Anthony Reid has won the opening race of the day at Knockhill, providin🐈g the Scottish fans with a home winner and continuing the recent strong performances of the 🔯MG ZS.

Reid came home ahead of Tom Chilton, after Colin Turkington was penalised by stewards for passing unde☂r a yellow flag - dropping the second MG driver from second to fourth.

Starting from pole, Reid was able to build up a lead as those behind him squabbled for position to claim his second winಌ of the season.

The elder statesman of the gꦍrid was pleased with the result.

"My start was awesome," he said. "I got a really good launch into lead and on a circuitജ like this there is always action in the group behind you. That's what happened with second, third and fourth falling over each other and I built a lead quickly.

"The car was perfect - what a team finish."

As Reid headed for victory, the battle for second was intense. Off the line Chilton maintained his second place from Turkington and the Vauxhall of James Thompson, the VX Racing team having completed a remarkable repair job to get the Astra onto the race after the qualifying accidenಞt Thompson suffered on Saturday.

The three battled over the opening laps, with Thompson driving round the outside of Turkington for third then ꦜsliding past Chilton for second on lap three. However Turkington was soon the man on the move. Coming out of McIntyres on lap seven, the Irish driver cut back inside Chilton to take third into the Glenvarigill chicane before setting about taking second from Thompson.

Behind them, Jason Plato was again dropping🍸 down the order, as he looked for a repeat of Croft at the last meeting when he went on to collect two victories later in the da💜y. Moving the right way up the order was Yvan Muller, who took fifth from Dan Eaves at Taylors on lap ten.

Turki♛ngton then made a move on Thompson at the hairpin, running side by side with the Astra along the start finish straight before taking second. Chilton followed him through later in the lap to demote Thompson to fourth, only a place ahead of his title rival and teammate.

Although Turkington had the quickest car on the track he didn't get close enough 📖to challenge Reid. Speaking before he lost second place, the Irishman was pleased with the way the car had ru🐻n.

"I started third and knew I had a good shot for a podium finish," he said. "I dr🅺opped to fourth but had the pace to get back up front. I had a good dice with Chilton and Thompson but I wasn't able to chase down Anthony.

"It was a gr꧅eat race for WSR, I✃ hope it continues later today."

However Turkington was then ཧdemoted to fourth in the race after stewards found him guilty of passing Thompson under a yellow flag.

Back in the battle for tenth, the decision to drop back almost backfired on Plato when he found a hard charging Jason Hughes coming up beh𝄹ind in the Kartworld MG ZS.

Hughes managed to pass the SEAT ✤to get into tenth only for Plato to take the place back and despite a mad charge to the line on the last 🧔lap, missed out by the smallest of margins.

It was only ✱afterwards that Hughes realised how close he had come to claiming pole🐻 for race two.

"I didn't actually know where wasꦗ," he said, "I didn't know I was eleventh. If I'd known tha🔯t then it would have been different. It's coming though, I couldn't have battled with people better than Plato and Neal - pole would have been nice though."

Race two takes place later this afternoon.