Reigning Jack Sears Trophy winner Josh Cook clocked the fastest time overall in the final BTCC practice run at Brands Hatch, doubling up on his pace-setting form from the opening session.

It was almost a carbon copy of FP1 in every sense as conditions improved throughout the 40-minutes of running.

Three red flags halted proceedings as Matt Simpson went off twice while Stewart Lines slide into the gravel at Paddock Hill Bend brought about the final stoppage. This set-up a three-minute dash to the chequered flag, which Cook again timed to perfection, proving the pace of the MG6 in greasy conditions.

The time was still some three seconds slower than this morning's effort, but with the weather forecast remaining unclear for this afternoon's qualifying session it would suggest that Cook's ballast-free MG6 is likely to feature.

"Being just free practice, P1 doesn’t count for that much at this stage and I’m not reading a great deal into it, but of course it’s always nice to be quickest," he said. "The Triple Eight boys have done a really good job with the MG6 and we have a decent baseline. I’m happy with how we improved over the two sessions, although we still have a little bit of work to do in terms of consistency. Qualifying will be a completely different scenario, but the target has to be the front row of the grid."

The Ford Focus, Honda Civic Type R and Toyota Avensis were other cars expected to go well on the greasy surface, and so it proved as Mat Jackson, Gordon Shedden and Tom Ingram followed in the timesheets.

Aron Smith, who became the 12th different winner this season at Rockingham, was fifth in the order while Ash Sutton confirmed MG's pace with a top six finish.

Title contenders Andrew Jordan and Colin Turkington were seventh and ninth respectively while Adam Morgan and Michael Epps took the other top ten positions.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 2 – Brands Hatch:

1 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance 1m43.790s
2 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.267s
3 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +0.293s
4 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.330s
5 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +0.427s
6 Ash SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +0.440s
7 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.669s
8 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +0.680s
9 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.709s
10 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +0.766s
11 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com +0.840s
12 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.867s
13 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.266s
14 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +1.292s
15 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.358s
16 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +1.418s
17 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +1.619s
18 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.729s
19 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1.749s
20 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing +1.980s
21 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +2.318s
22 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +2.365s
23 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +2.392s
24 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +2.840s
25 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +3.213s
26 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +3.381s
27 Tony GILHAM (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +3.462s
28 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +3.956s
29 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +4.027s
30 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +7.650s
31 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing

MG Racing RCIB Insurance driver Josh Cook set the pace in free practice one at Brands Hatch, as conditions improved throughout the session following early morning rain at the famous Kent venue.

Light drizzle greeted the 31-cars as they began their opening runs of the weekend, with fellow MG man Ashley Sutton initially setting the pace while the already greasy surface worsened.

The mid-session period saw many cars circulating without improvements in the times, although a dry line was beginning to form for the final ten minutes.

In typical fashion the track quickened with every tour and timing proved key in the closing moments. It was Cook who benefitted most as he crossed the line late on to set the 1:40.042s benchmark – albeit nearly ten seconds off the expected pace in perfect dry conditions.

Title contender Mat Jackson was second as he pushed his Ford Focus ahead of Rob Austin's Toyota in the timesheets, whilst AmD's Ollie Jackson impressed with a superb fourth place in the Audi S3.

"That was good," enthused Ollie. "The overall position was a bit of a surprise because of the circumstances but it’s good to see the big changes we made on the car did work. We changed the whole spring damper units in the session – and the lads managed to turn it around in just four minutes.

"We haven’t really run the car properly with a wet setup so it was good to get some running. It’s a fantastic circuit, probably my favourite on the calendar."

Tom Ingram took fifth – at a venue where he scored the first pole position of the season around the Indy circuit – and Team HARD duo Michael Epps and Jake Hill were next in the order. Local man Hill briefly topped the times until the late improvements pushed him down the leaderboard slightly, but the young charger could be one to watch this weekend.

Adam Morgan, Rob Collard and Jeff Smith rounded out the top ten.

The conditions prevented a number of the championship challengers from really showing their hand, as Silverline Subaru's Colin Turkington acknowledged. "It doesn’t make it easy for what’s looking like a dry race one tomorrow, but it's good to get the eye in with a bit of wet running," he said.

"We understand the Subaru now so we can put something on the car that shouldn’t be too far away, but you’re going in a bit blind to some extent. We’ll just do our best. You have to focus on yourself and attack every session one at a time.

"I’m pleased to be here in with a shout. I’m 37 points back and it is a tall order to close that gap, but it’s the usual game plan of working hard to jump up the leaderboard."

Free Practice Two will take place 12:45 before the final qualifying session of the 2016 BTCC season takes place at 15:40, which can be streamed live via www.itv.com/btcc.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 1 – Brands Hatch:

1 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance 1m40.042s
2 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.366s
3 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +0.894s
4 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com +1.166s
5 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +1.479s
6 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +2.014s
7 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +2.045s
8 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +2.094s
9 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +2.502s
10 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +2.537s
11 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +2.579s
12 Ash SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +2.863s
13 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +2.896s
14 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +3.072s
15 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +3.319s
16 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +3.742s
17 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +3.755s
18 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +3.771s
19 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +3.867s
20 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +4.297s
21 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +4.352s
22 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing +4.371s
23 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +4.492s
24 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +4.500s
25 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +4.511s
26 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +4.752s
27 Tony GILHAM (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +4.895s
28 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +5.095s
29 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +5.447s
30 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +5.624s
31 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +6.389s

With an insurmountable lead in both the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship's Independent Teams' and Drivers' standings already in the bag, yielding maiden titles for Motorbase Performance, the outfit now turns its attention to the overall trophies at this weekend's Brands Hatch finale.

Mat Jackson and Andrew Jordan will fight it out between them for Independent Drivers' honours and both are still firmly in the mix as two of eight drivers arriving at the legendary former Formula 1 circuit with a chance of taking the coveted BTCC Drivers' crown.

The former is just 21 points shy of current championship front-runner, Team JCT600 with GardX man Sam Tordoff. Given there are 67 points on offer over the course of this finale weekend, Jackson will feel as much in the hunt as any of his rivals.

“It’s great to be going into this weekend with the championship race still so close," said the Warwickshire racer. "Fifth spot in the standings means we’re carrying less ballast into qualifying and being only 10 points away from second puts us in a great position.

"This is the strongest we’ve ever been in heading into the final round and it highlights what a great year it has been for Motorbase.

“It’s been an interesting one for a lot of the guys in the championship and it’s stayed very, very close at the top. With eight drivers in contention going into the final it shows what a strong year it’s been all-round but all the pressure is on Sam (Tordoff) not to make a mistake this weekend.

"We’ve just got to treat it as any other race meeting. The pressure isn't on us; all we can do is go for wins and bank the points. It’s down to the others to lose it more than it is for us to win it. We need to make sure that qualifying goes to plan so we can hit the ground running in race one and deliver the results from there.”

Jackson's stablemate, Pirtek Racing's Andrew Jordan is a further 13 points back and is not willing to give up on the fight, though admitted bad luck may have to strike those ahead of him to really put him in the running.

“I don’t feel any pressure, which is strange to say heading into a title decider for two championships," said Jordan. "We’ve got a good lead in the Independent Drivers' standings so my aim is to go to Brands to seal that and to try and secure a first Drivers' title for Motorbase - that would be a nice way to end my maiden campaign with the team.

“In terms of the overall title, I’m just going there with the same mentality as I did at Silverstone – to just try to be quick and win races, with a bit of hope that the other guys in front all fall over each other and I can score some big points.

"Realistically it’s going to take some misfortune for the other guys, but I’m in a position where I can just roll my sleeves up and get stuck in and see what gaps I can make in the championship.”

Whatever the outcome, Team Manager Oly Collins is proud of Motorbase's achievements in 2016.

“It’s hard to believe that we are so near to the end of an amazing season for all of us at Motorbase,” said Collins. “We go into the final weekend with both drivers in the hunt for the outright championship.

"We're Independent Teams' champions, Independent Drivers' Champions and have consistently fought amongst the Manufacturers all year long and beaten most of them along the way.

“It’s been a pretty good season by anyone's standards, especially for a small team like ourselves.”

Get all twelve of this season’s Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship winners so far in these complete Dynamic Dozen wallpapers:

 

In his fourth full campaign in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, West Surrey Racing man Sam Tordoff heads the way in what is his biggest shot at taking the title yet.

A stellar afternoon at Oulton Park in June cemented Tordoff’s championship credentials – a win and two-second place finishes moving the Team JCT600 with GardX driver to the summit. That Cheshire weekend has since proved to be one of the most impressive individual drives of the season.

He has headed the standings at the end of every weekend since, barring post-Snetterton, where team-mate Rob Collard briefly usurped his lead by three points. A Knockhill race weekend later and Tordoff left Scotland back on top.

The Yorkshireman's trip to Rockingham started in the worst possible fashion, however, beaching his BMW 125i M Sport in practice and suffering more trouble in qualifying, meaning he was way back on the race one grid. After the setbacks, Tordoff produced the goods, battling from 28th in the opening race to scythe through the field and win by the time the chequered flag fell on race two – signalling his title intent, as if he hadn't done so already this year.

Silverstone was to be a poor weekend, relatively speaking, for the standings leader with just two 11th placed finishes and a 6th. Despite this, the other challengers failed to capitalise, leaving him with an 11-point lead, extended by some six points – 'ridiculous' was the word used by the man himself at how things had panned out for him in the championship shakeup leaving Northamptonshire.

Heading to the Brands Hatch finale leading the way is a position the BMW man has not been in before. Even with five champions hot on his heels, Tordoff is insistent that the pressure is firmly on the chasing pack.

"To come away from Silverstone having extended our lead from five points to 11 was quite frankly ridiculous!" said Tordoff. "For me, the pressure is off as nobody expected this at the start of the year. I’ve been picking points up as we've gone along and just seeing how we go from there.

“There are seven or eight guys who keep taking points off each other out there as well as off of me, so we’ll see what happens. Regarding the competition, Honda has been up there for many years as the benchmark. I think the biggest threat comes from them – they’re experienced guys who have been there and done it. My team-mate’s there in the mirrors too, and you can never discount the Fords.

"It could be difficult at Brands with the ballast – it’s undulating, so we have to be wary. There are a lot of corners and stop-starts, though, which should suit the BMW.

"It’s been a strange two weeks in the meantime. I’ve tried to keep myself sharp with BMW, and Brands Hatch GP is my favourite circuit. I’m looking forward to it. I’ll arrive there having approached the weekend the same as I've approached every other this season.

"I’ve prepped, done the simulator work and if I have to walk the track three times on Friday then I'll do it. Hopefully we’ll qualify well, which will be really important, and we’ll just go from there.

"I had a set of targets for the season and we’ve surpassed all of them, so whatever happens now is a bonus. Having said that, I’ve led the championship for half the season so of course it would be a disappointment not to convert it into a title, both for myself and WSR, who have worked incredibly hard to give me a fantastic car."

Double champion Colin Turkington heaped praise on his team for this season's turnaround and has vowed to give it his all this weekend as both he and Silverline Subaru BMR Racing team-mate Jason Plato remain in contention to win the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

The team has enjoyed a fine run of form since its withdrawal on safety grounds from race day at Thruxton back in May, with the 2014 BTCC title winner leading that resurgence. Three victories, starting with top spot at the very next round from Oulton Park have capped eight visits so far to the podium.

With the final three rounds of the campaign still to come this weekend at Brands Hatch, the Irishman's form has seen him close to within 37 points of standings leader Sam Tordoff, despite a best of only 10th from the first three events on the calendar.

Turkington has been there and done it before, and he knows there's still time for everything to change come the final chequered flag is waved on Sunday evening.

"I’m aiming to build on what we've got and I won't give up the fight until I've crossed the line on the final lap of the final race," said Turkington.

"Although I’m regarded as an outside contender for the title, it's still pretty impressive that we are involved in the season showdown.  Even in a ‘normal’ Championship year to arrive at Brands with a shout of the crown is always the goal.

"To achieve that in our first season with the Subaru is a great reward for everyone involved.  We have all worked incredibly hard and put everything into this project.  To be in the Championship fight despite the challenges we faced early on is amazing.

"It was only six months ago at Brands Hatch that my car turned a wheel for the first time so to return there as a Championship contender is an enormous confidence boost.

"Brands GP should suit our car and it's the track that holds the most special memories for me, having won my first race there and clinched both my championships."

To celebrate the unprecedented number of eight contenders still in contention for this year's BTCC title we're giving away special 'SUPER 8' wallpapers ahead of the Brands Hatch showdown next weekend (1/2 October).

There are four different versions, so take your pick or take them all! Simply click on the images below...

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