Matt Neal celebrates

BTCC 2017 Thruxton Weekend

Mark

The weekend just finished saw the BTCC 2017 Thruxton Weekend as the teams and drivers made their way to the notoriously fast Hampshire circuit, two weeks since Easter and the Donington weekend.  The weather may not have been as hot as at last year’s BTCC Thruxton round, but it was still warm on race day and it was another bumper crowd for Thruxton. There was, as normal, a slightly different support package, with British Formula Four and Ginetta Juniors as normal, and the addition of the Ginetta GT5 Challenge rather than the more familiar GT4 Supercup or Porsches.

Qualifying saw Matt Neal claim his first pole in almost five years, and the first race saw Neal convert that to a win, and looked very happy with himself.  He was joined on the podium by his team mate, Gordon Shedden, who retained second place from the grid to the podium, and Jack Goff in third. Neal is now equal second in the all time wins table for British Touring Cars.

 

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Jack Goff gets out of the car after his third place at Thruxton, May 2017

In the second race, Senna Proctor and Aron Taylor-Smith had a coming together, which ended up tangling Daniel Lloyd and sending him into the barriers at Church. A long red flag period ensued whilst the barrier was repaired and the car removed, and when the racing got going again, Matt Neal limped slowly into the pits from the lead with a problem, which was quickly cleared and he was back on the circuit albeit at the back of the pack. Martin Depper went off at Goodwood, causing a second red flag and ultimately curtailing the race. Rob Collard took the win from Gordon Shedden, with Tom Ingram in third.

The third race was by now delayed, and Martin Depper’s grid spot was empty after his smash at the end of race two.

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It was Colin Tarkington’s turn to take the top step of the podium, as the 100th win for BMW in the championship. Tom Ingram and Jack Goff both had their second podium visit of the weekend.

The teams head off now to Oulton Park in two weeks for the next round. Meanwhile, here are some photos from the BTCC 2017 Thruxton Weekend.