Snetterton review

Turkington, Jackson and Shedden share wins on dramatic day at Snetterton

Reigning champion Gordon Shedden claimed a last-gasp victory to end a breathless day of BTCC racing at Snetterton, which also included wins for Colin Turkington and Mat Jackson.

Halfords Yuasa Racing’s Shedden had already secured Honda’s first pole position in more than three years during qualifying at the Norfolk circuit, but a race one win failed to materialise for the Scotsman.

Turkington won the opener after the Silverline Subaru BMR Racing driver eventually got the better of Shedden during a near race-long duel.

It was bumper-to-bumper action for the first half of the contest, but Turkington finally muscled his way past on lap eight of 12. Shedden couldn’t respond and Turkington went on to become the first three-time race winner of 2016.

Mat Jackson made the best start of the leading contenders as he blasted his Motorbase Performance Ford Focus from fifth on the grid to third off the line. While Jackson kept the lead duo honest, throughout, he also had to hold off the challenge from Adam Morgan behind. Jackson did the job, claiming a podium on the team’s 300th BTCC race.

Jackson then secured victory in a thrilling, truncated race two, with Turkington and Matt Neal completing the podium positions.

The Focus fired off the line beyond second-placed Shedden and then past pole man Turkington, before a multi-car collision sparked drama down the order. Aron Smith and Kelvin Fletcher had a coming together on the exit of turn one, but the major incident came later in the lap when Dan Welch and Ollie Jackson tangled as they ran on to the Bentley Straight. With dust filling the air the unsighted Alex Martin, Hunter Abbott and Ashley Sutton were all caught up in the accident. Stationary cars littered the track, several with heavy damage, leaving race officials with no choice but to stop the race.

Take two and Jackson produced an almost carbon copy of his earlier effort – leading Shedden off the line but waiting until Hamilton corner before disposing of Turkington. Jackson remained untroubled for the remainder of the shortened ten lap race, with Turkington following up his race one win with another solid showing in the second bout.

The fight for the final podium place remained undecided until the closing moments, as Neal and Rob Collard provided a spectacle of superb racing. Collard looked to have made a move stick after both cars ran side-by-side for much of lap eight, but triple champion Neal immediately fought back to retake the position. The striking Halfords-backed Honda held on to reach the rostrum, but both drivers strengthened their respective championship challenges with stellar points finishes.

Shedden then completed a sensational day of entertainment by snatching an unlikely last lap victory in the final race on the Snetterton 300 layout.

A dramatic accident brought about the second red flag of the day when contact between Mark Howard, Martin, Jackson and Abbott sent the latter’s Chevrolet Cruze into a barrel roll. Abbott’s Power Maxed Racing machine spiralled over the barrier and into a television gantry, leaving a cameraman and several drivers shaken but thankfully unharmed.

Pole-sitter and then championship leader Sam Tordoff broke down before the race could restart as the BTCC threw up yet another twist to the title race. The relentless drama was far from over, however, as Jason Plato chased his first win of the season.

Collard muscled his way past the two-time champion on lap two before Jackson and Shedden followed suit one tour later. Third became second for Shedden when Jackson’s Ford slowed with a problem on the Bentley Straight.

The Honda Civic Type R began reeling in Collard at a rate of knots and was right on his tail coming into the final lap. Shedden fired the #52 machine down the inside of the Team JCT600 with GardX BMW and the duo ran side-by-side for what seemed like an eternity. Collard eventually had to give up the challenge and settle for second, as Shedden stormed to an outstanding victory.

Handy Motorsport’s Rob Austin claimed a popular podium as he fended off Plato, Andrew Jordan and Turkington at the chequered flag.

Collard now leads the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship by three points from team-mate Sam Tordoff, with Honda’s Neal a further three points back. Unsurprisingly West Surrey Racing/Team JCT600 with GardX top the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ tables respectively. Andrew Jordan and his Motorbase Performance team head the Independents’ honours, whilst MG's Ashley Sutton remains in control of the Jack Sears Trophy.

Colin Turkington said: “That win was one of my most memorable races. I’ve never won around here in a rear-wheel drive car so it’s great. My pace was much better than I expected, I just tried to be patient and I made the move when the opportunity came up. I was in two minds; do I let him go on up the road a bit and take the pressure off myself from the Ford behind? He went wide and I forced my way through on the switchback. I won’t give up on the championship – if we can keep the momentum going then there’s every chance.”

Mat Jackson said: “It was good. To do it for a second time after the restart makes it even better – the car was on fire. I have to say it’s been absolutely awesome. Colin knew my tricks second time around but it was terrific to take the win with all the ballast on. It’s great for us and all of our sponsors. We were on the softs so we were mindful of being there at the end, managing it to a point. It was just about keeping an eye on where Colin was and keeping him at bay.”

Gordon Shedden said: “Five laps from home, it wasn’t happening. Three laps from home it wasn’t happening, but somehow we made it. What a race for us and what a move. I braked really nice and late into the hairpin and normally that’s more of a BMW move but we made it work. We were both slipping and sliding in there but I got up the inside. I’m delighted to get the result, it was a stunning one for the team and myself.”

Matt Neal said: “It’s a good job I’m not a betting man because I’d have put money on Rob Collard taking the race two podium with three laps to go. To start with I got my head down and was trying to be as aggressive as I could, looking forward to Colin Turkington. I saw Rob’s BMW in the mirrors and my attentions had to turn from attacking to defending because he was flying. He was charging but the Type R held on!”

Rob Collard said: “After qualifying yesterday I wasn’t expecting anything. Race one didn’t go to plan either and I thought the day was over. To come back from that and be leading the championship is just absolutely amazing. Congratulations to my team, they keep driving me on and back me. I’m here to please the crowd too and us guys are nothing without them. What a crowd it was, so thanks to all of them.”

Rob Austin said: “That was great. It’s the best result for Handy Motorsport, so it’s fantastic. Thanks to the fans and everyone at the team. You’re always concerned when Jason Plato is behind you! I started to lose the rear tyres but I was quicker in the right places under braking, so I knew it’d be hard from him to get past me. Fortunately he couldn’t get close enough and I held my own. It’s been a tough start to the year but we turned a corner at the test day.”
2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 16 – Snetterton:

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing 23:46.178
2 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +2.771s
3 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +4.042s
4 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +5.400s
5 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +6.880s
6 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +8.994s
7 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +9.607s
8 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +10.172s
9 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +11.160s
10 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +12.647s
2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 17 – Snetterton:

General:
Team BKR deducted ten points from both the Teams' and Independent Teams' standings for exceeding the allowed number of engines

Race one:
Martin Depper received a verbal warning for an incident involving Jeff Smith

Matt Simpson was officially reprimanded and received two penalty points for an incident involving Michael Epps

Race two:
Warren Scott and Andrew Jordan received a verbal warning for an on-track incident

Ollie Jackson was fined £500 and received three penalty points for an incident involving Daniel Welch

Shedden seals last gasp victory

Reigning BTCC champion Gordon Shedden completed a sensational day of entertainment by snatching an unlikely last lap victory in the final race at Snetterton.

A dramatic accident brought about the second red flag of the day when contact down the order between Mark Howard, Alex Martin, Ollie Jackson and Hunter Abbott sent the latter into a barrel roll. Abbott's Power Maxed Racing Chevrolet spiralled over the barrier and into a television gantry, leaving a cameraman and several drivers shaken but thankfully unharmed.

Pole-sitter and then championship leader Sam Tordoff broke down before the race could restart with the BTCC seemingly providing yet another twist to the title race. The relentless drama was far from over, however, as Tom Ingram and Adam Morgan were shuffled down the order early on in the shortened ten lap encounter.

Jason Plato had taken control at the front for Silverline Subaru BMR Racing – chasing his first win of the season – but he couldn't hang on as Collard muscled his way past on lap two.

Shedden's Honda was busy flying through the order and he disposed of Rob Austin's Toyota for fourth on lap three. Mat Jackson nipped by Plato for third, with Shedden following suit, but third became second for the Scotsman when the Motorbase Ford slowed with a problem on the Bentley Straight.

The Honda Civic Type R began reeling in Collard's West Surrey Racing BMW at a rate of knots and was eventually on his tail during the final lap. He fired his #52 machine down the inside of the Team JCT600 with GardX BMW and the duo ran side-by-side for what seemed like an eternity. Collard eventually had to give up the challenge and settle for second, as Shedden stormed to a sensational victory.

Handy Motorsport's Austin claimed a hugely popular podium as he fended off Plato, Andrew Jordan and Colin Turkington at the chequered flag.

Morgan won the battle of the Mercedes' as he bounced back from the earlier incident to claim seventh, ahead of Laser Tools Racing's Aiden Moffat. Josh Cook's MG and Matt Neal's Honda completed the top ten order, with the latter also moving into third in the standings. Collard now leads the way by three points from the unfortunate Tordoff.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 18 – Snetterton:

1 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing 19m56.310s
2 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +0.525s
3 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +3.738s
4 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +4.306s
5 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +4.406s
6 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +5.278s
7 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +6.288s
8 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +6.434s
9 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +6.621s
10 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +7.219s
11 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +8.724s
12 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +9.365s
13 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +16.650s
14 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +17.339s
15 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +18.337s
16 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +18.777s
17 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +19.945s
18 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +20.718s
19 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +21.238s
20 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +23.045s
21 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +35.751s
22 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +4 laps
23 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +8 laps
24 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing
25 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR
26 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com
27 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing
28 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport
29 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX

Jackson triumphs in truncated race two

Motorbase Performance's Mat Jackson secured victory in a thrilling, truncated race two at Snetterton, with Colin Turkington and Matt Neal completing the podium positions.

Jackson did the double on Turkington, getting the leap on the Silverline Subaru BMR Racing man on the opening lap – both in the first instance and again on the restart after a red flag had halted proceedings.

The Focus fired off the line beyond second-placed Gordon Shedden and then past pole man Turkington, before a multi-car collision sparked chaos down the order. Aron Smith and Kelvin Fletcher had a coming together on the exit of turn one, but the main drama came later in the lap when Dan Welch and Ollie Jackson tangled as they ran on to the Bentley Straight. With dust filling the air an unsighted Alex Martin, Hunter Abbott and Ashley Sutton were all caught up in the accident. With stationary cars now littering the track, and several with heavy damage, race officials were left with no choice but to stop the race.

Take two and Jackson produced an almost carbon copy of his earlier effort – leaving Shedden off the line but waiting until Hamilton corner before disposing of Turkington. Jackson remained untroubled for the remainder of the shortened ten lap race, with Turkington following up his race one win with another solid rostrum in the second bout.

"It was good," said Jackson. "To do it for a second time after the restat makes it even better – the car was on fire. I have to say it’s been absolutely awesome. Colin knew my tricks second time but it’s terrific to take the win with all the ballast on. It’s great for us and all of our sponsors. We were on the softs so we were mindful of being there at the end, managing it to a point. It was just about keeping an eye on where colin was and keeping him at bay."

"It was very hard for me to defend against that," responded Colin. "I did my best both times but I sort of knew it was coming and it did. It was super anyway, we made a genuine step forward with the chassis there. That’s why I could live with Mat winning."

The fight for the final podium place was undecided until the final moments, with the battle initially raging following contact between Turkington and Shedden on lap two. Shedden's Honda was then tagged twice by WIX Racing's Adam Morgan, sending the reigning champion tumbling down the order.

Morgan couldn't keep Neal's Civic Type R behind him for long, and the Mercedes succumbed to the flying WSR BMW of Rob Collard, who had stormed from 16th to 4th in the early stages.

A duel between Neal and Collard followed, providing the best racing of the contest as the ran side-by-side for much of lap eight. Team JCT600 with GardX driver Collard looked to have made the move stick, but triple champion Neal immediately fought back to retake the position. The striking Halfords-backed Honda held on to reach the rostrum, but both drivers strengthened their respective championship challenges with stellar points finishes.

"It’s a good job I'm not a betting man because I’d have put money on him taking the podium with three laps to go," said Neal. "To start with I got my head down and was trying to be as aggressive as I could, looking forward to Colin. I saw Rob’s BMW in the mirrors and my attentions had to turn from attacking to defending because he was flying. He was charging but the Type R held on!"

Morgan had to settle for fifth, ahead of Jason Plato, Tom Ingram and Sam Tordoff – the latter also benefitting from a reverse grid draw that places him on pole position for today's final race.

Handy Motorsport's Rob Austin claimed ninth, with the recovering Shedden completing the top ten order.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 17 – Snetterton:

1 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance 19m48.288s
2 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.190s
3 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1.950s
4 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +2.140s
5 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +7.255s
6 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +7.687s
7 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +8.421s
8 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +9.935s
9 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +11.649s
10 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +11.989s
11 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +13.238s
12 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +16.369s
13 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +16.506s
14 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +16.735s
15 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +18.082s
16 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +18.306s
17 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +18.606s
18 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +27.324s
19 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +27.760s
20 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +36.363s
21 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +42.175s
22 Michael CAINE (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +2 laps
23 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +3 laps
24 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +4 laps
25 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing
26 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing
27 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club
28 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com
29 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing
30 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing
31 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance

Turkington tames Shedden at Snetterton

Colin Turkington eventually got the better of pole-sitter Gordon Shedden to win race one of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Snetterton.

A near race long duel commenced off the line as Shedden's Honda Civic Type R brilliantly fended off the rear-wheel drive Subaru Levorg into Riches for the first time.

It was bumper-to-bumper stuff for the first half of the contest but Turkington finally muscled his way past after a good run through Palmer's corner on lap eight of 12. Shedden couldn't respond and Turkington went on to become the first three-time race winner of 2016.

Mat Jackson made the best start of the leading contenders as he blasted his Motorbase Performance Ford Focus from fifth on the grid to third off the line. While Jackson kept the lead duo honest, throughout, he also had to keep the squabbling Adam Morgan and Ashley Sutton behind. Jackson did the job, claiming a podium on the team's 300th BTCC race.

Morgan's Mercedes swapped places with Sutton's MG on a number of occasions but the tussle was ended prematurely when the latter's Triple Eight car endured a puncture.

Sutton's pain was Jason Plato's gain as he nipped by Tom Ingram's Toyota to turn seventh into fifth in the blink of an eye.

The ballast-laden cars for title chargers Sam Tordoff and Matt Neal raced well to claim seventh and eighth respectively, whilst Warren Scott and James Cole were next up - impressively making it four Subarus in the top ten for the first time ever.

Andrew Jordan and Hunter Abbott deserve credit for fightback drives through the order - both scoring points after off-track excursions. Power Maxed Racing's Abbott also claimed the fastest lap and a one point bonus in the process.

Colin Turkington said: "That was one of my most memorable races. I’ve never won around here in a rear-wheel drive car so it’s great. My pace was much better than I expected, I just tried to be patient and I made the move when the opportunity came up. I was in two minds; do I let him go on up the road a bit and take the pressure off myself from the Ford behind? Then, I thought no… I’ll hammer Gordon (Shedden) while I can. He went in deep and I forced my way through on the switchback. I won’t give up on the championship until it’s mathematically impossible. If we can keep the momentum going then there’s every chance."

Gordon Shedden said: "I had to be very defensive in a lot of places. He used the strengths of the car on the overlap at the hairpin and made his way through. I was going as slow as possible while trying to stay in the lead! Second place was good but obviously a win would have been better. It’s great, though. I’ve not been on the podium for six races or something. It was one of those enjoyable ones where it was a proper dice between myself, Mat (Jackson) and Colin (Turkington)."

Mat Jackson said: "We came into the race hoping we could get onto the podium after qualifying, and to deliver that it’s good. It's points for the championship and for our 300^th race - it’s a great result. It’ll give us a good start for race two. We got punted in the rear and it did rub against the tyre there at the start but it sorted itself out."

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Round 16 – Snetterton:

1 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing 23:46.178 (89.93 mph)
2 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +2.771s
3 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +4.042s
4 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +5.400s
5 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +6.880s
6 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +8.994s
7 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +9.607s
8 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +10.172s
9 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +11.160s
10 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +12.647s
11 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +12.876s
12 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +13.441s
13 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +14.393s
14 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +15.137s
15 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +15.817s
16 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +22.488s
17 Dan WELCH (GBR) Goodestone Racing +25.276s
18 Michael CAINE (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +27.669s
19 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com+30.768s
20 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +43.162s
21 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +45.929s
22 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +46.136s
23 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1m12.850s
24 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +1m16.003s
25 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +1m21.015s
26 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +1m21.617s
DNF Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +2 laps
DNF Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +4 laps
DNF Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +9 laps
DNF Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR
DNF Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing

Double plus for Welch Motorsport

Welch Motorsport and Goodestone Racing were all hands to the pump on Saturday morning throughout free practice as Dan Welch's Proton Persona suffered gearbox gremlins just prior to FP1.

The team were forced to remove the engine as they battled to put a finger on the issues in a bid to get on track for qualifying. Duly, they turned the car around and Welch was able to put pay to a bad morning by getting a time in, notching 24th on his first real run of the weekend out on the Snetterton 300 circuit.

It was a positive to go with the signing of a new sponsor earlier in the week. Motor Republic launched its partnership with the Welch Motorsport stable this weekend and Team Principal John Welch was thrilled to welcome the vehicle leasing firm on-board.

“We’re delighted to be working with Motor Republic and can see a bright future together," said John. "They have limitless enthusiasm for what they do, much like us. Aside from that, we’re amazed at the car deals that they can offer.”

Christopher Rouse Managing Director of Motor Republic said: “I’ve always been interested in motor sport, so am delighted to launch Motor Republic by supporting Welch Motorsport in The British Touring Car Championship - Britain's premier series.”

btcc.net talks to top five

We caught up with the top five after qualifying for Round 16 of the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Snetterton...

Gordon Shedden said: “Pole position! I didn’t expect it but I’m delighted. I can think of worse places to start. It’s only one point for today though and we desperately need a big points haul tomorrow. It’s been a bit random today. We hardly passed go and collected 200 quid in practice but we got everything together for qualifying. We didn’t have time to change things around much but maybe 'out of the box' is the best way. It was a really really good lap and it all came together – it was absolutely fantastic.”

Colin Turkington said: “I would have taken P2. On the whole I’m happy to be starting on the front row. It was the first time we’d put the car on new rubber. The balance wasn’t quite where I wanted it to be so it feels like we could improve. I got the most out of the car in its current state but hopefully we can nudge it even further in the right direction. We know where the issues are and we understand where we’re limited. Having not done a huge amount of testing, it’s difficult to know the exact changes to make. We’ll do our homework tonight, work hard and try to get it right tomorrow.”

Adam Morgan said: “I’m ecstatic with that to be honest. It’s my best ever result in qualifying. Having struggled in the past few weekends it’s now time to get back up to the sharp end and we’ve given ourselves every opportunity by starting P3 for race one. The car’s been absolutely mega all day. That two-day tyre test at Snetterton was brilliant. We think we found something with the car and we were able to push harder and harder all day. We were so close to pole, too. I’m going to try and stay out of trouble tomorrow and bring it back with three strong results. I’d love to get back on the podium again and a win would be fantastic, but I’m thinking about the championship overall so points are the important thing.”

Tom Ingram said: “We’re really happy with P4. We are ahead of the guys we’re competing against in the championship, and those in front of us are all carrying less ballast. We’re already in a strong position going into tomorrow and we’re going to try and hold station. Maybe we can pick up a podium, I don’t know but we should be in good shape. It’s going to be the same for us as every weekend, aiming for points so we’ll take what we can get.”

Mat Jackson said: “We’re towards the front of the grid and it could be a lot worse. If we can make a couple of places off the line and maybe make the podium then we’ll be happy. There’s always a little bit more. It was the first run and the circuit appeared to drop off thereafter but what’s done is done. P5 is still a good place to start tomorrow and hopefully we can go forward. It’s very close, there’s not a lot of time in it. Hopefully we can hook up the start and muscle our way through. We need points after the disaster at Croft and hopefully we can put that right.”

Shedden scores first Honda pole in three years

Gordon Shedden has secured the first Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship pole position for Halfords Yuasa Racing in more than three years.

The reigning champion produced an incredible effort midway through the session at Snetterton – smashing the qualifying lap record in the process – but the pack immediately set about attacking the Scotsman's benchmark.

Colin Turkington's Subaru Levorg fell short by just 0.015s and then Adam Morgan's Mercedes blasted into third, only a further 0.013s in arrears. It's worth noting that the Snetterton 300 circuit is the longest on the BTCC calendar, making the closeness of the top three fight even more incredible.

It was a nervy final few minutes for Shedden but he held on until the chequered flag, bringing home Honda's first qualifying top spot since Donington Park back in 2013.

"Pole position! I didn’t expect it but I'm delighted," said Shedden. "I can think of worse places to start. It's only one point for today though and we desperately need a big points haul tomorrow.

"It’s been a bit random today. We hardly passed go and collected 200 quid in practice but we got everything together for qualifying. We didn’t have time to change things around much but maybe out of the box is the best way. It was a really really good lap and it all came together – it was absolutely fantastic."

The tussle for the next three places was also hugely competitive – albeit more than three tenths back from the lead trio – as Tom Ingram fended off Mat Jackson and the very impressive Hunter Abbott. Power Maxed Racing's Abbott had earlier targeted the top ten in qualifying, having made significant progress in the front-wheel drive Chevrolet in recent rounds, but a best ever grid slot of sixth will have been a pleasant surprise for the Maidenhead racer.

Aron Smith shot back into contention today after relatively low key weekends at both Oulton Park and Croft, the Irishman taking seventh for BKR Racing here in Norfolk. Ashely Sutton was the best placed MG in eighth, followed by Matt Neal's Honda Civic Type R and championship leader Sam Tordoff.

Tordoff's closest challenger in the title race – West Surrey Racing team-mate Rob Collard – could only manage 18th after a difficult time in the sister BMW 125i M Sport.

"We lost all balance in the car," he said. "We changed things significantly for qualifying and it didn’t work out, so I'm absolutely devastated at the moment. The mechanical part of the car is fine and between me and the engineer we decided to go this way with the car and it didn’t work. I’ll have him in a headlock later on!"

Others endured challenging moments with both Martin Depper and Mark Howard experiencing off-track excursions, as did Warren Scott, although he was delighted to see all four Silverline Subaru BMR Racing machines take top 15 places. Andrew Jordan suffered heartache and failed to even join the action after a power steering problem plagued his Pirtek Racing Ford Focus.

2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship – Qualifying – Snetterton:

1 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1m55.627s (92.43 mph)
2 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.015s
3 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +0.028s
4 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +0.382s
5 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.405s
6 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +0.438s
7 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +0.554s
8 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +0.579s
9 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.595s
10 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +0.608s
11 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.654s
12 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +0.767s
13 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.980s
14 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.988s
15 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.004s
16 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +1.061s
17 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.071s
18 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +1.125s
19 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +1.176s
20 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.290s
21 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com+1.293s
22 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +1.429s
23 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +1.747s
24 Dan Welch (GBR) Goodestone Racing +1.904s
25 Michael CAINE (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +1.983s
26 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +2.167s
27 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +2.223s
28 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +2.571s
29 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +2.975s
30 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +4.173s
31 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance NO TIME

Top ten target for Hunter Abbott

Power Maxed Racing’s Hunter Abbott has been showing a steady improvement in recent rounds of the 2016 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship and he’s out to continue that trend at Snetterton this weekend.

The Chevrolet driver qualified 11^th at Oulton Park back in June and backed that up with seventh on the grid at Croft next time out. Two points score finishes in Cheshire remains the high, however, as the Maidenhead-based racer failed to achieve the results that his pace deserved in the North Yorkshire bouts.

“We had good Saturday mornings and qualifying at both at Oulton Park and Croft, but we need to turn that into results,” he said.

Hunter was eighth quickest during Snetterton practice earlier today, and he’s buoyed by his chances for this weekend and the remainder of the campaign.

“Looking at the data there’s more time for us to find, which is always a positive thing,” he continued. “It’s down to the driver to apply that of course, which is easier said than done. We have a couple of tweaks to the set-up that we want to try too.

“You never quite know what people are doing during practice though, and it’s just so tight out there. A second covering the top 20+ drivers at Croft for example – it’s bonkers.

“The feeling is frustration when you’re so close, particularly looking back to Croft. I qualified seventh but I was 0.046s from being on the front row. I made a mistake and missed a gearshift, which cost me more than a tenth, so we could have been even higher.”

There are a number of reasons why Abbott and Power Maxed Racing are on an upward trend this season, but the man himself believes mileage in front-wheel machinery has been key.

“We didn’t get much running in during pre-season and I’ve barely ever driven a front-wheel car. The learning curve for me was very steep but now I’m understanding more about the physics of the car and making it do what I want it to do.”

“Reverse grid is something we’d like to target this weekend and moving forward. Let’s see how qualifying goes – we’d be pleased with a top ten, and then you can work from there.”

Interviews: weekend preview

BTCC.net spoke to championship leading pair and JCT600 with GardX team-mates Sam Tordoff and Rob Collard as well as Andrew Jordan and the returning Michael Caine ahead of the return of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship after the summer break.

Andrew Jordan

Michael Caine

Rob Collard

Sam Tordoff

Morgan moves to the top

WIX Racing's Adam Morgan moved to the top of the timesheets in Free Practice Two at Snetterton as the Mercedes A-Class driver fell shy of the qualifying lap record by only a tenth of a second.

FP1 pace-setter Colin Turkington also led the way in the second session for much of the 40-minutes of running, before a late flurry of qualifying simulations brought about a change to the order.

Light spots of rain fell as the action got underway, leading to Ashley Sutton running a few laps on the Dunlop BluResponse wet tyres. In truth, the circuit was dry and all runners were on slicks within five minutes and Jack Goff was the first driver to set a representative lap time.

The pace quickened as the circuit conditions improved but it wasn't until the final ten minutes where significant inroads were made.

Morgan set the pace and couldn't be caught, with MG Racing RCIB Insurance's Sutton slotting into second. Aron Smith backed up his FP1 showing with another sterling effort in the final session. The VW CC claimed two wins in the hands of Turkington at Snetterton last season, with the characteristics of the 300 layout clearly suiting the German machine, so Smith will be hoping that such form can continue this weekend.

Tom Ingram pipped Turkington by 0.001s to claim fourth, whilst championship leader Sam Tordoff completed the top six order.

Aiden Moffat proved the pace of the Mercedes A-Class with seventh, whilst Power Maxed Racing's Hunter Abbott impressed with eighth.

Reigning champion Gordon Shedden would rarely celebrate ninth place in any session but the Scotsman bounced back from a difficult morning. His FP1 running was blighted by problems before his Halfords Yuasa Racing squad produced heroics with an engine change ahead of the afternoon run. His Honda Civic Type R eventually exited the pit lane with the #52 completing seven laps before the finish.

Motorbase Performance's Andrew Jordan got the better of team-mate Mat Jackson to claim tenth.

Matt Simpson's Honda stopped out on track early on while Jason Plato and Josh Cook endured a difficult session - both languishing outside the top 20 when the chequered flag fell.

There was little doubting the overall pace-setter, however, as Morgan sent out a warning ahead of qualifying. "We're in good shape, but we'll see what happens this afternoon," he said. "I've wanted to win this championship for a number of years and that remains the target for this season."

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

1 Adam MORGAN (GBR) WIX Racing +1m56.139s
2 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +0.232s
3 Aron SMITH (IRL) BKR +0.384s
4 Tom INGRAM (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +0.578s
5 Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +0.579s
6 Sam TORDOFF (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +0.591s
7 Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.779s
8 Hunter ABBOTT (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +0.797s
9 Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.921s
10 Andrew JORDAN (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.949s
11 Mat JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.020s
12 Robert COLLARD (GBR) Team JCT600 Racing with GardX +1.190s
13 Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1.288s
14 Rob AUSTIN (GBR) Handy Motorsport +1.293s
15 James COLE (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.341s
16 Michael EPPS (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.564s
17 Warren SCOTT (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.570s
18 Jake HILL (GBR) RCIB Insurance Racing +1.617s
19 Jack GOFF (GBR) Team IHG Rewards Club +1.620s
20 Matt SIMPSON (GBR) Speedworks Motorsport +1.737s
21 Jason PLATO (GBR) Silverline Subaru BMR Racing +1.761s
22 Michael CAINE (GBR) TLC/RCIB Insurance Racing +1.797s
23 Jeff SMITH (GBR) Eurotech Racing +1.855s
24 Ollie JACKSON (GBR) AmD Tuning.com+1.867s
25 Josh COOK (GBR) MG Racing RCIB Insurance +1.924s
26 Alex MARTIN (GBR) Dextra Racing +1.961s
27 Martin DEPPER (GBR) Eurotech Racing +2.238s
28 Kelvin FLETCHER (GBR) Power Maxed Racing +2.254s
29 Mark HOWARD (GBR) BKR +3.688s
30 Stewart LINES (GBR) Maximum Motorsport +4.036s