockingham, Austin is hoping the Silverstone circuit will also play to the strengths of his Audi A4.

He said: “It’s a short lap, sub-one minute in fact, but I like it – it means the fans get more laps and because of the long straights and slipstreaming the racing generally tends to be among the closest all season.

“I fully intend going for more wins and I don’t mean that in a cocky way. We’ve been right up there for the last two events, everyone on the team is on a high after Rockingham and, on paper, Silverstone should suit Sherman. I’m up to ninth in the points table now and am definitely targeting the top eight.”

No new faces are set to join the action this weekend, although the driver merry-go-round continues at Tony Gilham Racing.

The returning 16-year-old Aiden Moffat will drive the team’s Volkswagen CC, having made his debut in a S2000 Chevrolet Cruze at Knockhill. He becomes the ninth driver to take to the wheel of one of the Kent squad’s cars in 2013.

It is also a home race for the fledgling IP Tech Race team, as their Chevrolet Cruze is fettled in a workshop in nearby Woodford Halse.

BTCC Silverstone Entry List

No – Driver – Team – Car – Class
1 – Gordon Shedden – Honda Yuasa Racing Team – Honda Civic – NGTC
2 – Matt Neal – Honda Yuasa Racing Team – Honda Civic – NGTC
5 – Rob Collard – West Surrey Racing – BMW 125i M – NGTC
6 – Tom Onslow-Cole – Motorbase Performance – Ford Focus ST – NGTC
7 – Mat Jackson – Motorbase Performance – Ford Focus ST – NGTC
8 – Aron Smith – Motorbase Performance – Ford Focus ST – NGTC
10 – Daniel Welch – Welch Motorsport – Proton Persona – NGTC
11 – Frank Wrathall – Dynojet Racing – Toyota Avensis – NGTC
12 – David Nye – Welch Motorsport – Ford Focus ST – S2000
13 – Rob Austin – Rob Austin Racing – Audi A4 – NGTC
14 – Will Bratt – Rob Austin Racing – Audi A4 – NGTC
16 – Aiden Moffat – Tony Gilham Racing – Volkswagen CC – NGTC
17 – Dave Newsham – Speedworks Motorsport – Toyota Avensis – NGTC
18 – Nick Foster – West Surrey Racing – BMW 125i M – NGTC
22 – Howard Fuller – Tony Gilham Racing – Vauxhall Insignia – NGTC
29 – Colin Turkington – West Surrey Racing – BMW 125i M – NGTC
31 – Jack Goff – Tony Gilham Racing – Vauxhall Insignia – NGTC
33 – Adam Morgan – Cicely Racing – Toyota Avensis – NGTC
39 – Warren Scott – Tony Gilham Racing – Volkswagen CC – NGTC
43 – Lea Wood – JWT Performance – Vauxhall Vectra – S2000
44 – Andy Neate – IP Tech Race Engineering – Chevrolet Cruze – NGTC
48 – Ollie Jackson – Speedworks Motorsport – Toyota Avensis – NGTC
55 – Jeff Smith – Eurotech Racing – Honda Civic – NGTC
66 – Liam Griffin – Motorbase Performance – Ford Focus ST – S2000
77 – Andrew Jordan – Eurotech Racing – Honda Civic – NGTC
88 – Sam Tordoff – Triple Eight Race Engineering – MG6 – NGTC
99 – Jason Plato – Triple Eight Race Engineering – MG6 – NGTC

BTCC Silverstone Success Ballast

Driver – Ballast
Andrew Jordan – +45kg
Gordon Shedden – +36kg
Colin Turkington – +27kg
Matt Neal – +18kg
Jason Plato – +9kg

BTCC Silverstone Timetable

Saturday 28th September
09:30 – Free Practice 1
12:15 – Free Practice 2
15:40 – Qualifying

Sunday 29th September
11:57 – Race 1 (22 Laps)
14:32 – Race 2 (22 Laps)
17:17 – Race 3 (22 Laps)