5) 2004 – Thompson wins it on fastest lap
A thrilling conclusion to what had been a great season, with Vauxhall drivers James Thompson and Yvan Muller going head to head for the third year in a row over the final three races at Donington separated by virtually nothing.
Thompson grabbed the lead in the first race after rudely bumping Matt Neal out of the way at the bottom of Craner Curves on lap one, before the SEAT of Jason Plato overtook the VX Racing man on lap two into Redgate, Frenchman Muller sensing his chance as the duo went side-by-side down Craner.
Something had to give – Muller ran wide before returning to the track out of control at the bottom of the hill, the Vauxhall Astra sliding through the gravel trap before returning once again to the tarmac having lost vital ground. Plato comfortably took victory ahead of Thompson who won his own fight with Colin Turkington for second, Muller recovering to seventh where he started race two from fourth.
Race two as equally dramatic, Rob Huff having a dismal first lap despite leading into Old Hairpin. Tom Chilton and Muller squeezed by the SEAT which ran deep and proceeded to fall down the pack like a stone with a lorry carrying boulders attached to it, Thompson extremely lucky to avoid his spinning team-mate Luke Hines in the middle of the road at the chicane.
Halfords Honda man Dan Eaves then gave Muller a shove into McLeans later in the race to test the Frenhman’s ice racing brilliance further, Muller finishing third with the addition of a corner marker to the front of his Astra as title fight went to the wire.
Muller immediately got the better of Chilton at the start of the final race, the Honda youngster falling down the pack as Plato and Thompson cleanly worked their way past the similar Civic of Eaves, settling into their pace and closing in on Muller.
Thompson set the (hugely crucial) fastest lap of the race as the duo closed up to Muller’s bumper, Plato probing for every way to unsettle his big rival while Thompson sat back and watched intently. Plato started leaning on Muller but the Frenchman somehow held onto his lead despite the unbelievable pressure to win and finish the championship level on points with Thompson.
The deciding statistic – Thompson claimed his second BTCC crown on countback, the title essentially won by Thompson’s solitary fastest lap point.
