Silverline Subaru BMR Racing driver Colin Turkington kept his championship chances alive by producing a sublime lights-to-flag victory in the BTCC opener at Brands Hatch.

The double champion was in dominant form during qualifying yesterday and he duly backed up that showing with a commanding display from pole position. The Subaru Levorg made a steady getaway off the line and gradually pulled clear of the chasing pack, as Turkington set fastest lap for good measure on his way to a fourth victory of the season.

"It’s too early in the day to think about the title but all of these little bonus points definitely help," he said. "Before the racing today it was 37 points, and on any other weekend you’d rule it out but the final at Brands is always quite freaky. My goal was to give myself the best chance I could. Qualifying on pole did that job and so has the race one win. To be an outside contender for the title at this stage is a real credit to the guys."

The best of the rest was led by Handy Motorsport's Rob Austin, who fended off the attentions from Jason Plato and Josh Cook for the duration of the contest.

"Unfortunately, we didn’t have the pace to go with Colin (Turkington) but we had enough to hold off Jason (Plato)," claimed Austin. "I folded my mirror when I was fighting with Colin on the opening lap so I couldn’t tell where JP was for the rest of the race, it made things really difficult. There was a lot of pressure on and it wasn’t my best drive – I was quite tense – but it’s a huge thing for me and for Handy Motorsport to get that second place in the end."

While Plato's Subaru hassled Austin's Toyota throughout he was never close enough to make a move, and worse followed for the BTCC's most successful driver when he was passed on the last corner of the last lap. MG Racing RCIB Insurance driver Cook eyed his opportunity and nudged his way by through Clearways to claim the final podium position.

"I kept the pressure on Jason (Plato) throughout, and then he made a mistake into Stirlings, which gave me the run on the outside into Clearways and I managed to stop early to get the cutback on the exit," said Cook. "A podium certainly isn’t a bad way to start the day – it’s been a real effort from all the team and mechanics today and I’m thrilled for the guys, and for MG."

The shake-up leaves Plato out of title contention, whilst Andrew Jordan's hopes hang by a thread after he was caught up in an incident on lap two. Matt Neal's Honda looked to have tapped the slow-starting Power Maxed Racing Chevrolet of Hunter Abbott into a spin at Druids, and the unsighted Jordan had nowhere to go - contact ending his race on the spot.

Reigning champion Gordon Shedden scrapped to a fifth place finish after he saw off Jack Goff's BMW in an early battle. The Scotsman is now just six points off the standings summit as he clawed into Sam Tordoff's lead.

Adam Morgan wedged his WIX Racing Mercedes in-between the two Hondas as Matt Neal also made ground in his quest for a record equalling fourth BTCC title.

Aiden Moffat and Ashley Sutton were next in the order, with the latter making a number of eye catching passes. The MG man sliced by Mat Jackson and Jack Goff in one move on the run up to Druids to take tenth on lap seven, and he went one better with a slick pass by Tordoff's Team JCT600 with GardX BMW.

It was damage limitation for Tordoff, who still produced a good drive carrying maximum ballast. His slender advantage, however, is down to just six points with both Shedden and Neal clipping at his heels. Rob Collard maintained fourth in the standings, but he's just a point ahead of Turkington, who in turn is two ahead of Jackson. As noted, Jordan's chances are fading fast while Plato's hopes have been completely extinguished.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Race One – Brands Hatch GP:

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing 25m56.267s (90.06 mph)
2 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +4.570s
3 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +5.314s
4 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +5.903s
5 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +10.750s
6 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +11.130s
7 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +11.620s
8 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +17.894s
9 Ash SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +18.077s
10 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +19.564s
11 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +20.195s
12 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +21.177s
13 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +25.068s
14 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +29.982s
15 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +31.106s
16 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +31.180s
17 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +31.329s
18 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com +31.600s
19 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +33.005s
20 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +33.731s
21 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +35.181s
22 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing +40.330s
23 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +40.845s
24 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +54.660s
25 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +1m00.182s
DNF Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +1 lap
DNF Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +4 laps
DNF Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +4 laps
DNF Tony GILHAM (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +14 laps
DNF Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +15 laps
DNF Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +15 laps

Power Maxed Racing's Hunter Abbott fired his Chevrolet to a net fourth spot on the grid for Sunday's Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship finale from Brands Hatch – the best of the season for the team and a best-ever for Abbott himself.

The PMR man spoke to btcc.net following that impressive Saturday showing on his chances for the rest of the weekend ahead.

Handy Motorsport's Rob Austin continued his rich vein of form with a best-ever qualifying result for the team on Saturday at Brands Hatch – a net second spot following Tom Ingram's demotion for technical infringements.

Since Snetterton, the squad, in their first Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season, have turned their form around. Another third-placed finish for the team back at Silverstone hammered home this upturn and Austin is hoping to go one better in the final trio of races this year after a positive qualifying session at the famous Kent circuit.

Colin Turkington claimed pole position in the final Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship qualifying session of the season, after the Silverline Subaru BMR Racing driver produced an incredible effort at Brands Hatch.

The 30-minute session was punctuated by a rain shower and a stoppage following a dramatic accident involving Aron Smith’s VW, but it was double champion Turkington who starred as the chequered flag fell.

Tom Ingram led the way early on, before Smith’s incident interrupted proceedings. The Irishman’s machine looked to suffer from a tyre issue before sliding into the gravel and rolling onto its roof at the exit of Hawthorns. Smith was unharmed in the relatively slow-speed accident, but the lengthy delay to retrieve his stricken car also brought about further rain from the dark clouds in Kent.

A vigorous attempt to dry the track surface followed, with car after car clocking up the laps as conditions improved. Times gradually edged towards Ingram’s benchmark, before Turkington’s Subaru Levorg eventually broke free by more than a second.

Ingram made one final attempt to retake pole position but the Speedworks Motorsport driver fell short by just 0.006s, whilst Rob Austin’s Toyota and Jason Plato’s Subaru looked to have completed the second row. Those positions changed post-qualifying, however, when Ingram’s Toyota failed ride-height checks and he will start tomorrow’s opener from the back of the grid. Subsequently, Austin and Plato will now line up in second and third respectively.

Hunter Abbott’s rich vein of qualifying form continued as the Power Maxed Racing driver took fourth following Ingram’s penalty, whilst Josh Cook – pace-setter during both practice sessions – had to settle for fifth in his MG6.

Team IHG Rewards Club’s Jack Goff was sixth, ahead of reigning champion Gordon Shedden – critically the Halfords Yuasa Racing star finishing in front of his five closest championship contenders.

The Mercedes duo of Aiden Moffat and Adam Morgan were next up, but it was the following quartet of runners that provided further focus on the championship picture.

Standings leader Sam Tordoff was tenth, immediately ahead of title rivals Matt Neal, Rob Collard and Andrew Jordan. The second Motorbase Ford of Mat Jackson struggled down in 19th – the lowest of the eight remaining championship protagonists.

An unprecedented number of drivers are still in the reckoning to win the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, which will be decided during tomorrow’s triple-header showdown around the legendary Grand Prix circuit.

West Surrey Racing’s Tordoff currently leads the way by 11 points from Shedden, with Neal just two points further adrift in third – and both Honda men have clinched the crown before. Like Tordoff, team-mate Collard is similarly gunning for a maiden title, whilst Motorbase Performance’s combination of Jackson and Jordan and Subaru duo Turkington and Plato remain firmly in the frame.

So Brands Hatch is set to play host to three unmissable races, which will determine the outcome to one of the hardest-fought championships in history. A huge crowd is expected to descend upon the hallowed Kent venue, with many, many more watching every second live and exclusively on ITV4.

Sam Tordoff (Championship, 1^st; Qualifying, 10^th) said: “It was a very difficult qualifying in mixed conditions, but I think we did a very solid job and we were quick enough when it mattered – although I actually had no idea where we were until the team told me over the radio at the end! It was the kind of session where everything went against us, and rear-wheel drive is never at its happiest in the wet but we ended up right in amongst our main rivals, so we can be satisfied with that. The plan for tomorrow is to stay out of trouble, collect points – and go and win this championship!”

Gordon Shedden (Championship, 2^nd; Qualifying, 7^th) said: “That was certainly a bit of a random session. Once the rain began to fall, I didn’t think there was any chance it was going to dry up – and then with eight minutes left on the track, it all started happening! It was the kind of scenario when you could have been on pole or could just as easily have ended up 25^th, so whilst it would obviously have been nice to be a bit further up the grid, I’ll certainly take seventh position with 66kg on-board – we can certainly go racing from there!”

Matt Neal (Championship, 3^rd; Qualifying, 11^th) said: “I’m keeping my glass half full so while it could have been a bit better, it could also have been a lot worse! We’re still firmly in the mix and most of the championship protagonists are in close proximity. We had a fully dry set-up on the car but it was still quite damp out the back of the lap, which made it too loose and tail-happy through the quick stuff. I was struggling to hold onto it a bit and I was wary of putting it in the wall, so I didn’t push flat-out. That said, the Honda Civic Type R should be strong in the dry tomorrow, so it’s game on.”

Rob Collard (Championship, 4^th; Qualifying, 12^th) said: “We don’t seem to be making the job very easy for ourselves at the moment! We had a gear linkage problem at the start of qualifying which was an early blow, so we never got a run on new tyres before the rain came down. At that stage, I really thought it was all over and even when we went back out following the stoppage, it still didn’t look particularly promising because the rain was still falling. The car was very strong but we just had too many laps on the tyres by the end of the session when conditions were at their best. Still, it was a good recovery and whilst 13^th might be unlucky for some, hopefully it will be a lucky number for me tomorrow.”

Mat Jackson (Championship, 5^th; Qualifying, 19^th) said: “We had a differential problem on the car from the word ‘go’, and it was just too big a job to fix in the time available so we were fighting a lost cause throughout. We’ve obviously made our life a lot harder for tomorrow, but it’s a different day and we all know that anything can happen in the BTCC. We’ve got a big hill to climb, but I fully intend to put my overtaking head on and see what we can do. This isn’t over yet!”

Andrew Jordan (Championship, 6^th; Qualifying, 13^th) said: “It was a difficult session. In hindsight, we probably should have gone out a bit sooner. The car itself felt good, but we weren’t able to generate sufficient tyre temperature or grip. That’s just the way it goes sometimes, and with most of the title contenders in similar mid-grid positions, the scene is certainly set for an exciting finals day. Let’s see what we can do!”

Colin Turkington (Championship, 7^th; Qualifying, 1^st) said: “I didn’t know I was quickest. I was out there running by myself and midway through I was 18th. It was raining and I thought I was in big trouble. I went out early after the red flag to try and build up temperatures on the slicks and we put everything on the line for the guys – I had everything to gain. It’s now 36 points to Sam Tordoff, not 37. I won’t give up. Thirty-six points is a big gap over six other drivers. I’ll do my best and my goal is to move up the leaderboard. To win it might be a bit unrealistic but I’ll certainly give it a try!"

Jason Plato (Championship, 8th; Qualifying, 3rd) said: "It was really tricky because the conditions kept changing and it was difficult to read the circuit. In the beginning I was right on the button but then I just couldn't get a clean lap when the conditions were at their best. I did make a slight mistake on my fastest lap but I'm delighted with the effort from everyone. I'm very confident for race day, I've got a good race car and I'm looking forward to tomorrow. My job is to win some races and put on a good show – I plan to end the season on a high."

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Qualifying – Brands Hatch GP:

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing 1m31.838s
2 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +0.214s
3 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.221s
4 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +0.228s
5 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +0.258s
6 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +0.366s
7 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.482s
8 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +0.553s
9 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.743s
10 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +0.849s
11 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1.019s
12 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +1.142s
13 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.247s
14 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.257s
15 Ash SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +1.261s
16 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com +1.541s
17 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +1.563s
18 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +1.578s
19 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.725s
20 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +2.065s
21 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +2.247s
22 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +2.726s
23 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +2.900s
24 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +2.955s
25 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +3.130s
26 Tony GILHAM (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +3.984s
27 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing +4.041s
28 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +5.050s
29 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +5.691s
30 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +6.428s
EXCL Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport NO TIME

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: