Round 13 of 13 of the 1989 Esso RAC British Touring Car Championship held on Sunday October 8th 1989 over 15 laps of the 4,778 kms Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit.
| Pos. | Cl. | # | Driver | Team/sponsor | Cat. | Car | Grid | Time | Fastest lap | Laps | Time | Notes |
| 1. | 1. | 1 | Andy Rouse | Rouse/Kaliber | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 2. | 1:45,86 | 1:37,32 | 15 | 24:41,24 | |
| 2. | 2. | 7 | Tim Harvey | Rouse/Labatt's | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 7. | 1:49,29 | 1:37,81 | 15 | 24:42,45 | |
| 3. | 3. | 21 | Robb Gravett | Trakstar/Cartel + NEC + Shell | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 3. | 1:46,08 | 1:37,33 | 15 | 24:43,53 | |
| 4. | 4. | 6 | Laurence Bristow | Rouse/Labatt's | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 9. | 1:49,85 | 1:37,85 | 15 | 24:46,51 | |
| 5. | 5. | 25 | Chris Hodgetts | JQF/Fina Unleaded | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 4. | 1:47,54 | 1:39,08 | 15 | 25:04,56 | |
| 6. | 6. | 10 | Guy Edwards | Rouse/Kaliber | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 6. | 1:48,83 | 1:38,81 | 15 | 25:07,45 | |
| 7. | 7. | 20 | Mike Smith | Trakstar/Cartel + NEC + Shell | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 5. | 1:47,58 | 1:39,42 | 15 | 25:08,15 | |
| 8. | 8. | 5 | Sean Walker | Goode/FAI + Moss Security | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 11. | 1:50,39 | 1:40,00 | 15 | 25:16,69 | |
| 9. | 9. | 28 | Karl Jones | Lee Asquith/Duckhams | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 1. | 1:45,46 | 1:39,74 | 15 | 25:19,16 | |
| 10. | 1. | 32 | James Weaver | Prodrive/BMW Finance + Mobil | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 13. | 1:51,59 | 1:43,01 | 15 | 26:22,52 | |
| 11. | 2. | 33 | Frank Sytner | Prodrive/BMW Finance + Mobil | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 15. | 1:54,07 | 1:43,51 | 15 | 26:22,74 | |
| 12. | 10. | | Mike O'Brien | TDR/Autoglass + Swan National | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 27. | 2:00,50 | 1:43,50 | 15 | 27:22,23 | |
| 13. | 3. | 43 | Godfrey Hall | Maguire/Godfrey Hall BMW | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 18. | 1:55,70 | 1:45,59 | 14 | | |
| 14. | 4. | | John Llewellyn | Ronic/Johnstons | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 19. | 1:56,45 | 1:44,88 | 14 | | |
| 15. | 5. | | John Clark | Maguire/Gemini | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 21. | 1:58,42 | 1:44,88 | 14 | | |
| 20. | 1. | 56 | John Cleland | Dave Cook/VDS + Mobil | C | Vauxhall Astra GTE 16V | 17. | 1:55,04 | 1:49,48 | 14 | | |
| 21. | 1. | 75 | Ray Armes | Goode/PG Tags | D | Honda Civic Si | 23. | 1:59,36 | 1:51,15 | 14 | | |
| | 2. | 57 | Jeremy Rossiter | Dave Cook/VDS + Mobil | C | Vauxhall Astra GTE 16V | | | | | | |
| | 3. | 55 | John Morris | Morris/Listers | C | Volkswagen Golf GTI 16V | | | | | | |
| | 4. | | Tony Lanfranchi | MonoRep | C | Vauxhall Astra GTE 16V | | | | | | |
| | 2. | 88 | Tony Crudgington | Crudgington | D | Toyota Corolla GT | | | | | | |
| | 3. | | Les Liddiard | Liddiard | D | Toyota Corolla GT | | | | | | |
| | 4. | | Tony Dolley | Dolley | D | Toyota Corolla GT | | | | | | |
| DNF | DNF | 58 | Louise Aitken-Walker | Dave Cook/VDS + Mobil | C | Vauxhall Astra GTE 16V | | | | 13 | | |
| DNF | DNF | 77 | Geoff Kimber-Smith | Five Star Racing | D | Toyota Corolla GT | | | | | | gearbox |
| DNF | DNF | 2 | Jerry Mahony | Dowson/Arquati + Evans Halshaw | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 14. | 1:51,96 | 1:39,79 | 10 | | accident |
| DNF | DNF | 3 | Graham Goode | Goode/Listerine + Texaco | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 8. | 1:49,63 | no time | 0 | 0:00,00 | accident |
| DNF | DNF | 19 | Dave Brodie | BBR/Hillstone | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 10. | 1:49,97 | no time | 0 | 0:00,00 | accident |
| | | | Jon Dooley | Terry Drury Racing | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | | | | | | |
| | | | Andrew Hepworth | Terry Drury Racing/Whale Club of the World | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | | | | | | |
| | | 4 | Mike Newman | Goode/Listerine | A | Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth | 12. | | | | | |
| | | | unknown | | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 20. | | | | | |
| | | | unknown | | B | BMW M3 Evolution | 22. | | | | | |
For the second race in succession wet conditions influenced qualifying. This time though it never got totally dry and Karl Jones scored his only BTCC pole – and infamously was missing from the Autosport frontcover picture showing just about every other RS500 in the field that day!
From third on the grid Robb Gravett moved into an immediate lead from Karl Jones who lost to Tim Harvey and then Andy Rouse by Becketts. Of the front three though it was soon apparent that Rouse was in command dragging Harvey with him to lead from Gravett which lasted untill the midway point. By then serious lappery of the slower cars had begun costing both the leading drivers a bit of momentum. Gravett took second and started actacking Rouse for the lead making a decisive move on lap 12 of the 15 lapper. The Trakstar man outbraked the Kaliber car going down the inside of the left hand part of the Bridge chikane only to be hit by Rouse on the right hand part. Both drivers blaimed the other for the contact made. It moved Andy Rouse into a relative secure first and eventual victory while Gravett had to drag his car out of a half spin. This gave Tim Harvey the opportunity to move up to second and with Gravett in tow that was how they finished. Laurence Bristow was a lonely fourth while Chris Hodgetts, despite flatspotted front tyres from lap 1, brought the JQF/Fina car an excellent fifth.
The reason for the flatspot was a dice for first lap positions that saw Karl Jones going a bit wide into Bridge and then Laurence Bristow hitting Graham Goode from behind. Goode spun and faced the remaining pack to be hit frontally by Dave Brodie – two top Sierras already gone. Even before this Guy Edwards was close to bring that tally to three as he slid off the circuit at Maggotts but held it to finish an eventual sixth. Mike Smith was seventh lacking grip while Sean Walker stole eights on the final lap from Karl Jones who suffered a broken damper.
A new class record for fastest lap still only yielded one bonus point for James Weaver to add to his nine for class B victory and loosing out to John Cleland in the championship by one point. Frank Sytner started the race playing with the privateer cars before slotting in behind Weaver. Ian Forrest again looked good for a third but went off in first lap fluids left from the Sierra melee and flatspotted a tyre. A pitstop put paid to any top result leaving third to Godfrey Hall.
John Cleland won his 11th class C victory and took the championship with Jeremy Rossiter for once taking second in class as Louise Aitken-Walker retired.
Ray Armes once again took class D from Tony Crudgington.
The Terry Drury Racing team was back up to three cars at Silverstone. Mike O'Brien finished 12th beaten by Weaver and Sytner, while results of the other two cars are unknown. Jon Dooley with an Alfa Romeo sticker on the front and Andrew Hepworth in the other running Whale Club of the World stickers on his.
After the race Andy Rouse protested the two Trakstar Sierra of Robb Gravett on 16 points. Rouse's version of the protest was to get an idea of how to build his own cars for 1990, while the Trakstar were disapointed as they had already volunteerily had their cars scrutineered on the Tuesday before the race. Race day driving behaviour was another disapointment for the Trakstar twin. The car was declared legal.
19 October 1989
BBC will likely continue their TV transmission in 1990.
26 October 1989
Andy Rouse's has had his appeal from his round 7 (and 8) disqualification turned down, only to appeal once more. A decision likely to be taken in January 1990.
9 November 1989
Andy Rouse rumoured to be heading for Germany and the DTM running Mercedes-Benzs.
Alan Barnes of Nordic Supply is to head sales of Dick Johnson Racing spare parts in the UK.
James Weaver unable to collect a BRDC Silver Star as he was in hospital for operation of a foot.
JQF Engineering in receivership as of 1 November 1989. Fina already withdrawn as sponsor and no comments available from team boss Jon Fisher.
Robb Gravett to take part in the Fuji Intertec 500 with a Swedish Jan-Åke Söderqvist RS500.
16 November 1989
Jerry Mahony craks a shoulder blade in a winter series kart race also contested among other BTCC drivers Tim Harvey. Mahony says that his 1990 BTCC plans definitively won't include a Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth. As a further note his reported new for 1989 Dick Johnson car mentioned around midyear never materialised as far as I can track.
James Weaver has signed with Rob Dyson for next years IMSA series. No comments on any future BTCC participation.
30 November 1989
Reports of the Macau Guia race going to Tim Harvey after early leader Andy Rouse brakes a damper on his way to second. No mention of Phil Dowsett or any of the other two possible British Corolla AE82s. A Jonathan Pencock (GB) is mentioned as not qualified.
21/28 December 1989
It's definite that class C and D won't be contesting the 1990 BTCC.
The 1989 BTCC review. Looking at the top-37 point standings not only Andy Rouse has his points-on-the-road listed but so too has Dave Brodie – 13 points in fact causing further revisions to any other point scores from Brodie's round 3 victory at Thruxton.
4 January 1990
£120,000 was the income from the assets auctioned off of the former JQF team.
11 January 1990
Andy Rouse declared class A champion of 1989 on Monday 8 January 1990. Material added to the turbocharger for round 7 at Silverstone was a repair job and not a modification. No mention of the Dave Brodie case.
8 February 1990
The full text of the Dave Brodie article:
Brodie was 'careless'
David Brodie's six month ban for using illegal fuel, and the overturning of his subsequent appeal, has been quantified by the RAC MSA.
In it's February bulletin, the governing body states that its stewards ”took the gravest view of Mr Brodie's careless, casual and irresponsible conduct in not ensuring that the fuel he was using in both these races (the BTCC rounds at Thruxton on May 1 and May 29) met appropriate requirements”. However, the stewards were unable to prove that Brodie had ”knowingly used illegal fuel”.
Brodie's six month ban began on January 17. He was asked to pay for one half of the costs of the appeal.
My question is, as I'm a little confused as how to read this article, did Dave Brodie have his appeal overturned and thus lost his Thruxton win?
Jesper