Andrew Jordan has won the final race of the 2010 season after starting from pole position. Jordan led the race from start-to-finish, despite two safety car periods and late-race pressure from Steven Kane, who took second. Tom Chilton finished in third and took the Independent Driver’s championship in doing so.
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Jordan’s second win of the year was not as easy as his first – despite getting two excellent restarts and pulling away from Kane twice, Jordan had to defend heavily in the closing laps of the race. Kane himself had a championship to fight for – in the end he lost out by just two points to Chilton in the Independent Drivers Standings.
Chilton’s third place finish seals the second title of the day for Team Aon, adding to their earlier win in the Independent Teams Championship. Mat Jackson finished in fourth and had he found a way past Chilton he could have aided Kane to the Indpendent title, but he simply could not find a way past.
Paul O’Neill took fifth position to give the Honda Integra a strong farewell in what is currently looking like being the car’s final race unless changes are made to the 2011 regulations.
Rob Collard was sixth, despite having earlier been challenging Chilton for the final podium spot. He ultimately lost out to Jackson and O’Neill in the last few laps of the race as they all charged along the start straight towards Paddock Hill Bend.
James Nash was once again in the points by finishing in seventh, whilst Gordon Shedden took eighth despite having started from towards the back of the grid. Indeed the Scot was as high as 10th by the end of the second lap, having started from 18th.
Newly crowned champion Jason Plato took 2 points home for ninth. With no championship left to fight for and a car with maximum ballast, Plato was enjoying a Sunday drive in his Chevrolet Cruze!
Sam Tordoff took the final point for tenth position – his first point in the BTCC.
There were problems for several front-running drivers. Matt Neal didn’t even make it through the first corner before his car developed an engine problem, whilst Tom Onslow-Cole failed to even make the grid and he pulled in to the pit lane to retire without taking the start. It meant that Onslow-Cole, who led the Independent Driver standings heading into the meeting, ended up third in the championship after a dismal weekend.
Lea Wood caused the first safety car period for a single lap at the start and Ben Collins caused the second mid-way through the race after he spun off into the Paddock Hill gravel.