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{TCar} BTCC: Thruxton race report 5/5/97
>Return-path: <touringcar-l@vollans.demon.co.uk>
>Date: Mon, 05 May 1997 18:22:55 +0100
>From: Nick Carter <nickc@maxcom.demon.co.uk>
>Subject: {TCar} BTCC: Thruxton race report 5/5/97
>To: RAS Info <ras-info@motorsport.com>, TC List
<touringcar@vollans.demon.co.uk>
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>Biela and Tarquini take Thruxton victories
>
>Alain Menu and the Renault team had their Auto Trader RAC Touring Car
>Championship winning streak brought to a dramatic end at Thruxton this
>afternoon (Mon), heavy showers playing havoc with both races at the
>Hampshire circuit. Reigning champion Frank Biela claimed victory for Audi
>in round five, with Honda's Gabriele Tarquini taking round six to notch up
>his first BTCC victory since his championship-winning season in 1994.
>
>Menu victor of all four of the Auto Trader Championship's opening rounds
> placed third in both of today's races to extend his overall championship
>lead. Said Menu: "I am happy enough with two third places and the points.
>The conditions were very difficult today and I had to play it safe for the
>championship..."
>
>It was the weather more than anything which decided the outcome of round
>five of the Auto Trader Championship, a light shower minutes before the
>green light making the Thruxton track surface sufficiently greasy to favour
>the four-wheel drive of the Audi duo Biela and John Bintcliffe. At the
>start Biela rocketed away from fourth on the grid to overhaul pole man Menu
>for the lead, with Honda's Gabriele Tarquini slotting into third ahead of
>Bintcliffe and Kelvin Burt's Volvo. Menu's Renault team-mate Jason Plato
>fell foul of the scrum for the lead positions, sustaining front suspension
>damage in a Biela/Bintcliffe Audi squeeze which put the Laguna out of the
>race.
>
>Championship contender Rickard Rydell made up for a poor eighth-place grid
>slot, manoeuvring his Volvo in front of James Thompson's Honda and Burt to
>claim fifth spot on the second lap. Next time around Burt had dropped to
>10th after a spin, retiring two laps later after a further trip into the
>scenery.
>
>Tarquini made his move on lap four as further rain began to fall, passing
>Menu for second as Biela made the most of the conditions to eke out a
>2.5-second lead. But the Audi's early advantage soon evaporated along with
>the moisture on the track; by lap 10 he was less than a second ahead of the
>Honda.
>
>Tarquini seized his moment on lap 11, overhauling Biela as the reigning
>champion struggled to maintain grip up Woodham Hill, putting a Honda in
>front for the second time this season. The reigning champion was not done
>yet, however, and regained the lead three laps from home. Tarquini stayed
>well in touch for the duration but eased off on the final lap to finish 3.5
>seconds behind the German.
>
>Biela didn't even realise he had taken victory: earlier in the race he had
>been passed by John Cleland (Vauxhall) and Patrick Watts (Peugeot), not
>realising that they were a lap down after pitting for wet-weather tyres. "I
>thought I was dicing with Gabriele for third place," said Biela. "It was a
>nice surprise to find that I had won..."
>
>Menu claimed a safe third position ahead of Bintcliffe, who repassed Rydell
>on lap 12, with Thompson sixth after posting the fastest lap of the race on
>the final tour. Engine failure for early Total Cup leader Lee Brookes
>(Peugeot) gifted the Independents' prize to Matt Neal's Ford Mondeo.
>
>Round six saw even heavier rainfall, and it was to have a major effect on
>the race. Tarquini, sharing the front row with Menu, made the better start
>to lead, with Honda team-mate Thompson pulling into second ahead of Menu,
>Plato and Bintcliffe. Behind there was drama for Biela, whose Audi spun
>into the barriers within yards of the startline and into retirement. His
>car was judged to have come to rest in a dangerous position, and the Safety
>Car was brought into play for two laps while the stricken Audi was removed
>to safety.
>
>But as the Safety Car pulled off, so the heavens opened and a posse of
>canny drivers led by Peugeot's Tim Harvey peeled into the pits for a
>switch to grooved tyres.
>
>At the restart, Menu pulled in front of Thompson for second and set about
>closing the gap to Tarquini. The Swiss made a do-or-die lunge for the lead
>at the chicane on lap eight, but the Honda held on in front and managed to
>ease out a one-second advantage over the Renault, with Thompson just
>managing to hold off Rydell for third.
>
>All eyes were on Harvey's progress, however: he rejoined the race in 16th
>position and by mid-distance was up to ninth, his Michelin intermediates
>clearly the tyre to have in the tricky wet-to-dry conditions. In successive
>laps Harvey picked off the cars of Will Hoy (Ford), David Leslie (Nissan)
>and Bintcliffe, moving up to sixth on the tail of Plato and Thompson.
>Thompson obliged by pulling off with gearbox failure and the unstoppable
>Harvey made short work of Plato and Rydell to take up third spot with two
>laps to run. Menu was the next to succumb and, entering the final lap, the
>Peugeot was fast making up ground on leader Tarquini.
>
>"If only the race had been a lap longer," mused Harvey after closing to
>within 0.7 seconds of Tarquini at the finish line. "You could call my
>result fortuitous, but everybody had the chance of changing tyres. It was
>my only real hope..."
>
>Menu held on for third ahead of Anthony Reid's Nissan, the faltering
>Rydell, Derek Warwick's Vauxhall and Plato. Matt Neal was once again the
>Total Cup for Independents victor. Menu's lead over Rydell in the
>championship is stretched now to 35 points, with Tarquini moving into third
>slot.
>
>
>Auto Trader RAC Touring Car Championship, round 5
>Thruxton, 5/5/97, 18 laps/42.41 miles
>1 Frank Biela Ger Audi A4 27m 03.695s 94.02mph
>2 Gabriele Tarquini It Honda Accord +3.535s
>3 Alain Menu Switz Renault Laguna +5.926s
>4 John Bintcliffe GB Audi A4 +6.973s
>5 Rickard Rydell Swe Volvo S40 +16.535s
>6 James Thompson GB Honda Accord +16.840s
>7 David Leslie GB Nissan Primera +23.860s
>8 Anthony Reid GB Nissan Primera +26.453s
>9 Tim Harvey GB Peugeot 406 +43.973s
>10 Paul Radisich NZ Ford Mondeo +48.617s
>13 & Total Cup Independents: Matt Neal (GB), Ford Mondeo, +1m 09.981s
>Fastest lap: Thompson 1m 23.749s 101.27mph
>
>Round 6
>22 laps/51.83 miles
>1 Tarquini 34m 12.672s 90.90mph
>2 Harvey +0.687s
>3 Menu +4.449s
>4 Reid +6.312s
>5 Rydell +12.246s
>6 Derek Warwick GB Vauxhall Vectra +17.262s
>7 Jason Plato GB Renault Laguna +20.797s
>8 Bintcliffe +20.922s
>9 John Cleland GB Vauxhall Vectra +25.371s
>10 Radisich +26.129s
>14 & Total Cup Independents: Neal 21 laps
>Fastest lap: Thompson 1m 18.751s 107.70mph
>
>Championship positions
>DRIVERS 1 Menu, 83 points; 2 Rydell, 48; 3 Tarquini, 45; 4 Plato, 30; 5
>Biela, 29; =6 Bintcliffe & Harvey, 23, etc.
>
>MANUFACTURERS 1 Renault, 80; 2 Volvo, 62; 3 Honda, 53; 4 Audi, 42; 5
>Nissan, 38; 6 Peugeot, 35; 7 Vauxhall, 30; 8 Ford, 28.
>
>TOTAL CUP for INDEPENDENTS 1 Colin Gallie (GB/BMW), 72; 2 Gravett, 52, etc.
>
>
>-------
>BTCC97 www.demon.co.uk/racing
>
_________________________________________________________________________
_ _
/ | _| o | \ _| o Jeffrey Goggin
/__| | | / | | __ | | | | / | | audidudi@delphi.com
/ | |_| \_| | |_/ |_| \_| | http://people.delphi.com/audidudi
_________________________________________________________________________