[BTCC] Rounds 4, 5 and 6 - Rockingham - 24/25 April 2010

[touringlegend]

Really surprised no one has beaten me to starting this thread!

First pole for the LPG powered Focus of the year..

Strong showing from Tom Tom.

http://btcc.net/html/generalnews_detail.php?id=1906

*Awaits Hazard with his grid producing software*

[Alfa Fan]

I'm not surprised sadly....it's just not that interesting this year

Anyway this is the grid

1. Tom Chilton 2. Matt Neal
3. Alex MacDowall 4. Tom Onslow-Cole
5. Jason Plato 6. James Nash
7. Gordon Shedden 8. Andy Jordan
9. Steven Kane 10. Paul O'Neill
11. Mat Jackson 12. Rob Collard
13. Dave Pinkney 14. Tom Boardman
15. Andy Neate 16. John George
17. Martin Johnson 18. Arthur Forster
19. Matt Hamilton 20. Shaun Hollamby

[skells22]

if you want to watch race 3 live you better turn on your PC and go to ITV.com as as ITV has decided to stream the whole meeting! ITV4 will start at 11.00 and at 3.15 i heading PC bound!

[Craner Curves]

I don't get what the big scandal is about ITV4 not showing race 3 live. People need to sit back and realise how lucky they are to get the coverage they do in the first place.

[skells22]

some of us hate cricket but love BTCC (like me) thereforebut then today i found out about the stream on ITV and that made me

[trebor901]

why the heck do we want to watch the stupid INDIAN Premier League for Cricket? are england involved? if not then why is it on our tv channels ruining our day of british motorsport.

[Craner Curves]

English players are in it. They have a contract to show the whole tournament, so they have to honour it, regardless of who is playing in this final weekend. Rather like they are forced to show the rest of the Champions League, despite there being no English teams left.

You'll get to see the third race later, it's no great disaster.

[trebor901]

its live on itv.com anyway so i'll just watch it on there, BTCC.net confirmed it earlier

[awrb]

You're right craner, only a few years ago we'd have laughed at the improbability of live coverage on a free channel, or even coverage on the same day! It's just a shame I still don't seem able to get ITV4 even though I should be able to, yet can watch the drivel they constantly show on their other three channels all the time.

[redshoes]

Good showing from Nash, especially considering he's not driven the car before today.

Neate continues to disappoint.

[Craner Curves]

As much as I'd like to say "give him time, he's been out of racing for a while", I think he's made a wrong move by entering the BTCC. Even before his injury, he wasn't exactly setting the heather alight in the Clios or the Cupras or the Toca Fiestas. Then again, WSR don't exactly have people knocking down their door to run a car for them, so it's not like it's a waste of a car.

[gravel_monkey]

in regards to the andy neate comment,
i was one of the marshals at his accident in silverstone. after seeing it and him after it first hand all i can say is its a miracle he is even racing again and is a brave move on his part, let alone to come straight into btcc. if you give him some time to gain his confidence later in the year iam sure he will be flying.

[gregc]

Originally Posted by Alfa Fan

I'm not surprised sadly....it's just not that interesting this year

I have to disagree. I know we're missing some big names (but remember that Gio only came in a few years ago...) but I'd say any of the top 12 could end up on the podium if things fall their way. We've got 2 manufacturer teams that both look fast, plus the Fords and the ever present Beemers. Throw in a couple of wildcards (O'Neill, Jordan, whoever is in a 888 Vectra on a given week) and it's a pretty good grid I think.

Not saying it couldn't be better, but I'm looking forward to another entertaining season that will probably go right to the end again. Even with the missing drivers we've still got 20 odd cars on the grid with over half of them competitive. My glass is half full

I had a bloody good day at Rockingham today, some pics on Facebook if someone can enlighten me on sharing them without adding the world as friends

[Matt Hunter]

Absolutely flabbergasted that Glew and Gio are out!
Total disgrace that the reigning champion, a 2x Champion and reigning Clio Champ can't get drives in the BTCC.
Utter shambles

[stedevil]

Originally Posted by redshoes

Good showing from Nash, especially considering he's not driven the car before today.

Yeah, he seem to have that quality of being really quick right from the start he gets into a car. He sure holds a lot of promise for the future.

[redshoes]

Originally Posted by gravel_monkey

its a miracle he is even racing again and is a brave move on his part, let alone to come straight into btcc. if you give him some time to gain his confidence later in the year iam sure he will be flying.

When his name was announced earlier this year my first thought was 'too much, too soon'. I thought he should spend a year in a lower formula to make sure he was still race fit. A couple of test session will tell you if you are physically able to drive but not if you are mentally ready.

I realise he has been to hell and back in the last couple of years and I know this sounds harsh but this is supposed to top level national motorsport. If he doesn't have the confidence to race then I question what he is doing there.

[Craner Curves]

I agree. He should have had another year in something else to get racefit again. Then again, maybe he will never get another opportunity like this again. A seat in a championship winning team, seeing as there's a lot more drives available due to the economic issues the big names are having. I do hope he picks up the pace a bit and gains more confidence as he goes along. But I fear this could be demoralising for him if he doesn't get on the pace a bit sooner.

Then again, Collard isn't doing that great either. I understand WSR have lost their top engineer John Morton, who has engineered the fastest BMWs for Turkington and Jackson over the past two seasons and that will have a big bearing on it. I heard he's gone to Motorbase, although I'm not sure.

[skells22]

and we racing!

[Craner Curves]

Another Arena gamble on tyres from pole fails to pay off.....

[Craner Curves]

Neal leading by nearly 10 seconds. How long before we get a phantom safety car to bunch them up? Not that I am suggesting anything is stage-managed in this championship.

[medius]

Some of TOC's lines are pretty epic, especially though the banking. I need Shedden to disappear, then Neal and Plato to swap places though for the predictions league .

[trebor901]

what is it with Arena and rubbish choices?

[trebor901]

great to see Boardman up there, finally someone else other than Adam Jones able to get the old SEAT up near the front

[awrb]

That was quite a good race. The next race is going to be interesting with Neal, Shedden and Plato oll starting from the front row. The commentators mentioned Special Tuning have just got a second car ad are hoping to run it at brands. I hope that's for Adam Jones, but it would be good to get another car on the grid anyway.

[Craner Curves]

Yes they've bought the ex-Shedden car. Why does Adam Jones get linked with every spare Seat drive going though? It's clear he has no funds after his shoestring efforts of the past few years and his aborted 2009 campaign.

That race wasn't too great, Neal was well away by the time the other slick cars got their act together.