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Ash Sutton’s race one gamble paid off as he took victory in race two to retake the championship lead.

He conceded third place at the end of race one to avoid using the slower hard tyre in race two. Title rival Tom Ingram was at the front on the hard tyre, with Sutton ready to seize the initiative.

The Ford driver was up to second by Cascades from fourth and on the back of Ingram. Adam Morgan was up to third, with Ingram hoping his teammate could come to his aid and help fight Sutton. But this was irrelevant when Sutton dived down the inside of Ingram at the Island hairpin on lap two.

The safety car was out on lap three when Dan Lloyd, race one hero, crashed heavily at the high speed Druids corner. He clipped the tyre stack at the Hislops chicane which caused damage to his Hyundai. He spun and hit the wall at high speed, ending his race but thankfully Lloyd was fine.

After a lengthy period while the barrier was fixed, Sutton maintained his lead with Morgan in tow. Ingram was fourth behind Hyundai teammate Tom Chilton.

Ingram was soon being hounded by reigning champion Jake Hill in the BMW. Hill was on the soft tyre so had the pace advantage, with Ingram defending. Ingram’s other Hyundai teammate Senna Proctor was on the back of Hill, meaning he had to contend with the Hyundai behind him before focusing on the one in front.

Proctor’s ability to attack was hampered by bodywork rubbing on his left front tyre. He fell back a couple of spots to eighth, and gave Hill the impetus to go after Ingram.

There was the worry of another safety car when Charles Rainford was sent into the wall on the exit of turn one by Gordon Shedden. However Rainford’s BMW got away and the stewards decided to keep the corner under waved yellow flags for the duration of the race.

Sutton took the win, his fourth of the season and the 46th of his storied career, retaking the championship lead. Morgan and Chilton followed him home. Ingram’s Herculean defending effort saw him finish fourth ahead of Hill. Dan Rowbottom finished sixth with Josh Cook seventh.

Proctor ended up eighth with the bodywork damage with Shedden ninth and Dan Cammish tenth. The hard tyre being Cammish’s detriment.

Mikey Doble, Sam Osborne, James Dorlin, Chris Smiley and Daryl DeLeon rounded off the top ten.

Tom Ingram outlined his title credentials with a dominant lights to flag win in race one at Oulton Park.

The Hyundai man coasted to his 35th career BTCC win, setting a new lap record in the process. Title rival Ash Sutton could only manage fourth.

There was an extra formation lap due to series debutant Finn Leslie having a driveshaft issue on the grid. This resulted in the race being reduced by one lap to 14.

When the race got underway, Ingram made an excellent start and pulled out a nice gap heading into turn one. Chris Smiley, starting second, was jumped by the NAPA Fords of Dan Cammish and Ash Sutton.

The safety car was deployed on lap two when the unfortunate Sam Osborne was sent into the wall by Stephen Jelley coming out of the hairpin, damaging the protective barrier.

After a two lap delay, the race restarted, with Senna Proctor pulling off a stunning double overtake on Josh Cook and Charles Rainford into Cascades. Max Hall’s difficult season suffered another setback when he made contact with Un-Limited Motorsport teammate Dexter Patterson into the Hislops Chicane. Hall came worse off with a broken suspension, crabbing his way back to the pits and into retirement.

Meanwhile up front, Ingram was sailing away, setting a new lap record of 1:24:052 as he was surging clear at the front.

Throughout the race there was a battle between Josh Cook and James Dorlin, with a couple of flashpoints. The Honda man got the better of Dorlin in his Toyota, with Cook finishing ahead.

WSR’s Daryl DeLeon got his elbows out throughout the race, making contact with a couple of drivers, with the main point being pitching Aron Taylor-Smith into a spin going into the hairpin. DeLeon hadn’t done WSR teammate Aiden Moffat any favours as Taylor-Smith bumped into him, putting the Scot back a few places.

A special mention must be made for Dan Lloyd. Excluded from qualifying on Saturday after failing the ride height test, he started from the back and battled through the field to finish 12th. A fine drive.

Ingram won the race at a canter, with Dan Cammish second. There was a bit of tactics in play by Ash Sutton, as he allowed Chris Smiley to pass for third. This was so that Sutton wouldn’t be on the slower hard tyres for race two, potentially increasing his chances for race two victory.

Team Vertu pair Tom Chilton and Adam Morgan were fifth and sixth. Jake Hill was seventh in his WSR BMW with Senna Proctor eighth in the fourth Vertu Hyundai. Cook and Dorlin rounded off the top ten.

Rainford and Lloyd were next, with Taylor-Smith edging out DeLeon for 13th while Dan Rowbottom took the final point for 15th.

Dan Rowbottom took his second win of the season and thrust himself into championship contention with a victory in round 12 at Thruxton.

The NAPA Racing man took the lead on lap one, and didn’t lose it in what was a frantic final race of the day.

It was Jake Hill who took the lead off the start, jumping front row starters James Dorlin and Senna Proctor into first place. Rowbottom got past the pair too and chased down Hill. By the end of lap one Rowbottom’s Focus was in the lead with Hill second.

Dan Cammish had made it into third and was being the perfect wingman for his teammate in front, by harassing Hill and allowing Rowbottom to pull away.

Not to be outperformed, fellow NAPA driver Ash Sutton was hot on the heels of title rival Tom Ingram in fourth. The two championship protagonists made contact coming out of the Complex but nothing too serious. Ingram going wide and losing ground.

The safety car was deployed on lap eight when Adam Morgan crashed out going into turn one. The Vertu Hyundai driver was looking to get a more sweeping line into the right hand corner, but pitched a wheel on the grass and it sent him spinning into the wall and out.

On the restart Ronan Pearson was out of the race, his bonnet flying up and causing damage. He became the second Toyota to retire with Dorlin already out earlier in the race.

The main flashpoint of the race came on lap 12 when Sutton tried a move on the outside Hill. But the BMW man ran wide, taking Sutton with him, and pitching him into a spin. The pair haemorrhaging places with Senna Proctor the main beneficiary.

Proctor’s fine weekend ensured he finished fourth, heralding three top ten finishes on his return to the sport, his first BTCC race since 2021.

Rowbottom secured the win, becoming only the second driver to win multiple races this season. Ingram finished second with Cammish third.

Proctor came home fourth with Sutton recovering for fifth, three NAPA cars in the top five. Chris Smiley and Aron Taylor-Smith were next with Josh Cook coming from the back of the grid to finish eighth. Tom Chilton was ninth and Dan Lloyd tenth. He’d finished seventh on the road but was given a five second penalty for a false start.

Gordon Shedden was 11th with Sam Osborne, Aiden Moffat, Mikey Doble and Daryl DeLeon rounding off the points finishes.

Sutton leads the championship by nine points from Ingram going into the next set of races at Oulton Park. Rowbottom’s win moves him into third in the standings with it all still to play for.

Ash Sutton stormed to this third win of the season in round 11 at Thruxton. He was unchallenged and comfortably secured victory, with title rival Tom Ingram second and Josh Cook securing another third place finish.

Sutton, the only multiple winner so far this season, got the best possible start off the line, surging from fourth to first by the end of the first corner. He scythed between Cook and Dan Cammish in front, before diving down the inside of Ingram at turn one. He built a lead of near two seconds and never surrendered it.

Ingram was largely unchallenged behind from Cook, with the title in mind, the Hyundai man held off Cook’s Honda for second.

Further down the field there were some scrappy moments. Jake Hill was in the wars, making contact with Adam Morgan into the final chicane – pitching the latter into a half spin. Hill then also battled Dan Rowbottom throughout as well as Cammish, with both Ford drivers finishing ahead of Hill’s WSR BMW.

Sutton, Ingram and Cook took the top three spots, but Cook was disqualified after the race for failing the ride height check in parc ferme, with everyone moving up a place.

Rowbottom took third, with Cammish and Hill battling for fourth. Senna Proctor’s fine return to the championship continued with a seventh place finish on the road, promoted to sixth, from ninth on the grid in his Hyundai. He was initially rewarded with reverse grid pole for race three but Cook’s exclusion means that now goes to James Dorlin.

James Dorlin had another fine race as the Toyota Gazoo Racing team are still getting to grips with the Corolla this season, he took seventh. Chris Smiley, Daryl DeLeon and Dan Lloyd rounded off the top ten.

Charles Rainford was next, ahead of Adam Morgan, who had finished eighth on the road but a track limits penalty sent him down to 13th before being promoted back to 12th.

The final points places were taken by Aiden Moffat, Ronan Pearson and Dexter Patterson.

Tom Ingram became the ninth different race winner from ten rounds as he cruised to victory in race one at Thruxton.

The Hyundai driver gained the lead from Ash Sutton and sailed into the distance for his 34th BTCC win. Dan Cammish secured second, but the story of race one was Josh Cook taking third in his ONE Motorsport Honda.

Having crashed heavily in qualifying, resulting in a trip to A&E for Cook, and a late night for the mechanics, Cook started 14th and surged to third. A fine reward for the team, and a good haul of points for the man who’s previously been dubbed the ‘King of Thruxton.’

The start was a hectic affair, with both Charles Rainford and Tom Chilton being pitched into spins. Further into the lap Max Hall got wide on the grass, pitching his Cupra into a spin. He collected NAPA’s Sam Osborne with both ending in the wall and the safety car deployed.

On the restart on lap eight, Cammish lunged past Mikey Doble for third at the Complex. Meanwhile coming into the final chicane, Ingram was battling Sutton for the lead. Ingram broke last on the outside, with Sutton on the edge of control. He understeered into Ingram with both going wide and cutting the chicane. Ingram was through, and never lost the lead.

Further down the order Senna Proctor, returning to the sport after a three year absence, was battling with Cook, Jake Hill and Gordon Shedden. The latter ran wide and lost the back end, spinning and collecting a large amount of turf in his radiator. He ended the race in 18th.

The later stages of the race saw Ingram unchallenged. Sutton reported a loss of power as he was lacking top speed. If there’s one thing you need around the fastest circuit in the UK, is top speed. Cook seized the opportunity and passed the beleaguered Ford driver for third place.

Ingram took the win, boosting his title chances. Cammish was second with Cook third. Sutton brought his stricken Focus home in fourth with teammate Dan Rowbottom fifth.

Jake Hill was sixth with James Dorlin securing his best finish of the season for Toyota in seventh and Adam Morgan eighth. Proctor was ninth in his return with Tom Chilton coming home tenth on the road, but a ten second penalty was applied for frequent track limits infringements.

Daryl DeLeon inherited tenth with Chris Smiley and Aron Taylor-Smith securing decent points. Dan Lloyd and Aiden Moffat coming home ahead of Chilton, who dropped to 15th.