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BTCC 2021 – Our driver picks as grid begins to fill up

Preparations are well underway for the 2021 British Touring Car Championship season, with drivers being announced throughout the off-season, with changes afoot up and down the paddock.

Laser Tools Racing

Car: Infiniti Q50

Drivers: Ash Sutton, Aiden Moffat and Carl Boardley

The one team who have their squad confirmed is Laser Tools. Drivers champion Ash Sutton remains with the team as does Aiden Moffat. Joining the pair in a third Infiniti Q50 is Carl Boardley. He joins from Team HARD where he drove a gold BMW 1 Series last season. With the team confirmed, they can focus on maintaining last season’s impressive pace.

Toyota Gazoo Racing

Car: Toyota Corolla

Drivers: TBC, TBC

Our Predictions: Rory Butcher and Dan Rowbottom

One of the more seismic changes for 2021 is that Tom Ingram has departed the Speedworks side after seven years with the team. The now works Toyota outfit are opting for two drivers with neither being confirmed. Rory Butcher has been strongly linked with the team and with Motorbase being acquired by rival team AmD last week, Butcher looks to be replacing Ingram in the Toyota. A Jack Sears Trophy contender would be good for Toyota to be battling on all fronts. Rowbottom fits the bill having raced for Ciceley in 2019. He has front wheel drive machinery experience and is a capable points scorer.

Ciceley Motorsport

Car: BMW 330i M Sport

Drivers: Adam Morgan, TBC

Our Prediction: Tom Chilton

Ciceley Motorsport are another team with changes being made for 2021. They have replaced the race winning Mercedes A Class with two BMW 3 Series cars. These have already had great success with WSR for the last two years and this represents a step up for Ciceley. Adam Morgan has already been confirmed for the new season with Tom Chilton being hotly tipped to join him. Chilton has plenty of backing, and has the pedigree to back it up with 14 race wins. His specialty would appear to be front wheel drive but he’s a strong driver who can often adapt to whatever he is driving.

Team HARD

Car: Leon Cupra

Drivers: Jack Goff, Aron Taylor-Smith, Glyn Geddie, TBC

Our Prediction: Rick Parfitt Jr

Team HARD are going for it this season, with a brand new car, the Leon Cupra, replacing their trusty old workhorse VW CC’s. Last season’s drivers Goff and Geddie are signed up with Aron Taylor-Smith returning to the sport after a three year absence. He’s won four races in the BTCC and has been racing in British GT for the last couple of seasons. Our pick for the fourth seat is Rick Parfitt Jr. He’s stated he’s keen to race in the BTCC this season and signing with Team HARD would be a real statement of intent by the team.

Motorbase/MB Motorsport

Car: Ford Focus ST

Drivers: Jake Hill, TBC, TBC, TBC

Our Predictions: Sam Osborne, Ollie Jackson and Andy Neate

As mentioned earlier, MB Motorsport/AmD have acquired Motorbase, one of the finer teams on the grid. They showed promise with the Ford Focus last season and will be keen to build on it. Jake Hill is the only confirmed driver but with one of the directors now being Pete Osborne, it’s safe to assume his son Sam will be in a Focus after driving for MB last season. They’ve stated they’re in talks with Senna Proctor and Chilton to join the team, however it would be remiss of the team to overlook Ollie Jackson considering the pace he showed in the latter half of the 2020 season. Andy Neate would likely fill the fourth car with plenty of backing behind him to help the team.

Team WSR

Car: BMW 330i M Sport

Drivers: TBC, TBC, TBC

Our Predictions: Colin Turkington, Tom Oliphant and Stephen Jelley

WSR were Manufacturer and Team champions last season, but Turkington lost out on the drivers title to Sutton. It’s almost certain he’ll return to try and take that title back, with 2020 team mate Tom Oliphant returning to the team as backup. WSR will be running a third 3 Series for 2021, and many drivers are being linked with what will be one of the most sought after seats on the grid. Our guess is Stephen Jelley, who won two of his three race wins with WSR in 2009, will join the team having raced for Team Parker for the last few seasons.

Team Dynamics

Car: Honda Civic Type R FK8

Drivers: Dan Cammish, TBC

Our Prediction: Matt Neal

Dan Cammish is one of the strongest drivers on the grid, and remains with Team Dynamics for 2021. The speculation is rife about whether team mate, BTCC legend Matt Neal, will call it a day or keep racing for another year. The veteran is 54 now, but still shows his speed. We believe Neal will give it one more season before giving the seat up.

Excelr8 Trade Price Cars

Car: Hyundai i30N

Drivers: Jack Butel, TBC, TBC, TBC

Our Predictions: Bobby Thompson, Chris Smiley and Tom Ingram

Excelr8 enjoyed a good season with the Hyundai last season with Senna Proctor and Chris Smiley behind the wheel. They have merged with Trade Price Cars for the 2021 season with a fleet of four Hyundai’s. Smiley is tipped to remain with the team, with Bobby Thompson coming over with Trade Price. Jack Butel is the only confirmed option with Tom Ingram being rumoured to join in a Ginsters liveried Hyundai.

BTC Racing

Car: Honda Civic Type R FK8

Drivers: Josh Cook, Michael Crees, TBC

Our Prediction: Senna Proctor

BTC suffered a challenging season last year, with reliability dragging them down. Cook and Crees remain, with the third seat being vacant. Senna Proctor would be a good signing for the side, with plenty of front wheel drive experience, ability to fight for positions, and has partnered Cook at Power Maxed Racing in 2018, holding his own.

Power Maxed Racing

Car: Vauxhall Astra

Drivers: Jason Plato, TBC

Our Prediction: Rob Austin

Speaking of Power Maxed, they’re hoping to be back full time this season after running several drivers over the course of the 2020 season. BTCC legend Plato is contracted to race for the side, with Rob Austin our tip to return having impressed in his one-off outing with PMR last season.

Image Credits: BTCC Media

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Celebrating disabled drivers

In any sport it’s an incredible feat to be able to compete whilst having a physical disability. Motorsport is one of those sports where the differences between a driver without a physical impairment and drivers who do, can be highlighted in some areas but can be completely unnoticeable if you weren’t aware of a driver’s disability beforehand.

To mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we decided to talk about a few drivers who are breaking down barriers in racing for those with disabilities.

Alex Zanardi

Having competed in F1 for many years, Alex was competing in the CART World Series at the Lausitzring in 2001. Exiting the pits 12 laps from the end of the race, he lost grip on cold tyres and slid into oncoming traffic, where he was hit by another car at over 200mph. He survived despite losing nearly 75% of his blood volume, but lost both his legs in the crash.

With the use of hand controls Alex went on to race again in the World Touring Car Championship, Blancpain Sprint Series, Spa 24 Hours, Daytona 24 Hours, and also made a one-off appearance in DTM in 2018 at Misano. However he made a real name for himself by competing in the Paralympics.

Alex won a handcycling gold and a relay silver in the London 2012 Paralympics (both events taking place at Brands Hatch) and another gold and silver in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympics, as well as plenty of other accolades in the Para-cycling World Championships.

Unfortunately Alex was involved in a para-cycling road race accident in June of this year, when he lost control of his handbike on a hill and hit an oncoming truck. He suffered severe facial and cranial trauma, and was placed into a medically induced coma.

We all know from the ordeals he’s had to go through that if anyone can overcome this, it’ll be Alex Zanardi. A true hero to disabled people all around the world.

Billy Monger

After great success in karting, Billy Monger was competing at Donington in British F4 in 2017. In race three he collided with a slow moving car and his legs were buried in the wreckage. He was extracted and airlifted to hospital, but unfortunately had to have his legs amputated.

But this didn’t break Billy Whizz’s spirit. With the help of hand controls, Billy returned to single seaters in the 2018 British F3 championship, scoring four podiums and two pole positions to end the season sixth in the standings.

Billy moved up to EuroFormula the following year, where he achieved the seemingly impossible in a wet Pau Grand Prix. Making a clever call to pit for wets on the formation lap, Billy rose through the field to third then held his nerve in the tricky conditions to win after the two leaders collided.

You’ll see Billy as part of Channel 4’s F1 coverage, and he’s expressed interest in joining the new Extreme E off-road electric series for next year. I certainly hope this happens as Monger is one of the most inspiring individuals you could ever know and he deserves to race.

Nathalie McGloin

McGloin is a British racing driver who is also a tetraplegic. She injured her spine in a road traffic accident as a teenager and has been competing in the Porsche Sprint Challenge against able bodied men. She’s the only disabled woman in the whole of the UK to hold a race and rally licence in the UK, and competes with radial hand controls that she pushes forward to brake and backward to accelerate, meaning she steers with one hand at all times!

Not only has she managed many podium finishes in the Porsche championship (including an outright victory at Silverstone in 2018), she’s also the President of the FIA Disability and Accessibility Commission. Definitely deserving of a place on this list.

Robert Kubica

Robert Kubica, Alfa Romeo (Florent Gooden, DPPI / Alfa Romeo Media)

Perhaps the most well known name on this list. He enjoyed huge success as the first Polish driver in F1, including his famous win with BMW Sauber in 2008. However all that changed in the lead up to the 2011 season.

After testing his new Renault F1 car, Robert entered an amateur rally event and collided with a guardrail, resulting in elbow, shoulder and leg fractures and partially severing his right forearm. He thankfully survived, but the injuries put him out of F1 for the foreseeable future.

Robert stuck to the rallying scene on his road to recovery and won the WRC-2 championship in 2013. But in 2017 he returned to F1 machinery with a Renault test, which ultimately led to a fairytale opportunity to return as a full time driver with Williams for 2019.

He scored their only point of the year at Hockenheim but wasn’t kept on for 2020. Nevertheless seeing Kubica back in F1 did feel right, and he has since took up a position as Alfa Romeo’s development driver while also competing in DTM this year, where he took a podium at Zolder.

Nic Hamilton

The first thing you’d think of is that he’s the brother of a certain seven-time F1 world champion. But the younger Hamilton has been making a name for himself for years.

Nic has had cerebal palsy since birth, resulting in physical impairments his whole life. But having initially gotten a taste for competition on video games (long before Esports was in the mainstream), he started competing in the BTCC-supporting Renault Clio Cup and then in European Touring Cars.

2019 however was when he finally got to where I feel he belonged, British Touring Cars. Seeing someone with cerebal palsy in the headline races on a terrestrial TV channel is incredibly uplifting to witness.

Frédéric Sausset

When on holiday in 2012, businessman and motorsport enthusiast Frédéric contracted a life-threatening infection from a scratch on his finger, which resulted in him becoming a quadruple amputee. However he didn’t let this prevent him from fulfilling his lifelong ambition of racing the 24 hours of Le Mans.

OAK Racing converted one of their LMP2 cars so Frédéric could drive it in the 2016 race. He used a special steering wheel which connected to a prosthetic on his right arm, and he had two thigh operated paddles built into his seat insert for the accelerator and brake.

The result was that Sausset and his teammates entered into the grueling round-the-clock race and finished it. A remarkable achievement and one that cannot even be imaginable for someone in his position, but he did it.

Caleb McDuff

Caleb McDuff (Photo courtesy of Ian McDuff)

Last but not least, Caleb McDuff is a 12-year old kart racer who is profoundly deaf. When he competes in karting, he can’t utilise his implants and so he races in total silence. Which, when you consider how reliant a lot of drivers are on the sound of their vehicle to race, is just incredible to think about.

Not only is Caleb able to compete in karting but he’s actually pretty good. Last year, he won the Super One National Karting Championship’s Honda Cadet category so he’s clearly capable of overcoming his impairments. I would very much hope he’s able to make the step up to cars in the future, whether that be single seaters or tin-tops.

Every single one of these people are so incredibly inspiring and serve as reminders that the human spirit is impenetrable. Whatever the cards you are dealt with in life, you can achieve whatever you set your mind to and we are bound by absolutely nothing. So happy International Day of Persons with Disabilities to you all!

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BTCC Brands Hatch – Ash Sutton wins 2020 BTCC title

Ash Sutton won his second British Touring Car Championship title as he finished sixth and did enough to take the title from Colin Turkington.

Rory Butcher won the final round of the 2020 championship with Tom Ingram and Jake Hill rounding off the podium in a rainy third race on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit.

The Scotsman took the lead and never lost it as he passed Aiden Moffat and Chris Smiley off the grid. Dan Cammish passed Sutton on the first lap to keep his slim title chances alive.

On lap four Stephen Jelley went off at Druids after a collision with Andy Neate, meaning both ended the season in retirement.

Cammish was driving quickly in his Dynamics Honda as he made a double move on Moffat and Ollie Jackson into Clearways. Meanwhile Turkington was passed by Ingram, who no longer could win the title so was free to race without that added pressure.

Lap 12 and Sutton was on the back of Turkington, but having lost points back at Croft for making a silly overtake, Sutton learned his lesson and was content to sit behind Turkington.

Up front Jake Hill and Josh Cook collided at Clearways, both losing positions with Cook coming off worse, falling from second to sixth. Adam Morgan, in his final race in the Mercedes A Class as Ciceley prepare to bring in a new car for 2021, was passed by Ingram. He was then tapped by Cammish as he made a clumsy move down the inside at Druids.

Hill recovered from his tap with Cook to pass Cammish into third place, while Sutton finally passed Turkington into Paddock after seven laps sat on the BMW’s gearbox.

Sutton then repeated this move as he passed Cook into Paddock for sixth place where he would finish, with Moffat passing Turkington too to compound the BMW driver’s misery.

Butcher cruised to the win in the end, with Ingram and Hill rounding off the podium. Cammish, Morgan, Sutton, Cook, Moffat, Turkington and Ollie Jackson rounded off the top ten.

Sutton took the title, adding to his 2017 triumph to become a double title winner in a hard fought campaign which went all the way to the 30th and final race of this truncated season.

It’s the first time the ToCA provided engine has won the title outright, and Sutton’s Laser Tools Racing is an independent outfit, which only makes Sutton’s victory all the more impressive.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST
2 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +1.522
3 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +7.679
4 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +9.984
5 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +10.521
6 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +12.038
7 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +14.094
8 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +16.133
9 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport +17.320
10 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +18.431
11 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +18.764
12 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +19.008
13 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +19.217
14 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +20.935
15 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +31.358
16 Jack Goff VW CC +35.780
17 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +36.679
18 Glyn Geddie VW CC +38.623
19 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +39.743
20 Nicolas Hamilton VW CC +45.302
21 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +46.119
22 Brad Philpot Vauxhall Astra +47.175
23 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +54.671
24 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +3 Laps
Retirements
RET Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 Mechanical
RET Andy Neate Ford Focus ST Damage
RET Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport Crash

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Brands Hatch – Sutton has one hand on title with win

Ash Sutton took another huge step towards winning the title with a win in race two at Brands Hatch. Tom Ingram finished second with title rivals Colin Turkington third and Dan Cammish fourth on the road. Turkington received a penalty post-race for overtaking under yellow flags.

Some drivers elected to start on wet tyres, with the track drying in sunny conditions. Sutton took the lead off the start with a selection of drivers sliding off at Paddock. Jake Hill, Ollie Jackson, and Ingram all slid off. Tom Chilton had an incredible start on the wets and moved into the lead on lap two. Andy Neate, another of the wet shod drivers, was third.

A few drivers had spins, including Jack Goff at Graham Hill bend on lap five. Ingram was fighting back from his Paddock Hill moment and was seventh, behind Turkington.

On lap nine the wet tyres were wearing quickly, and so Chilton lost the lead and fell down the order, finishing 18th and a lap down. Neate finished 21st eventually.

On lap 12 Hill suffered damage at Druids, and Tom Oliphant was next to spin at Graham Hill bend.

A lap later Turkington developed an issue on his car, with his front right tyre rubbing on the bodywork, but it didn’t seem to hinder him as he kept putting up fast times.

Sutton was far ahead and cruised to the win with all the action happening behind him as he drove to victory.

Turkington was fighting with Cammish, with both wanting to keep their title hopes alive. Ingram was in second and the title chasing pair were third and fouth.

A moment of drama on lap 23 as Paul Rivett spun on the exit of Paddock Hill, his Audi stationary in the middle of the road. All avoided him but Turkington had to swerve to avoid him and only just missed him.

A hairy moment but he recovered for third on the road, with Ingram’s title hopes now over despite a second place finish. Ash Sutton took the win and has a stronger lead over Turkington with only three drivers now in contention for the title going into the final race of the weekend.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50
2 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +4.762
3 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +9.370
4 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport +9.688
5 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +10.832
6 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +13.422
7 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +14.088
8 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +14.418
9 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +14.919
10 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +17.900
11 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +22.605
12 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +28.823
13 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +33.011
14 Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 +37.119
15 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +37.712
16 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +42.984
17 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +43.415
18 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +1 Lap
19 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +1 Lap
20 Jack Goff VW CC +1 Lap
21 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +1 Lap
22 Brad Philpot Vauxhall Astra +1 Lap
23 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +1 Lap
24 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +1 Lap
25 Nicolas Hamilton VW CC +3 Laps
Retirements
RET Glyn Geddie VW CC Mechanical
RET Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport Mechanical

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Brands Hatch – Sutton strikes first on finals day

Dan Cammish took the win in the first race of finals day at Brands Hatch. Ash Sutton took the championship lead with second and Tom Ingram rounded off the podium to keep his title hopes alive.

There were two green flag laps to warm the tyres with rain falling throughout the first race at Brands Hatch.

At the start Sutton moved up into second with Cammish up to third. The pair were fighting over second with Ingram in the lead. On lap four Cammish moved ahead of Sutton with the top three close together. Cammish did almost pass Ingram into Clearways but after a slight tap from the Honda driver, he backed off.

Sutton and Cammish were side by side on the pit straight before the Safety Car was brought out by a crash between Glyn Geddie and Sam Osborne at Druids.

After four laps we were back underway, with Cammish hot on the heels of Ingram. The Yorkshireman passing Ingram into Druids on lap 13 to take a lead he never relinquished.

Cammish was able to pull away as Sutton and Ingram fought for second. Sutton was next to pass the Toyota of Ingram on lap 22 as he hunted down Cammish for more points in the title battle.

In the last couple of laps Sutton was taking chunks of time out of Cammish’s lead, but he ran out of laps and Cammish took the win.

Sutton takes over the lead of the championship by two points from Colin Turkington, who could only finish ninth. Cammish is now 13 points behind with two races remaining with Ingram fourth and Rory Butcher’s slim title hopes now over despite a fine fourth place finish.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8
2 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +0.813
3 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +3.160
4 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +6.538
5 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +7.952
6 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +9.273
7 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +10.164
8 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +13.519
9 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport +18.283
10 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +19.339
11 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +21.167
12 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +21.621
13 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +23.221
14 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +23.649
15 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +31.348
16 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +31.760
17 Jack Goff VW CC +32.939
18 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +36.294
19 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +38.121
20 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +39.758
21 Brad Philpot Vauxhall Astra +42.563
22 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +45.018
23 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +45.798
24 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +59.266
Retirements
RET Nicolas Hamilton VW CC Mechanical
RET Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 Crash
RET Glyn Geddie VW CC Crash

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Snetterton – Jackson wins frenetic final race

Ollie Jackson won his second race of the season in the third and final race at Snetterton.

Jackson pulled off an amazing first lap move and took the win from Adam Morgan and Colin Turkington profited from Ingram and Butcher colliding on the final corner on the final lap to take third.

Morgan had an incredible start as he flew into the lead. However he wasn’t in front for long as Ollie Jackson pulled off an incredible move around the outside to take the lead. There was slight drama as Josh Cook and Dan Cammish collided, neither seemed to lose out too much. Cook’s Honda suffered significant damage to the left front but was still running.

Lap two saw Sam Osborne retire in dramatic fashion as he went off onto the grass. His Honda Civic hit a dip and his splitter dug in and ripped the front of the car off.

Jackson’s team mate Rory Butcher was trying to take second from Morgan as it all sparked into action on lap five as Sutton dove down the inside of Chris Smiley, he couldn’t make the move stick and it opened the door to Tom Ingram, who snuck up the inside to take fourth.

There was a group of ten cars all fighting close and swapping positions. Turkington profited most from this battle as he managed to get to the front of the pack and take fifth place. Smiley the loser as he was hit by Cammish and spun off.

The trio up front were all racing close and charging hard. Jackson was soaking up plenty of pressure from Morgan while Butcher hung on his coattails.

Ingram caught up to the leading pack, trying to get onto the podium to keep his slim title hopes alive. He went to pass Butcher and looked to have had it done, but Butcher couldn’t stop as he was put onto the grass, and hit Ingram.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST
2 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +0.217
3 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport +4.472
4 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +6.312
5 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +8.195
6 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +9.194
7 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +9.782
8 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +9.934
9 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +13.758
10 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +14.167
11 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +16.544
12 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +17.561
13 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +20.891
14 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +21.443
15 Glyn Geddie VW CC +28.737
16 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +29.716
17 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +30.859
18 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +34.649
19 Jack Goff VW CC +35.046
20 Jessica Hawkins Vauxhall Astra +40.032
21 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +40.322
22 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +44.761
23 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +47.177
24 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +50.883
Retirements
RET Andy Neate Ford Focus ST Mechanical
RET Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 Crash

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Snetterton – Turkington survives late safety car to retake championship lead

Colin Turkington survived a late safety car to take his second win of the day and move into the lead of the championship. Tom Ingram was second with Ash Sutton third.

Jake Hill was swamped at the start and lost places to Sutton, Butcher and Cammish on the start.

Ollie Jackson had an impressive start, making up ten places by the end of lap one to sit 11th.

While Turkington was pulling away as his tyres warmed up, the battle was between the other four title protagonists. Ingram, Butcher, Sutton and Cammish were all bumper to bumper for the majority of the race.

Turkington was pulling away, as he did in race one. Building up a three second lead. However his lead was extinguished as Jack Goff crashed on the exit of turn one and brought out the safety car with just one lap to go.

It was a one lap shootout once the safety car went in. Butcher mistimed his braking and collided with Ingram. This sent the Toyota wide and Sutton managed to sneak up the inside of Butcher. Ingram maintained second with Sutton taking third.

Turkington held on for the win as the others fought behind him. Ingram second with Sutton third and Butcher fourth. Jake Hill gazumped Cammish for fifth with a pass in the final few corners, with Josh Cook and Adam Morgan in seventh and eighth and Ollie Jackson’s remarkable drive rewarded him with ninth place. The top ten was rounded off by Chris Smiley in the Excelr8 Hyundai.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport
2 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +1.763
3 Ash Sutton Infiniti  Q50 +1.914
4 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +3.547
5 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +3.742
6 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +3.789
7 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +4.714
8 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +4.987
9 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +4.993
10 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +5.355
11 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +5.989
12 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +6.712
13 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +7.578
14 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +8.193
15 Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 +9.060
16 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +9.577
17 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +10.747
18 Glyn Geddie VW CC +10.913
19 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +11.583
20 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz  A Class +12.176
21 Jessica Hawkins Vauxhall Astra +12.588
22 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +12.861
23 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +29.398
24 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +34.317
25 Nicolas Hamilton VW CC +1 Lap
26 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +3 Laps
Retirements
RET Jack Goff VW CC Crash

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Snetterton – Turkington wins to keep title fight alive

Colin Turkington drew level at the top of the British Touring Car Championship standings with a win in the first race at Snetterton.

The Northern Irishman cruised to victory in his BMW while Tom Ingram and Jake Hill rounded off the podium after a terrific tussle between the pair.

Turkington’s team mate Tom Oliphant was in the wars at the start. A collision between him, Ash Sutton, and Ollie Jackson saw Oliphant and Jackson take to the grass. Olihpant recovered for 14th with Jackson finishing 21st.

The only threat to Turkington’s lead came when Ingram tried to dive down the inside at the hairpin before the backstraight. It didn’t work and Turkington managed to pull away.

Ingram had to contend with the Honda of Hill, who was hot on the heels of the Toyota driver.

The main title protagonists were all at the front of the grid, with Rory Butcher and Dan Cammish eager to keep their title hopes alive. They fought for fourth and fifth.

While Turkington pulled away Ingram and Hill collided on lap six. Hill dove down the inside of Ingram and tipped him into a half spin. Ingram recovered and Hill gave Ingram the place back, fearing a reprimand from the stewards.

Turkington won the race, with Ingram two and a half seconds behind in second. HIll took third with Butcher, Sutton and Cammish all close behind.

Adam Morgan finished an impressive seventh in his Mercedes A Class, with Josh Cook, Senna Proctor and Michael Crees rounding off the top ten.

There were two new drivers this weekend, with four time Clio Cup champion Paul Rivett finishing 19th. He’s deputising for the injured Bobby Thompson in the Audi. Power Maxed Racing’s latest driver was W Series racer and stunt driver Jessica Hawkins. She finished 22nd with 45kg of new driver ballast on her Astra.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport
2 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +2.570
3 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +3.949
4 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +5.135
5 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +7.125
6 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +8.916
7 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +9.415
8 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +14.668
9 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +21.105
10 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +25.165
11 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +26.205
12 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +26.968
13 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +27.199
14 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +29.603
15 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +30.274
16 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +32.531
17 Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 +33.342
18 Jack Goff VW CC +33.532
19 Paul Rivett Audi S3 Saloon +37.581
20 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +40.103
21 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +46.232
22 Jessica Hawkins Vauxhall Astra +51.869
23 Nicolas Hamilton VW CC +55.861
24 Ethan Hammerton Audi S3 Saloon +1:08.252
25 Glynn Geddie VW CC +1:21.761
26 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +1:49.522
27 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +1 Lap

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Croft – Ingram takes win from Cammish as Turkington struggles

Tom Ingram boosted his title credentials with a win in round 21 of the British Touring Car Championship at Croft. He held off Honda’s Dan Cammish as title contender Colin Turkington had another nightmare race.

Dubbed the ‘King of Croft’, Turkington’s retirement in race two was compounded with a driveshaft issue on lap one. He pitted and rejoined five laps down on the leaders. Scoring no points and falling to third in the title race.

Ingram rocketed from third on the grid past Cammish at turn one, and past Tom Chilton by the end of lap one. Stephen Jelley had a spin in his BMW 125i at turn two.

On lap three the safety car was out as Bobby Thompson’s impressive weekend ended in a horror smash as he got put onto the grass and his car dug in and rolled over multiple times. Thankfully he was unhurt.

On the restart Cammish was fighting Chilton, with both Honda Civic FK8’s struggling with brake temperature issues. The discs were glowing as they were pushing hard. Cammish finally got past him on lap 13 and set about hounding down Ingram.

Ash Sutton, who started 20th after suffering a puncture in race two, was up to sixth, with Tom Oliphant in his way. He got past him and was fighting Matt Neal for fourth.

Cammish was on the tail of Ingram coming into the final lap. Ingram did all he could to keep the Honda behind and held on to take the win. Cammish finished three tenths behind. Chilton rounded off the podium with Neal and Sutton having a drag race over the line. Neal took fourth by 17 thousandths of a second.

Ash Sutton has the championship lead by seven points from Cammish with Turkington in third as the title race hots up going into the final six races of the season at Snetterton and Brands Hatch.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla
2 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +0.278
3 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +5.001
4 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +6.453
5 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +6.472
6 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +7.129
7 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +8.099
8 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R FK8 +8.548
9 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +10.235
10 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +10.435
11 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +10.894
12 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST +11.438
13 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +13.535
14 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +16.681
15 Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 +16.825
16 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +17.677
17 Mike Bushell VW CC +18.639
18 Jack Goff VW CC +18.975
19 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +25.669
20 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +29.487
21 Nicolas Hamilton VW CC +31.497
22 Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport +1:22.945
23 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport +4 Laps
Retirements
DNF Bobby Thompson Audi S3 Saloon Crash
DNF Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 Mechanical

Image Credit: BTCC Media

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BTCC Croft – Josh Cook takes win as Neal penalised – title contenders hit trouble

Josh Cook took his second win of the weekend as Matt Neal was given a 0.7 second penalty for hitting Cook on the final lap.

Cook had led all race but Neal had more pace, and his move three corners from the end was judged to have been gaining an advantage by the stewards, and so the places were reversed.

Meanwhile the two title contenders had a race to forget. Colin Turkington locked up at the start going into turn one and put it in the wall. Ash Sutton had a golden chance to capitalize but made a rash move on Jake Hill on lap seven and suffered a puncture, finishing 20th and out the points.

Hill was holding Sutton off, and the Infiniti driver dove down the inside at the final hairpin. Sutton made contact and punctured his tyre, but he’d gone past the pits before realising his tyre had punctured.

With the two title protagonists stricken, Tom Ingram and Dan Cammish both picked up good points to close the gap.

Towards the end of the race Neal had bags of pace. He passed Hill into second and was soon on the back of Cook. He closed the three second gap in a matter of laps and by the end of lap 14 he was on the back of his fellow Honda Civic driver.

On lap 16, Cook was holding Neal off, with an extra 60kg of ballast on his car, but Neal dove down the inside into the final section of the lap. He tapped Cook on the inside and nearly tipped him into a spin. He passed Cook and finished first on the road but the stewards swapped the positions.

Pos Driver Car Interval
1 Josh Cook Honda CIvic Type R FK8
2 Matt Neal Honda Civic Type R FK8 +0.700*
3 Jake Hill Honda Civic Type R FK2 +1.164
4 Tom Ingram Toyota Corolla +1.616
5 Dan Cammish Honda Civic Type R FK8 +5.202
6 Tom Chilton Honda Civic Type R FK8 +8.693
7 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport +8.875
8 Bobby Thompson Audi S3 Saloon +9.489
9 Senna Proctor Hyundai i30N +14.573
10 Stephen Jelley BMW 125i M Sport +15.473
11 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 +17.396
12 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N +19.052
13 Adam Morgan Mercedes Benz A Class +22.835
14 Sam Osborne Honda Civic Type R FK2 +22.976
15 Mike Bushell VW CC +23.269
16 Andy Neate Ford Focus ST +27.980
17 Jack Butel Mercedes Benz A Class +28.900
18 Jack Goff VW CC +31.145
19 Rory Butcher Ford Focus ST +46.635
20 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 +1 Lap
21 Michael Crees Honda Civic Type R FK8 +4 Laps
Retirements
DNF Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST Crash
DNF Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport Crash
DNS Carl Boardley BMW 125i M Sport
DNS Nicolas Hamilton VW CC

*Matt Neal received a 0.7 second penalty for causing a collision.

Image Credit: BTCC Media