Category: BTCC

Ash Sutton put his race one woes in the rear view mirror with a confident win in race three at Croft. The championship protagonist secured the win with rival Tom Ingram following him home in second and Senna Proctor completed the podium despite starting 18th.

In typical race three fashion, chaos ensued in the opening laps. Ingram made a good start, taking an outside line into turn one. Moffat defended, Ingram went wide and into a spin coming out of turn two. He powerslides and catches it with style.

Sutton surged through from fifth, passing Ingram for third and Rainford for second.

The Safety Car was deployed on lap three when, coming into the Complex, Dan Cammish was pushed wide onto the grass. The Yorkshire was a passenger as he skittled into the pack, taking out Chris Smiley and Daryl DeLeon. Senna Proctor the benefactor from the incident, going from 14th to sixth.

After a four lap break, the Safety Car pulled in and the race resumed. Ingram managed to get a run on Sutton on the back straight and took second. However at the final hairpin more chaos ensued. Sutton benefited, sneaking down the inside and taking the lead.

There was more strife at the hairpin on lap nine when Charles Rainford was spun around, sliding down the order.

Proctor, up from 18th on the grid, was the faster Hyundai, and defied all odds by passing team mate Ingram. A brave move with Sutton running away at the front. Ingram had been struggling to pass Aiden Moffat in second place, but Proctor had a go, and after some contact, Proctor was up into second with Ingram following behind.

On lap 13, Ingram made it back past Proctor, who didn’t put up a fight to get his teammate through.

Sutton strolled to the win, his sixth at Croft, and the fifth of the season, after a horrendous race one, he turned around his weekend to consolidate his place in the title fight.

Ingram finished second, and suffered minimal damage to his championship lead. Proctor finished third, his second podium of the day despite intense pressure from Gordon Shedden who finished fourth.

Adam Morgan was fifth with Moffat sixth. Sam Osborne drove brilliantly for seventh place with Tom Chilton, Aron Taylor-Smith and Mikey Doble rounding off the top ten.

Dexter Patterson was 11th with Max Buxton, making his series debut, finished 12th. Rainford, Nick Halstead, and Dan Rowbottom were the last of the runners, all picking up points finishes.

Ingram still leads the championship, his lead now eight points from Sutton, who in turn is 70 points clear of Dan Rowbottom in third.

Dan Rowbottom took his third win of the season with victory in race two at Croft. He took the lead on lap three and cruised to the win.

Ash Sutton surged through the grid, putting his race one puncture heartbreak behind him to finish fifth in race two and cut into Ingram’s title lead, albeit only slightly.

The top three in race one, Tom Ingram, Dan Cammish, and Senna Proctor were three of four drivers on the slower medium tyre – Nicholas Hamilton the other. Naturally these would be slower than the rest of the grid on the soft tyre.

Ingram led off the line, Rowbottom moved into third by the end of lap one. Sutton moved from 20th to 14th in a lap.

While Cammish and Proctor slid down the grid, Ingram was holding his own, surrendering the lead to Rowbottom on lap three going into the Complex. Sutton was in the top ten by now, showing his prowess as a four time champion.

The Ford driver continued his march up the grid, and Ingram’s slow descent down the order met when Sutton passed Ingram on lap eight. The Hyundai man didn’t make it difficult, with points finishes more important than fighting.

Out front, Rowbottom was controlling the race, with Tom Chilton and Daryl DeLeon fighting for second. Chilton put his 20 plus years of experience to good use, holding off the BMW youngster.

Proctor was hanging on to 15th, with Dan Lloyd and James Dorlin scrapping behind him to take that point away from him. While Senna was doing an excellent job, he was given a ten second time penalty for repeated track limits violations.

Rowbottom took the win, moving up to third in the championship standings, Chilton and DeLeon secured podium finishes. Adam Morgan secured fourth with Sutton’s fantastic race ending in fifth, reducing Ingram’s championship lead to 11 points.

Charles Rainford and Gordon Shedden were sixth and seventh respectively while Ingram consolidated his race with eighth place. Aiden Moffat was ninth while Cammish grabbed tenth, a solid effort on the medium tyre.

Dexter Patterson, Sam Osborne, Chris Smiley and Mikey Doble secured points finishes, and while Proctor finished 15th on the road, his penalty dropped him to 19th, Lloyd secured the final points finish for 15th.

Tom Ingram secured a lights to flag win in race one at Croft, holding off Ford’s Dan Cammish with Senna Proctor grabbing an excellent podium from eighth on the grid – making it a double Hyundai top three.

In what could be a huge moment in the championship, Ingram’s championship rival Ash Sutton suffered a puncture midway through the race, losing a points finish and falling behind in the standings.

Ingram led off the line, moving across to stay ahead of the fast-starting Cammish. The star of lap one however was Senna Proctor. The Hyundai driver started eighth on the grid, and made up five places to be third, and best of the rest by the end of the opening lap.

Mikey Doble found himself in strife on lap three, taking too much speed out of the turn three chicane. The back end spun round and the Vauxhall driver spun and clipped the wall – thankfully able to get going again.

Throughout the race Ingram and Cammish were swapping fastest laps, as the pair pulled out a lead on the chasing pack. Ingram was getting better of the Ford behind, pulling out a 2.3 second lead.

It was to all come to nothing however, when the Safety Car was deployed on lap ten. Chris Smiley and Gordon Shedden were battling lower down the order. It was a drag race down to turn one, with Smiley ahead. He went wide at turn one, and his left rear clipped the front of Shedden’s Toyota – sending him into the gravel trap, and out of the race.

After a three lap break from the action, the Safety Car pulled into the pits and the race back underway. In what could be a pivotal moment for the championship, Ash Sutton, who’d made good progress from 11th on the grid to sixth, pulled into the pits with a flat tyre. Possibly caused from delamination from going over the kerb.

The only saving grace for Sutton, is he was on the harder medium tyre, and the shackles will be off for race two.

Ingram managed the race well and held off Cammish for the win, and with it comes a 13 point lead in the championship. Proctor took third for his first podium since his return to the grid.

Dan Rowbottom was fourth, holding off Tom Chilton’s Hyundai. Daryl DeLeon was sixth with Aron Taylor-Smith finishing seventh. Charles Rainford, Dan Lloyd and Adam Morgan rounding off the top ten. Morgan the highest placed medium tyre finisher.

Shedden finished 11th after contact with Smiley, Dexter Patterson finished 12th with Aiden Moffat and Sam Osborne close behind. Doble recovered from his excursion off the track with 15th and one point.

Sutton finished 20th after his tyre trouble, and was delayed out of the pits with a power steering issue.

Gordon Shedden rolled back the years and proved he still has the quality which made him a triple champion, by taking a lights to flag win in race three at Oulton Park.

He had to hold off a resurgent Jake Hill, as well as the NAPA Ford duo of Ash Sutton and Dan Rowbottom, to take his first win since Croft in 2022.

It was a wet to dry race, with every car starting on wets. However the dry lines were soon appearing in a race affected by two safety car periods, and a lot of attrition.

Shedden got away from the line well, with Proctor, who started second, swallowed up by Josh Cook, Jake Hill and Dan Rowbottom. The trio squabbling for second allowing Shedden to get away in his Toyota.

On lap two Cook was out of the battle for second as he locked up going into Lodge corner, entering the gravel trap. He soon retired with an issue with his Honda.

The first of two safety car periods came when Max Hall went off at Lodge and beached his Cupra Leon in the gravel. The stewards deeming it to be parked in a dangerous place.

The restart came on lap ten, but only lasted a lap as Tom Chilton and Mikey Doble came together at Hislops. The latter parking his car in the barrier and the second safety car period began. Both cars retiring.

On lap 14 came the restart, with Hill hounding down Shedden. However on lap 17 Hill went wide into Cascades, letting through a host of cars, and his battle for the win over.

Shedden held firm to take his 53rd BTCC win, and show he still has the ability to fight at the front. A definite highlight of Toyota’s season so far.

Sutton came second to strengthen his championship lead, with Rowbottom third. Title protagonist Tom Ingram came home fourth with Senna Proctor fifth. Dan Cammish and Hill were sixth and seventh with James Dorlin eighth. Charles Rainford came from the very back of the grid to finish ninth, with Sam Osborne tenth.

Aiden Moffat was 11th with Dexter Patterson, who gambled on pitting for soft tyres, finished 12th. Finn Leslie finished 13th with points on his first race weekend at just 17 years old. Dan Lloyd and Daryl DeLeon rounded off the points, with no fewer than seven retirements and two drivers (Aron Taylor-Smith and Nick Halstead), failing to make the start.

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.

Mikey Doble took his first BTCC race win in round nine at Snetterton, holding off a faster Ash Sutton for six laps to bring home the win.

The Power Maxed Racing team almost never made the grid this season, so for Doble to take a win, is testament to the work done by the team. He becomes the eighth race winner this season from nine rounds.

It was a lights to flag win for Doble, who started from pole on the soft tyres, while the others around him were on the slower hard tyre.

There was pre-race drama as Chris Smiley was due to line up second on the grid, but a crank shaft change meant he was unable to take his place on the grid. He finally made his way onto the circuit, albeit three laps down.

Doble led off the line, the gap vacated by Smiley meant the Vauxhall man had the advantage. Ash Sutton made an incredible start, jumping from tenth to fourth. The Safety Car was called when Stephen Jelley was pushed off into the wall. His Honda Civic going no further. Daryl DeLeon nudged Jelley into a spin and into the path of Ingram, who was an innocent party as he hit Jelley off.

On the restart, Dan Lloyd, on the hards, was doing his best to hold off Josh Cook and Ash Sutton, but the pair made it past. Sutton made his way past Cook and went on the hunt for Doble, 2.2 seconds up the road.

Within four laps the gap was eliminated, with Sutton on the back of Doble. The Vauxhall man lost a win last season when he defended against Jake Hill at Oulton Park. Hill made his way past on the final lap, so Doble was keen for history not to repeat itself.

He held off the Ford, and was given a reprieve from defending when Sutton locked up. He went wide and lost half a second. This gave Doble the space he needed to bring the car home and take his first win of his BTCC career. Sutton settled for second, extending his championship lead over Tom Ingram to 15 in the process. Cook finished third.

Ingram battled from the back of the grid to finish fourth, making up 19 places in an incredible drive. NAPA duo Sam Osborne and Dan Cammish took fifth and sixth. WSR pair Charles Rainford and Jake Hill were next up, with Ronan Pearson and Aiden Moffat rounding off the top ten.

Aron Taylor-Smith, Gordon Shedden, Dexter Patterson, Max Hall and Adam Morgan rounded off the points. Dan Lloyd finished 16th in the end, his rearguard defending only lasting so long before dropping down the order.

Sutton takes a 15 point lead into the next set of rounds at Thruxton, with Ingram close on his tail and Hill in third.