MATT Neal has extended his lead at the top of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship after the latest round at Croft.

The Droitwich Spa-based driver recorded two seconds and a sixth place at the North Yorkshire circuit, while Team Halfords colleague Dan Eaves, from Evesham, won race three for his fourth success of the campaign.

Neal now leads Eaves by 24 points ahead of next weekend's sixth round at Mondello Park in Ireland.

Team Halfords also lead the team and independent standings, while Neal and Eaves head the independent drivers championship.

Race one saw Colin Turkington lead from pole position to take his first victory for Vauxhall since joining the Luton marque at the start of the season.

Turkington also set the race's fastest lap in his Astra Sport Hatch for a bonus point. Yvan Muller finished second and Neal third after they had swapped positions at the start.

Officials called an early end to the race after independent driver Mark Proctor crashed heavily in his Fast-Tec team's Vauxhall Astra.

Turkington started race two from pole position, but was passed by Muller into the first corner. Their positions remained unchanged for the rest of the race, with Muller setting the fastest lap en route to his third victory of the season.

Muller's win temporarily lifted him to second in the championship behind Neal and ahead of Eaves, both of whom lost time and places in controversial incidents with Jason Plato.

Neal fell to sixth when he and Plato collided at the hairpin. Then Eaves was sent spinning down to 10th when he tangled with Plato as they exited the high-speed chicane.

Eaves' 10th place gave him pole position for race three, thanks to the championship's top 10 reversed grid rule, and he took full advantage to lead from start to finish.

Neal, starting from fifth, climbed to second and was only six hundredths of a second behind Eaves in a Team Halfords one-two.