SAM Tordoff will be bidding to win his first Dunlop British Touring Car Championship drivers title at Brands Hatch this weekend.

The Rawdon racer is 11 points clear of Gordon Shedden at the top of the table with Matt Neal a further two behind

His JCT600 with GardX team-mate Rob Collard is just 17 points behind the championship leader.

As championship leader, Tordoff carries 75kg of success ballast into the season finale, which takes place on his favourite circuit – the 2.6-mile Brands Hatch Grand Prix layout – one on which he has finished on the podium three times. Collard, meanwhile, has 48kg on his BMW 125i M Sport.

They will be hoping to secure the

Tordoff said: “I had a set of targets for the season and we’ve surpassed all of them, so whatever happens now is a bonus.

"Having said that, I’ve led the championship for half the season so of course it would be a disappointment not to convert it into a title, both for myself and WSR, who have worked incredibly hard to give me a fantastic BMW.

"Carrying maximum ballast won’t help matters, but it’s been the same for the past few rounds and exactly the same thing has been at stake, so we’re pretty used to it now as a team.

"I’m just going to go out there and enjoy the weekend and we’ll see what happens. It’s my favourite circuit anyway and I’ve finished second there three times, so I’ll enjoy it, whatever the outcome.”

Hampshire team-mate Rob lies fourth, just 17 behind Sam, with four others also in title contention.

Both Sam and Rob have had incredibly consistent seasons, taking a combined four wins, 15 podiums and six fastest laps ahead of the triple-header event.

As championship leader, Sam carries 75kg of success ballast into the season finale, which takes place on his favourite circuit – the 2.6-mile Brands Hatch Grand Prix layout – one on which he has finished on the podium three times. Rob, meanwhile, has 48kg on his BMW 125i M Sport.

Both are aiming to repeat the achievements of 2009 and ’14, in which WSR, clinched both of their previous drivers’ titles at Brands Hatch.

The Brands Hatch triple-header on October 1-2 is the last of 10 events in this year’s BTCC, which takes in nine circuits the length and breadth of the country. Each race will be screened live and exclusively on ITV4 in HD.

Sam Tordoff said: “I had a set of targets for the season and we’ve surpassed all of them, so whatever happens now is a bonus. Having said that, I’ve led the championship for half the season so of course it would be a disappointment not to convert it into a title, both for myself and WSR, who have worked incredibly hard to give me a fantastic BMW. Carrying maximum ballast won’t help matters, but it’s been the same for the past few rounds and exactly the same thing has been at stake, so we’re pretty used to it now as a team. I’m just going to go out there and enjoy the weekend and we’ll see what happens. It’s my favourite circuit anyway and I’ve finished second there three times, so I’ll enjoy it, whatever the outcome.”