Muller puts pressure on Neal

Yvan Muller put pressure on British Touring Car Championship leader Matt Neal by winning two out of three races at Mondello Park in Ireland today.

Muller, third in the standings before the meeting in County Kildare, recorded two victories sandwiched by a win for team-mate Colin Turkington in a great day for VX Racing.

After leading all the way from pole position in the first race, Muller recorded his fourth win of 2005 in Vauxhall’s Astra Sport Hatch. SEAT’s Jason Plato was second, just ahead of Neal in his Team Halfords Honda.

In race two, Turkington used his ‘home advantage’ to claim victory. Turkington is from nearby Portadown, Northern Ireland, and gambled on the right type of tyres on a drying track to move through from fourth on the grid and take his second win of the season. Dan Eaves finished second and Neal was third.

Muller then took the final race of the day ahead of Tom Chilton’s Arena Motorsports Honda Civic. Rob Collard, in WSR’s MG, was third.

“Two wins in the same weekend is fantastic,” said Muller, who is now only 13 points behind Neal.

“Three wins for Vauxhall in the same weekend too. We closed the gap and we’re in a good direction.”

Chilton added: “All this weekend we were struggling in the wet conditions but in the last race I led my own race. I’m very privileged to be up there with Yvan Muller.”

Plato started the final race from pole position because of the to 10 reversed grid rule – but his day was ended early when he was forced off the track following contact with Eaves.

“I got clouted from left, right and centre – but that’s racing,” Plato told ITV1. “Dan realised where I was, he guarded the inside and braked so hard to try and put me down the left.

“I said ‘I’m not having that’ so I tried to get behind Dan, but he was still on the brakes. We made contact and two cars into one doesn’t go.”