Plato thinks his way to pole position

Motor racing

Jason Plato, a British Touring Car Championship newcomer, turned the series on its head when he claimed pole position for the opening two rounds at Donington Park today.

The Williams-Renault driver out-paced his experienced team-mate Alain Menu to become the first driver to claim pole position on his BTCC debut.

"I hadn't imagined in my wildest dreams that I would be on pole position. I knew the car was quick but I had to think hard about it in the second session. Alain was on pole at that stage and I hadn't got the best from my tyres on the first run. I sat in the pits for a while, thinking about it and my lap was a real cracker," said a delighted Plato.

"Having never made a racing start in the Renault, I'm not sure what will happen in the races. I spent some time practising last week because this is a tricky car to start but if I can finish in the top three I'll be ecstatic."

It was a day of surprises, with James Thompson outpacing the 1994 champion Gabriele Tarquini. The Italian didn't help his cause by spinning off in the first session.

Volvo's challenge was led by the Swede, Rickard Rydell, who qualified alongside Thompson for each of the races. Rydell's team-mate, Kelvin Burt, spun off on oil but was fifth on the grid for the first race.

Nissan found plenty of encouragement in the performances of David Leslie and Anthony Reid in two new Primeras. They qualified sixth and seventh. "I'm really pleased. Two days ago my car was just a box of bits," Reid said.

Frank Biela, the reigning champion, qualified in eighth for the first race and fifth for the second. The German's four-wheel drive Audi carries 95kg more weight than his rivals in a bid by the organisers to equalise the racing in the world's biggest Touring Car race series.

The return of the former Grand Prix driver Derek Warwick to Touring Cars netted two mid-grid starting slots.