Author: Chris Ashby

The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship delivered a blockbuster spectacle at Thruxton this past weekend (June 8/9) which culminated in Jake Hill and Ashley Sutton enjoying a share of the spoils. 

Making its only visit of the season to the home of the British Automobile Racing Club, the UK’s premier motorsport series was greeted in Hampshire by cool conditions and packed spectator bankings – all of whom witnessed a blockbuster day of tin top thrills. 

Qualifying on Saturday afternoon saw Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS driver Tom Ingram walk away with the bragging rights as he produced a superlative lap to clinch a second pole position of the season in his Hyundai i30 N. 

On a weekend that coincided with centenary celebrations for the manufacturer-backed outfit, Ingram struck late to snatch top spot while Dan Cammish, Hill, Dan Rowbottom and Sutton trailed behind by a few tenths of a second.

Hill became the first treble winner of the season in the first of Sunday’s three races as his lightening start propelled him onto what proved to be a comfortable lights-to-flag victory ahead of Cammish and Sutton. 

Race two then saw the Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport driver make it back-to-back triumphs as he inherited the victory following a post-race penalty for on-the-road winner Ingram.

Ingram had initially powered his Hyundai to the chequered flag however he was to be demoted back to third after gaining an unfair advantage in an incident involving Cammish at the final chicane.

Sutton was the first to hound Hill for the lead but damage to his Ford would see him drop back, which in-turn left the door open for Ingram to seize the moment and claim what he thought would be a third win of the year. 

Unfortunately, his part in an incident which saw him straight-line the chicane led to him being pushed back behind Hill and Cammish in the final result.

Reigning champion Sutton would come to the fore in the day’s final contest as he opened his win account for the year in style, bouncing back from a sluggish start to comfortably claim victory. 

Starting fourth, the four-time champion bogged down off the line, which dropped him back a few places, but once he was up and running there was no stopping him. Rising through the order with relative ease, the front-wheel-drive ace soon dispatched Josh Cook and Cammish before overhauling Adam Morgan for the  win. 

Following the conclusion of Rounds 10, 11 & 12, Sutton tops the BTCC Drivers’ Championship – five points ahead of Hill – whilst Ford head the Manufacturers-Constructors Championship.

In the Teams’ Championship, NAPA Racing UK lead the standings after three events whilst Aron Taylor-Smith and Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing sit out front in both the Independent Drivers’ and Independent Teams’ Championship’s respectively. 

The Jack Sears Trophy – which is open to drivers who hadn’t scored an outright podium in the series prior to the start of the season – continues to be led by Mikey Doble.

To view the full classification of results from all sessions at Thruxton, CLICK HERE.

The 2024 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship reaches the halfway mark of the 2024 season in less than two weeks’ time at Oulton Park on June 22/23.

Jake Hill and Rob Huff shared the Snetterton spoils in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship this past weekend (May 25/26) as ever-changing weather conditions played their part in delivering an action-packed third meeting of the season.

Hot on the heels of blockbuster events at Donington Park and Brands Hatch, the country’s premier motorsport series served up three hard-fought contests around the 300 layout – which further shook up the championship order in the process. 

Qualifying on Saturday afternoon proved to be an edge-of-the-seat affair as Hill powered his Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport BMW to a well-deserved pole position in the final moments of the session.

Having shown his hand in greasy conditions earlier in the day, Hill produced a superlative last-gasp lap to claim top spot ahead of reigning champion Ash Sutton, who was as equally impressive given he had just one second of hybrid deployment available to him.

Behind the top two, Adam Morgan netted third ahead of Dan Cammish and the returning Bobby Thompson, who was making his debut with West Surrey Racing after putting together a deal that will see him drive for the team for the remainder of the season.

Sunday’s opening contest proved to be a masterclass from Hill as he claimed a comfortable lights-to-flag victory. Opting to run the soft tyre on his rear-wheel-drive machine, Hill blasted away from pole position and was ultimately never challenged on his way to a first win of the year.

As Hill scampered clear, stablemate Thompson continued his dream debut with the team by progressing up to second while Sutton completed the podium in third, which in-turn saw him equal the record of scoring seven consecutive top three finishes. 

If Hill’s victory in race one was impressive, the way he went about triumphing in race two will be remembered for some time as he obliterated the field in a frenetic wet-dry-wet race.

A huge storm had hit the circuit prior to lights out which led to a lengthy delay as circuit officials shifted large areas of standing water. With the sun beaming down, many drivers opted to switch to slick tyres however Hill remained on wets, which proved to be an inspired decision.

Hill’s chances of victory had looked almost impossible though as he was hit with a ten-second penalty for jumping the start. He immediately began to build a lead out front though and when the rain returned, he only got stronger and triumphed by more than 15 seconds ahead of Dan Cammish and Josh Cook.

The final word of the weekend went the way of home hero Huff who led home a first-ever Toyota 1-2-3 to claim his first win in the BTCC in 20 years. 

Hill originally had looked like he would score a historic hat-trick of wins as his gamble to run on wet tyres powered him into an early lead however as the track continued to dry, the slick-shod cars closed in.

Huff, Cook and Aiden Moffat led the charge for the BMW driver and all found a way past just after mid-distance. Once they were out front, there was no stopping them as Huff recorded a famous third career win in the series.

Leaving Snetterton, Sutton holds a ten-point lead over Colin Turkington at the top of the BTCC Drivers’ Championship whilst Ford head the Manufacturers-Constructors Championship.

In the Teams’ Championship, NAPA Racing UK lead the standings after three events whilst Aron Taylor-Smith and Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing sit out front in both the Independent Drivers’ and Independent Teams’ Championship’s respectively. 

The Jack Sears Trophy – which is open to drivers who hadn’t scored an outright podium in the series prior to the start of the season – continues to be led by Mikey Doble.

On the TOCA support championship, Dan Zelos continued his march towards what could be a third Vertu MINI CHALLENGE JCW title as he claimed three wins from four races – one of which came in his 100th start in the series.

Zelos looked unbeatable around the longest circuit on the calendar however his team-mate Max Hall managed to overhaul on him the finale to clinch a third win of the season.

Alex Ninovic was one of the leading lights in the ROKiT F4 British Championship certified by FIA as he claimed two wins, with Yuanpu Cui also clinching a breakthrough win.

The Porsche Sprint Challenge Great Britain began its campaign with Seb Hopkins and Max Coates sharing the spoils, with Luke Hilton and Chris Lulham doing the same in the Hagerty Radical Cup UK.

To view the full classification of results from all sessions at Snetterton, CLICK HERE.

The fastest track in the UK, Thruxton Circuit, provides the next stop on the calendar with Rounds 10, 11 & 12 taking place on June 8/9. Advance tickets for the event are currently available to purchase from the Thruxton website.

The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship continued its action-packed start to the 2024 season at Brands Hatch this past weekend (May 11/12) as Colin Turkington and Ronan Pearson blasted their way to victory in front of a bumper trackside crowd.

Two weeks on from a spectacular season-opener at Donington Park, the UK’s premier motorsport series took centre stage at the world-famous Kent venue for what turned out to be three breathtaking contests around the short yet challenging Indy circuit.

Qualifying proved to be a frenetic affair on Saturday as the varying levels of hybrid deployment for the front-runners played its part in mixing up the order. At the front however there was no stopping BMW as Colin Turkington and Adam Morgan clinched a Team BMW 1-2.

Four-time champion Turkington comfortably progressed through the first two segments of the session before then blitzing the opposition to snare pole ahead of Morgan, Dan Cammish, reigning champion Ash Sutton and Josh Cook.

Turkington continued his rich vein of form on Sunday as he converted his front row start into a commanding lights-to-flag victory in race one. Opting to run the soft tyre, the Northern Irishman quickly established a lead out front and from there he was never challenged.

Behind him an almighty battle for second place played out with Cook and Sutton captivating those in attendance as they traded paint across a number of laps. In the end it would be Cook that would prevail ahead of the Ford man.

Race two followed a similar theme to that of earlier in the day as Turkington once again romped to victory, albeit this time he had to contend with a brief safety car period so that the stricken BMW of Jake Hill could be recovered at Druids.

Wheel-perfect from the get-go, the multiple title winner was again unchallenged as Sutton battled Ingram for runners-up laurels. Sutton had defended resolutely for much of the race before a late lunge at Paddock Hill Bend saw Ingram finally find a way past.

The final encounter saw Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS’ Pearson then take a fantastic maiden win ahead of team-mate Tom Chilton and Sutton, who extended his podium streak to six successive races.

Pearson made a sluggish start from pole position which allowed Aron Taylor-Smith to blast into the lead however it was short-lived as Pearson regained the position at Clearways at the end of the first lap.

With a clear road ahead of him, the Hyundai driver set off to comfortably triumph while Chilton muscled his way past Taylor-Smith – which in-turn opened the door for Sutton – to complete the rostrum.

Leaving Brands Hatch, Sutton holds a two-point lead over Turkington at the summit of the BTCC Drivers’ Championship whilst BMW top the Manufacturers-Constructors Championship.

In the Teams’ Championship, NAPA Racing UK head the standings after two events whilst Aron Taylor-Smith and Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing have established themselves as the early front runners in the Independent Drivers’ and Independent Teams’ Championship’s respectively.

The Jack Sears Trophy – which is open to drivers who hadn’t scored an outright podium in the series prior to the start of the season – is led by Power Maxed Racing’s Mikey Doble.

To view the full classification of results from all BTCC sessions at Brands Hatch, CLICK HERE.

Snetterton provides the next stop on the calendar for the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship; with Rounds 7, 8 & 9 taking place on May 25/26.