THE race for the British 250cc Championship has moved into top gear following Darren Barton's second successive victory.

The popular Hoddlesden rider blitzed his two rivals for the title -- South African Shane Norval and former Grand Prix star Adrian Coates -- to claim maximum points at Brands Hatch.

The result puts Barton, winner at Oulton Park two weeks ago, just 20 points behind championship leader Coates with less than half the season completed.

He said: "It was a brilliant race with a brilliant result. The bike is getting better and better, and now we have got the reliability sorted, we have proved that we can beat the leaders,"

"If we can string some more victories together, there's no reason why we can't mount a serious challenge for the title."

Barton's rivals were left under no illusions about their task ahead when he put the Colin Appleyard Racing Honda top of the timesheets throughout qualifying, finally claiming the coveted pole position on his final practice lap.

A trademark lightning start from the green light saw Barton head the pack for the first seven laps, before swapping the lead with Coates and Norval in successive laps.

The hard-charging former British 125cc champion seized the initiative four laps from home, sweeping ahead of his two rivals.

Despite heavy pressure from Norval -- who broke the lap record three times in as many laps -- Barton finally sealed his victory with the help of a backmarker.

He explained: "I knew Shane was breathing down by neck and his bike was quicker than mine on some parts of the circuit, but we were also about to lap the slower riders.

"On the final lap I came across a back marker going into Dingle Dell, two corners from home, I passed him on the outside and cut across, leaving Shane with nowhere to go. That just gave me enough breathing space to make it home before he could out-accelerate me.

"It was a bit close for my liking, but I'll settle for that result anyday."

Barton's sparkling form over the last three rounds has put him among the favourites to lift the crown, with the ultra-fast airfield track at Thruxton in Hampshire next stop on the calendar.

Added Barton: "I always enjoy Thruxton. It's a fast track that needs a fast bike, if we can screw some extra top-end speed out of ours there's no reason why we shouldn't get on the podium again."

Result: (16 laps) 1: Darren Barton (Honda) 24m 19.984s (ave. speed 103.52mph); 2: Shane Norval (Honda) 24-20.335; 3: Adrian Coates (Honda) 24-20.462.

Overall standings: 1: Coates 106 pts; 2: Norval 97; 3: Barton 86.