Tom Chilton thrilled to end win drought

Tom Chilton admitted he was delighted to end a four year win drought in the BTCC after taking victory in the second race of the weekend at Donington Park.

Chilton had found himself in the wars in the opening race when he was tipped into a spin at the Old Hairpin – dropping him to the back of the field and restricting him to a 15th-place finish.

However, Chilton was one of the drivers to then gamble on swapping to wet tyres before race two kicked off and would reap the rewards as he stormed through to the front of the field and grabbed what was ultimately a comfortable race win ahead of the BMW of Adam Morgan.

The reversal of the top twelve for the final race limited his chances of another front-running result, but a solid top ten finish was enough to ensure he ended the weekend sitting fourth in the standings.

“I love teh decision on the tyres we took before the second race!” he said. “Leaving the pits it was 100 per cent slick tyres and when we left the grid for the green flag lap, it was 100 per cent slicks.

“However, when we went round the Old Hairpin I could see the lines on the tarmac as people were weaving and I called back to the team to say to ready the tyres and to see what it was doing in the pits. They said it was starting to rain, so I knew we had to make the change.

“I went out like a missile and couldn’t hold back and I’m so pleased for myself, for the team and for the sponsors because it’s a reward for the hard work everyone has put on. It’s been four years since my last win and it’s nice to be back on the top step of the podium.

“It was a shame to be hit off in the first race so to come back from that to grab a win, and then score more decent points in race three, is a good start. We end the weekend fourth in the standings and are top of the team standings which is great, and hopefully there is plenty more to come.”