Submitted on October 21st 2012 17:56 by Chris Ashby.

Frank Wrathall has won the final round of the 2012 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at a treacherously wet Brands Hatch GP circuit.

For the second time today a new winner has emerged in the championship as Wrathall drove a controlled race to hold off outgoing champion Matt Neal and the new champion Gordon Shedden.

It was Mat Jackson who had a perfect start as he launched his NGTC Ford Focus into Paddock Hill Bend from pole position with the Toyota Avensis of Frank Wrathall following. However the same throttle problem that occurred at Silverstone struck Jackson again as he was forced to pull over on the start/finish line and retire from the race.

From that moment on it was Wrathall who put in fast lap after fast lap to open his advantage to nearly six seconds. The Honda trio of Shedden, Neal and Andrew Jordan all followed suit crossing the line together in formation.

Jason Plato’s final weekend of the season was already one to forget but it became worse as the MG KX Momentum driver struggled in the wet to stay with the top four after being passed by both Shedden and Jordan then slowly slipped down the order to cross the line in eighth place. eBay Motors had a heart in mouth moment after Rob Collard and Tom Onslow-Cole came together coming out of Clearways but both luckily survived the incident with them both able to finish the race.

Aron Smith was the first Redstone car across the line by finishing fifth with Dave Newsham and Rob Austin sixth and seventh. Lea Wood and Onslow-Cole rounded out the final top ten of the season.

So after 6 months of excitement, controversy and emotion it was Gordon Shedden who clinched his first BTCC crown by a mere 21 points to his team mate Matt Neal. Andrew Jordan claimed his first Independents title as well as helping Pirtek Racing win the Independents Team title. Honda claimed the manufacturer’s title and completed their sweep with the HiQ Teams championship.

The 2013 season kicks off at Brands Hatch on the first weekend of April but that wont be all for us, make sure you keep an eye on the website because we will have many features and interviews as well as a season review of the championship over the coming weeks.

PHOTO CREDIT: Jonathan Hobley

Chris Ashby has followed the BTCC since aged 6 and is currently studying Sports Journalism at Southampton Solent University. In 2013 he will cover the Renault Clio Cup and BTCC. You can contact him by either following on twitter @ashby_91 or by emailing him at chris@btcccrazy.co.uk