Title could be decided in court

As they are team mates, works Vauxhall outfit Triple Eight Race Engineering has not appealed against the penalty which cost Plato seven points, but Jason has taken it upon himself to pursue what he sees as a just cause. He claims that Muller had run out of fuel on the last lap at Silverstone, something Jason was unaware of on the day, and he says this caused him to hit the slowing Frenchman at Priory in the first place.

"I wasn't aware of the trouble Yvan was in," Plato told Autosport. "He was a lot slower than before and had no power. I couldn't avoid him.

Plato was given a 30sec time penalty, putting him behind Muller - who limped to the line with damaged suspension - and the Egg Sport Astra of James Thompson. Plato says that telemetry shows Muller's fuel pressure had dropped to zero on that final lap and argues that he couldn't have accounted for him not accelerating out of Priory corner as expected.

The final round of the BTCC is held at Brands Hatch on October 6, and unless the MSA fast-tracks the appeal procedure, the outcome of the championship could hinge on a court hearing after the final race. Therefore, if the appeal is not heard within the next fortnight, only Plato will be able to be crowned as the certain champion at Brands unless Muller outscores him by at least 13 points.

"I feel there's been a miscarriage of justice and I want the opportunity to clear my name," added Plato. "I also want the true facts of the incident to come out and I want the championship points back."

Plato currently leads Muller by six points going into Brands, but 35 are up for grabs in the series finale.