Silverstone BTCC: Plato beats Turkington to keep title hopes alive

Points leader Colin Turkington jumped poleman Plato to lead into Copse in his rear-wheel-drive BMW, but the WSR machine has not had the straightline speed of its TOCA-engined rivals this weekend.

Turkington was forced to defend into Brooklands on the opening two laps, before Plato neatly dived down the inside there on the third tour.

The BMW gave the MG room and Plato held the lead for the rest of the race, albeit only really pulling clear of Turkington in the final stages.

Mat Jackson's fast-starting Motorbase Ford Focus held on to the leading duo throughout and attacked Turkington as the BMW faded late on. He nevertheless fell short by 0.125 seconds.

Sam Tordoff's MG, having held off an early attack from Alain Menu's BMR Volkswagen CC, took a lonely fourth and was the leading soft tyre-shod runner.

Menu and team-mate Aron Smith were fifth and sixth, also on the softer Dunlop rubber.

They might have had more trouble had it not been for the failure of Adam Morgan's Ciceley Mercedes.

Having started ninth, Morgan soon got to seventh and then caught the leading pack, diving by Smith at Becketts to take sixth. Trouble then struck before Morgan was able to mount a challenge on Menu and the Mercedes had to pull off.

Rob Collard thus finished seventh in the second WSR BMW, making ground in the final few minutes after starting 11th.

The three leading Hondas moved forward early on, running the soft tyre, but both the works-run Civic Tourers of Gordon Shedden and Matt Neal were involved in bruising battles.

Reigning champion Andrew Jordan was therefore the highest Honda finisher, coming home 10th.

RESULTS - 22 LAPS: