Ash Sutton charges to BTCC title glory at Silverstone

Ash Sutton made Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship history at Silverstone this past weekend (September 26-27) after securing an unassailable lead in the standings, securing him a record-breaking fifth Drivers’ title.

On what proved to be a landmark visit to the Home of British Motor Racing, the NAPA Racing UK re-wrote the history books as he broke clear of four-time title winners Colin Turkington and Andy Rouse to become the very first five-time champion.

Sutton wasn’t the only one that was celebrating at the penultimate event of the season either as along with himself, Aiden Moffat and Tom Ingram each ended up charging to victory around the 1.64-mile National layout.

Arriving at Silverstone with a commanding 115-point lead, Sutton put himself within touching distance of the crown in race one, before wrapping things up in style by scoring his ninth win of the year in race two.

While he will be officially crowned champion at the Brands Hatch season finale next month, the 32-year-old has incredibly become the first driver since Alain Menu in 1997 to wrap up the title prior to the final round.

LKQ Euro Car Parts with Power Maxed Racing proved to be the team to beat during Saturday’s Qualifying Race as Mikey Doble snared victory ahead of team-mate Moffat in a frenetic 18-lap encounter.

Doble essentially dominated the contest from lights-to-flag to secure pole position for Sunday’s opener while Moffat produced a number of eye-catching moves to surge up to second ahead of Tom Chilton and Daryl De Leon.

Moffat became the 11th different driver to triumph this season as he triumphed in race one. Out-dragging Doble as the lights went out, the Scotsman was wheel-perfect throughout to record a famous 1-2 as Doble and Tom Chilton completed the podium.

Race two would be where Sutton’s crowning moment came as he powered to victory to secure an unassailable lead in the standings. Starting on the sixth row of the grid, the Ford Focus Titanium driver produced an overtaking masterclass to march to the front of the field in just nine laps.

The weekend’s third and final contest - held in wet conditions - then saw outgoing champion Tom Ingram remind everyone of what he’s capable of as he splashed his way to a deserved third win of the year ahead of Sutton and Moffat.

In addition to Sutton wrapping up the Drivers’ Championship, NAPA Racing UK also put themselves out of touch in the Teams’ Championship - ensuring they retain the crown for a fifth successive season.

Alliance Racing/Ford have also wrapped up the Manufacturers/Constructors Championship with a round to spare. The final category that is decided is the Jack Sears Trophy, which this year has gone the way of Steel Seal with Power Maxed Racing’s Dexter Patterson.

Two titles that are set to go down to the wire are the Independent Drivers’ Championship and Independent Teams’ Championship. As it stands, Mikey Doble and LKQ Euro Car Parts with Power Maxed Racing sit in the pound in those respective categories.

The 2026 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season concludes in less than two weeks’ time around the Brands Hatch GP circuit on October 10-11.