Muller Wins Chaotic Race 3
Yvan Muller took his second win of the day in the chaotic third British Touring Car Championship race at Mondello Park on Sunday, after a race long battle with Tom Chilton
Muller had looked set for a difficult afternoon thanks to his fifth place on the grid, but after an aggressive start he had managed to jump up to third at the first corner behind Chilton and pole man Jason Plato, before muscling his way through to second later that lap.
As Plato then lost time getting involved in a series of crashes, spins and incidents that delighted the spectators, Muller set about closing the gap on Chilton at the front.
Chilton was coming under inreased pressure from his Vauxhall rival, and eventually he made a mistake at the first corner on lap six and ran wide - handing Muller the lead that he would not relinquish.
Muller eventually finished 1.1 seconds clear of Chilton at the chequered flag, while Rob Collard in the MG took third place after a last lap move around the outside of Dan Eaves on the final lap.
Collard had been shuffled down the order after some early clashes with his rivals but staged a brilliant fightback to claim the final podium spot.
After a chaotic opening spell to the race that left a host of cars with bodywork damage, Eaves had been running third when he survived a half spin after being tapped by Plato on lap nine. He then could not believe his luck as he reclaimed his third place after Plato and Matt Neal collided with each just one corner later - bringing the Safety Car out.
Colin Turkington took fifth for Vauxhall, ahead of Gavin Smith and the recovering Neal - who took some valuable points that maintains his lead in the Championship table.
CLASSIFIED: Pos Driver Make Time 1. Yvan Muller Vauxhall Astra 28:01.018 2. Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type-R + 1.101 3. Rob Collard MG ZS + 5.770 4. Dan Eaves Honda Integra + 6.944 5. Colin Turkington Vauxhall Astra + 7.282 6. Gavin Smith Vauxhall Astra + 7.573 7. Matt Neal Honda Integra + 8.409 8. Jason Hughes MG ZS + 9.976 9. Fiona Leggate Vauxhall Astra Coupe + 13.496 10. Mark Proctor Vauxhall Astra Coupe + 20.142 11. James Kaye Honda Civic Type-R + 29.807 12. Ian Curley Lexus IS200 + 30.012 13. Richard Williams Lexus IS200 + 30.397 NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS: Driver Make On Lap Jason Plato SEAT Toledo Cupra 8 Luke Hines SEAT Toledo Cupra 3 James Pickford SEAT Toledo Cupra 1
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