Plato and Muller clash in Silverstone Feature.

Jason Plato initially claimed victory in the BTCC Feature Race at Silverstone, but a last lap clash with Vauxhall team-mate Yvan Muller, which saw the Englishman take the lead, was later judged by the Stewards to be unfair, costing Plato a 30-second penalty and dropping him to third.

Muller had a lead of over half a second going into the final lap, but a misfire through the high-speed Bridge corner saw the Astra briefly out of shape, and the chasing Plato saw an opening and nosed down the inside at Priory. The two clashed on the exit of the corner, Muller being left with a deranged front wheel and Plato continuing to claim the win. Before Muller could crawl to the line James Tompson also blasted past, and the Frenchman showed his disapproval with third place on the podium by pulling his cap down over his face and declining to join in the traditional champagne festivities.

"Yvan made a big mistake though Bridge and ended up going all the way round the outside of the corner, and doing 50mph less than me going down to Priory," said Plato afterwards. "He tried to close the door, but he'd made a mistake and needed to concede the corner. He wanted to win the race and so did I, but if you look at the damage on the cars my front wheel hit his front wheel."

"I had a really small misfire though Bridge," said an obviously unhappy Muller after the race. "For sure the excuse will be that I made a mistake, from him, it is always the fault of the other one, all year it is the same excuse. I think anyone who watches the TV can judge for himself. C'est la vie..."

Some hours after the race the Clerk of the Course was still debating the incident with the concerned parties, before finally giving Plato the penalty.

The last lap clash overshadowed the rest of the proceedings, with Dan Eaves claiming fourth for Peugeot and Warren Hughes, who led for MG during the pit stop period, bringing the new MG ZS EX259 home fifth. With Anthony Reid seventh after a delay on his pit stop and a subsequent stop-go penalty, it was a fine debut for the new team who impressed with their pace and the immediate competitiveness of their new car.

James Kaye won the Production Class, but only after long-time leader Tom Boardman retired his Peugeot with mechanical problems after building a dominant lead. Simon Harrison again stormed though to claim second, with Paul O'Neill taking third.

A first lap incident at Becketts eliminated Roger Moen, Simon Graves and Mat Jackson, and led to the race being run behind the Safety Car for the opening five laps.

Silverstone BTCC, Round 22 - 35 Laps (Provisional Result)
Touring Class:

1 James Thompson Vauxhall Astra 55m55.681s
2 Yvan Muller Vauxhall Astra -12.045s
3Jason Plato Vauxhall Astra -13.877s
4Dan Eaves Peugeot 406 -42.615
5Warren Hughes MG ZS EX259 -52.826s
6Thomas Erdos Lexus IS200 -1m11.694s

Production Class
1James Kaye Honda Accord -1 lap
2Simon Harrison Peugeot 306 -1 lap
3Paul O'Neill Peugeot 306 -1 lap
4Gavin Pyper Alfa Romeo 156 -1 lap
5Rick Kraemer Ford Focus -1 lap
6Dave Allan Honda Accord -1 lap