2008 MIA 'Business of the Year' Award
Making the Cruze
04/04/2010
Silverline Chevrolet has secured its first podium of the season in the first of three of today's Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship races at Thruxton, courtesy of Jason Plato.
Starting from 5th on the grid, Jason made an early pass on Jordan in the Vauxhall, taking 4th and defending fiercely to keep Onslow-Cole's Aon Ford at bay as the pair raced door-to-door through the chicane.
True to form, the UK's fastest race track proved perilous for the tyres, with several drivers becoming victims of punctures and front tyre failures. Honda pairing Neal and Shedden weren't without drama, resulting in costly pit stops and playing into Jason's hands as he began the charge to race leader, Giovanardi from 2nd place.
As lap times tumbled over the following laps, Jason reduced Giovanardi's eight second gap to just three seconds, however with this notoriously challenging circuit throwing cars off at nearly every corner, tyre management proved key to finishing the race and securing vital points.
Jason took the flag in 2nd place, with 12 championship points and guaranteed his place on the first row of the grid for race 2.
Speaking to ITV after the race, Jason commented: "It's always tough here, and this is the Vauxhall hunting ground. We played it conservative with the tyres, because it is hard here on them. The game plan for us was to finish. Second place is a lot of points; it's a good start to our campaign."
In his BTCC debut with the Chevrolet Cruze, Alex had a solid, 'educational' race as he lined up 15th on the grid. A clean start off the line and good pace ensured he kept with the pack ahead, in close pursuit of Pinkney.
A spin on track did nothing to knock Alex's focus as he rejoined and made a couple of important places to get to P7. With tyres a constant concern for all, Alex kept enough momentum to secure his points-finishing position and end his first race in a very impressive 7th place.
Alex commented, "I made a good start and managed to get a good run at Pinkney through Goodwood but then I spun, so the focus moved from looking after the tyres to making up a place. There was some carnage in front with cars running off track because of tyre problems, so I gained and passed Pinkney. It was a good result for my debut race. For me the objective was first to finish, and learn all I could in this first race. Already I've learnt a lot more on tyre management – it's very different to Clio racing."
And on his plans for race 2, Alex adds, "I want to be challenging for a podium."
Race two is up on next, starting at 14:10, live on ITV4.
