Qualifying: Priaulx debut double

Priaulx, the temporary stand-in for the red-carded Phil Bennett, set a 1m28.447s and a 1m28.047s in the middle of the session for - temporarily - both poles. Then he was knocked off the sprint race pole by firstly James Thompson (1m28.413s) and secondly Yvan Muller (1m28.267s). But Priaulx bounced back to take the fastest time of the day with a 1m27.968s in the closing stages, wrapping up both pole position points on offer.

"I kept saying to myself I could go faster," said the Guernseyman. "I still need to understand how the brakes work and what tweaks to make to the car, but it's been brilliant. Racing in Formula 3 has really helped give me a feel for what a car is doing. I was happy with the laps I did, although you always feel you can go faster. They weren't perfect, but they were good."

Both works Vauxhall drivers, Muller and Jason Plato, took a second and a third apiece, neither feeling that they could match Priaulx's time as they (along with the second Egg Astra of James Thompson) are carrying an additional 60kg of success ballast.

"Andy's got such a big advantage in weight and we've got these cars really nice to drive now," said Plato. "Even with a perfect lap I could never have got pole. The best we could hope for was a couple of P2s, and I've got one P2 and one P3. It's just a shame I made a couple of little errors, although Yvan will probably say the same."

Muller felt as though he did not get ideal tyre pressures on his first two sets of rubber, but that things were better on his third set, which was when the Frenchman set his quickest times.

Thompson ended up fourth and fifth, feeling that he was scuppered by twice being called in for weighbridge checks by the scrutineers. "After that I only got one lap, and then we had a fuel pick-up problem so I had to coast in while all the times were tumbling," he said. "But there's no reason why the car's not as strong as the others in the race."

A self-confessed "banzai" effort from Steve Soper netted the Peugeot veteran a remarkable fourth on the grid for the feature race. "I wasn't over the moon with the balance, but we made a drastic change after free practice and went in on a song and a prayer," said the metaphor mangler. "Although it worked in one way it upset the balance in another."

Dan Eaves, in the other Peugeot, is sixth on both grids, ahead of Tim Harvey's JSM Alfa Romeo. Harvey was happy with the 147, feeling as though work done in a test at Donington Park on Thursday (in which team mate Mark Blair drove) has improved things. Blair ended up last when the team, anxious to have no engine dramas this weekend, overfilled an auxiliary oil cooler.

Down in eighth was Thomas Erdos, the usually improving TMSR Lexus looking horrendous this weekend. After free practice problems, the Brazilian found out too late that suspension geometry changes have not resulted in the hoped for improvement. "It was horrible really," he said. "We just need to get through this weekend."

In the Production class, Roger Moen pipped HTML Peugeot team mate Simon Harrison by just 0.001s for the pole. The Norwegian, carrying 24kg of success ballast (to the 42 of Harrison and 57 of James Kaye), was pleased to be making up ground in the championship. "It's important to do well this weekend and get as many points in the bag as possible when I've not got such ballast," he reflected.

Harrison was unconcerned at being beaten by Moen, but was worried that Kaye, in third spot, is so close with the Barwell Honda, bearing in mind the ballast situation.

Kaye, though, will start the sprint race from the rear after being forced to make an engine change after free practice. "The car isn't at its best," he said, "so we're really surprised - not at our time but at the fact that the Peugeots weren't quicker. We've got half a second in our car."

Team mate Tiff Needell did well to take sixth behind Gavin Pyper and Mat Jackson.

Andy Priaulx (Egg Sport Vauxhall Astra Coupe) 1m28.047s
Yvan Muller (Vauxhall Astra Coupe) 1m28.267s
Jason Plato (Vauxhall Astra Coupe) 1m28.341s
James Thompson (Egg Sport Vauxhall Astra Coupe) 1m28.413s
Steve Soper (Peugeot 406 Coupe) 1m28.559s
Dan Eaves (Peugeot 406 Coupe) 1m29.501s
Tim Harvey (JSM Alfa Romeo 147) 1m29.766s
Thomas Erdos (TMSR Lexus IS200) 1m30.320s
Mark Blair (JSM Alfa Romeo 147) 1m32.608s
Mike O'Brien (Alan Docking Racing Holden Commodore) 1m38.657s

Priaulx 1m27.968s
Plato 1m28.395s
Muller 1m28.439s
Soper 1m28.659s
Thompson 1m28.727s
Eaves 1m29.262s
Harvey 1m29.733s
Erdos 1m30.341s
Blair 1m32.149s
Chris Craft (Hammonds Sauce Ford Capri) 1m53.903s

Roger Moen (HTML Peugeot 306) 1m32.051s
Simon Harrison (HTML Peugeot 306) 1m32.052s
James Kaye (Barwell Honda Accord) 1m32.392s
Gavin Pyper (GA Janspeed Alfa Romeo 156) 1m32.420s
Mat Jackson (GR Ford Focus) 1m32.878s
Tiff Needell (Barwell Honda Accord) 1m33.076s