BRC: Doran takes championship lead with Lydden win

Pat Doran became the first man to win two British Rallycross rounds in 2010 at Lydden Hill last weekend.

The reigning champion was in doubt as to whether he would even contest the sixth round of the season after an old back injury flared up in the week prior to the event.

But the Ford Fiesta driver justified his late decision to compete by opening up a ten point advantage over erstwhile championship leader Andy Grant who could do no better than eighth.

Supercar A Final winner Andy Scott led the opening laps from Grant whose gearbox problem put paid to his hopes of challenging for victory. Doran’s victorious day could have ended very differently early on when his car’s throttle jammed open on one of the circuit’s fastest sections. Turning it off and on again cured the problem though.

And by the start of the final lap he was right with Scott who was suffering from a puncture after clouting a curb in the chicane on the penultimate tour. There was nothing the Peugeot 306 could do to hold off Doran who was followed through by Steve Hill into second.

"I've hurt my back before and it's taken six weeks to fix so I didn't think I'd be fit to race. But I felt better and better each day so I thought I'd give it a go, obviously now I'm really pleased that I did," said Doran

SuperModified A Final winner Julian Godfrey took fourth ahead of James Bird, Gareth Wood and Jamie Lea, while Grant droned round in fourth gear to at least salvage some points for eighth.

Catch British Rallycross highlights on Motors TV throughout 2010.

Tom Hornsby