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The second round of the BTCC at Donington Park will be upon us this weekend and with 31 cars thundering down Craner Curves it promises to be so much better than that other series that will also be hosting it's second round at some test track in France. It's going to be a huge weekend in British motorsport, as is always the case over Easter, with not only the BTCC in action at the classic Leicestershire venue but also the first rounds of British GT, British Superbikes and the World Endurance Championship at Oulton Park, Brands Hatch and Silverstone, respectively.

Circuit length:               1.9790 miles
No. of laps:                  3x 16
Race distance:                3x 31.6640 miles
Races held:                   107
First race:                   08/07/1977
First race on current layout: 19/09/2010
Lap record:                   1:10.573, Adam Morgan, Toyota Avensis T270, 2013

2013 winners:
Race 1: Gordon Shedden
Race 2: Andrew Jordan
Race 3: Colin Turkington

All-time winners:

Drivers:
12: Andy Rouse
8:  John Cleland
7:  Gordon Shedden
6:  Alain Menu, James Thompson, Matt Neal
5:  Jason Plato
4:  Tim Harvey, Yvan Muller
3:  Frank Biela, David Leslie
2:  Steve Soper, David Sears, Paul Radisich, Rickard Rydell, Anthony Reid, Mat Jackson, Andrew Jordan, Colin Turkington
1:  Stuart Graham, Brian Pepper, Tony Dron, Richard Longman, Richard Lloyd, Chris Craft, Gordon Spice, Tom Walkinshaw, Win Percy, Chris Hodgetts, Vince Woodman, Jeff Allam, Pete Lovett, Frank Sytner, Laurence Bristow, Tiff Needell, Robb Gravett, Will Hoy, Joachim Winkelhock, Giampiero Simoni, Gabriele Tarquini, Simon Graves*, Phil Bennett, Alan Morrison, Tom Chilton, Fabrizio Giovanardi, Darren Turner, Rob Collard, Tom Onslow-Cole

Manufacturers:
23: Ford
22: Honda*
18: Vauxhall
7:  BMW
5:  Rover, Renault, SEAT
4:  Toyota, Nissan
3:  Audi
2:  Volkswagen, Mazda, Volvo
1:  Triumph, Mini, Alfa Romeo, MG

* - Outright wins in production class (2001)

Championship Standings:
1.  Andrew Jordan     47
2.  Matt Neal         45
3.  Colin Turkington  44
4.  Gordon Shedden    40
5.  Jason Plato       38
6.  Rob Collard       34
7.  Adam Morgan       18
8.  Sam Tordoff       17
9.  Nick Foster       16
10. Rob Austin        16

Timetable
Live Timing
Live Circuit Commentary
Live Stream

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The wall on the right side of Craners that Plato rolled off a few years ago has been changed, it's now much closer to the circuit. Read on other forums that the BTCC drivers aren't happy about how much closer it is, and want additional protection in front of the wall.

Can see the new wall on this onboard

[youtube]watch?v=rlTRS-5pCjE[/youtube]

Don't know what the fuss is about. Doesn't look that much closer to me.

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I'm not sure, its not that easy to judge from an onboard and I've struggled to find any decent pictures of the new wall. I think the concern is that it is a high speed part of the circuit, and there's still only grass between the tarmac and the wall, but there's now even less grass than before.

Did anyone watch the raceday that Motors showed live earlier this year? How did the wall look on that?

Here's a side by side comparing that track day with Tim Harvey during a 1998 BTCC meeting:



The difference is minimal and in all my years of going to Donington as well as watching it on TV, I've only seen Plato do what Plato did that one time.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
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I saw some of it, but never noticed any difference in the wall. I noticed Starkey's bridge had gone though, which looks weird at first because its more open.

I'll be going to Donington on Sunday. Looking forward to it. Not been to a live BTCC race since the same meeting two years ago.

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TBK Premier League Prediction Game Champion 2010/11

My Flickr photographs
My rubbish YouTube channel

Here's a photo showing the difference, the grass bank is where the wall used to be:



I'm more disappointed that they removed Starkey's Bridge earlier this year.

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It's not dangerous, just leaves them less room if they go off.

The run off should be safer as they've got a decent tyre wall versus a grass bank and a steel guardrail.

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

It's probably more the angle than anything else, with the old earth bank you stood a small chance of steering around it if you went off straight, now the only way you're going to miss it is if the Enterprise beams you up.

The only other person I can remember hitting the wall on the inside was Erkut Kizilirmak in 2008, but that was a bit further up the hill.


It's a shame how many of the landmarks have disappeared recently. No Dunlop Bridge, no Spitfire, no Starkey's Bridge, no Bluebird, no spark plug. Even the clock over the starting grid has gone .

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An f3 car also did something similar in 2006 or so...

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RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

Any idea who?

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

Sadly not, I've just watched the 2007 review which I taped off of Motors TV at the time and during the "previously....on British F3" montage of previous seasons you saw a car fly off the road in the middle of the craner curves, head towards a tyre barrier (can't have been exactly where Plato went off if he found tyres then) and get a bit of air on the nose after the rear of the car impacts the loose tyres causing the front to rise up over them as it spins down the barrier.

A google and youtube search has turned up nothing though, thought we lived in the age of everything being documented these days?

I'd probably have to search the crash videos forum of the old site to find it....

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RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

A friend of mine has hours of video's of cars hitting that bank, it happens a lot more often than you'd think.

I don't know if he has a YT account but if he does I probably follow him.

There's another clip I'm currently searching through my archives for too, a historic car hitting that bank and flipping over onto its roof....

_________________
RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

Is that friend called Codename_47 and those hours of videos of cars hitting that bank is Plato's accident on constant loop?

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BTCC Pick Em's Champion 2010
Formula Fun Cup Champion 2013
http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk

That's ridiculous Kals.

You don't need to constantly loop it, there's enough fancam views of it that you can throw them all in there to spice it up a bit...

I mean. No. Shut up. You're wrong. *cough*

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RIP Birmingham Wheels: here's some of the crash videos I recorded when it was there:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaKIE ... 5t9d5PvoHA

Twitter:

http://www.twitter.com/paulhadsley

Anyone actually going to this?

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I think you should do what you want.

It's your forum and I paid the bills this year..

and if people don't like it they shouldComplain here

I was planning to go with the kids but the missus is going on a hen weekend so I couldn't go.