[BTCC] Rounds 16, 17 & 18 - Snetterton

[steve_r]

Great to see a new NGTC Focus, and its amazing that they are on the pace straight away. Hopefully with some fine tuning Jackson can really get into mix for the rest of the season.

The Insignia looked to be on the pace with the mid-pack - which is a huge improvement. I assume they have finally got something sorted out with the engine. It will be interesting to see what happens next re drivers and car development etc, I would imagine that the team would be delighted with their weekend considering their difficult start to the season.

Neal bashed Plato, Plato bashes Neal. Really I would be happy in ANY OTHER driver apart from these two wins the championship.

[Sodemo]

Someone really needs to read them the riot act regarding the contact. I mean, deliberate contact is never acceptable. Accidents / rubbing whilst passing, well, I guess its a consequence of modern saloon racing, I accept that, however what Plato & Neal did is not on. I would have endorsed them, fined them, points on their licence and maybe thrown them out of the race.

[W.A Trichlorostyrene]

Originally Posted by I Rosputnik

It's been a fair while since I watched the BTCC, and it's rather nice to see nothing has changed between Neal and Plato.

Boys will be boys, right?

Originally Posted by mark_l

Good result for Dave Newsham, hope he finds a better team for next year, as I doubt we will see ES Racing back in the BTCC.

What makes you think that? Just curious.

Originally Posted by steve_r

Neal bashed Plato, Plato bashes Neal. Really I would be happy in ANY OTHER driver apart from these two wins the championship.

Shedden has a good shot again, but I just hope he won't be affraid to attack his team-mate Neal if necessary! I have the feeling it cost him the title last year.

[VXDave]

I was at Snett and the best thing was how close the scraps were throughout the field. The NGTC Focus looked good through the corners, although the both the Fords were making up substantial time on the straights, quicker than just about anything! There was a nasty move that I think was missed by the cameras where Collard actually purposefully jinked into the side of Austin in retaliation in race 3... not at all on IMO. That Insignia is also a massive improvement, it was actually having good midfield battles until damage took it out of the second and third races. Shame, as Thorne has announced they probably won't be back until at least Silverstone.

[codename_47]

Amazed anyone can blame anyone but Plato for the race 2 incident, it was clear for a few laps he was brake testing Matt trying to back him up into the pack and then on the lap of the contact you can see from Matt's on-board Plato was on the brakes for a lot longer than usual leaving Matt no-where to go but to try to avoid contact by diving inside him, which obviously did result in contact.

The only mistake Matt made is being in front of Jason for Murray's, despite the huge thump up the back, Jason still didn't make the corner! Amazing!

Tired of the BTCC's attitude towards its superstar driver, one rule for Jason and another for the rest of the field it seems.

Aside from that, great racing all 3 races, despite the new Snetterton layout being not all that great.

Greem seems to be the only one on here with a slight dose of reality check, its amazing the thread is full of people who "don't watch" or won't give it the publicity" etc yet still like to rush in here to decry it at any available opportunity....if you're not watching, how can you have such strong opinions on every incident? Is your TV stuck on ITV4?

How dare a racing series be entertaining instead of processional! Aside from the usual jokers, its usually the best racing in the country, well covered on TV and well supported by the fans.
Yes there are a few incidents, but they're over-focused on and all the great overtaking action doesn't get as much credit as it deserves.

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by codename_47

How dare a racing series be entertaining instead of processional! Aside from the usual jokers, its usually the best racing in the country, well covered on TV and well supported by the fans.
Yes there are a few incidents, but they're over-focused on and all the great overtaking action doesn't get as much credit as it deserves.

Well said. Most of the domestic British racing scene is played out in front of one man and his dog and is either fully funded by the competitors and/or badly struggling. In the midst of a recession, the BTCC has a full grid and can draw spectators in their droves because it gives people what they want to see. People say it's not pure, but then no motor sport was ever 'pure'.

[Sodemo]

Deliberate shoving should not be tolerated. I am not one of these people who think that all contact should be outlawed, doorhandle to doorhandle I can tolerate, but intentional contact should be stamped down upon.

[Jimmy Magnusson]

They desperately need to start curbing it. That the two best drivers in the field can't race any fairer than that is rather sad. Last weekend, with the enormous performance handicap Honda were suffering added, was the kind of weekend that almost turns me off watching the championship. And that's saying something, because it's a championship I've always loved and come back to for more entertainment time and time again. But the talent pool is getting ever smaller (and the ones who have talent doesn't get to hang around - where's O'Neill, Eoin Murray, Jonny Adam, Gareth Howell, Adam Jones etc?), the cars look ugly and sound boring, the racing is either a crashfest or tedious and the boost adjustments irks me to no end. I look at V8 Supercars and think, boy has the BTCC fallen way, way behind.

[SteveLevin]

Originally Posted by codename_47

Amazed anyone can blame anyone but Plato for the race 2 incident, it was clear for a few laps he was brake testing Matt trying to back him up into the pack and then on the lap of the contact you can see from Matt's on-board Plato was on the brakes for a lot longer than usual leaving Matt no-where to go but to try to avoid contact by diving inside him, which obviously did result in contact.

You've confused two different things here. Brake Checking someone is a lot different from backing them up into a corner. Managing your race pace is a big part of racecraft. That particular corner entry isn't important to do fast -- it's important to do RIGHT so you get a good exit from the next corner. Neal just punted Plato because he wasn't quick enough in the straights. And I understand that frustration -- it's exactly how Plato felt last year when HIS car, instead of "parity" was dog slow in a straight line but could clearly out-handle the opposition.

I'd argue if you got the transcripts from 2011 and 2012 so far and blanked out the driver's names, you'd never know which was which

Steve

[yesnomaybe]

heres my photos from Snet, looking forward to Rockingham
http://www.flickr.com/photos/coletri...7631038691540/