Motor Racing: Radisich has a clear run

PAUL RADISICH steered his Ford Mondeo to a comfortable victory in the FIA Touring Car World Cup race over 25 laps at Donington Park yesterday. The New Zealander always held the upper hand in the race, restarted after a collision involving five cars at the start left wreckage strewn over the track.

From the restart, Radisich, on pole, made a clean start, and held the lead throughout the race, with Steve Soper in a BMW just adrift.

Soper fought hard, closing to within 1.9sec of the leader as Radisich slowed over the last four laps with a gear selection problem. Joachim Winkelhock took third place, ahead of the British champion, Gabriele Tarquini, in an Alfa Romeo.

BMW took the manufacturers' championship and Germany won the country title, while Radisich celebrated becoming the world's leading saloon car driver for the second successive year.