Sam Tordoff leaves it late to head first Oulton Park practice

Cobra Sport AmD’s Sam Tordoff topped the opening free practice session at Oulton Park, setting his best time on his final flying lap as the chequered flag fell.

Tordoff’s best time of 1.26.073 in his Honda Civic FK2 put him 0.089s ahead of Team Dynamics’ Dan Cammish in the newer FK8 Civic, with form man Andrew Jordan third in the West Surrey Racing BMW 330i M-Sport.

The forecast for Britain to bask in glorious sunshine all day was evident from the outset, with an air temperature of 19.2 degrees and 31 degree track temperature much higher than average for an opening practice.

Also staying cool in the heat was Power Maxed Racing’s Jason Plato, who finished fourth in his Vauxhall Astra having topped the session for some time, with Speedworks Motorsport’s Tom Ingram next up in fifth in the new Toyota Corolla.

Matt Neal, Chris Smiley, Ash Sutton, Rory Butcher and Stephen Jelley rounded out the top 10, with championship leader Colin Turkington just behind in 11th, 0.679 off the pace in his BMW 330i M Sport.

Turkington’s nearest challenger, BTC Racing’s Josh Cook, set the 14th fastest time in his Honda Civic FK8, 0.797s away from Tordoff’s best time.

The top 19 cars were all within a second of the best time, down to Team Hard’s Jack Goff, 0.968 off the pace in his Volkswagen CC.

It was a largely uneventful session, spare a late black flag for Simpson Racing’s Matt Simpson, while Team Hard’s Carl Boardley was the only driver in the 30-car field not to set a time.

The second practice session takes place at 12:10 BST.