BTCC qualifying at Oulton Park...

[AUDIDUDI@delphi.com]

NEWS FROM THE AUTO TRADER RAC 
TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP 
Oulton Park, 10/8/96 

David Leslie and Frank Biela will share the pole position honours at 
tomorrow's (Sun) rounds of the Auto Trader RAC Touring Car 
Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire after topping the 
timesheets in official qualifying this afternoon.

Leslie's Honda Accord was fastest in qualifying for round 19 of the 
championship, less than a hundredth of a second ahead of Alain 
Menu's Renault. Leslie and Menu were the only men in first 
qualifying to break the one-minute barrier around the tight Fosters 
circuit at Oulton. Third fastest was Leslie's Honda team-mate James 
Kaye -- a career best grid position.

Championship leader Biela wound up his four-wheel-drive Audi A4 
to smash the circuit qualifying record in the second session of the 
day; his time of 59.779 seconds was more than half a second inside 
Menu's pole time of last season.

Leslie ran the German driver close to claim his second front-row grid 
slot of the day, with Menu third for Renault.

A pair of good results for Biela at Oulton tomorrow could set the seal 
on his championship campaign; he currently enjoys a 58-point 
advantage in the drivers' title race.

OFFICIAL QUALIFYING: ROUND 19 
1  David Leslie (GB), Honda Accord, 0m 59.933s, 99.71mph; 
2  Alain Menu (Switz), Renault Laguna, 0:59.942; 
3  James Kaye (GB), Honda Accord, 1:00.075; 
4  Rickard Rydell (Swe), Volvo 850, 1:00.078; 
5  Frank Biela (Ger), Audi A4, 1:00.078; 
6  Will Hoy (GB), Renault Laguna, 1:00.258; 
7  Jo Winkelhock (Ger), BMW 320i, 1:00.467; 
8  James Thompson (GB), Vauxhall Vectra, 1:00.469; 
9  Kelvin Burt (GB), Volvo 850, 1:00.565; 
10 Roberto Ravaglia (It), BMW 320i, 1:00.668. 

OFFICIAL QUALIFYING: ROUND 20 
1  Biela, 0:59.779, 99.96mph; 
2  Leslie, 0:59.929; 
3  Menu, 0:59.974; 
4  Rydell, 1:00.047; 
5  Winkelhock, 1:00.050; 
6  Thompson, 1:00.094; 
7  Hoy, 1:00.115; 
8  James Kaye, 1:00.170; 
9  John Cleland (GB), Vauxhall Vectra, 1:00.340; 
10 Patrick Watts (GB), Peugeot 406, 1:00.420. 

-- 
Official BTCC website:
Best in British Motor Sport
http://www.demon.co.uk/racing