Jason Plato

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Jason Plato : biography

14 October 1967 –

After starting 3rd on the grid, Plato won the first round of the 2011 season at Brands Hatch, setting a new BTCC record of 61 victories.

Other racing

Plato competed in the Bathurst 1000 and Sandown 500 numerous times, but without any great success. His last attempt at Bathurst was with the Holden Racing Team and was driving with the late Peter Brock. Plato and Brock’s race ended with Plato being involved in a crash which resulted in John Cleland’s car roll onto its roof.

During his 2005 BTCC campaign, he also competed in four rounds of the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) for SEAT Sport. He managed a second place finish in race two of his home round FIA WTCC Race of UK at Silverstone.

Television career

Fifth Gear

Plato was injured in a Caparo T1 supercar in October 2007 during filming for Fifth Gear at Bruntingthorpe proving ground. The car caught fire at an estimated 250 kilometres per hour (160 mph) and Plato described his injuries as follows: “The back of my neck is burnt and so are my face and hands. I obviously couldn’t take my hands off the steering wheel whilst braking and my right hand is more badly burnt than my left."He was taken from the scene by former BTCC driver Phil Bennett and after treatment at three hospitals, including Stoke Mandeville Hospital’s specialist burns unit, Plato was able to compete in the following weekend’s final race in the 2007 BTCC calendar.http://www.btcc.net/html/generalnews_detail.php?id=758&PHPSESSID=8bf937813a7bfde2cf0e702f8498e6c5 This incident was also mentioned on Top Gear, where Jeremy Clarkson called him a ‘Baked Potato’ after mispronouncing his name.

Plato also presented the popular Sky One television program Mission Implausible where he and Tania Zaetta compete to perform three stunts over the course of each episode.

Personal life

Jason is married to Sophie and they have two girls. A qualified pilot, he owned a Piper Malibu Mirage to commute to his former home in Monaco. Jason is a brand ambassador of: Agusta Westland Helicopters, Tesco Momentum 99 Fuel, Jigsaw24 and AMX Home Automation Systems. He runs a marketing agency called Brand Pilot.