10 Things You Might Have Missed From Last Weekend’s Motorsport Action

Despite it being the Easter bank holiday weekend, there was plenty of motorsport to keep us petrolheads totally entertained. Here's a run through all of the highlights

Jack Leslie

07 Apr 2015

10 Things You Might Have Missed From Last Weekend’s Motorsport Action

It was a slightly quieter weekend for motorsport, but there were still a few championships in action – including BTCC and Formula E – so here are 10 things for you to catch up on!

1. Collard wins race one

Andy Priaulx returned to the BTCC for the first time since 2002 and straight away secured pole position for race one of the season at Brands Hatch. However, he opted to use the soft tyre and slipped through the field, with WSR team-mate Rob Collard moving to the front and finishing just ahead of the Team BMR pair of Aron Smith and Jason Plato.

2. In the gravel

With the grid for the second race being decided by the fastest laps in the opening event, it was frantic to say the least. Plato looked on course for a clear victory but a puncture with just a few laps to go dramatically put him in the gravel.

3. Photo finish

With Plato’s VW CC beached at Paddock Hill Bend, Gordon Shedden and Priaulx battled for the lead. It was a fantastic scrap and a light tap from the BMW driver at the final corner on the last lap saw them both run side-by-side to the chequered flag. Shedden just took the win by 0.040 seconds.

4. Successful debut for the Civic Type-R

Rob Austin started from pole position in race three, but he eventually succumbed to the pressures of Matt Neal and Jack Goff. It was another close finish between the two drivers, with Neal just taking victory – the second for the new Honda Civic Type-R. Neal and Goff are now tied at the top of the drivers’ standings.

5. Car Throttle machine in action!

Kieran Gallagher returned to the BTCC for the first time since his debut in the series at the 2013 Knockhill round. Driving a Toyota Avensis – featuring our very own logo – for Team HARD, he finished all three races and enjoyed some great battles. Next up, Donington Park!

Formula E was also in action last weekend, with round six of the 2014/2015 season taking place on a shorter version of the famous Long Beach street track. Nelson Piquet Jr snatched the lead from Daniel Abt at the start and dominated the race, taking his first win in the series; 35 years after his father scored his maiden F1 victory at the same circuit. Jean-Eric Vergne and Lucas di Grassi completed the podium.

7. 2015 Blancpain Sprint Series kicks off

Image source: Olivier Beroud/Vision Sport Agency/ Blancpain Sprint Series

The opening round of the 2015 Blancpain Sprint Series season took place at the Circuit Paul Armagnac in Nogaro, France. BMW Team Brasil took victory, with the yellow No.77 Z4 of Dirk Muller and Maxime Martin just finishing ahead of the No.3 WRT Audi of Stephane Richelmi and Stephane Ortelli.

The Japanese GT Series also returned to the track last weekend, with round one of 2015 taking place in Okayama. The event was won by Andrea Calderelli and Ryo Hirakawa, driving the No.37 Lexus KeePer TOM’S car.

Formula 1 has GP2. IndyCar has Indy Lights. Formula E has… the FE Schools Series. Ten teams from local schools are provided with a kit to build their own mini electric race cars, which they then race. The championship continued in Long Beach, although it didn’t get off to the best of starts. The only way to make this mildly entertaining to watch is to put it in fast forward.

10. Ready to race

Some of the drivers on the 2015 F1 grid spent Easter Sunday travelling. The next two races in China and Bahrain are back-to-back, before the sport then returns to Europe next month. Both tracks typically produce good racing, but the big question is whether Ferrari can take the fight to Mercedes once again.