INSIDE BTCC - 2020 Season Review

2020 SEASON REVIEW Page 1

Page 2

CONTENTS PAGE 4:

PAGE 68:

WELCOME NOTE

SILVERSTONE

PAGE 6:

PAGE 78:

ENTRY LIST

CROFT

PAGE 8:

PAGE 88:

PRE-SEASON

SNETTERTON

PAGE 18:

PAGE 98:

DONINGTON PARK

BRANDS HATCH INDY

PAGE 28:

PAGE 108:

BRANDS HATCH GP

ASH SUTTON: 2020 BTCC CHAMPION

PAGE 38:

PAGE 114:

OULTON PARK

TOP TEN DRIVERS

PAGE 48:

PAGE 126:

KNOCKHILL

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

PAGE 58:

PAGE 132:

THRUXTON

SUPPORT RACE ROUND UP

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WELCOME BACK TO INSIDE BTCC! RELAUNCHING FOR A NEW ERA

It was back in 2011 that Inside BTCC was first launched as an eMagazine to provide fans of the British Touring Car Championship with an alternative way in which to follow Britain’s premier racing series.

Over the course of the following pages, we’ll re-tell the story of a season that was unlike any other, with the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in a short, sharp campaign featuring nine rounds in a compressed three and half month period.

The original eMagazine would run for 27 editions before a change in circumstances for one of the two man team resulted in a change of approach.

There might have been three fewer races than usual but there was still action-aplenty and a championship battle that would twist and turn from the moment the lights first went out at Donington Park until the final chequered flag flew at Brands Hatch in November.

After a short spell as a news website, Inside BTCC became the statistical resource that it is today - with detailed information about the current NGTC era, and a look at the long list of drivers to have tasted victory in the series.

However, there has always been a desire to try and bring the eMagazine back in some form and the end result is this - the Inside BTCC 2020 season review.

We’re treating this as a 'toe in the water' ahead of the 2021 season and if things go to plan, we’ll hopefully be back on a regular basis once the new campaign rolls around.

So without further ado, the story of how the 2020 title was won…

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FULL SEASON ENTRY LIST COLIN TURKINGTON

TEAM BMW

BMW 330I M SPORT

TOM CHILTON

BTC RACING

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

SAM OSBORNE

MB MOTORSPORT ACCELERATED BY BLUE SQUARE

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

RORY BUTCHER

MOTORBASE PERFORMANCE

FORD FOCUS ST

STEPHEN JELLEY

TEAM PARKER RACING

BMW 125I M SPORT

TOM OLIPHANT

TEAM BMW

BMW 330I M SPORT

AIDEN MOFFAT

LASER TOOLS RACING

INFINITI Q50

SENNA PROCTOR

EXCELR8 MOTORSPORT

HYUNDAI I30 N

BOBBY THOMPSON

GKR TRADEPRICECARS.COM

AUDI S3

CHRIS SMILEY

EXCELR8 MOTORSPORT

HYUNDAI I30 N

JAKE HILL

MB MOTORSPORT ACCELERATED BY BLUE SQUARE

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

MATT NEAL

HALFORDS YUASA RACING

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

DAN CAMMISH

HALFORDS YUASA RACING

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

NICOLAS HAMILTON

ROKIT RACING WITH TEAM HARD

VOLKSWAGEN CC

JACK GOFF

RCIB INSURANCE WITH FOX TRANSPORT

VOLKSWAGEN CC

JACK BUTEL

CARLUBE TRIPLE R RACING WITH MAC TOOLS

MERCEDES A CLASS

ADAM MORGAN

CARLUBE TRIPLE R RACING WITH MAC TOOLS

MERCEDES A CLASS

OLLIE BROWN

RCIB INSURANCE WITH FOX TRANSPORT

VOLKSWAGEN CC

CARL BOARDLEY

HUB FINANCIAL SERVICES WITH TEAM HARD

BMW 125I M SPORT

ANDY NEATE

MOTORBASE PERFORMANCE

FORD FOCUS ST

OLLIE JACKSON

MOTORBASE PERFORMANCE

FORD FOCUS ST

JOSH COOK

BTC RACING

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

TOM INGRAM

TOYOTA GAZOO RACING UK WITH GINSTERS

TOYOTA COROLLA

ASH SUTTON

LASER TOOLS RACING

INFINITI Q50

JAMES GORNALL

GKR TRADEPRICECARS.COM

AUDI S3

MICHAEL CREES

THE CLEVER BAGGERS WITH BTC RACING

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R

Revised entry post COVID-19 changes Page 6

LATE / SUBSTITUTE ENTRIES MIKE BUSHELL

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

TOM ONSLOW-COLE

RCIB INSURANCE WITH FOX TRANSPORT

VOLKSWAGEN CC

ROB AUSTIN

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

JADE EDWARDS

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

MIKE BUSHELL

RCIB INSURANCE WITH FOX TRANSPORT

VOLKSWAGEN CC

JAC CONSTABLE

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

PAUL RIVETT

GKR TRADEPRICECARS.COM

AUDI S3

ETHAN HAMMERTON

GKR TRADEPRICECARS.COM

AUDI S3

JESS HAWKINS

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

GLYNN GEDDIE

RCIB INSURANCE WITH FOX TRANSPORT

VOLKSWAGEN CC

BRADLEY PHILPOTT

POWER MAXED CAR CARE RACING

VAUXHALL ASTRA

Power Maxed Car Care Racing would be given permission to run various different drivers in a single car across the season having altered its initial plans for the campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic Driver changes elsewhere were as a result of either budget issues, or driver injury that prevented full season entries from continuing

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PRE-SEASON THE LONGEST OF WINTER BREAKS Page 8

If there was ever a weekend to showcase how dramatic the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season can be, then the 2019 season finale was that weekend.

down the grid, the main players right at the sharp end would be largely unchanged.

Colin Turkington’s fourth title had been won on the back of an impressive season at the wheel of West Surrey Racing’s BMW 330i M Sport, with the the Northern Irishman having seen off the challenge of team-mate Andrew Jordan and Team Dynamics’ Dan Cammish to join Andy Rouse as a four-time champion.

Turkington would once again return to defend his title with WSR in what looked set to be an expanded three-car Team BMW line-up after the departure of Jordan’s long-time backer Pirtek from the series.

It certainly hadn’t been easy however, with Cammish set to steal the title from under his nose until his dramatic brake failure with less than two laps of the Brands Hatch GP circuit left.

That had called into question whether or not the 2013 title winner would be part of the grid before a deal was agreed that would see him retain his place alongside Turkington and Tom Oliphant - the latter entering into the second season of his multi-year deal with the team keen to try and build on a solid 2019 season that had seen him secure his first podium finishes in the series.

That pitched his Honda Civic Type R off into the barriers and left Turkington as the champion, with the top three ultimately ending the year split by just two points.

Over at Team Dynamics, Cammish was also back for another season, having agreed a new contract to remain with the Honda team before the 2019 season had even drawn to a close.

The dust had barely settled on that weekend before focus started to turn towards the 2020 season - one that promised to take all of the drama that had been seen the year before, and then raise it to another level….

The former Porsche Carrera Cup champion had very much become the defacto team leader in only his second year of touring car racing and would go into 2020 as the team leader alongside the experienced figure of Matt Neal - who entered a 30th successive season racing in the series.

That was down in no small part to the fact that, despite various changes in personnel up and

Page 9

Talk over the winter had been about a potential expansion to run three cars when former champion Gordon Shedden became available after Audi’s departure from the World Touring Car Cup.

With former SEAT driver Darren Turner signed up as development driver, the Corolla would debut in the traditional summer test at Snetterton, and would be a fixture in the Speedworks garage across the season.

The team would seriously investigate the possibility of acquiring a TBL in order to run a third car, but it would ultimately be a move that didn’t come to fruition.

For the other two manufacturer entries however, things were very much different for 2020.

Shedden would however return to Dynamics during the winter period to help with testing after Neal was sidelined by an accident whilst mountain biking.

Having taken four wins during the debut season for the new Toyota Corolla, Speedworks would again stick with a single car entry for Tom Ingram despite also being at the centre of rumours about possible expansion over the winter.

That didn’t mean a second Corolla wouldn’t appear on track in 2020, with the team securing the contract to aid Cosworth with development of the new hybrid system that the series plans to introduce in time for 2022.

Having taken the final win of 2019, Jason Plato was optimistic about being able to push closer towards the 100 win mark as Power Maxed Racing returned with the Vauxhall Astra, but there would be a new name alongside in the sister car.

Rob Collard’s departure from the series in order to race in British GT came after Mat Jackson was signed to make his return to the series, having been sidelined since his muchdiscussed departure from Motorbase on the eve of 2018.

It provided PMR with a potent driver line-up that looked set to provide the team with its best chance yet of launching a bid for championship honours, with hopes high of being in the mix for silverware.

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For Subaru however, there would be no 2020 story after the end of the four-year deal that was in place with Team BMR to run the Levorg in the series.

The estate car had secured the title with Ash Sutton in 2017, but the 2019 season would be particularly tough - with just a single win and fourth place in the constructors championship, ahead only of the single-car Toyota squad.

Instead, BMR would enter into a new partnership with Laser Tools Racing that would see the team expand to two cars, with BMR Engineering playing a big part in the creation of two new-build Infiniti Q50s that would be driven by Sutton and Aiden Moffat.

Moffat had taken the older Infiniti, originally built back in 2015, to a podium finish at Silverstone in 2019 after the team elected to switch to the car mid-season, but it was clear that the car would require extensive work in order to be a front-running contender - hence the decision being taken to go with new builds despite there being no manufacturer backing, and with the car no longer on sale in the UK.

Amongst the Independent entries, Shaun Hollamby’s AmD Tuning outfit had emerged as the team to beat in 2019 after the decision to swap the ageing MG6 for a pair of ex-Eurotech Honda Civics - with Rory Butcher having secured the Indy title on the final weekend of the year.

The announcement that Butcher was to leave over the winter came as a surprise and it would be the first of a number of changes for the Honda squad, as Hollamby teamed up with Mark Blundell - now retired from driving after his tough 2019 season - to create MB Motorsport.

Jake Hill switched over from Trade Price Cars Racing to lead the team’s assault and would quickly be marked down as one to watch, whilst Sam Osborne was a somewhat surprising choice to take the second seat after switching from EXCELR8 Motorsport.

Osborne’s old squad had used the ex-AmD MGs for its debut season in 2019 but for 2020, took on the challenge of building an all-new model, with the decision to bring the Hyundai name into the series for the first time.

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The i30 N Fastback would be the car of choice and the team showed it meant business when Chris Smiley and Senna Proctor were announced as the two drivers.

His replacement would be Butcher as he returned to the team that gave him his BTCC debut, with Ollie Jackson retaining his place in the second seat.

Smiley’s move to the second-year team came after his departure from BTC Racing, despite the Honda squad expanding to run three cars.

The third car would be subject to much speculation, including talk that the team was seeking to try and lure Shedden onboard to run alongside his brother-in-law Butcher.

Josh Cook, the best-placed Independent driver in the overall standings in 2019, stayed onboard to lead the team - marking the first time in his career that he would remain with the same squad for a second season.

Tom Chilton moved over from Motorbase to join him in an impressive looking line-up for Bert Taylor’s squad, with the third car being taken by fans favourite Michael Crees.

Crees had spent much of the winter expecting to sit on the sidelines before concluding a deal, and suddenly became one of the favourites for the Jack Sears Trophy.

Chilton’s move away from Motorbase came despite the Ford team electing to switch to a new model, with a fourth generation Focus being built over the off-season.

As it was, Andy Neate was the driver who took the third seat, with his return to the series proving to be one of the biggest surprises of the winter.

Elsewhere, the departure of both Hill and Blundell resulted in a change at Trade Price Cars Racing, with the team welcoming onboard Bobby Thompson and then signing up former British GT Champion James Gornall who would be the only rookie driver on the original entry list.

Ciceley Motorsport and Team Parker Racing would both be unchanged heading into 2020, with Adam Morgan and Dan Rowbottom once again teaming up in the two Mercedes A Class and Stephen Jelley continuing at the wheel of his BMW 125i M Sport.

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It wouldn’t be on the only 'older' BMW on the grid for 2020, with Carl Boardley purchasing a car from WSR to be run by Team HARD alongside three Volkswagen CCs. Jack Go would lead the Volkswagen challenge after re-signing for a second season, with Mike Bushell set to join him before he ran into health issues during a skiing trip in France.

That resulted in Howard Fuller getting the call to drive in at least the first three rounds, with the third seat going to Nicolas Hamilton as the younger brother of F1 champion Lewis secured his place on the grid.

Simpson Racing bowed out however, handing back its TBL after electing not to race.

However, as teams started to hit the track to begin pre-season testing, trouble was brewing as the first cases of COVID-19 were reported on British soil.

As coronavirus started to have a major impact on every day life, questions began to arise about whether or not the season would be able to start as planned at the end of March.

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SEASON LAUNCH TEST TIMES: POS

DRIVER

TIME

POS

DRIVER

TIME

1

Tom Ingram

1:06.171

16

Jason Plato

+0.935

2

Jake Hill

+0.051

17

Tom Chilton

+1.002

3

Dan Cammish

+0.319

18

Sam Osborne

+1.089

4

Rory Butcher

+0.441

19

Jack Goff

+1.094

5

Colin Turkington

+0.514

20

Josh Webster*

+1.102

6

Senna Proctor

+0.609

21

Carl Boardley

+1.147

7

Andrew Jordan

+0.656

22

Dan Rowbottom

+1.269

8

Matt Neal

+0.754

23

Josh Cook

+1.294

9

Ash Sutton

+0.797

24

Mat Jackson

+1.395

10

Chris Smiley

+0.826

25

Nicolas Hamilton

+1.418

11

James Gornall

+0.856

26

Adam Morgan

+1.473

12

Tom Oliphant

+0.860

27

Aiden Moffat

+1.582

13

Michael Crees

+0.890

28

Howard Fuller

+1.586

14

Ollie Jackson

+0.895

29

Andy Neate

+2.654

15

Bobby Thompson

+0.909

* - Josh Webster subbed for Stephen Jelley

After the government issued advice against all but essential travel the day before the season launch, the decision was taken to go ahead with the event on the Silverstone International circuit, but with no fans able to attend.

delayed, with Motorsport UK then announcing a suspension of all racing until at least the end of April.

On track Tom Ingram would top the times after edging Jake Hill out of top spot, whilst the new Focus and the Hyundai showed encouraging pace out of the box to run well inside the top ten.

However, whilst the cars were out on track came the news that the opening three rounds of the season in March and April would be

When Prime Minister Boris Johnson then revealed that the UK was to be put into lockdown in a bid to fight off the spread of COVID-19, Motorsport UK moved to extend the ban on any on-track action until the end of June - immediately ensuring that the first five rounds of the season at least would be postponed.

Series boss Alan Gow worked hard to put together a revised calendar, and within a

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Page 15

CALENDAR Rounds 1/2/3 1/2 August

Donington Park

Rounds 4/5/6 8/9 August

Brands Hatch GP

Rounds 7/8/9 22/23 August

Oulton Park

Rounds 10/11/12 29/30 August

Knockhill

Rounds 13/14/15 19/20 September

Thruxton

Rounds 16/17/18 26/27 September

Silverstone (National)

Rounds 19/20/21 10/11 October

Croft

Rounds 22/23/24 24/25 October

Snetterton

Rounds 25/56/27 14/15 November

Brands Hatch Indy

month, a new schedule had been announced retaining nine of the planned ten rounds across a compacted period from early August through to November.

Sadly, there was no place for the Silverstone International layout as it dropped o the calendar whilst Brands GP would no longer act as the season finale; the Indy layout instead being chosen because of the shorter daylight hours.

The compact nature of the calendar would mean a number of events would run back-toback and that would provide a fresh challenge for teams - who would seek to increase their spare parts to deal with any eventuality.

With the series running a collection of historic races online to keep fans entertained during lockdown, it would be July before track action resumed.

However, before the field arrived at Snetterton for the traditional two-day tyre test, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic would impact on the entry, as a number of drivers were forced to stand down from their roles.

First up was 2013 champion Jordan, who stepped down from his drive with WSR when it became clear that the changing circumstances meant his deal no longer worked on a commercial basis - meaning the BMW entry dropped from three cars down to two.

Barely a week later came the news that Power Maxed Racing was also to withdraw its full season entry, carrying partner contracts over to 2021 but meaning both Plato and Mat Jackson wouldn’t feature on the grid.

As fans came to terms with the news, the twoday Snetterton test saw Butcher top the times for Motorbase; a quick lap just before lunch on

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day one leaving him comfortably clear of the pack behind.

SNETTERTON TEST

Mixed weather however meant it was hard to read too much into the times, with plenty of drivers having not run a lap when conditions were at their best.

As the clock continued to tick down to the Donington Park opener, there would still be further changes to the entry before the field was set for the opening weekend.

Despite taking part in the Snetterton test, Bushell was the next person to drop out as the impact of COVID-19 prevented him from taking up his drive with Team HARD. His obvious replacement would have been the man who was due to substitute for him, but Fuller too didn’t have the required budget to make a full time return to the grid - and quickly dropped out of the running.

As a result, it was rookie driver Ollie Brown winner of Team HARD’s scholarship programme - who got the nod to make a rapid jump into the BTCC after years working as a driver coach.

The other person to vanish from the entry was Rowbottom after his main sponsor Cataclean withdrew in order to focus on dealing with the impact of coronavirus.

With that news breaking just days before the season opener, Ciceley had to move quickly to find a replacement and turned to Jack Butel who had raced the team’s Mercedes GT4 car a number of times - to come in and take the drive.

Those deals ensured that as the off-season finally came to an end, a 26 car grid headed to Donington Park to get 2020 underway…

1

Rory Butcher

1:56.504

2

Tom Chilton

+0.757

3

Tom Ingram

+0.970

4

Jake Hill

+1.030

5

Dan Cammish

+1.145

6

Stephen Jelley

+1.270

7

Ash Sutton

+1.530

8

Michael Crees

+1.544

9

Adam Morgan

+1.569

10

Dan Rowbottom

+1.622

11

Ollie Jackson

+1.669

12

Josh Cook

+1.774

13

Jack Goff

+1.804

14

Senna Proctor

+1.930

15

Chris Smiley

+2.044

16

Carl Boardley

+2.059

17

Aiden Moffat

+2.121

18

Matt Neal

+2.224

19

Sam Osborne

+2.499

20

Mike Bushell

+2.677

21

Andy Neate

+3.403

22

James Gornall

+4.568

23

Nicolas Hamilton

+4.985

24

Bobby Thompson

+7.204

25

Tom Oliphant

+11.355

26

Colin Turkington

+15.983

27

Esmee Hawkey *

+20.717

28

Henry Neal *

+21.639

* Esmee Hawkey shared with Jake Hill, Henry Neal with Matt Neal

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DONINGTON PARK ROUNDS 1/2/3

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After months of anticipation, it was early August when the delayed season finally kicked off at Donington Park, although the excitement at racing getting underway was offset by disappointment at fans being unable to attend.

Circuit owners MotorSport Vision had worked hard to put measures in place to deal with the impact of COVID-19 and were confident of allowing a limited number of fans to attend the race weekend.

Spectators had been welcomed at a number of club level meetings from early July, with those events having been viewed as successful tests ahead of the resumption of the larger, national meetings.

that spectator attendance simply wasn’t possible - ensuring round one would be run behind closed doors.

That resulted in a somewhat bizarre feeling walking into Donington Park for the opening weekend, with the whole paddock learning how to deal with going racing in a post-COVID environment.

When 09:30 arrived on Saturday morning however and the BTCC engines roared into life for the first time, a sense of something approaching normality returned as the cars took to the track to finally get the season underway four months later than planned.

Just days before the event however, Donington was informed by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport that the BTCC’s position as the premier series in UK motorsport meant it was classed as 'elite sport'.

Straight away there was an ominous warning about what was to come from defending champion Colin Turkington, who dipped below the previous qualifying lap record in the first 40 minute free practice session in his BMW 330i M Sport.

With the government having put in place a special five stage framework for elite sport to return to 'normal' after coronavirus, that meant

The Northern Irishman would end up a tenth of a second clear of Matt Neal’s Honda as he led the front-wheel drive challenge, with Ash

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Sutton making light of the fact that the new Infiniti had only completed limited running in pre-season compared to some other cars to set the third fastest time.

Donington Park pole for the second successive season.

Although three-tenths of a second slower in second practice, it was Turkington once again who was fastest in FP2 from team-mate Tom Oliphant - leaving the BMW pair clear out front ahead of Tom Ingram’s Toyota, which would be the only other car to lap within half a second of the outright pace.

Preparations for qualifying weren’t helped by part of the session being lost to a red flag caused by Jack Goff going off heavily into the tyres at McLeans after suffering brake failure on his Volkswagen CC, although you’d have been hard pushed to find anyone prepared to bet against a BMW taking pole once qualifying came around.

As the only qualifying session of the year where cars run without ballast, there were plenty of bragging rights on offer and it was Turkington who ultimately snared the

It wasn’t however as straightforward as many may have expected it to be, despite the defending champion being the only person in the session who was able to break the 1:09s marker in a session that saw Jason Plato’s qualifying record from 2014 fall.

The Northern Irishman would end up just 0.087s clear of Dan Cammish’s Honda, with his performance being made all the more impressive by the fact that Team Dynamics had been forced to change the diff in his car just before the session started.

Sutton backed up his solid practice pace by putting the Infiniti third on the grid and warned there was more still to come from the car, which was particularly quick through the highspeed Craner Curves, with Ingram, Tom Oliphant and Rory Butcher rounding out the top six - the latter building on the strong preseason pace displayed by the new Focus.

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Given the starting prowess of the BMW, and the fact he was running ballast free, Turkington headed into the opening race on Sunday as hot favourite to start his title defence with a victory, so there was little surprise when it was the #1 car that led the way when the field powered down to Redgate for the first time.

Turkington hadn’t been the only fast starter however, with Sutton launching the Infiniti o the second row to jump ahead of Cammish, with the 2017 champion making clear his intentions to try and get into the lead.

Putting pressure on his rivals through the opening laps, Sutton saw his chance to make a

move as the squabbling pair exited the Old Hairpin on lap four, putting his Infiniti on the outside through Schwantz Curve to give him the inside line into McLeans.

The lightest amount of contact between the two cars unsettled the Infiniti and delayed the BMW enough to allow an opportunistic Cammish to dive up the inside of the pair and slip through, completing the move as he ran side-by-side with Sutton on the rise up to Coppice.

As Sutton looked to tuck in behind, contact from Turkington - who himself had been nudged by Ingram as the field concertinaed up

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going through the corner - tipped the Infiniti into a spin that left Sutton stranded on the grass and at the back of the field.

quickest car by far in race trim and giving a sign of what would be to come later in the day…

That drama left Cammish clear out front from Turkington and Butcher, who had sliced his way through the chaos ahead to move into the podium places - which would remain unchanged to the flag despite a brief safety car period when Nic Hamilton’s Volkswagen went off at the final corner.

If Cammish had expected to be beaten off the line without any weight onboard in race one, the Honda driver headed into race two almost resigned to the fact that his position at the head of the field wasn’t to last, and so it proved.

Having been slightly delayed by the lap four squabble, Ingram would fight his way back up to fourth at the finish after a late move on Oliphant, who would also drop behind Neal before the finish.

Elsewhere, Sam Osborne took a career best seventh for MB Motorsport whilst there was a debut top ten for the new Hyundai in the hands of Chris Smiley.

The introduction of the safety car helped Sutton on his charge back through the field to finish in 14th; the Q50 proving to be the

It wasn’t like Cammish got away badly despite the additional weight on his Honda Civic, but Turkington simply nailed his start from the front row and swept into the lead as the field headed down to Redgate for the first time.

As far as the battle for victory was concerned, that was pretty much that as the defending champion was able to control proceedings from the head of the field.

Even when the safety car was called out to once again remove Hamilton’s VW from the gravel after he dropped a wheel off track at Coppice, Turkington couldn’t be bettered and

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took a comfortable first win of the season in his BMW. The battle for second however would be much more fraught, and played a role in Turkington’s run at the front being relatively straightforward as Cammish did his best to try and hold onto second spot.

It would ultimately be in vain as first Butcher edged his way ahead on the run to the chicane, and then both Ingram and Oliphant also got ahead of the Honda.

Butcher would manage to hold on to take second spot as he went one better than in race one, with Oliphant ensuring that there would be two BMWs on the podium when he got ahead of Ingram at Coppice late on.

Behind the top four, Cammish might have been able to hold on to fifth given that he had team-mate Neal acting as a rear gunner, but the safety car would work against the Dynamics pair as the pack behind closed up.

The big winner from the caution period would be Sutton, who was continuing his charge forwards up the order after the race one incident.

By the time the safety car had come out to recover Hamilton’s car on lap nine, the Infiniti was already up into eighth spot and after the restart, Sutton wasted little time in forcing his way ahead of Stephen Jelley’s BMW.

That left him behind Cammish and Neal on track and the Honda pair were powerless to keep the charging 2017 champion at bay as he overhauled Neal on lap 16 and then cleared Cammish a lap later.

Sutton did his best to chase down Ingram ahead and almost managed to get on terms with the Toyota, with Cammish and Neal left to finish sixth and seventh ahead of Adam Morgan’s Mercedes.

Further down the order, a number of drivers were suffering disastrous starts to the season, including the much fancied Jake Hill in the MB Motorsport Honda.

Engine failure had put him out of the opening race and forced the team to change his Swindon unit ahead of race two, only for that engine to also suffer problems that would result in a second change in time for race three.

Hill had at least been able to take the start, with Senna Proctor’s Hyundai and the Audi of series debutant James Gornall both remaining in the garage having also suffered engine problems in the opening race of the weekend.

Race two winner Turkington was tasked with doing the reverse grid draw and left himself with plenty to do when he pulled twelve which put Smiley on pole in the Hyundai.

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Ollie Jackson would get a better start from alongside on the front row to take the lead of the race, and maintained his position after an early safety car was called thanks to a clash between debutants Jack Butel and Ollie Brown.

He would hold on out front until the seventh lap when Smiley launched his car up the inside at the Old Hairpin and swept through into the lead, with Jackson slipping back down the order when he was then run wide on the run up to McLeans.

take the first 'hat trick' since Gordon Shedden did similar at Thruxton back in 2012.

That helped him to ease away from the pack behind as he wrapped up a first win in the series for the reworked Infiniti, which was clearly on a dierent level to the car it had replaced.

Smiley held on to second to give the Hyundai a podium finish on debut ,with Cook following behind and Morgan taking a solid fourth spot.

In amongst the pack that battled ahead of the Ford was Sutton, who had fought his way through the midfield pack in impressive fashion to sit third behind former team-mate Josh Cook.

Jackson meanwhile was left to rue the move that had cost him places in the middle of the race as he crossed the line in fifth, despite the best eorts of Ingram to catch him in the final laps.

By lap nine, Sutton had passed the BTC Racing man into the chicane and a lap later, a similar move on Smiley put the Infiniti ahead.

Cammish and Neal would round out the top eight with Turkington being unable to make much progress from his starting position as he ended up just behind team-mate Oliphant in tenth.

Once again lapping quicker than anyone else, Sutton would post the fastest lap of the race to

Page 24

The end result was that it was Turkington who would head away from the Leicestershire circuit with the early advantage in the standings as he managed to establish a six point lead over Cammish - the man who had gone so close to taking the title away from the West Surrey Racing man the previous season.

Ingram just was one point further back despite failing to repeat his race-winning performance of the season before, meaning just ten points covered the top five drivers.

Behind them, Sutton’s impressive form in the Infiniti meant he was just was three points further back in third place alongside Butcher after his solid debut with the latest incarnation of the with Focus, which was clearly a step forwards from the car that it has replaced.

Others however had work to do to make up lost ground and there would be little time in which to relax before the action resumed with the next three races on the packed calendar.

It might have taken four months longer than expected, and have been a dierent experience to the norm, but the season was now well and truly underway‌

Page 25

QUALIFYING

RACE ONE

1

Colin Turkington

1:08.998

1

Dan Cammish

19 laps

2

Dan Cammish

+0.087

2

Colin Turkington

+0.707

3

Ash Sutton

+0.097

3

Rory Butcher

+1.144

4

Tom Ingram

+0.212

4

Tom Ingram

+1.941

5

Tom Oliphant

+0.311

5

Matt Neal

+2.817

6

Rory Butcher

+0.331

6

Tom Oliphant

+3.722

7

Jake Hill

+0.389

7

Sam Osborne

+4.855

8

Josh Cook

+0.413

8

Chris Smiley

+5.492

9

Matt Neal

+0.565

9

Stephen Jelley

+7.322

10

Adam Morgan

+0.569

10

Tom Chilton

+7.623

11

Senna Proctor

+0.590

11

Bobby Thompson

+7.936

12

Sam Osborne

+0.633

12

Adam Morgan

+8.249

13

Ollie Jackson

+0.725

13

Josh Cook

+9.498

14

Chris Smiley

+0.726

14

Ash Sutton

+9.595

15

Stephen Jelley

+0.820

15

Aiden Moffat

+11.457

16

Tom Chilton

+0.821

16

Michael Crees

+13.075

17

Bobby Thompson

+1.120

17

Ollie Jackson

+13.398

18

Michael Crees

+1.202

18

Jack Goff

+13.837

19

James Gornall

+1.220

19

Carl Boardley

+14.266

20

Aiden Moffat

+1.434

20

Andy Neate

+14.599

21

Andy Neate

+1.694

21

Ollie Brown

+15.050

22

Carl Boardley

+1.760

22

Jack Butel

+19.350

23

Ollie Brown

+2.051

DNF

James Gornall

Engine

24

Jack Butel

+2.510

DNF

Senna Proctor

Engine

25

Jack Goff

+2.540

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Spin

26

Nicolas Hamilton

No Time

DNF

Jake Hill

Engine

FL

Sutton

1:09.483

Page 26

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Colin Turkington

19 laps

1

Ash Sutton

17 laps

2

Rory Butcher

+2.199

2

Chris Smiley

+2.280

3

Tom Oliphant

+2.610

3

Josh Cook

+2.556

4

Tom Ingram

+2.935

4

Adam Morgan

+3.524

5

Ash Sutton

+3.046

5

Ollie Jackson

+4.890

6

Dan Cammish

+5.839

6

Tom Ingram

+5.161

7

Matt Neal

+6.271

7

Dan Cammish

+6.247

8

Adam Morgan

+6.576

8

Matt Neal

+7.112

9

Stephen Jelley

+7.949

9

Tom Oliphant

+7.629

10

Josh Cook

+8.320

10

Colin Turkington

+7.993

11

Ollie Jackson

+11.171

11

Rory Butcher

+12.317

12

Chris Smiley

+11.650

12

Tom Chilton

+14.635

13

Tom Chilton

+12.003

13

Michael Crees

+17.127

14

Michael Crees

+14.610

14

Carl Boardley

+17.239

15

Carl Boardley

+17.384

15

Bobby Thompson

+21.984

16

Jack Goff

+18.538

16

James Gornall

+22.478

17

Bobby Thompson

+19.000

17

Aiden Moffat

+26.247

18

Andy Neate

+20.635

18

Stephen Jelley

+26.512

19

Jack Butel

+21.528

19

Andy Neate

+31.712

20

Aiden Moffat

+26.555

20

Jack Butel

+43.719

DNF

Jake Hill

Engine

21

Nicolas Hamilton

+46.015

DNF

Sam Osborne

Electrical

22

Ollie Brown

+1 lap

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Spin

DNF

Senna Proctor

Off

DNF

Ollie Brown

Clutch

NC

Jake Hill

Puncture

DNS

James Gornall

Engine

DNF

Sam Osborne

Suspension

DNS

Senna Proctor

Engine

DNF

Jack Goff

Toe Link

FL

Sutton

1:09.642

FL

Sutton

1:09.483

Page 27

BRANDS HATCH GP ROUNDS 4/5/6

Page 28

It was only a week on from the season opener that the field headed for Brands Hatch for the second round of the year, with Colin Turkington seeking to try and cement his position as the man to beat in the championship.

After teams were permitted to carry out a shakedown test on the Friday evening, the ontrack action proper kicked off on Saturday morning with the opening practice session of the weekend, which ended with reason to smile for one of the local drivers.

As had been the case at Donington Park, the impact of COVID-19 meant that the event would be run behind closed doors, with MotorSport Vision confirming in the run-up to the weekend that the following meeting at Oulton Park would also feature no spectators.

Jake Hill’s Donington Park had proven to be a total disaster, with two engine failures, a broken gear linkage and then a puncture meaning his first outing in MB Motorsport’s Honda Civic had quite literally been pointless.

The first of two meetings at Brands Hatch had been due to run on the shorter Indy circuit, even when the calendar had to be revised and condensed to deal with coronavirus.

However, given that would have meant the season finale in November running on the longer GP loop, the decision was taken to swap the two race meetings around and run the Grand Prix circuit first rather than when daylight hours were at a premium later in the campaign.

The plus point was that his FK2 Type R arrived at Brands Hatch free of success ballast and he laid down the early marker by putting his car on top of the times in FP1.

Hill would end up a tenth of a second clear of Tom Chilton’s newer FK8 Honda with Rory Butcher once again showing the promise of the new Motorbase Focus as he slotted into third.

Towards the top of the times at least, things looked relatively close with the top 15 drivers Page 29

covered by less than a second, but FP2 saw Hill blitz the field in impressive style with a lap that was nearly half a second clear of anyone else.

Again, it would be an FK8 Honda that was his closest challenger but this time in the hands of Dan Cammish, with Senna Proctor’s Hyundai in an impressive third; Proctor being another driver looking to rebound from a tough season opener to put his first points on the board.

The two practice sessions would run largely without major issue, although there was a brief stoppage in the first when Bobby Thompson’s Trade Price Cars Racing Audi slid off at Druids.

FP2 then saw Rory Butcher suffer a front-left tyre failure going through Clearways that put him into the gravel, although he was able to keep the car out of the tyre wall and minimise the damage.

Despite losing track time, Butcher had ended the second practice session with the fifth quickest time and it was the Scot who then

ended up leading the way when qualifying came around.

Even carrying additional weight on the new Focus, Butcher was able to set the fastest time of the day early on to put his car on provisional pole after the first qualifying runs but there were expectations that others would then improve as the session wore on and drivers went out again to try and beat their first 'banker' laps.

However, as the clock ticked down and driver after driver failed to dip below his time, Butcher’s position started to look more secure.

When Cammish fell just 0.031s shy on his final timed lap, Butcher was able to celebrate a first pole of the season and to cap off a fine session for Motorbase, team-mate Ollie Jackson put the sister Focus on the second row of the grid with by far the best qualifying performance of his career.

Page 30

Hill would join him on the second row with the top four having lapped within a tenth of a second of each other, with Turkington an impressive fifth despite his BMW carrying maximum success ballast.

move that delayed the Ford enough to let Turkington get up to third.

For Sutton however, qualifying would prove to be more of a challenge and despite being the most spectacular driver by some margin as he threw the Infiniti around the GP loop, he would find himself down in 14th spot on the grid for the opening race.

Saturday’s on-track action had been held in sweltering conditions but come Sunday, it was arguably even hotter - which provided teams and drivers with a fresh challenge given that the 'normal' conditions for a Brands GP weekend were for it to be cold and damp at the start of autumn.

When the first race kicked off it was Butcher who held the lead into Paddock Hill Bend ahead of Cammish, who had managed to hold Jackson at bay off the line with a defensive

From there, the positions amongst the lead four would remain static through the first half of the race, with Butcher managing to keep Cammish at bay, and the Honda man having enough of a buffer over Turkington to prevent him from trying to steal second.

Jackson in fourth had been unable to keep pace with the front three but was driving well to keep Hill and Tom Ingram at bay, with Hill holding fifth until lap twelve when Ingram managed to nip ahead.

Just as Butcher appeared set to take his first win of the year, the safety car was called out when Matt Neal and Aiden Moffat - dicing over 17th spot - clashed going into Hawthorns.

Contact as Neal tried to make a move for position saw the Honda go off into the tyres and end up stricken on the outside of the circuit.

Page 31

With the Honda removed, the race resumed, but before Butcher could attempt to break away from Cammish, the Ford suddenly slowed on the run to Druids with smoke coming from the front left.

race of the weekend starting from pole but with his Honda carrying the additional penalty of being laden with maximum success ballast meaning he was a sitting duck at the start.

The Halfords-backed Civic bogged down when the lights went out as Turkington blasted into the race lead in the BMW, with Ingram also getting away well from the second row of the grid.

As in practice, the tyre on the Focus had cried enough and what had looked set to be a first win for the new Focus instead became a disappointing DNF. Instead, it was Cammish who crossed the line to take the win ahead of Turkington, with Jackson ensuring that Motorbase could at least celebrate a podium finish as he took third holding off Ingram until the Speedworks driver was forced to race with one eye on the mirror to keep Tom Chilton at bay.

He quickly got ahead of Jackson on the opening lap and was soon followed by a recovering Cammish, but there was no chance for a true battle for the lead to develop before the safety car was again called out.

Behind the BTC Racing man, Sutton had stormed through the grid to take sixth in the Infiniti, which was back on form after the struggles of qualifying.

This time it was a clash between Bobby Thompson’s Audi and the Honda of Michael Crees on the run to Westfield that would interrupt proceedings - with a lengthy caution period as the two cars were removed from the side of the circuit.

As had been the case at Donington a week earlier, Cammish then went into the second

The recovery wasn’t helped by the fact that restrictions put in place to help deal with the Page 32

impact of COVID-19 meant the number of marshals on each post was lower than normal, meaning the clean up took longer than would have usually been expected.

Out front, Turkington secured the win after easing away from Ingram in the closing laps, with the Toyota having enough in hand to stay ahead of Sutton in third.

Once racing resumed, the front three were able to break away from as Jackson backed up the pack behind. That was initially headed by Chilton, who did briefly get ahead only to then be forced out by power-steering issues.

Fourth would be the first of the Motorbase Fords - but not the car of Jackson. Instead, it was Butcher who produced an astonishing drive from the back of the field after his race one retirement, surging through the pack with apparent ease to take fourth, with Jackson and Adam Morgan rounding out the top six.

Instead, it was Sutton’s Infiniti that filled the mirrors of the Ford for much of the race but it wouldn’t be until the end of the twelfth lap that he finally managed to get ahead with a forceful move at the final corner.

The top three would appear to be out of reach for Sutton, but he would end up on the podium when Cammish dropped out of a comfortable third when his FK8 developed power steering problems of its own - leading to him running off at Surtees and then dropping down the order to finish outside the points.

Astonishingly, the race would see none of the Honda drivers score points, with Neal suffering power steering trouble, Josh Cook pitting with an overheating issue and Hill parking up on the exit of Surtees when running in the top ten with further engine problems.

It ended a run of more than 135 races where a Honda car had finished in the points, with Sam Osborne the closest person to keeping that run going as he crossed the line in 16th spot.

Page 33

Post race, Turkington was once again tasked with making the reverse grid draw and for the second week in a row, the Northern Irishman pulled twelve to leave himself with plenty of work to do.

It also meant Aiden Moffat started on pole in the #16 Infiniti, with Jack Goff’s Volkswagen alongside on the front row.

Whilst Moffat held the lead when the action got underway ahead of the fast-starting BMWs of Stephen Jelley and Tom Oliphant - which had lined up in fourth and sixth - Goff’s start was less impressive and he not only lost out to the two rear-wheel drive cars, but also to the Audi of James Gornall.

Proctor then tried to go around the outside of the Volkswagen into Druids but slight contact knocked Proctor sideways before he slid back into Goff, who then collected Morgan’s Mercedes.

Bounced back onto the track, Goff was lucky to only collect Ingram’s Toyota, with the pair

both out on the spot. Proctor and Morgan would be able to continue, although the latter would eventually be forced to call it a day as a result of damage sustained in the clash.

Whilst that chaos was unfolding, Moffat was under pressure for the lead from Jelley and slight contact between the pair going through Clearways opened the door for Oliphant to blast through into P1.

As Moffat then slipped back down the order after running wide on the second lap, the sister Infiniti was going the other way and it was Sutton who would emerge as Oliphant’s big rival for the race win.

Having come through from tenth on the grid, Sutton would latch onto the rear of the BMW, with the pair never covered by more than half a second for the remainder of the race.

Determined to break his win duck, Oliphant produced a masterful display to keep Sutton at bay although going into the final lap, the Laser

Page 34

Tools Racing car was all over the rear end of the BMW.

That capped a good recovery for the former champion but it was a race of mixed emotions for Honda as Cammish again failed to score having been forced to retire with more issues.

Despite the pressure however, Oliphant was able to hold on to his advantage and was rewarded with a fine maiden victory, with Sutton left to admit that his rival had simply had too much for him.

Butcher had continued his recovery from the race one issues to climb up into third spot and it looked like his weekend would at least end with some silverware - even if it wasn’t the win he had hoped for.

However, the Scot would suffer another puncture late on that forced him into retirement and meant that third instead went to Jelley as he scored his first podium of the campaign.

Moffat took fourth after Chris Smiley went off and clattered the barriers late on, with Turkington and Neal rounding out the top six.

With the likes of Hill and Jackson also failing to finish, a race of attrition ended with Ollie Brown, Jack Butel and Nicolas Hamilton all scoring points for the first time in their careers.

It meant that heading away from Brands Hatch, each of the 26 drivers had put points on the board.

Out front, Turkington’s strong showing on track meant he remained out front having extended his lead over Sutton to 16 points; a lead that could have been much larger without the Laser Tool Racing man’s impressive recovery.

Oliphant’s win moved him up into third ahead of Ingram, with both Cammish and Butcher left with ground to make up after their troubles on track.

Page 35

QUALIFYING

RACE ONE

1

Rory Butcher

1:31.111

1

Dan Cammish

18 laps

2

Dan Cammish

+0.031

2

Colin Turkington

+0.812

3

Ollie Jackson

+0.038

3

Ollie Jackson

+1.994

4

Jake Hill

+0.055

4

Tom Ingram

+2.341

5

Colin Turkington

+0.342

5

Tom Chilton

+2.820

6

Tom Oliphant

+0.342

6

Ash Sutton

+2.965

7

Senna Proctor

+0.416

7

Senna Proctor

+5.273

8

Tom Ingram

+0.461

8

Tom Oliphant

+5.587

9

Josh Cook

+0.550

9

Stephen Jelley

+5.745

10

Tom Chilton

+0.573

10

Jake Hill

+6.917

11

Matt Neal

+0.579

11

Adam Morgan

+7.121

12

Stephen Jelley

+0.618

12

Michael Crees

+7.652

13

Adam Morgan

+0.647

13

James Gornall

+9.038

14

Ash Sutton

+0.758

14

Bobby Thompson

+9.545

15

Chris Smiley

+0.773

15

Chris Smiley

+10.434

16

Sam Osborne

+0.820

16

Carl Boardley

+10.598

17

Bobby Thompson

+0.926

17

Jack Goff

+11.087

18

Michael Crees

+0.946

18

Aiden Moffat

+11.317

19

Jack Goff

+0.996

19

Andy Neate

+12.321

20

James Gornall

+1.082

20

Ollie Brown

+13.595

21

Aiden Moffat

+1.268

21

Josh Cook

+13.820

22

Carl Boardley

+1.290

22

Nicolas Hamilton

+19.974

23

Andy Neate

+1.380

23

Jack Butel

+20.161

24

Ollie Brown

+2.022

24

Sam Osborne

+1 lap

25

Nicolas Hamilton

+2.137

DNF

Rory Butcher

Puncture

26

Jack Butel

+3.329

DNF

Matt Neal

Accident

FL

Cook

1:31.942

Page 36

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Colin Turkington

18 laps

1

Tom Oliphant

15 laps

2

Tom Ingram

+3.222

2

Ash Sutton

+0.324

3

Ash Sutton

+6.646

3

Stephen Jelley

+4.978

4

Rory Butcher

+12.822

4

Aiden Moffat

+5.981

5

Ollie Jackson

+13.943

5

Colin Turkington

+6.611

6

Adam Morgan

+14.269

6

Matt Neal

+8.857

7

Tom Oliphant

+15.082

7

James Gornall

+9.951

8

Senna Proctor

+16.596

8

Tom Chilton

+14.430

9

Stephen Jelley

+16.759

9

Senna Proctor

+15.462

10

James Gornall

+17.408

10

Sam Osborne

+17.410

11

Jack Goff

+19.429

11

Michael Crees

+18.805

12

Aiden Moffat

+20.142

12

Bobby Thompson

+19.104

13

Chris Smiley

+20.329

13

Ollie Brown

+27.411

14

Andy Neate

+20.546

14

Jack Butel

+30.531

15

Carl Boardley

+22.240

15

Nicolas Hamilton

+38.986

16

Sam Osborne

+27.470

16

Carl Boardley

+53.711

17

Nicolas Hamilton

+31.282

17

Josh Cook

+1:30.770

18

Jack Butel

+31.479

18

Andy Neate

+1 lap

19

Dan Cammish

+59.604

19

Ollie Jackson

Puncture

20

Ollie Brown

+1 lap

20

Rory Butcher

Puncture

DNF

Jake Hill

Engine

21

Chris Smiley

Accident

DNF

Josh Cook

Overheating

22

Jake Hill

Puncture

DNF

Tom Chilton

Steering

23

Adam Morgan

Damage

DNF

Matt Neal

Steering

24

Dan Cammish

Engine

DNF

Michael Crees

Accident

25

Jack Goff

Damage

DNF

Bobby Thompson

Accident

26

Tom Ingram

Damage

FL

Ingram

1:32.681

FL

Cook

1:32.214

Page 37

OULTON PARK ROUNDS 7/8/9

Page 38

After the back-to-back nature of the opening rounds, teams were grateful of the fact that there was a week off before trucks were loaded up for the trip to Oulton Park and the third round of the year.

With the event being held just a week before Knockhill, it meant many teams would be spending an unusually long time on the road as they headed directly to Scotland from the Cheshire circuit.

It also meant drivers needed to be extra careful on track, with the tight turnaround between events offering limited opportunity to repair any damage…

guest drivers' and the first of those would be Mike Bushell, who inked a deal to cover the Oulton Park and Knockhill race weekends.

Once the on-track action got underway, there was a new variable added to the mix thanks to the British weather.

Whereas the Donington Park and Brands Hatch meetings had seen the British summer at its very best, things took a turn for the worse ahead of first practice, with the arrival of rain meaning drivers were faced with a wet track when the opening 40 minute session got underway.

Prior to the start of the race weekend, there was welcome news from Power Maxed Racing as the team confirmed that it would bring a single car back out for the remainder of the season.

Given the changeable conditions, there were questions raised about how much teams would be able to learn from the session - with a number of drivers commenting on how tricky it was when conditions were differing from one lap to the next.

When announcing that it would put its original programme on hold, the Vauxhall squad had stated that it hoped to run a car for 'a series of

The early laps in the session would be completed on wet rubber and it was only in the closing stages that drivers felt confident Page 39

enough to make the switch over to dry Goodyear tyres.

would be the place to kick-start his campaign after a wretched Brands Hatch weekend.

It was Bushell who made the move at the right time and despite having to carry additional ballast as a new entry, he topped the times in the Astra with a lap that was more than 1.7s quicker than Michael Crees and two seconds clear of Dan Cammish.

Cook left it late before popping in his quickest time, which saw him knock the similar Dynamics-run car of Dan Cammish off top spot by a tenth of a second.

Cammish, looking to rebound himself from dramas in the previous round, had gone fastest only seconds earlier to knock long-time pace setter Rory Butcher from P1.

Such gaps at the front were indicative of the fact there was little to learn in terms who would be involved in the fight for pole later in the day, as was the fact that Bushell’s fastest time was nearly seven seconds off the qualifying lap record.

The Motorbase driver was something of an anomaly in the session as his best lap came early on before a brief stoppage to allow Ash Sutton’s Infiniti to be retrieved from the gravel at Lodge.

Second practice however saw a rare bout of sunshine arrive at the circuit, and meant lap times were much more representative as to who was on the pace.

This time around, it was the ballast-free Honda Civic of Josh Cook that topped the times, with the BTC Racing man hoping that Oulton Park

Whilst there would be no damage to the car, Sutton would end up down in 19th spot on the timesheets, leaving him well behind title rival Colin Turkington as he once again impressed in the ballast-laden BMW to post the sixth best time behind Chris Smiley’s Hyundai and Bushell’s Vauxhall.

Page 40

The weather would hold out for qualifying later on Saturday, but the potential for rain making a return meant the field wasted little time in heading out to chase a quick lap.

At the only circuit where he had yet to take a podium, Tom Ingram was amongst the early pace-setters at the wheel of his Toyota but his session would then eectively be ended on the very next lap when Ollie Brown turned in on the Corolla at Lodge.

The resultant contact saw Ingram forced to spend a chunk of time in the pits and meant he would end up down in 14th spot.

Instead it was Butcher who put the Focus onto provisional pole once the first qualifying runs were complete, before an action-packed battle for top spot on the grid developed in the final ten minutes.

Turkington was the first man to dip below the 1:26s mark to put his BMW on top of the times but would then be beaten by Cook as he put in a storming lap in the Civic.

There was no time to celebrate however as a matter of seconds later, Butcher swept across the line to reclaim pole and made it two in a row by just 0.089s.

Cook would post two laps that were good enough for the front row in securing second on the grid ahead of Turkington, who was

joined on the second row of the grid by Matt Neal.

It would be a good way to start a big weekend for the triple champion, who was carrying #700 on his Honda in reference to his 700th start in the series, which would come in race two.

Team-mate Cammish was a spot further back ahead of Jake Hill’s FK2 Honda, whilst Sutton was again left with work to do on race day as he struggled to get a lap out of the Infiniti and ended up down in eleventh.

With the local church service meaning no racing was possible until lunchtime on Sunday, teams spent the morning watching the skies and checking the weather forecast to see whether the predicted rain would arrive.

For most of the morning, it looked like race one would manage to avoid the showers but just as the field headed out to the grid, so the rain began to fall - leading to a mad dash to switch onto wet rubber ready for the start.

Given the changing conditions, drivers were permitted to carry out two green flag laps prior to the start, but there would be unexpected drama when Carl Boardley’s BMW sailed straight on at Lodge thanks to a sticking throttle and made heavy contact with the tyre wall.

Page 41

That led to a half hour delay whilst the barriers were repaired, by which time circuit conditions had got worse with heavy rain falling.

then rocketed onto the rear of Turkington before a stunning move at Druids saw him take second.

When the lights went out, it was Butcher who held the lead into Old Hall for the first time in the Focus ahead of the BMWs of Turkington and Tom Oliphant - the latter having got away like a rocket from eighth on the grid to somehow make it up into third despite the narrowness of the start/finish straight.

Butcher by this point had already managed to pull a handy gap at the front but a brief safety car period called when Brown went off at turn one allowed Cook to close the gap.

Cook’s start by contrast had been nothing short of awful, with his Honda suffering wheelspin that saw him head into turn one down in sixth, although he was back ahead of Neal by the time they arrived at Cascades.

The BTC Racing man then went around the outside of Cammish at the hairpin and set about chasing down the BMWs as Butcher looked to break away at the front of the pack.

Having put his nose up the inside of Oliphant more than once, Cook made a move stick on lap two at Lodge to move into second and

The Ford would hold on for a lap on the restart, but a stunning side-by-side battle that started at Old Hall and ended on the exit of Cascades saw Cook get ahead.

Making the most of his lack of ballast, Cook eased away at the front and crossed the line first to take his first victory of the campaign ahead of Butcher and Cammish, who had managed to get in front of Turkington after the restart as the BMWs struggled for outright pace in the conditions.

Cook’s celebrations would be cut short however when his car failed post-race ride height checks, resulting in him being excluded Page 42

from the results and demoted to the back of the grid for race two.

It meant that Butcher inherited a first win for the new Motorbase Ford and also promoted Hill onto the podium after he had jumped ahead of Turkington when the champion made a rare mistake at Old Hall.

Turkington would be classified in fourth spot ahead of Tom Chilton, who was unable to relax thanks to heavy pressure from a charging Ingram in the closing stages; the Speedworks man showing the pace in the Corolla as he made up for the disappointment of qualifying.

Despite his demon start, Oliphant would end up down in twelfth spot having struggled for pace as the race wore on, whilst race 699 for Neal ended with him being called into the pits due to a faulty rain light - leaving him to start his landmark event from the back of the grid.

Whilst the rain had stopped by the time race two got underway, circuit conditions remained

wet and it was Butcher who made the best start to retain the lead at the start from Cammish and Turkington, who managed to get the jump on Hill off the line.

Sutton had also got away well from eighth spot and having jumped up to fifth on lap one, he quickly cleared Hill’s Honda to move into the top four.

As Butcher started to break away at the front, Sutton then closed onto the fight for second between Cammish and Turkington. When Turkington tried to make a move on the exit of the hairpin on lap five only to be forced to back out, Sutton saw his chance to nip ahead of the BMW into third and then slid down the inside of Cammish’s Honda into Lodge to go second.

Setting off after Butcher, it was only a matter of time before Sutton moved into the lead and when Butcher put a wheel on the grass exiting Old Hall on lap eight, Sutton was ahead.

Page 43

From there, Sutton pulled away to take victory by nearly five seconds from Butcher, with the fight between Cammish and Turkington for third eventually being decided in favour of Turkington when Cammish ran wide at the hairpin and his rival was able to get ahead with three laps to go.

Cammish couldn’t keep pace with the BMW through the closing laps and instead had to watch his mirrors as Ingram loomed behind, with Oliphant showing improved pace once the ballast had been removed from his BMW to come through to sixth place.

Cook’s recovery from his disqualification looked to be going well as he fought his way up into the points by the half-way stage but he would get caught up in an incident involving Chris Smiley’s Hyundai and BTC Racing teammate Crees on the run to Hislop’s that saw him spin back down the order and left him outside the points.

There were points however for Neal on his 700th start as he took 13th; a solid result from his starting position even though it might not have been the result he was hoping for on such an occasion.

Prior to making the reverse grid draw, Sutton would quip about the way in which Turkington had pulled twelve at the previous two events but the Laser Tools Racing man didn’t do much better himself as he pulled out number ten,

putting Bobby Thompson’s Trade Price Cars Racing Audi onto pole.

Thompson had recovered well to score points in the first two races having failed to set a time in qualifying but wouldn’t be a factor in the only dry race of the weekend - slipping down the order at the start and ultimately finishing down in 18th spot.

Instead, it was Adam Morgan who surged into the lead when the lights went out having started alongside Thompson on the front row, with Oliphant’s BMW moving up into second and Tom Chilton running in an early third.

Having started well, Turkington and Sutton were running behind the Honda and both got ahead at Hislop’s on lap three before closing in on the battle between Morgan and Oliphant for the lead.

With Oliphant having been unable to find a way ahead of Morgan, he moved over to let Turkington have a go on lap seven - with a plan to swap positions back if he couldn’t force the Ciceley man into a mistake.

A determined Morgan was putting his Mercedes in the perfect position lap-after-lap and before Turkington was able to make a move, the safety car was called thanks to an incident involving Stephen Jelley, Nicolas Hamilton and Brown on the exit of Druids.

Page 44

Having lost places at the start thanks to an issue with the clutch on his Team Parker Racing-run BMW, Jelley was attempting to work his way back up the order when he got out of shape at the fast right-hander, with Bushell taking to the grass on the inside to avoid the spinning car ahead.

Behind, Turkington took second ahead of Oliphant, who was forced to settle for third having been unable to reclaim second from his team-mate as planned.

Following behind, Hamilton gambled on going to the left hand side but as Jelley’s car came back across in front of him, Hamilton clipped the BMW and was then rear-ended by teammate Brown.

That was enough to fire Hamilton’s car off into the barriers and with extensive damage to the tyre wall - and both the Volkswagen and Jelley’s BMW stuck on the side of the circuit the decision was made to red flag the race and call the result at the end of the tenth lap.

That meant Morgan secured an emotional first home victory for Ciceley; the first time he had taken to the top of the podium since the 2018 season.

Sutton would end up with fourth ahead of Chilton, with Senna Proctor continuing a solid, if not spectacular, run of points scoring finishes as he took sixth in the Hyundai.

At the end of the weekend, Turkington’s lead over Sutton had increased to 19 points with Butcher moving back ahead of Oliphant into third; albeit only by a point.

Cammish and Ingram would lose ground however after a tough end to their race weekends.

Early incidents that saw him go off twice meant Cammish could only take 15th and a single point, whilst Ingram retired after suffering driveshaft failure on the green flag lap.

Page 45

RACE ONE

QUALIFYING 1

Rory Butcher

1:25.734

1

Rory Butcher

15 laps

2

Josh Cook

+0.089

2

Dan Cammish

+1.680

3

Colin Turkington

+0.237

3

Jake Hill

+2.521

4

Matt Neal

+0.252

4

Colin Turkington

+7.250

5

Dan Cammish

+0.384

5

Tom Chilton

+8.822

6

Jake Hill

+0.410

6

Tom Ingram

+9.559

7

Tom Chilton

+0.430

7

Adam Morgan

+11.980

8

Tom Oliphant

+0.432

8

Ash Sutton

+19.497

9

Adam Morgan

+0.525

9

Chris Smiley

+20.357

10

Chris Smiley

+0.530

10

Senna Proctor

+26.018

11

Ash Sutton

+0.534

11

Michael Crees

+27.142

12

Michael Crees

+0.785

12

Tom Oliphant

+28.801

13

Senna Proctor

+0.789

13

Ollie Jackson

+30.033

14

Tom Ingram

+0.840

14

Bobby Thompson

+30.364

15

Mike Bushell

+0.849

15

Andy Neate

+30.759

16

Ollie Jackson

+0.859

16

Sam Osborne

+31.650

17

Carl Boardley

+0.863

17

Aiden Moffat

+32.041

18

Stephen Jelley

+0.935

18

James Gornall

+36.600

19

Jack Goff

+1.059

19

Jack Butel

+45.746

20

Sam Osborne

+1.083

20

Stephen Jelley

+49.971

21

Aiden Moffat

+1.137

21

Mike Bushell

+2 laps

22

James Gornall

+1.313

22

Ollie Brown

+2 laps

23

Andy Neate

+1.343

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Damage

24

Jack Butel

+1.415

NC

Matt Neal

Electrical

25

Ollie Brown

+1.691

DNF

Jack Goff

Damage

26

Nicolas Hamilton

+2.081

DNF

Carl Boardley

Damage

27

Bobby Thompson

No time

DSQ

Josh Cook

Ride Height

FL

Ingram

1:36.383

Page 46

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Ash Sutton

15 laps

1

Adam Morgan

10 laps

2

Rory Butcher

+4.716

2

Colin Turkington

+0.250

3

Colin Turkington

+7.260

3

Tom Oliphant

+0.544

4

Dan Cammish

+10.412

4

Ash Sutton

+0.931

5

Tom Ingram

+10.779

5

Tom Chilton

+5.075

6

Tom Oliphant

+14.678

6

Senna Proctor

+5.624

7

Jake Hill

+15.890

7

Jake Hill

+7.220

8

Tom Chilton

+16.629

8

Rory Butcher

+7.977

9

Adam Morgan

+17.573

9

Chris Smiley

+8.981

10

Bobby Thompson

+18.095

10

Aiden Moffat

+9.273

11

Senna Proctor

+24.166

11

Josh Cook

+10.388

12

Michael Crees

+26.086

12

Sam Osborne

+12.342

13

Matt Neal

+27.883

13

Jack Goff

+13.802

14

Chris Smiley

+30.474

14

Carl Boardley

+18.675

15

Ollie Jackson

+30.981

15

Dan Cammish

+19.094

16

Aiden Moffat

+35.353

16

Jack Butel

+26.958

17

Sam Osborne

+38.232

17

Mike Bushell

+30.278

18

Jack Goff

+38.298

18

Bobby Thompson

+30.327

21

Josh Cook

+47.999

19

Ollie Jackson

+32.860

19

Andy Neate

+41.373

20

Andy Neate

+44.462

20

Stephen Jelley

+46.396

21

James Gornall

+45.398

22

Ollie Brown

+52.373

DNF

Ollie Brown

Damage

23

Nicolas Hamilton

+54.427

DNF

Stephen Jelley

Accident

24

Jack Butel

+55.217

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Accident

25

Carl Boardley

+55.392

NC

Matt Neal

Puncture

26

Mike Bushell

+1:23.557

DNF

Michael Crees

Spin

DNF

James Gornall

Damage

DNF

Tom Ingram

Driveshaft

FL

Sutton

1:35.200

FL

Turkington

1:26.674

Page 47

KNOCKHILL ROUNDS 10/11/12 Page 48

For most teams, there was no time to return to base after the Oulton Park weekend had drawn to a close, with trucks instead heading straight for Knockhill ahead of the fourth round of the season.

The incident in race three in Cheshire had - as expected - had an impact on the grid for the Scottish race weekend, with two cars missing from a week earlier.

Although Team Parker Racing had been able to repair Stephen Jelley’s BMW 125i M Sport in order to allow him to race, Nicolas Hamilton’s Volkswagen CC had sustained much heavier damage and simply couldn’t be fixed in time given the short turnaround between meetings.

Hamilton’s team-mate Ollie Brown would also be missing as a result of a hairline fracture of the ribs, meaning that Team HARD’s entry was halved from four cars down to two, and a 25 car field would prepare for battle at the challenging Fife circuit.

Despite mixed weather conditions in the week leading up to the event, which had a major impact on testing for the various support classes, track conditions were near perfect when the opening practice session got underway under blue skies.

With teams having been able to complete a shakedown session on Friday evening, drivers wasted little time in getting up to speed and within five minutes of the start, the leading runners were already setting representative lap times.

Having spent a large chunk of the session sitting in P1, it was Jake Hill who led the way in his MB Motorsport Honda, making the most of the lack of ballast on his car to set a time more than two-tenths of a second clear of Mike Bushell.

Now free of the ballast he had been forced to carry on his debut in the PMR Astra at Oulton Park, Bushell was right on the pace throughout the session and did briefly lead the way before

Page 49

Hill reclaimed top spot - ironically in the very car Bushell had driven himself twelve months earlier.

failure that would leave the Laser Tools Racing team with work to do ahead of qualifying.

Tom Oliphant was the best placed of the rearwheel drive cars as he slotted his BMW into third place ahead of Tom Ingram’s Speedworks Toyota, with the two Infinitis of Ash Sutton and Aiden Moffat showing strong early promise to round out the top six.

Hill’s fastest time would remain unbeaten in the second session later in the day - marking the second time in four meetings that he had been the quickest driver in practice in the older version of the Civic.

Fastest in that second session would be Sutton’s Infiniti, although things wouldn’t go entirely to plan for the former series champion.

Having set a benchmark time a tenth of a second off Hill’s earlier best, Sutton would end the session with his car parked on the side of the circuit having suffered a rear toe-link

Sutton wouldn’t be the only driver to face problems, with Ingram going second despite missing the early part of the session as a result of a coolant leak.

He would end up a tenth of a second off Sutton’s time and just ahead of Bushell who continued to impress in the Vauxhall, as did Moffat who was fourth quickest at his home circuit to leave him full of confidence heading into qualifying.

Adam Morgan’s Mercedes and the Hyundai of Senna Proctor would complete the top six, with those cars running lower ballast - Sutton aside - showing well in the session.

Unusually, the two practice sessions would run largely without incident - although there would be a brief stoppage in FP2 when James Gornall put his Trade Price Cars Racing Audi into the gravel and needed recovery.

Page 50

When qualifying rolled around later in the day, there were plenty of people who felt they had a chance of pole but it would be Sutton who secured the place after a stunning performance in the Infiniti.

Cammish wouldn’t take to the track again after the stoppage and ended up fourth fastest ahead of Ingram and Rory Butcher on row three.

In a session that was stopped mid-way through after Matt Neal went off and clattered the barriers on the exit of the chicane, Sutton made light of the 54kg of ballast in his car to set two laps that would be quick enough for pole.

That meant that the Infiniti Q50 topped the qualifying times for the first time in the series as Sutton beat Hill by just 0.053s.

Second was the best result to date in the series for Hill and came after the team had been forced to replace some of the wiring on his car after a misfire at the start of the session.

Having gone under the radar somewhat in practice, points leader Colin Turkington chose qualifying as the time to shine in his BMW as he, like Sutton, was right on the pace despite the extra ballast in his car.

The Northern Irishman would drag his car to third on the grid with a fastest time less than a tenth of a second away from pole having pipped Dam Cammish just before the red flag came out.

Ingram had been lucky to escape a moment at the chicane that could have ended up with him in the barriers in a similar fashion to Neal, whilst Butcher was unable to keep his run of pole positions going on home soil thanks in no small part to the ballast he was now carrying on his Focus.

Bushell, Moffat, Neal and Oliphant rounded out the top ten, with the whole grid - with the exception of Jack Butel - covered by less than a second; setting up another action-packed day of racing north of the border.

There was little surprise when the opening race kicked off and Sutton led the field into turn one, with Turkington also launching away well to get the jump on Hill on the run to Duffus Dip for the first time.

Sutton would manage to open up a slender lead through the early stages, helped by the fact that Turkington would be under pressure from both Hill and Cammish.

Hill harried the defending champion during the opening lap before Cammish made a move to take third around the the outside at the hairpin, which allowed him to also get alongside Turkington.

Page 51

Forced wide by the BMW, Cammish would lose momentum and drop back down behind Hill, Ingram and Butcher into sixth spot, with the skirmish allowing Sutton to build a lead of nearly two seconds by the end of lap two.

Sutton’s lead would be eradicated on the fifth lap when the safety car was called out after a monster off for Josh Cook on the run to the chicane.

Going through Butcher’s, Cook suddenly lost the rear end of his Honda Civic having suffered a puncture and slammed into the tyres leaving the car heavily damaged but with Cook himself able to climb out uninjured.

There would be drama before the restart when Gornall then ran into the rear of Andy Neate on the exit of Clarks, but focus quickly turned to the fight between Sutton and Turkington for the win.

The pair would remain locked together throughout, but Turkington was unable to get

close enough to make a serious move for position - despite a half-hearted attempt at the final corner.

It meant a third win of the year for Sutton to take points out of Turkington’s lead heading into race two - where the ballast situation for the title rivals would be turned on its head.

Third in the opening race would go the way of Hill after he managed to keep Ingram’s Toyota at bay, whilst it was a similar story in the battle for fifth between Butcher and Cammish - with the local hero fending off his Honda rival to secure the place.

A recovering Neal and Oliphant then rounded out the top eight after the pair battled ahead of Moffat’s Infiniti late on, with Stephen Jelley beating Tom Chilton to the line to complete the top ten.

Astonishing work from BTC Racing saw Cook’s damaged Honda somehow repaired in time to take the start of the second race, but their

Page 52

hard work would be in vain when the #66 Civic found itself stuck in the gravel at McIntyre’s on lap one after he was caught up in a clash involving Butel and Bushell.

It meant an early safety car period was called with Sutton once again leading the way, albeit only after he had managed to fend off Turkington on the run to turn one.

under pressure from Butcher until the pair clashed going into McIntyre’s on lap five.

Butcher would run through the gravel and dropped down outside the top ten, with Hill losing spots to Cammish, Oliphant and Neal.

A second safety car period to recover Neate’s Ford from the McIntyre’s gravel trap then backed up the field once again but as in race one, Sutton had enough in reserve to keep Turkington at bay as he wrapped up his second win of the day.

Whilst Turkington was able to get alongside as the pair headed down to Duffus Dip, the BMW was on the outside line, with Sutton able to hold on as the two cars turned right to retain the place.

That meant the gap between the pair came down to just eight points heading into the final race of the weekend.

Behind, Ingram had managed to find a way ahead of Hill at the start to move into third spot, with Hill fending off the challenge of Butcher to retain fourth and Cammish slotting into sixth.

Once the race resumed, the top two started to break away from Ingram behind, with Hill

Unable to keep pace with the rear-wheel drive pair ahead, Ingram was forced to drive defensively as the race wore on and pressure from Cammish increased in the fight for third, with Ingram holding on to take just his second podium finish of the season.

Page 53

It left Cammish to settle for fourth spot with team-mate Neal following him over the line, although a time penalty for a false start meant he was out of position and would actually end up down in 15th spot.

Neal had fought hard to get ahead of Oliphant in order to act as rear-gunner for Cammish and the move on the BMW man saw Oliphant delayed enough to also lose a spot to Moffat’s Infiniti.

It meant that Moffat inherited fifth after Neal’s penalty, with Oliphant rounding out the top six.

Further back down the order, Butcher was able to recover to finish in tenth spot after his earlier incident, whilst Proctor took the flag in eleventh spot in his 100th start in the series.

That meant the Hyundai man would start the final race of the weekend from pole once the reverse grid draw had taken place, with Sutton once again leaving himself with work to do in race three as he had done at Oulton Park a week earlier.

Despite being on pole, Proctor was beaten away from the line when the lights went out as Butcher jumped into the lead on the the run to turn one; the Scot seeking to secure a victory at the circuit owned by his father for a second season in a row.

Butcher didn’t get much of a chance to scamper away at the front however as the race was stopped following a huge shunt at the chicane at the start of lap two.

As the field streamed through the right-hander at McIntyre’s, Butcher’s team-mate Ollie Jackson was hit in the rear by the Mercedes of Adam Morgan as the field concertinaed up with the end result being that the right rear wheel on the Motorbase Focus locked solid.

As Jackson then headed down through Butcher’s and rose up into the chicane, the rear of the Ford stepped out and he was sent into a spin in front of the field before being collected by Bushell’s Astra.

Page 54

As the rest of the pack then went either side of the stricken pair, Sam Osborne’s Honda clipped the Vauxhall at speed - putting his car off into the gravel and leaving officials with no option but to throw the red flag.

Whilst Jackson and Osborne escaped injury, Bushell was left nursing a dislocated shoulder and damaged ligaments in his wrist as his two round stint on the grid ended on a low.

Once the circuit had been cleared, the field lined up for the restart and Butcher once again got the jump on Proctor when the action kicked off.

From that point on, Butcher was never at serious risk of being beaten as he edged away from Proctor behind to secure his second win of the campaign and the first 'on the road' for the new Focus.

Whilst Proctor was unable to keep Butcher behind at the start, he put in a solid performance to take second spot with Tom

Chilton taking third after he managed to jump Smiley’s Hyundai on lap two.

Smiley wouldn’t have the pace to match the top three and would face huge pressure from behind, with Oliphant making a fine move at Duffus Dip to eventually pass the Northern Irishman on lap five before being followed through by the Honda’s of Hill and Cammish.

That set the top six positions but Smiley couldn’t relax for a moment in order to secure seventh thanks to train of cars behind that included title rivals Turkington and Sutton.

Turkington would eventually cross the line in ninth sport with Sutton two places back in eleventh, which meant the BMW man took a ten point lead away from the weekend.

Butcher’s victory meanwhile moved him to third but 43 points down on the lead, with Oliphant, Cammish and Ingram rounding out the top six going into a short three-week break in proceedings.

Page 55

RACE ONE

QUALIFYING 1

Ash Sutton

50.535

1

Ash Sutton

27 laps

2

Jake Hill

+0.053

2

Colin Turkington

+0.350

3

Colin Turkington

+0.083

3

Jake Hill

+3.541

4

Dan Cammish

+0.181

4

Tom Ingram

+4.037

5

Tom Ingram

+0.200

5

Rory Butcher

+5.215

6

Rory Butcher

+0.270

6

Dan Cammish

+6.049

7

Mike Bushell

+0.307

7

Matt Neal

+8.683

8

Aiden Moffat

+0.386

8

Tom Oliphant

+8.983

9

Matt Neal

+0.393

9

Aiden Moffat

+10.237

10

Tom Oliphant

+0.399

10

Stephen Jelley

+12.457

11

Josh Cook

+0.399

11

Tom Chilton

+12.468

12

Stephen Jelley

+0.427

12

Adam Morgan

+16.051

13

Tom Chilton

+0.450

13

Senna Proctor

+16.529

14

Adam Morgan

+0.456

14

Chris Smiley

+18.382

15

Senna Proctor

+0.465

15

Carl Boardley

+20.902

16

Michael Crees

+0.485

16

Ollie Jackson

+21.756

17

Carl Boardley

+0.552

17

Michael Crees

+21.999

18

Sam Osborne

+0.664

18

Bobby Thompson

+24.555

19

Chris Smiley

+0.685

19

Sam Osborne

+25.296

20

Bobby Thompson

+0.731

20

Jack Butel

+28.561

21

Ollie Jackson

+0.781

21

Mike Bushell

+1 lap

22

Jack Goff

+0.793

DNF

James Gornall

Damage

23

James Gornall

+0.916

DNF

Andy Neate

Damage

24

Andy Neate

+0.917

DNF

Josh Cook

Accident

25

Jack Butel

+1.260

DNF

Jack Goff

Electrical

FL

Sutton

51.016

Page 56

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Ash Sutton

27 laps

1

Rory Butcher

20 laps

2

Colin Turkington

+0.662

2

Senna Proctor

+6.442

3

Tom Ingram

+4.033

3

Tom Chilton

+7.232

4

Dan Cammish

+4.707

4

Tom Oliphant

+7.816

5

Aiden Moffat

+6.282

5

Jake Hill

+9.063

6

Tom Oliphant

+6.787

6

Dan Cammish

+12.319

7

Tom Chilton

+8.888

7

Chris Smiley

+21.393

8

Jake Hill

+10.972

8

Aiden Moffat

+21.720

9

Chris Smiley

+11.502

9

Colin Turkington

+21.925

10

Rory Butcher

+11.820

10

Tom Ingram

+22.312

11

Senna Proctor

+12.536

11

Ash Sutton

+22.516

12

Carl Boardley

+13.554

12

Matt Neal

+22.987

13

Ollie Jackson

+14.455

13

Stephen Jelley

+24.598

14

Adam Morgan

+15.155

14

Adam Morgan

+25.833

15

Matt Neal

+15.922

15

Josh Cook

+26.066

16

Mike Bushell

+17.007

16

Michael Crees

+26.721

17

Michael Crees

+17.485

17

Carl Boardley

+29.535

18

Sam Osborne

+19.453

18

James Gornall

+29.718

19

Jack Goff

+19.751

19

Bobby Thompson

+30.231

20

James Gornall

+21.659

20

Andy Neate

+33.579

21

Jack Butel

+23.353

21

Jack Goff

+34.205

DNF

Andy Neate

Spin

22

Jack Butel

+37.796

DNF

Stephen Jelley

Damage

DNF

Ollie Jackson

Accident

DNF

Josh Cook

Spin

DNF

Mike Bushell

Accident

DSQ

Bobby Thompson

Overboost

DNF

Sam Osborne

Accident

FL

Sutton

50.876

FL

Butcher

50.996

Page 57

THRUXTON ROUNDS 13/14/15 Page 58

After the hectic opening run of four race weekends across the month of August, teams were able to enjoy a few weeks off before the trip to Thruxton and a meeting that would bring up the half-way stage of the season.

return to the seat, although as with many things in 2020, it was subject to change.

It was the second big piece of news to come out of Team HARD in the space of a few days, with the announcement that the CC would be retired at the end of the year and replaced by a new SEAT León Competicioń for the 2021 season.

The grid would be back up to the full complement of 27 cars for the trip to Hampshire, with the two Team HARD Volkswagen CCs that hadn’t competed at Knockhill being back in action.

Nicolas Hamilton returned at the wheel of the Rokit-backed CC but Ollie Brown needed more time to recover from the injuries he had sustained at Oulton Park, leaving Tony Gilham's team to bring in a substitute.

Step forward Tom Onslow-Cole as he returned to the series for the first time since 2013, with a gap in his GT programme providing him with the chance to get get back behind the wheel of a car he had raced in its debut season in the series. A deal was done to cover three meetings with the hope that Brown could then

Onslow-Cole wouldn’t be the only person to make a return to the grid at Thruxton, as Power Maxed Racing also brought in a new driver for the sole Vauxhall Astra on the grid.

Mike Bushell had hoped to add a third event onto his stint behind the wheel but his accident at Knockhill would rule him out of the equation, with Rob Austin instead getting the nod to contest his first BTCC races since the 2018 season finale.

As was becoming the norm, the weekend was run behind closed doors and it was a Honda that would emerge with the quickest time when on track action got underway with free

Page 59

practice - this time in the hands of Dan Cammish.

The Team Dynamics driver wasted little time in getting up to speed in his FK8 Civic Type R as he looked to make up ground in the title race at a circuit where Honda cars had traditionally gone well in the past.

His fastest lap with little more than a quarter of an hour of the opening session left to run would dip below the qualifying lap record set

by Sam Tordoff in 2019, and was so good that he was able to end his session early and watch the final stages from back in the pits.

Clearly pleased with his early time, Cammish was also able to save tyres as he completed only eleven laps.

A benchmark time of 1:15.327 was two tenths of a second quicker than the older FK2 Civic of Jake Hill, with the MB Motorsport driver having spent much of the session leading the way.

Hill would have to settle for second spot ahead of Tom Ingram in the Speedworks Toyota and Tom Oliphant in the first rear-wheel drive car on the timesheets.

Adam Morgan’s Mercedes and the Honda of Josh Cook - a winner at the previous three Thruxton meetings - would follow behind, with points leader Colin Turkington in seventh despite the additional ballast on his car.

That put the WSR driver clear of closest rival Ash Sutton, who was down outside the top ten in the Laser Tools Racing Infiniti.

Although a fraction slower in the second practice session, Cammish was again the man who would come out on top when drivers returned to the circuit although this time, his quickest lap would come right at the start of the session.

This time around it was Senna Proctor in the EXCELR8 Hyundai who would be Cammish’s closest rival, but he was a full six tenths off the

Page 60

fastest time - even if he was one of few people to improve his lap compared to FP1.

Church on his fastest lap and it would ultimately play a part in him ending up less than tenth of a second off pole in the Toyota.

Turkington was the quickest of the rear wheel drive brigade with the fifth quickest time behind Morgan and Matt Neal with Sutton again outside the top ten in 16th place and with work to do going into qualifying.

Cammish was clearly the man to beat given his practice pace, but his hopes of a 'home pole' for Honda were put in doubt on his first timed run when the smallest of errors at Allard forced him into the pits to have grass removed from the radiator.

Neal was third quickest in the second of the Dynamics-run cars, with Morgan and Hill just behind. Rory Butcher rounded out the top six as he finally managed to get the Motorbase Focus working on the hard tyre, with title rivals Turkington and Sutton managing eighth and eleventh.

However, if Saturday was all about Cammish, Sunday would be all about Ingram as the championship fight took a major twist.

Having then gone back out to set a banker time, Cammish duly put the car on pole on his second run in the session; jumping ahead of Ingram into top spot with ten minutes remaining and breaking the qualifying record with the fastest time of the day.

When the opening race got underway, it was the Toyota man who made the better start as the field headed into Allard for the first time, with Cammish having to slot into second ahead of team-mate Neal and the Mercedes of Adam Morgan.

Like Cammish, Ingram’s session wasn’t without drama as he got a wheel on the grass at

From that point on, it would prove to be a largely processional affair at the front of the

Page 61

field, despite Cammish’s best efforts to try find a way back ahead of Ingram into the lead.

inside of Butcher at Seagrave to move into fifth.

The polesitter would close in briefly when Ingram had a moment at Church, and there was a half move into the chicane on the final lap on the off chance that Ingram made a mistake as his tyres started to fade away.

The gap to the four ahead was too great to make up any further spots, but Sutton had no cause to complain after Turkington suffered a rare mechanical problem that forced him to pit shortly after he had lost sixth spot.

However, the Speedworks man was able to hold on to take his first win of the season by less than a second, with Neal unable to keep pace with the pair ahead but having enough in hand to ensure that he didn’t come under pressure from Morgan.

Although WSR was able to resolve the electrical issue in the pits, Turkington would drop four laps in the process and wasn’t classified as a finisher.

In the early stages, Hill’s Honda had been in contention for the podium but a puncture caused by lap one contact with Tom Chilton dropped him out of the battle as he was forced into the pits.

Fifth would instead go to Sutton, with the Infiniti showing much improved performance in race trim that it had done on Saturday.

Although rear wheel drive cars had been hampered off the line by a change in boost, Sutton had managed to climb from eleventh to eighth on the opening lap and then made up a spot when Hill dived in for his tyre change.

That became sixth when Sutton managed to get ahead of Turkington at Allard, and the Laser Tools Racing man then slipped up the

That meant Sutton suddenly found himself going into the second race of the weekend as the championship leader, having moved a point ahead of Turkington and with a real chance to extend that advantage in race two.

Butcher was able to take sixth spot despite the best efforts of Chilton late on, with Oliphant, Cook and Michael Crees rounding out the top ten.

Further down the order, Austin celebrated his return to the series with a points finish in twelfth, although Onslow-Cole would end up down in 21st spot and was never in contention to trouble the scorers.

Amongst the retirements were Andy Neate and Carl Boardley, who would get together in a controversial clash on the eleventh lap. The duo had touched at the start of lap two going

Page 62

through Allard, with the end result being a trip across the grass for Neate that led to him being forced into an unscheduled pit stop.

Cammish bogged down on the line - which briefly allowed Neal up into second spot.

It wouldn’t be for long as Cammish quickly reclaimed the spot on lap two but Ingram had already broken away at the front to build a handy early lead.

Having returned to the track behind Boardley, Neate then tagged the rear of the BMW at the Complex and then made further contact with the Team HARD-run car; the end result being that both cars would retire from the race.

Neate was hit with a penalty for the incident, and would later be excluded from the meeting for 'an act prejudicial to the interests of motorsport generally in making a threat of physical assault by the use of his car to make deliberate contact with another competitor' when new information came to light.

Having controlled race one from the front, Ingram headed into race two now carrying maximum ballast on the Toyota but he would once again lead the way into turn one when the lights went out, aided by the fact that

Cammish pushed hard to quickly reduce that gap but try as he might, there was no way past the Toyota and he would once again follow Ingram home in second place, with Neal rounding out the podium as he had done in the opening race.

The former champion didn’t have the legs to keep pace with the two leaders as he gradually slipped back from the lead battle, with his focus for most of the race being on keeping Sutton behind.

The championship leader had made up a spot o the line to get ahead of Morgan but Neal would prove to be a tough nut to crack and

Page 63

there was no real opportunity for Sutton to snare a place on the podium - with the pair eventually split by just over a second at the finish.

That race would start with Cook on pole after Ingram pulled number eight out the back, with team-mate Chilton alongside on the front row of the grid - with both drivers looking to try and take their first wins of the season.

Truth be told, the race would be far from a classic and the only incident of note amongst the top ten came on lap twelve when Morgan suered an issue with the power steering on his Mercedes and was forced into the pits to retire from fifth spot.

Both got away well when the lights went out but it was Cook who maintained his advantage at the front going through Allard and up to the Complex for the first time.

That promoted Butcher up into fifth spot ahead of Oliphant who would spend the whole race fending o the three BTC Racing Hondas with Chilton heading Cook and Crees to the finish.

Senna Proctor’s Hyundai then rounded out the top ten whilst Turkington was able to make it up as far as 13th place by the finish to at least add some points to his tally - although he still lost ground to Sutton heading into the reverse grid final race of the weekend.

Through the early stages, the pair would run pretty much together on track before Cook started to edge away as the race passed the half way stage.

Increasingly comfortable at his home circuit, Cook would eventually cross the line to take victory by more than three seconds - which marked the fourth successive meeting at Thruxton in which had taken a win.

It went some way towards making up for the disappointment of the lost victory at Oulton Park, and also rewarded the team for the hard

Page 64

work that had gone into repairing the #66 Civic following the shunt at Knockhill.

Chilton following him home for the team’s first one-two finish was just the icing on the cake…

Behind the leading pair however, the fight for third place was far from straightforward, even if Butcher would hold the position throughout the 16 laps.

The pair would close in on Butcher and although Sutton would try on more than occasion to make his move, the Scot was able to hold on - with Sutton having to consider the fact that Ingram was waiting to pounce on any error.

Oliphant would end up in sixth ahead of Neal, who spent the whole race in a three-way battle for position with Crees and Turkington.

The Motorbase man had managed to get ahead of Oliphant on the opening lap going through the Complex and briefly managed to get a gap over the BMW behind as he came under pressure from Sutton through the early stages.

Seeing a chance to make a move on the fifth lap, Sutton swept past Oliphant into fourth place at Seagrave and was followed through by double winner Ingram, who was once again showing good pace in the ballast heavy Toyota.

That battle would end with Turkington eventually passing Crees on the penultimate lap to take eighth before Crees then slowed on the final lap with a puncture, which allowed Hill and Cammish to round out the top ten the latter suffering a poor start and then having to fight back from being shuffled down outside the top ten.

The weekend would end with Sutton holding a 16 point lead over Turkington in the standings, but with Ingram, Butcher and Cammish also scoring well, it was clear that the title battle was anything but a two driver affair…

Page 65

RACE ONE

QUALIFYING 1

Dan Cammish

1:15.201

1

Tom Ingram

16 laps

2

Tom Ingram

+0.092

2

Dan Cammish

+0.644

3

Matt Neal

+0.142

3

Matt Neal

+8.578

4

Adam Morgan

+0.159

4

Adam Morgan

+9.064

5

Jake Hill

+0.262

5

Ash Sutton

+18.578

6

Rory Butcher

+0.452

6

Rory Butcher

+19.776

7

Tom Chilton

+0.497

7

Tom Chilton

+20.374

8

Colin Turkington

+0.516

8

Tom Oliphant

+21.234

9

Michael Crees

+0.597

9

Josh Cook

+21.487

10

Josh Cook

+0.600

10

Michael Crees

+21.888

11

Ash Sutton

+0.702

11

Senna Proctor

+24.456

12

Tom Oliphant

+0.712

12

Rob Austin

+27.261

13

Senna Proctor

+0.750

13

Chris Smiley

+27.587

14

Chris Smiley

+0.752

14

Ollie Jackson

+27.879

15

Ollie Jackson

+0.755

15

Aiden Moffat

+29.910

16

Rob Austin

+1.114

16

Jack Goff

+30.192

17

Stephen Jelley

+1.235

17

Bobby Thompson

+30.478

18

Aiden Moffat

+1.285

18

James Gornall

+38.403

19

James Gornall

+1.302

19

Jack Butel

+44.675

20

Bobby Thompson

+1.377

20

Stephen Jelley

+48.784

21

Jack Goff

+1.853

21

Tom Onslow-Cole

+52.965

22

Sam Osborne

+2.169

22

Jake Hill

+1 lap

23

Jack Butel

+2.288

NC

Sam Osborne

Spin

24

Tom Onslow-Cole

+2.289

NC

Colin Turkington

Misfire

25

Carl Boardley

+2.514

DNF

Carl Boardley

Contact

26

Nicolas Hamilton

+3.654

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Clutch

EXC

Andy Neate

Penalty

EXC

Andy Neate

Penalty

FL

Ingram

1:16.206

Page 66

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Tom Ingram

16 laps

1

Josh Cook

16 laps

2

Dan Cammish

+0.291

2

Tom Chilton

+3.475

3

Matt Neal

+6.511

3

Rory Butcher

+4.397

4

Ash Sutton

+7.776

4

Ash Sutton

+5.096

5

Rory Butcher

+10.089

5

Tom Ingram

+5.628

6

Tom Oliphant

+11.192

6

Tom Oliphant

+7.119

7

Tom Chilton

+11.573

7

Matt Neal

+7.451

8

Josh Cook

+11.800

8

Colin Turkington

+8.447

9

Michael Crees

+12.390

9

Jake Hill

+8.912

10

Senna Proctor

+13.438

10

Dan Cammish

+9.629

11

Jake Hill

+13.830

11

Rob Austin

+10.345

12

Rob Austin

+15.265

12

Senna Proctor

+13.729

13

Colin Turkington

+15.442

13

Ollie Jackson

+14.270

14

Ollie Jackson

+20.514

14

Jack Goff

+16.000

15

Jack Goff

+21.024

15

Bobby Thompson

+17.840

16

Chris Smiley

+27.313

16

Chris Smiley

+22.384

17

Stephen Jelley

+30.532

17

Stephen Jelley

+23.032

18

Aiden Moffat

+30.866

18

Jack Butel

+31.263

19

Carl Boardley

+40.482

19

Tom Onslow-Cole

+35.369

20

Jack Butel

+40.929

20

Sam Osborne

+35.595

21

Tom Onslow-Cole

+42.216

21

Michael Crees

+36.060

22

Sam Osborne

+55.579

DNF

Adam Morgan

Steering

DNF

Adam Morgan

Steering

NC

Aiden Moffat

Pit

DNF

Bobby Thompson

Accident

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Clutch

DNF

James Gornall

Gearbox

DNF

Carl Boardley

Damage

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Clutch

DNS

James Gornall

Gearbox

EXC

Andy Neate

Penalty

EXC

Andy Neate

Penalty

FL

Cammish

1:16.208

FL

Cook

1:16.829

Page 67

SILVERSTONE ROUNDS 16/17/18 Page 68

Silverstone would be the scene of the sixth meeting of the season just a week after Thruxton, with teams having to contend with back-to-back race weekends for the third and final time in the unusual 2020 season.

With all 27 cars having come through the Thruxton weekend unscathed, a full field assembled at the 'Home of British Motorsport’ although there was one change to the driver line-up as Power Maxed Racing once again shuffled the pack in its Vauxhall Astra.

After the more experienced figures of Mike Bushell and Rob Austin had driven in the previous three rounds, it was time for a rookie racer to get behind the wheel, with Clio Cup runner Jade Edwards getting the call to make her series debut.

It was a deal that secured plenty of headlines as Edwards became the first female driver to race in the series since Fiona Leggate had competed in an MG ZS back in 2007, and came on the back of her having the chance to

test a Ford Focus with Motorbase towards the end of the 2019 campaign.

A brief shakedown on Friday evening to give teams chance to check their cars should have been a straightforward affair, but it wouldn’t pass without drama after a fire on the Ciceley Mercedes of Jack Butel, leaving the team with work to do ahead of the real action starting on Saturday morning.

Butel duly took his place on track for opening practice where Ash Sutton topped the times in the Laser Tools Racing Infiniti - despite the fact he was now carrying maximum ballast on his car after hitting the top of the standings a week earlier.

Sutton was open about the fact that he expected lap times to improve as the weekend wore on, but was still pleased to secure early bragging rights ahead of the Toyota of Tom Ingram, with the pair split by less than a tenth of a second after the 40 minutes of running were complete.

Page 69

Tom Oliphant’s BMW was third quickest ahead of the EXCELR8 Hyundai of Senna Proctor, with the two Dynamics Hondas of Matt Neal and Dan Cammish rounding out the top six - which was covered by little more than a quarter of a second.

Although the pair were split by less than a tenth of a second, Cammish had set more than one time that would have been good enough to lead the way, with the FK8 Civic Type R looking particularly strong around the short National circuit.

Colin Turkington wouldn’t be far behind in eighth spot, with fellow championship contender Rory Butcher rounding out the top ten in the Motorbase Ford Focus.

Sutton would post the third quickest time in the Infiniti despite spending much of the session working on running alongside teammate Aiden Moffat - with his benchmark time being set early in the session.

Further down the order, Edwards set a best time little more than a second off the pace in the Astra, which saw her finish up 26th ahead of Nic Hamilton’s Volkswagen.

Sutton’s prediction that lap times would improve soon proved to be correct, as Cammish moved to the head of the pack in FP2 with a lap that was a tenth of a second quicker, with team-mate Neal being his closest challenger out front.

Ingram was strong once again in the Toyota to slot into fourth whilst there were surprises further down the top ten, with Stephen Jelley going seventh quickest in Team Parker’s older 1 Series BMW, and James Gornall ninth quickest in the leading Trade Price Cars Racing Audi.

It was clear however that there would be no margin for error anywhere in the field when qualifying rolled around, with the top 25 drivers - the only exceptions being Andy Neate

Page 70

and Edwards - lapping within a second of each other.

Conditions had changed by the time qualifying came around however, with light rain adding an extra challenge for the drivers as they looked to try and get a quick time on the board.

Before that was possible however, the session was halted after a clash between Butel and Gornall on the Wellington Straight. Looking to get heat into his tyres, Butel weaved to the left just as Gornall went to pass the Mercedes leaving his Audi with collapsed suspension and forcing him to park on the side of the circuit.

Once the session got underway in earnest however, there was one driver who was head and shoulders above the rest as Cammish romped to his second pole in a row in impressive style.

A lap of 57.547s on only his sixth lap of the session would have been enough to take pole,

but the Honda driver then set no fewer than four quicker laps to secure pole - his benchmark time ultimately being a hugely impressive 0.198s quicker than anyone else on one of the shorter laps of the year.

It also ensured that the Team Dynamics driver broke the qualifying lap record.

As had been the case a week earlier in Hampshire, Ingram would end up sharing the front row of the grid after a late lap allowed him to move up the order and knocked Butcher’s Focus down to third.

He would instead have to settle for sharing the second row of the grid with Turkington, who spent the session working with team-mate Oliphant to try and extract as much as possible from the BMW in conditions that were far from ideal for the car.

Oliphant would lose a lap that would have been good enough for the front row to track limits and would instead line up fifth - although

Page 71

it was a mark of how dominant Cammish had been that Ingram, Butcher and the two BMWs were covered by just 0.010s.

made a move stick when he managed to get up the inside of Cammish at Luffield at the end of the fifth lap, but he did so just as the safety car was deployed to remove Michael Crees’ car from the gravel at Becketts.

Neal wasn’t quite able to replicate his practice performance as he had to settle for sixth spot, with points leader Sutton and the Mercedes of Adam Morgan rounding out the top eight.

Following the session, Cammish commented more than once about the fact that his starts at Thruxton hadn’t been great but the following morning, there would be no repeat when the opening race got underway.

This time around, the Honda driver was able to keep hold of the lead at the start despite Ingram’s best efforts through the opening lap, and the pair quickly set about building an advantage over Butcher as he was forced to contend with pressure from Turkington behind.

Ingram had been looking for any available opportunity to get ahead and thought he had

Ingram duly gave the place back to Cammish before the restart and was then forced to follow the Honda for the remainder of the race - Cammish eventually opening up a small gap late on to take victory by just over a second.

Butcher’s defensive masterclass would continue as he fought to keep Turkington behind despite the BMW appearing to be the quicker car, with the Scot being aided by a mid-race retirement for Olphant; who had been acting at Turkington’s rear-gunner.

That allowed Sutton to join the party in the Infiniti and as he looked to get ahead of Turkington for fourth, so Butcher was finally able to relax a little to secure third spot. Sutton did briefly edge ahead of Turkington going over the line to start the final lap, but the

Page 72

defending champion held on at Copse to retain fourth spot and eat into Sutton’s advantage at the front going into race two.

The clash between the pair promoted Turkington up into third place and the lead trio would soon be together on track - quickly dropping Morgan’s Mercedes after he took advantage of the lap one drama to move up into the top four.

Morgan, Jake Hill and Neal would round out the top eight; the latter having dropped down the order after a clash with Tom Chilton at Becketts early on.

As the race wore on, Turkington appeared to have the stronger car of the leading three and he finally managed to find a way ahead of Cammish’s ballast-laden Honda when he got his nose up the inside at Luffield at the end of the 14th lap, completing the move as the pair then swept through Copse to start the next lap.

Edwards meanwhile survived a clash with Neate at the same corner in the closing stages to take 23rd in her debut race.

If race one had - largely - been a case of 'as you were' at the front, the same certainly couldn’t be said of an action-packed second race of the weekend.

Cammish once again held the lead when the lights went out ahead of Ingram but this time around, the Honda man was unable to stay out front as Ingram made a fine move at Luffield to put his Toyota into first place.

Behind, there had already been drama amongst the other contenders, with Sutton managing to jump ahead of Turkington going through turn one only to then make contact with Butcher at Becketts.

It was contact that saw Butcher slip down to the rear of the field, whilst Sutton himself would also lose places early on and found himself running in the lower reaches of the top ten.

Before Turkington could try and pull a similar move on Ingram for the lead however, the Toyota suddenly ran wide on the exit of Becketts having suffered a front-left puncture, allowing the BMW driver into a lead he would keep to the finish ahead of Cammish and Morgan.

It was a win that allowed Turkington to vault back into the championship lead as Sutton picked up just a solitary point for fastest lap having also been forced to pit with a puncture - which also meant he would be starting race three from the back of the grid.

Outside the podium places, Neal took fourth spot ahead of Aiden Moffat after a battling drive saw him come from eleventh to fifth, with

Page 73

Josh Cook, Jake Hill and Ollie Jackson completing the top eight.

Oliphant could try and make a move on Jackson, the action was halted after a huge accident for Butcher on lap six.

Oliphant took ninth having come through the field from back following his issues in race one, and was duly drawn on pole for the final race of the weekend when Turkington carried out the reverse grid draw following his victory.

If race two had been memorable, it would only be a taster of what was to come when the final race of the weekend got underway, with Jackson launching his Motorbase-run Focus away well when the lights went out to jump ahead of Oliphant on the run to Copse.

Jackson held the lead through the opening lap from Oliphant and Hill, but there were further problems for one of the leading title protagonists as Ingram got caught up in a clash between Team HARD duo Tom OnslowCole and Carl Boardley that saw him spin o into the barriers and out of the race.

The lead pair would run nose-to-tail through the opening laps of the race, but before

Looking to move up from 14th place after his race two clash with Sutton, Butcher was dicing for seventh with Neal on the run from Copse down to Becketts when the pair made contact - sending the Focus onto the grass on the inside.

The car made heavy contact with the barriers before being launched into a roll that came to an end with the wrecked Focus landing back on the circuit on the exit of the corner, where he was lucky to escape being collected by one of the following cars.

Butcher was able to climb from the wrecked car under his own steam, with the race restarting following a lengthy delay as the Focus was removed from the circuit and barrier repairs were carried out.

Jackson again got a better start than Oliphant on the restart to stay out front and would lead

Page 74

the early stages before the BMW driver managed to get alongside going into Copse on lap seven and took the lead.

Jackson responded immediately and reclaimed the lead going down to Becketts, and he ensured that Oliphant had no further opportunities to get ahead as a measured drive through the closing laps saw him rewarded with a maiden victory.

He was aided by the fact that Oliphant came under huge pressure in the closing stages from a charging Sutton - who had started the original race back in 26th spot following his puncture in race two.

Sutton had made it up to 14th before Butcher’s accident and, with no ballast on his car, was able to continue his charge after the restart as he stormed up to third by the end of lap eight.

All over the rear of Oliphant’s BMW going into the final lap, Sutton got ahead at Copse but was deemed to have run too wide in making

the move - with the positions being reversed post race.

Cammish would pick up more strong points for his championship challenge with fourth place ahead of Morgan’s Mercedes as he concluded a strong weekend of his own with fifth spot.

Proctor’s Hyundai would end up sixth, with Cook and Moffat rounding out the top eight.

Having moved into the points lead after race two, Turkington was unable to make his way through the pack ahead in the shortened twelve lap race, and took the flag in tenth place, meaning it was Sutton who would end the weekend back on top of the pile.

The gap between the pair at the front would be just four points with Cammish 17 points off the lead, whilst Ingram and Butcher had both lost valuable ground thanks to their issues - and the latter faced questions over whether his car would be fixed in time for Croft two weeks later…

Page 75

QUALIFYING

RACE ONE

1

Dan Cammish

57.349

1

Dan Cammish

25 laps

2

Tom Ingram

+0.198

2

Tom Ingram

+1.081

3

Rory Butcher

+0.201

3

Rory Butcher

+4.468

4

Colin Turkington

+0.203

4

Colin Turkington

+4.815

5

Tom Oliphant

+0.208

5

Ash Sutton

+5.049

6

Matt Neal

+0.254

6

Adam Morgan

+7.516

7

Ash Sutton

+0.314

7

Jake Hill

+8.957

8

Adam Morgan

+0.324

8

Matt Neal

+9.368

9

Tom Chilton

+0.345

9

Stephen Jelley

+10.856

10

Jake Hill

+0.370

10

Josh Cook

+14.030

11

Ollie Jackson

+0.388

11

Aiden Moffat

+17.706

12

Josh Cook

+0.466

12

Carl Boardley

+18.898

13

Carl Boardley

+0.525

13

Ollie Jackson

+18.915

14

Stephen Jelley

+0.528

14

Senna Proctor

+19.500

15

Aiden Moffat

+0.546

15

Tom Chilton

+19.713

16

Senna Proctor

+0.569

16

Chris Smiley

+20.870

17

Sam Osborne

+0.574

17

Sam Osborne

+22.368

18

Jack Goff

+0.660

18

Bobby Thompson

+22.812

19

Bobby Thompson

+0.723

19

Tom Onslow-Cole

+23.639

20

Jack Butel

+0.738

20

Jack Butel

+24.784

21

Tom Onslow-Cole

+0.836

21

Andy Neate

+25.131

22

Chris Smiley

+0.843

22

James Gornall

+25.412

23

Michael Crees

+0.833

23

Jade Edwards

+27.430

24

Andy Neate

+0.922

24

Nicolas Hamilton

+29.812

25

Nicolas Hamilton

+1.064

DNF

Tom Oliphant

Suspension

26

Jade Edwards

+1.282

DNF

Michael Crees

Spin

27

James Gornall

No time

DNF

Jack Goff

Misfire

FL

Cammish

57.750

Page 76

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Colin Turkington

22 laps

1

Ollie Jackson

12 laps

2

Dan Cammish

+1.245

2

Tom Oliphant

+0.576

3

Adam Morgan

+3.172

3

Ash Sutton

+0.612

4

Matt Neal

+7.876

4

Dan Cammish

+1.130

5

Aiden Moffat

+12.576

5

Adam Morgan

+3.827

6

Josh Cook

+13.804

6

Senna Proctor

+3.947

7

Jake Hill

+14.500

7

Josh Cook

+4.238

8

Ollie Jackson

+14.910

8

Aiden Moffat

+4.472

9

Tom Oliphant

+15.102

9

Tom Chilton

+4.599

10

Senna Proctor

+16.911

10

Colin Turkington

+4.911

11

Tom Chilton

+17.115

11

Matt Neal

+5.453

12

Sam Osborne

+17.831

12

Bobby Thompson

+6.191

13

Bobby Thompson

+18.380

13

Chris Smiley

+7.178

14

Rory Butcher

+18.559

14

Carl Boardley

+7.241

15

Chris Smiley

+20.016

15

Jake Hill

+10.661

16

James Gornall

+20.404

16

Jack Goff

+10.838

17

Jack Butel

+21.098

17

Jack Butel

+11.030

18

Tom Onslow-Cole

+21.446

18

Stephen Jelley

+11.328

19

Jack Goff

+21.913

19

Tom Onslow-Cole

+12.921

20

Stephen Jelley

+22.858

20

Sam Osborne

+14.645

21

Jade Edwards

+25.507

21

Nicolas Hamilton

+23.487

22

Andy Neate

+26.205

DNF

Jade Edwards

Steering

23

Carl Boardley

+43.244

DNF

James Gornall

Misfire

24

Nicolas Hamilton

+1 lap

DNF

Michael Crees

Engine

25

Tom Ingram

+1 laps

DNF

Rory Butcher

Accident

26

Ash Sutton

+2 laps

DNF

Andy Neate

Spin

DNF

Michael Crees

Engine

DNF

Tom Ingram

Spin

FL

Sutton

57.687

FL

Sutton

58.015

Page 77

CROFT ROUNDS 19/20/21 Page 78

Traditionally held during the first half of the season, Croft would instead play host to round seven of the rejigged schedule on the very weekend that the season should have been drawing to a close.

A monumental effort from Motorbase - with plenty of assistance from Custom Cages ensured that Rory Butcher’s Focus had been fully repaired after his accident at Silverstone and meant that a full grid of 27 cars should have been in place for the weekend.

However, just days before the event came news that James Gornall’s maiden campaign was at an end after his qualifying clash with Jack Butel two weeks earlier - which had further hit an already tight budget.

Trade Price Cars Racing moved to replace the MINI champion with a deal agreed with Clio Cup legend Paul Rivett - although a prior commitment meant he wouldn’t debut until Snetterton and meant the Audi team would be represented by a single car.

Two further changes to the entry saw Power Maxed Racing bring in Ginetta racer Jac Constable for his debut, whilst Tom OnslowCole was unable to complete his three round stint with Team HARD as a result of COVID restrictions following a trip to Belgium for testing ahead of the Spa 24 Hours.

Instead, Mike Bushell was recalled by the team to get back behind the wheel of the Volkswagen CC that he had initially planned to race for the whole season before the pandemic reared its head.

There was little shock that the 'King of Croft' started the weekend on top, with Colin Turkington firing the opening salvo in FP1 as he posted the fastest lap at the wheel of his BMW 330i M Sport.

A time of 1:22.145 came in the middle of a series of quick laps in the latter stages of the session whilst on a race run, and was one of two laps that would have been good enough to edge out points leader Ash Sutton - who

Page 79

ended up a tenth of a second behind in the Laser Tools Racing Infiniti.

session leading the way in his MB Motorsport Civic - slotting into third place.

Fastest of the front-wheel drive runners would be Dan Cammish as the three leading drivers in the standings locked out the top three places in the session - with the Honda man briefly heading the times before Turkington’s late fliers.

Morgan was a solid fourth in the Ciceley-run Mercedes, with Ingram taking fifth late on as he looked to make up for the time lost whilst sidelined in the morning.

Tom Oliphant, Jake Hill and Josh Cook rounded out the top six, just ahead of Adam Morgan and Matt Neal.

Butcher was an encouraging tenth quickest despite the session effectively being a shakedown of his rebuilt car but there were dramas for another title contender as Tom Ingram failed to post a time.

The Speedworks driver would be sidelined as a result of a manifold issue on his Toyota, with the team confident that the problem would be fully resolved before FP2 came around.

That second session would end once again with Turkington setting the quickest time, with the Northern Irishman going close to the qualifying lap record held by Andrew Jordan in the closing stages of the session.

A time of 1:21.768 was good enough to see Turkington edge Cook’s Honda Civic Type R out of top spot by less than a tenth of a second, with Hill - who had spent most of the

Oliphant rounded out the top six just ahead of Sutton and Bushell, with the latter bouncing back from a trip off at Clervaux in FP1 that had briefly brought out the red flag.

Butcher and Cammish completed the top ten, with the Honda man having required a new subframe prior to the session that meant he was late joining the action.

The proverbial cat was thrown amongst the pigeons ahead of qualifying however thanks to the arrival of heavy rain in the preceding Porsche Sprint Challenge session.

The resultant tricky track conditions would make the session something of a lottery and led to mixed fortunes for the main championship contenders.

Sutton would be the early pacesetter in the Infiniti and - having dropped behind the Hyundai of Senna Proctor - he was on course for an improved time when the session was stopped following an off at turn one for teammate Aiden Moffat.

Page 80

Incredibly, Sutton then did the same thing when the session restarted and buried his car in the gravel - bringing out another stoppage and losing his quickest time in the session.

In what would become a ten minute dash for pole, Cammish vaulted up into P1 in the Honda only to lose the lap to track limits, which meant he would line up down in 14th spot, with Ingram instead managing to take the fastest time ahead of Cook - with Proctor demoted back to third.

As the cars returned to the pits after the chequered flag however, there was drama as Ingram and Proctor failed the ride height test, leading to both drivers being thrown out of the session.

It promoted Cook onto pole ahead of Hill on an all Honda front-row, with Turkington and Oliphant on row two after the wet conditions negated any advantage the BMW might have had.

Fifth marked a career best result for Bobby Thompson in the sole Audi and it could have been better had he not lost a time to track limits, with Sutton managing to escape from the session with sixth; a result that could have been worse for the points leader.

The Hondas of Tom Chilton, Neal and Michael Crees, and Butcher’s Ford, rounded out the top ten.

Debutant Constable had qualified 21st on the grid in the Astra but he would sit out race day after falling ill overnight - meaning a 25 car field lined up for the opening race on a damp, but drying, circuit on Sunday morning.

Cook made the best start when the lights went out to retain the lead of the race, with a determined Hill holding o the challenge of Turkington through the opening corners to keep second place.

Behind, Sutton had got away well o the line in the Infiniti to quickly clear Thompson and then

Page 81

nosed ahead of OIiphant mid-way through the opening lap.

Back into the top ten by the end of lap five, Sutton would make a number of impressive moves for position at the final hairpin as he picked o his rivals ahead, and was promoted up into fourth place post-race when Butcher was handed a time penalty for the contact that reversed the positions.

Heading into the Complex for the first time however, he was tipped into a spin by Butcher - who had enjoyed a strong start in the Ford and dropped down to 14th spot; immediately putting the points leader on the back foot.

With Sutton out of the equation in the fight for victory, the battle for top spot would ultimately come down to Cook and Hill as the Honda pair edged clear of Turkington behind.

Hill did manage to briefly get alongside his rival but Cook held on and ultimately secured the victory by little more than half a second.

Unable to keep pace with the pair ahead as the laps ticked down, Turkington would endure a lonely run to third place and was followed home by Butcher and Sutton - who launched an astonishing recovery drive through the field after his lap one drama.

Chilton took sixth despite the best eorts of Neal to get ahead on the final lap, with Thompson’s Audi following behind in eighth as he backed up his qualifying performance with a strong opening race.

Of the other title contenders, Cammish managed to break into the top ten as he crossed the lined just ahead of Oliphant - who lost time as a result of the Butcher/Sutton clash - whilst Ingram would make it up as far as 13th from the back of the grid.

Race two would be packed with drama from the start, as a number of the title contenders

Page 82

ran into problems - kicking off with Turkington on the run to Clervaux for the first time.

looked to try and find a way to get ahead of Hill for second spot.

As Cook held onto the lead ahead of Hill, despite now carrying maximum ballast on the BTC Racing Honda, Turkington made a rare error and locked up the BMW going into turn one - sliding off into the gravel and out of the race.

Briefly getting alongside across the line at the end of lap four, Sutton launched his move at the hairpin at the end of lap six, but side-byside contact saw the front right tyre on the Infiniti punctured by the Honda’s exhaust.

Seconds later, Butcher then ran wide out of the chicane in his Focus and took a trip across the grass that resulted in him needing to take a though the pits, dropping him to the back of the field and out of the mix for points.

After a brief safety car period to allow Turkington’s car to be recovered, Cook led the race from Hill and Sutton, with Neal having made the most of the dramas ahead on the opening lap to climb up into fourth.

The issues for both Turkington and Butcher left Sutton in a strong position to extend his lead in the points, but the former champion clearly had no intention of settling for position as he

That meant a slow lap back to the pits for Sutton, who joined Turkington in failing to score and was unable to extend his lead in the standings as a result.

Cook continued to lead the race as Hill came under pressure from Neal, who slipped up the inside at Sunny on lap ten to take second with a move that he has become famous for through the years.

Chasing down Cook ahead, Neal tried to pull a similar move on the penultimate lap for the lead but saw Cook defend, and then made another attempt on the final lap that resulted in contact between the pair.

Page 83

That put Neal into the lead with Cook controlling a sideways moment to hold onto second place - although there was little surprise when officials then decided to reverse the positions post-race, giving Cook a second win of the weekend.

Hill rounded out the podium to complete a Honda 1-2-3 despite late pressure from Ingram as he continued to recover from his qualifying exclusion with a fine run through from 13th on the grid to fourth.

Ingram would be the only non-Honda driver to finish inside the top six as Cammish and Chilton followed behind, with the latter then drawn on pole for the final race of the weekend.

Oliphant was the best placed of the rear-wheel drive cars in seventh ahead of Thompson, with the top ten completed by Proctor’s Hyundai and the older BMW of Stephen Jelley.

With the points situation seeing Cammish suddenly close to within 13 points of Sutton who held a two point lead over Turkington - it was the Honda man who had the chance to then make real progress in the final race of the weekend, given he would be starting from the front row of the grid and both Sutton and Turkington would need to come from the back of the field.

When the action got underway, it was Chilton who held the lead going into turn one, but

Cammish found himself under attack from Ingram as he swept through into second place.

Heading out of Tower and up towards the Jim Clark Esses, Ingram then made his bid for the lead with a brave move on Chilton - sweeping ahead to claim the position.

By this stage, the title race had already taken a further twist, as contact in the pack heading through the opening corners left Turkington nursing damage that required him to return to the pits.

WSR would work hard to repair the BMW and get the defending champion back on track, but having dropped four laps in the process, he had to settle for a single point for setting the fastest lap to cap a miserable race day.

Following his opening lap charge, Ingram quickly established a handy lead out front as Chilton struggled to match the pace of the Toyota and was nearly three seconds clear by the end of lap two - by far the biggest advantage seen across the three races.

However, the safety car would then close the field back up after Thompson’s impressive race weekend came to a dramatic end at the Jim Clark Esses.

Battling for position with Proctor on the exit of Tower, Thompson’s Audi ended up on the grass on the run to the Esses and from there on, he was a passenger as the car dug into the infield

Page 84

and was launched in a huge barrel-roll - going end-over-end before eventually coming to rest.

A clearly shaken Thompson was able to climb from the wrecked car himself and taken to the circuit medical centre for checks, with marshals working to clear the scene to allow the action to resume on lap seven.

Ingram again edged away from Chilton, who had his mirrors full of Cammish’s similar FK8 Civic until he finally made it into second with a dive at Tower on lap 13.

Cammish closed in on the lead as Ingram started to struggle with a vibration, leading to concerns about a puncture similar to the one that had robbed him of victory at Silverstone in the previous event.

With the Honda on his tail, the Speedworks man was able to hold on and secure the win and complete an impressive back-to-front performance across the three races, and bring himself firmly back into the title equation.

Second place for Cammish still meant a strong haul of points for the Team Dynamics driver towards his own championship challenge, with Chilton and Neal behind as the Honda cars once again ran towards the sharp end.

Neal only just held on for fourth however after another storming drive from Sutton saw him romp through the pack from the back.

Climbing seven spots on the opening lap, Sutton spent the closing stages backed up behind Oliphant’s BMW before finally getting ahead on the penultimate lap, and then fell just 0.019s of beating Neal to fourth in a drag race to the line. Oliphant, Hill and Cook rounded out the top eight.

After a real rollercoaster of a race day, Sutton retained the championship lead but it was now Cammish who was his closest rival and just seven points in arrears.

Turkington had slipped to third, 12 points back, with Ingram 29 off the lead. It was very much game on heading for Snetterton…

Page 85

RACE ONE

QUALIFYING 1

Josh Cook

1:27.350

1

Josh Cook

15 laps

2

Jake Hill

+0.150

2

Jake Hill

+0.653

3

Colin Turkington

+0.160

3

Colin Turkington

+3.573

4

Tom Oliphant

+0.224

4

Ash Sutton

+10.348

5

Bobby Thompson

+0.243

5

Rory Butcher

+10.592

6

Ash Sutton

+0.285

6

Tom Chilton

+13.245

7

Tom Chilton

+0.331

7

Matt Neal

+13.436

8

Matt Neal

+0.345

8

Bobby Thompson

+16.909

9

Michael Crees

+0.379

9

Adam Morgan

+17.248

10

Rory Butcher

+0.410

10

Dan Cammish

+17.663

11

Ollie Jackson

+0.847

11

Tom Oliphant

+17.890

12

Adam Morgan

+0.958

12

Chris Smiley

+21.148

13

Chris Smiley

+1.051

13

Tom Ingram

+21.553

14

Dan Cammish

+1.144

14

Ollie Jackson

+23.441

15

Aiden Moffat

+1.153

15

Stephen Jelley

+23.748

16

Stephen Jelley

+1.421

16

Aiden Moffat

+25.347

17

Sam Osborne

+1.803

17

Jack Goff

+27.187

18

Jack Goff

+1.867

18

Senna Proctor

+27.663

19

Carl Boardley

+2.027

19

Mike Bushell

+28.220

20

Mike Bushell

+2.386

20

Carl Boardley

+40.219

21

Jac Constable

+2.687

21

Andy Neate

+55.454

22

Andy Neate

+2.971

22

Michael Crees

+1 lap

23

Jack Butel

+2.979

DNF

Jack Butel

Steering

24

Nicolas Hamilton

+5.583

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Gearbox

25

Senna Proctor

No time

DNF

Sam Osborne

Damage

26

Tom Ingram

No time

DNS

Jac Constable

Illness

FL

Cook

1:22.464

Page 86

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Josh Cook

16 laps

1

Tom Ingram

18 laps

2

Matt Neal

+0.171

2

Dan Cammish

+0.278

3

Jake Hill

+0.635

3

Tom Chilton

+5.001

4

Tom Ingram

+1.087

4

Matt Neal

+6.453

5

Dan Cammish

+4.673

5

Ash Sutton

+6.472

6

Tom Chilton

+8.164

6

Tom Oliphant

+7.129

7

Tom Oliphant

+8.346

7

Jake Hill

+8.099

8

Bobby Thompson

+8.960

8

Josh Cook

+8.548

9

Senna Proctor

+14.044

9

Senna Proctor

+10.235

10

Stephen Jelley

+14.944

10

Aiden Moffat

+10.435

11

Aiden Moffat

+16.867

11

Rory Butcher

+10.894

12

Chris Smiley

+18.523

12

Ollie Jackson

+11.438

13

Adam Morgan

+22.306

13

Adam Morgan

+13.535

14

Sam Osborne

+22.447

14

Stephen Jelley

+16.681

15

Mike Bushell

+22.740

15

Sam Osborne

+16.825

16

Andy Neate

+27.451

16

Andy Neate

+17.677

17

Jack Butel

+28.371

17

Mike Bushell

+18.639

18

Jack Goff

+30.616

18

Jack Goff

+18.975

19

Rory Butcher

+46.106

19

Chris Smiley

+25.669

20

Ash Sutton

+1 lap

20

Jack Butel

+29.478

DNF

Michael Crees

Misfire

21

Nicolas Hamilton

+31.497

DNF

Ollie Jackson

Suspension

22

Carl Boardley

+1:22.945

DNF

Colin Turkington

Accident

NC

Colin Turkington

Damage

DNS

Carl Boardley

Turbo

DNF

Bobby Thompson

Accident

DNS

Nicolas Hamilton

Gearbox

DNF

Michael Crees

Misfire

DNS

Jac Constable

Illness

DNS

Jac Constable

Illness

FL

Butcher

1:22.298

FL

Turkington

1:21.781

Page 87

SNETTERTON ROUNDS 22/23/24 Page 88

It was late October by the time the series headed to Snetterton for the penultimate weekend of the season, and it was now clear that the whole campaign would run without fans who were once again left to watch from home.

Ironically, Hammerton had been set to miss the MINI races at Snetterton after a shunt of his own at Silverstone, and was part of a new-look line-up alongside Paul Rivett as he made his series debut in place of James Gornall.

Rather than the warm temperatures of August, late October was very much 'big coat and hat' weather - with low track temperatures providing a new challenge for drivers from the moment they left the pits and tyre performance being a major talking point.

AmD Tuning - the team charged with running the Trade Price Cars Racing programme - had endured a busy few weeks working alongside NGTC car builder Willie Poole to repair Bobby Thompson’s car after the Croft incident, but the Audi was able to take its place on the grid to keep the grid at 27 cars.

Thompson wouldn’t be behind the wheel however, as the after-effects of concussion meant he wasn’t passed fit to compete, with the team instead drafting in MINI Challenge racer Ethan Hammerton to take his place.

Elsewhere, W Series racer Jessica Hawkins became the second female driver in three rounds to join the grid after she was given the chance to race the Power Maxed Racing Astra, whilst Team HARD also shuffled the pack again as Glynn Geddie returned to action in place of Ollie Brown - who wasn’t able to return to action as planned after his incident at Oulton Park earlier in the year.

Snetterton had already been due to trial a new qualifying format when the original calendar was announced, but the changes brought about as a result of COVID-19 meant the format for the weekend as a whole would be revamped.

With fewer daylight hours and a need to bring track action to an end earlier on Sunday as a result, the decision was taken to run just one BTCC practice session on Saturday morning to

Page 89

provide more time for support race action later in the day.

and get his Jack Sears Trophy campaign back on track after a tough run of form.

That meant a busy time for drivers and teams alike, who now had just 50 minutes of running prior to qualifying, rather than the usual 80.

Although not necessarily regarded as a rearwheel drive circuit, Colin Turkington enjoyed a solid start to his weekend, with the Team BMW man spending a large chunk of the session on top of the times despite the additional 48kg of ballast he was carrying into the weekend.

Tricky conditions as a result of low track temperatures, which would fail to make it to double figures, meant that lap times were some way off record-breaking pace, with the MB Motorsport Honda of Jake Hill emerging with the fastest lap time.

Running without success ballast despite a strong weekend at Croft, Hill left it late in the session before hitting the front and did so with a lap that was more than half a second faster than anyone else would manage - and that was without using a set of new tyres.

Adam Morgan’s Mercedes would end up with the second best time as he too left it late to set his fastest lap, with the FK8 Honda of Michael Crees slotting into third place right at the very end - giving him a boost as he looked to try

Whilst he would be shuffled back down to fourth in the closing moments and ultimately ended up nearly eight tenths of a second off the pace, Turkington was the fastest of the championship contenders, although Rory Butcher, Dan Cammish, and Tom Ingram would fill the positions directly behind.

Even with maximum ballast on the Infiniti, points leader Ash Sutton completed the top ten, but was more than a second off the pace, whilst of the four newcomers, it was Hawkins who was fastest in the Astra as she took 20th spot.

ROUNDS 4/5/6 Page 90

Conditions would be slightly warmer when the new look qualifying session rolled around, although it would still prove to be a huge challenge for drivers when it came to trying to get heat into their tyres.

to the top ten, with BTC Racing’s Josh Cook perhaps the biggest name to miss out after he could only post the twelfth best time. Matt Neal was also on the outside looking in, having spun during his second qualifying run.

What that meant was, rather than setting a quick time straight away, drivers would find themselves carrying out longer runs in Q1 before the quick times came late on - and the ten drivers to make Q2 were decided.

With just ten minutes in which to chase a time in Q2 around the longest circuit on the calendar, the ten cars headed straight out and it was Ingram’s Toyota that set the early pace; the Speedworks driver having spent the latter part of Q1 making sure he had warm tyres ready to go in the fight for pole.

It was Butcher’s Ford that headed the ten drivers to make it through to the second phase of the session - which included the main championship contenders.

Sutton was one who looked to be at risk for a chunk of Q1 as he struggled with track limits, but his final lap would move him up into third spot and secured his place in the 'Showdown', whilst Cammish also survived losing a lap to track limits to make it through.

Aiden Moffat’s Infiniti and Ollie Jackson’s Ford Focus were the two more surprising additions

Ingram’s benchmark time would be bettered in the closing moments by Hill as he put the older Honda onto provisional pole, but Turkington was going even quicker behind and on his final timed lap, it was the BMW driver who secured his place at the head of the grid.

Hill would settle for second ahead of Ingram, who failed to improve on his final lap, with Butcher, Cammish and Sutton rounding out the top five.

Page 91

Morgan would be the big loser, ending up down in tenth having been stripped of his two fastest laps.

closing laps when safe in the knowledge that he wasn’t going to be caught.

Rain overnight meant conditions were even more tricky for the opening race of the weekend, although the field would still take to the circuit - in the main - on slick tyres.

Turkington was helped by the fact that Ingram and Hill would become embroiled in a huge fight for second that would come to a head on lap seven when Hill made his move at Montreal.

From pole, it was Turkington who held the lead at the start, with Hill alongside being the man to lose out on the slightly damper line; allowing Ingram to get ahead into second on the run to turn one.

Contact between the pair allowed Hill to get through into second, but he elected to hand the position back to Ingram to avoid a penalty and couldn’t quite get close enough to challenge again.

The Toyota would make a move to try and take the lead at Agostini but Turkington was wise to what was happening and eased Ingram wide, ensuring that he maintained the position and also putting Ingram under pressure from Hill.

Butcher took fourth spot, having managed to get ahead of Cammish at Montreal mid-way through the race, with the Honda driver ultimately slipping back to sixth by the finish as he also lost a place to Sutton - who had dropped to seventh on lap one before recovering back through to fifth.

That would prove to be as close as anyone would get to the defending champion from that point on as he pulled out a lead of more than four seconds before easing off late in the

With Turkington snaring fastest lap for a maximum haul of 23 points, Sutton’s fifth place meant the pair now sat level on points, but

Page 92

with Turkington as the championship leader thanks to a better head-to-head finishing record.

advantage over the chasing pack grew helped by the fact that Ingram in second was under plenty of pressure from Butcher’s Focus and had a train of cars building up behind.

Morgan, Cook, Senna Proctor and Michael Crees rounded out the top ten after a clash at Riches on lap one cost Oliphant, Jackson and Moffat valuable time.

What should have been a comfortable win for Turkington however instead became a one-lap sprint after Jack Goff put a wheel off track at Riches in his Team HARD Volkswagen and slammed into the barriers, bringing out the safety car.

The trio discovered that three-into-one wouldn’t go as both Jackson and Oliphant went off track and dropped down the order, whilst Moffat would ultimately be forced to make an unscheduled stop that dropped him off the lead lap. Only Oliphant would manage to score in 14th place.

Turkington’s perfect weekend would continue in the second race, as he once again nailed the start to ensure that his BMW led the field into Riches for the first time.

It would prove to be more difficult for the champion to break away from the field behind than had been the case in race one, but once he had plenty of heat in his tyres, Turkington’s

Goff’s car would be removed in time for the race to go green with a lap to go, and Turkington managed the restart to perfection to make it two wins for the weekend, ensuring a maximum score as he posted the fastest lap and edged clear in the points standings.

Ingram would once again finish in second spot in the Toyota, but only after he survived contact from Butcher on the final lap.

Heading into Montreal, Butcher ran into the rear of Ingram’s Toyota which saw both run

Page 93

wide and allowed Sutton - who had run in fourth from the start - to jump up into third.

Ingram was able to stay ahead of Sutton for the remainder of the lap to secure second spot as Butcher dropped back into the clutches of Cammish and Hill, who had been part of the rain of cars dicing for the podium spots before the safety car.

Cammish tried to make a move on Butcher at the final corner, but all that did was delay him enough to give Hill a run as they headed up to the line - the pair split by just 0.047s as Hill nipped ahead to take fifth behind the Focus.

They would prove to be the only moves for position inside the top six throughout the race, although the same couldn’t be said just behind.

Cook took seventh after battling ahead of Morgan’s Mercedes on lap six and he would be followed across the line by Jackson after a storming drive from 21st on the grid.

Having climbed into the top ten within the space of three laps, Jackson found himself running behind Morgan in ninth going into the final lap but managed to get alongside the Mercedes out of the final corner to steal eighth by 0.002s - leaving Morgan and Chris Smiley to round out the top ten.

The reverse grid draw put Smiley’s Hyundai on pole at the home circuit for his EXCELR8 team but the Northern Irishman didn’t get away well when the final race of the weekend got underway.

Instead, it was Morgan who took the lead from alongside on the front row, with Jackson moving up into second on the run to turn one.

Heading down to Agostini, Jackson then tried to go around the outside of Morgan for the lead, with the pair running side-by-side into Hamilton where the Motorbase man completed the move.

Jackson built a slender lead in the early stages, but Ciceley had set up Morgan’s Mercedes to come good as the race wore on - which meant

Page 94

he then started to close in as the laps counted down.

Sutton, Cammish and Cook in the battle for fifth.

Jackson was unable to relax as Morgan closed onto the rear of his car, although he had one eye on the mirrors with the sister Focus of Butcher running behind in third having managed to clear Smiley on lap three.

As Jackson battled to keep Morgan at bay, things came to a head on the final lap as Ingram and Butcher clashed going through Coram. The end result was Butcher sliding across the grass at Murray’s where he hit Ingram and took both off the road, allowing Turkington through onto the podium and promoting Sutton to fourth.

Smiley would be right at the heart of the action as he tried to stay towards the sharp end of the field, and a clash with Sutton that also delayed Hill allowed Ingram to jump ahead into fourth from where he set off to chase down the leader three.

Turkington would be the next man to clear Smiley, who was then removed from the equation when he was tipped off by Cammish at Oggies and plummeted down the order to end up well outside the points.

That left two trains of cars running together as the race entered the closing stages, with Jackson heading Morgan, Butcher and Ingram at the front, and Turkington running ahead of

Butcher would manage to resume to hold onto fifth from Cammish and Cook, with a peeved Ingram down in eighth and Hill and Proctor rounding out the top ten.

A 60 point weekend for Turkington saw him take a nine point lead over Sutton, who secured an unassailable lead in the Independents’ title race with a round to go.

Cammish would head into the season finale 25 points back in third, with Ingram (34) and Butcher (63) also still in contention…

Page 95

RACE ONE

QUALIFYING 1

Colin Turkington

1:56.858

1

Colin Turkington

12 laps

2

Jake Hill

+0.192

2

Tom Ingram

+2.570

3

Tom Ingram

+0.210

3

Jake Hill

+3.949

4

Rory Butcher

+0.225

4

Rory Butcher

+5.135

5

Dan Cammish

+0.336

5

Ash Sutton

+7.125

6

Ash Sutton

+0.461

6

Dan Cammish

+8.916

7

Tom Oliphant

+0.635

7

Adam Morgan

+9.415

8

Ollie Jackson

+0.688

8

Josh Cook

+14.668

9

Aiden Moffat

+0.546

9

Senna Proctor

+21.105

10

Adam Morgan

+6.882

10

Michael Crees

+25.165

11

Senna Proctor

+0.609

11

Chris Smiley

+26.205

12

Josh Cook

+0.812

12

Stephen Jelley

+26.968

13

Chris Smiley

+1.142

13

Matt Neal

+27.199

14

Tom Chilton

+1.174

14

Tom Oliphant

+29.603

15

Stephen Jelley

+1.178

15

Carl Boardley

+30.274

16

Matt Neal

+1.270

16

Tom Chilton

+32.531

17

Michael Crees

+1.482

17

Sam Osborne

+33.342

18

Sam Osborne

+1.543

18

Jack Goff

+33.532

19

Jack Goff

+1.613

19

Paul Rivett

+37.581

20

Paul Rivett

+1.739

20

Jack Butel

+40.103

21

Carl Boardley

+2.157

21

Ollie Jackson

+46.232

22

Jessica Hawkins

+2.218

22

Jessica Hawkins

+51.689

23

Andy Neate

+2.254

23

Nicolas Hamilton

+55.861

24

Glynn Geddie

+3.357

24

Ethan Hammerton

+1:08.252

25

Ethan Hammerton

+3.499

25

Glynn Geddie

+1:21.761

26

Jack Butel

+3.695

26

Andy Neate

+1:49.522

27

Nicolas Hamilton

No time

27

Aiden Moffat

+1 lap

FL

Turkington

1:57.635

Times for positions 11-27 in relation to fastest Q1 time of 1:57.247

Page 96

RACE TWO

RACE THREE

1

Colin Turkington

14 laps

1

Ollie Jackson

12 laps

2

Tom Ingram

+1.763

2

Adam Morgan

+0.217

3

Ash Sutton

+1.914

3

Colin Turkington

+4.872

4

Rory Butcher

+3.547

4

Ash Sutton

+6.312

5

Jake Hill

+3.742

5

Rory Butcher

+8.195

6

Dan Cammish

+3.789

6

Dan Cammish

+9.194

7

Josh Cook

+4.714

7

Josh Cook

+9.782

8

Ollie Jackson

+4.993

8

Tom Ingram

+9.934

9

Adam Morgan

+4.995

9

Jake Hill

+13.758

10

Chris Smiley

+5.355

10

Senna Proctor

+16.544

11

Tom Oliphant

+5.989

11

Aiden Moffat

+17.167

12

Matt Neal

+6.712

12

Tom Oliphant

+17.561

13

Senna Proctor

+7.578

13

Matt Neal

+20.891

14

Michael Crees

+8.193

14

Michael Crees

+21.443

15

Sam Osborne

+9.060

15

Glynn Geddie

+28.737

16

Tom Chilton

+9.577

16

Stephen Jelley

+29.716

17

Stephen Jelley

+10.747

17

Tom Chilton

+30.859

18

Glynn Geddie

+10.913

18

Carl Boardley

+34.649

19

Ethan Hammerton

+11.583

19

Jack Goff

+35.046

20

Jack Butel

+12.176

20

Jessica Hawkins

+40.032

21

Jessica Hawkins

+12.588

21

Paul Rivett

+40.322

22

Andy Neate

+12.861

22

Ethan Hammerton

+44.761

23

Paul Rivett

+29.398

23

Chris Smiley

+47.177

24

Carl Boardley

+34.317

24

Jack Butel

+50.883

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

Accident

DNF

Andy Neate

Damage

NC

Aiden Moffat

Damage

DNF

Sam Osborne

Damage

DNF

Jack Goff

Accident

DNS

Nicolas Hamilton

Damage

FL

Turkington

1:57.669

FL

Ingram

1:57.668

Page 97

BRANDS INDY ROUNDS 25/26/27

Page 98

Barely a week after the Snetterton event, there was genuine concern over whether or not the five-way title fight would be resolved on track after the Prime Minister announced that England was to be put back into Lockdown in an attempt to slow rising COVID rates.

Unlike earlier in the year however, 'Elite Sport' was given permission to continue and that meant that the season finale was given the green light to go ahead in the middle of November back at Brands Hatch.

With only the Independents’ title having been decided, there was still plenty to play for aside from the overall championship battle, with the manufacturers’ title and the two teams’ titles still to be determined.

The Jack Sears Trophy also had five drivers still in contention, although Bobby Thompson’s bid to return to action after his incident at Croft would ultimately be in vain when he failed to recover sufficiently from his concussion and was once again left watching on from the sidelines.

As at Snetterton, Thompson would be replaced by Ethan Hammerton on a full 27 car grid, the only driver change seeing VLN racer Brad Philpot take up the guest slot with Power Maxed Racing for his series debut.

With the dark nights having well and truly arrived, the season finale would run to a different format to the norm, as had been the case at Snetterton three weeks earlier.

Again there was just one free practice session for teams and drivers to work on preparing for the final three races of the year, and the need to cram in five support races in the afternoon meant an earlier than usual lunchtime slot for qualifying.

The race day action would also be shifted forwards to deal with the lack of daylight hours, with racing getting underway - and finishing - a couple of hours earlier than on a traditional weekend.

Prior to the weekend rolling around, there had been the obvious concerns about the

Page 99

possibility of poor weather affecting the season finale - particularly after the low temperatures that had played a part in the Snetterton meeting.

run meant times had to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Rain would duly arrive once practice got underway, with light showers falling across the hour long session that would be vital in teams preparing for qualifying later that morning.

Although it was Tom Ingram who set the pace early on before the drizzle arrived, it would be the MB Motorsport Honda of Jake Hill that once again emerged from practice with the fastest time.

Hill would hit top spot just over 20 minutes into the session and the changeable conditions helped to ensure that his time would remain unbeaten right through to the finish.

A gap of nearly a quarter of a second over the field behind was particularly impressive given the short nature of the circuit, although the differing conditions and programmes being

Still, second place for championship hopeful Ash Sutton was a positive start, with the Infiniti showing solid pace in conditions where the Laser Tools Racing man had always gone well in the past.

Fellow title hopeful Dan Cammish followed behind in third ahead of the second Infiniti of Aiden Moffat, with the top six rounded out by Tom Ingram and Rory Butcher - the two rank outsides in the race to secure the championship crown.

Notable by his absence from the top ten was points leader Colin Turkington, although that wasn’t of concern to his West Surrey Racing team - with the Northern Irishman having failed to bolt on new tyres and working through a planned on-track programme, with a focus on qualifying.

The rain would continue to fall ahead of qualifying, and that played a part in the session

Page 100

becoming one of the most dramatic of the season as drivers struggled to deal with the slippery conditions.

Cammish and then Sutton set the early pace before the session was halted to remove Senna Proctor’s Hyundai from the gravel at Druids with both drivers then improving their times before a second stoppage caused by Hill sliding off at Paddock Hill Bend.

Hill had held third at the time but would lose that lap for causing the red flag, and he wasn’t the only one going off track whilst trying to push to the limit.

rounding out the top eight. Having made midsession changes to the BMW to move into the top ten, Turkington was hoping to improve again on his final run but was thwarted by a third red flag caused by Carl Boardley going into the gravel at Paddock. He still secured the new Wingfoot Award for top qualifier over the season.

Wet tyres were very much order of the day for the opening race of Finals Day, with heavy rain having battered the area around Brands Hatch throughout the night.

Cammish himself had two moments at Clearways, one of which saw him nudge the barriers, whilst team-mate Matt Neal also went off at Clearways and then took a trip through the gravel at Paddock Hill.

Ingram made the best start when the action kicked off to lead into turn one, but a slow start for Butcher alongside provided the chance for both Sutton and Cammish to jump ahead of the Ford through the opening lap - with Cammish in particular looking racy as he made his move at Druids to get into the top three.

Hill’s off saw the clock reset to ten minutes, and Butcher moved his Ford up to pole on the restart before Ingram then pipped him by just 0.024s with the lap that would ultimately secure pole position.

Ingram led the early stages with Sutton and Cammish on his tail, and the pair would swap places on lap four when Cammish saw the chance to dive up the inside into Druids to take second.

Sutton and Cammish would both fail to improve on their earlier laps as they had to settle for third and fourth, with the front two rows of the grid being covered by less than a tenth of a second.

Before Cammish could make a bid for the lead, the safety car was called out following a clash between Glynn Geddie and Sam Osborne but it only took a lap after the restart for the Team Dynamics man to get ahead.

Ollie Jackson continued his strong run of form in fifth ahead of Hill, with Neal and Turkington

Once again, the move came at Druids as Cammish put his car up the inside of the Page 101

Corolla and with a wheel on the grass, quite literally slid into the lead of the race.

Cammish remained out front for the rest of the race to secure a vital win, but he had Sutton closing in late on after he finally managed to find a way ahead of Ingram himself with a move at Surtees.

Once clear of the Toyota, Sutton also posted the fastest lap of the race to secure a vital bonus point, with Ingram following him home in third place.

That result meant Turkington’s lead over Sutton was no more, and he would head into race two having slipped two points behind his rival.

Third amongst the Jack Sears Trophy runners for Michael Crees saw him extend his lead over Boardley, with the pair being the only drivers still in the mix for the title going into the second race.

That race would see drivers faced with the best conditions that had been seen all weekend, with the vast majority of the field taking the decision to go with slick tyres on a circuit that was still slippery, but certainly drying out.

The remainder of the top ten would be largely static, with Jackson fending o the advances of Hill for fifth and Neal taking seventh in the second of the Dynamics Hondas.

He had Turkington behind in the early stages, but the points leader found himself struggling for outright pace and dropped to ninth before the finish after losing a spot to Josh Cook after the restart.

In the early stages, it was those drivers who had taken the decision to stick with wet tyres who had the advantage, with Tom Chilton and Andy Neate both rising through the pack at the start.

As well as being on the right tyres at the time, both were also helped by drama at turn one as Ingram - having dropped behind Sutton o the

Page 102

line - had a sideways moment at Paddock Hill that saw him run through the gravel, and Butcher, Jackson and Hill also went off after coming together, with all three drivers dropping down the order.

That left Sutton briefly out front but Chilton from twelfth on the grid - took the lead by the end of the opening lap, with Neate coming from 18th to quickly find himself dicing for the podium places.

Chilton scampered away in the opening laps but it wasn’t long until Sutton was quicker, and by lap nine, the Infiniti was back ahead and then eased away for what would prove to be a comfortable race win.

The same wasn't true of the fight for the remaining places on the podium however, with a train of cars comprising of Cook, Cammish, Ingram, Turkington, Oliphant and Hill chasing down Chilton and Neate before drama arrived at the mid-way point of the race.

Having cleared Neate’s Focus, Cammish made a move on Cook for third through Paddock Hill which opened the door for Ingram to follow him through on the run up to Druids - where he managed to immediately steal third from Cammish.

Behind, Turkington had also got a run on Cook but then locked up and almost went straight on at Druids, where Hill dived up the inside of Cook and tipped the BTC Racing Honda sideways. Cook then clipped a recovering Turkington and damaged the front bumper on the BMW, which would rub against the tyre for the remainder of the race.

That brought Oliphant and Jackson right into the fight but Oliphant immediately spun at Graham Hill Bend after contact with Cook who was therefore delayed and dropped down the order.

By the end of the lap, the order behind Chilton read Ingram, Cammish, Turkington, Jackson, Adam Morgan and Hill and by the end of lap 13, Chilton had been swallowed up by the

Page 103

chasing pack and began his descent back down the field.

Ingram set about trying to chase down Sutton to keep his title hopes alive, but saw his championship bid end despite taking second with Cammish coming under pressure from Turkington for third.

Heading through Paddock Hill on the penultimate lap, and with back-markers ahead, the pair suddenly came across the Audi of Paul Rivett sitting broadside in the middle of the circuit after a spin, with Cammish jumping on the brakes in avoidance and Turkington going ahead as he swerved to avoid the stricken car.

As Sutton won from Ingram, Turkington crossed the line in third place ahead of Cammish only for the positions to then be reversed afterwards when Turkington was deemed to have passed under yellow flags.

Jackson would end the race in fifth ahead of Morgan, Hill and Senna Proctor, with the top twelve being reversed on the grid for the final race of the campaign.

Further down the order, a suspension-related retirement for Boardley at the end of the opening lap meant Crees secured the Jack Sears Trophy with a race to run.

With WSR wrapping up both the teams’ and manufacturers’ titles, and Laser Tools Racing

securing the Independents’ team title it left the overall championship as the only thing still to be decided.

Going into the big finale Sutton led Turkington by eleven points as a result of the revised earlier result, with Cammish still in the mix albeit 20 points behind but with only 22 left to fight for.

Conditions would take a turn for the worse again with torrential rain falling in the run-up to race three, with the field back on wet tyres all round.

Aiden Moffat and Chris Smiley shared the front row but it was Butcher from the second row who led by the time the field went through Graham Hill Bend for the first time - and wouldn’t be headed from that point onwards.

Moffat and Smiley both then ran off track on lap two to drop down the order, leaving Cook and Hill in second and third from Morgan’s Mercedes, with Turkington up into fifth and Ingram climbing to sixth in the early stages.

Cammish has battled ahead of Sutton on lap one and was holding eighth, with the points leader finding himself in eleventh.

Sutton moved up to tenth just as Cammish slipped behind Moffat to ninth as the pair ran together on track - joining onto a train of cars

Page 104

that was starting to form behind Turkington’s BMW.

ahead, with Cook being the big loser as a trip through the gravel knocked him back to sixth.

Cammish cleared Moffat at Surtees on lap five and then dived inside Jackson’s Ford to go seventh, with Moffat allowing Sutton through into ninth.

Ingram quickly cleared Morgan to get into second and the Mercedes then slipped back to fifth after being tipped sideways by Cammish at Druids.

Turkington’s hold on fifth would end on lap seven when Ingram made a move stick at Surtees, and a lap later it was Cammish who got ahead of the BMW at the same place as Turkington’s title hopes started to fade.

Out front, Butcher saw his lead brought down

by Ingram but the Scot held on to end the season with another win as Ingram completed a podium hat-trick in the Toyota.

Hill would round out the podium thanks to a late move on Cammish at Clearways, with Morgan fifth on the final outing for the Mercedes.

Seconds later, Sutton passed Jackson for eighth on the run across the line - leaving Sutton running directly behind closest rival Turkington on track.

All eyes might have been on the title contenders, but there were still podium places to be decided ahead.

When Hill and Cook clashed at Clearways, it allowed Morgan, Ingram and Cammish to get

Sixth place would go to Sutton as he wrapped up the title in fine style, clearing Turkington at Paddock Hill on lap 19 before chasing down and passing Cook’s Honda.

Behind the BTC Racing man, Moffat took eighth after he too got ahead of Turkington, with his title defence ending with ninth spot.

Page 105

QUALIFYING

RACE ONE

1

Tom Ingram

54.950

1

Dan Cammish

27 laps

2

Rory Butcher

+0.024

2

Ash Sutton

+0.813

3

Ash Sutton

+0.034

3

Tom Ingram

+3.160

4

Dan Cammish

+0.083

4

Rory Butcher

+6.538

5

Ollie Jackson

+0.189

5

Ollie Jackson

+7.952

6

Jake Hill

+0.306

6

Jake Hill

+9.273

7

Matt Neal

+0.329

7

Matt Neal

+10.164

8

Colin Turkington

+0.431

8

Josh Cook

+13.519

9

Paul Rivett

+0.454

9

Colin Turkington

+18.283

10

Josh Cook

+0.499

10

Tom Oliphant

+19.339

11

Stephen Jelley

+0.531

11

Adam Morgan

+21.167

12

Tom Oliphant

+0.534

12

Tom Chilton

+21.621

13

Aiden Moffat

+0.577

13

Chris Smiley

+23.221

14

Jack Goff

+0.772

14

Aiden Moffat

+23.649

15

Chris Smiley

+0.819

15

Paul Rivett

+31.348

16

Tom Chilton

+0.849

16

Stephen Jelley

+31.760

17

Adam Morgan

+0.916

17

Jack Goff

+32.939

18

Carl Boardley

+0.917

18

Andy Neate

+36.294

19

Nicolas Hamilton

+1.035

19

Senna Proctor

+38.121

20

Andy Neate

+1.125

20

Michael Crees

+39.758

21

Sam Osborne

+1.204

21

Brad Philpot

+42.563

22

Michael Crees

+1.363

22

Ethan Hammerton

+45.018

23

Ethan Hammerton

+1.378

23

Jack Butel

+45.798

24

Glynn Geddie

+1.540

24

Carl Boardley

+59.266

25

Brad Philpot

+1.566

DNF

Nicolas Hamilton

26

Jack Butel

+2.445

DNF

Sam Osborne

Damage

27

Senna Proctor

+2.496

DNF

Glynn Geddie

Accident

FL

Sutton

55.069

Page 106

RACE THREE

RACE TWO 1

Ash Sutton

24 laps

1

Rory Butcher

24 laps

2

Tom Ingram

+4.762

2

Tom Ingram

+1.522

3

Dan Cammish

+9.370

3

Jake Hill

+7.679

4

Colin Turkington

+9.688

4

Dan Cammish

+9.984

5

Ollie Jackson

+10.832

5

Adam Morgan

+10.521

6

Adam Morgan

+13.422

6

Ash Sutton

+12.038

7

Jake Hill

+14.088

7

Josh Cook

+14.094

8

Senna Proctor

+14.418

8

Aiden Moffat

+16.133

9

Josh Cook

+14.919

9

Colin Turkington

+17.320

10

Rory Butcher

+17.900

10

Ollie Jackson

+18.431

11

Chris Smiley

+22.605

11

Tom Chilton

+18.764

12

Aiden Moffat

+28.823

12

Chris Smiley

+19.008

13

Michael Crees

+33.011

13

Tom Oliphant

+19.217

14

Sam Osborne

+37.119

14

Matt Neal

+20.935

15

Tom Oliphant

+37.712

15

Michael Crees

+31.358

16

Matt Neal

+42.984

16

Jack Goff

+35.780

17

Stephen Jelley

+43.415

17

Paul Rivett

+36.679

18

Tom Chilton

+1 lap

18

Glynn Geddie

+38.623

19

Jack Butel

+1 lap

19

Senna Proctor

+39.743

20

Jack Goff

+1 lap

20

Nicolas Hamilton

+45.302

21

Andy Neate

+1 lap

21

Jack Butel

+46.199

22

Brad Philpot

+1 lap

22

Brad Philpot

+47.175

23

Paul Rivett

+1 lap

23

Carl Boardley

+54.671

24

Ethan Hammerton

+1 lap

24

Ethan Hammerton

+3 laps

25

Nicolas Hamilton

+3 laps

DNF

Sam Osborne

Damage

DNF

Glynn Geddie

DNF

Stephen Jelley

Accident

DNF

Carl Boardley

DNF

Andy Neate

Damage

FL

Sutton

FL

Cammish

54.127

49.421 Page 107

ASH SUTTON DOUBLES UP

Page 108

There were plenty of raised eyebrows in the middle of the 2019 season when the Laser Tools Racing team announced that it was going to ditch its Mercedes A Class and bring the Infiniti Q50 back into the series.

That was exactly what happened, with the second half of 2019 seeing Aiden Moat hit the track in the reworked car to try and get up to speed with rear-wheel drive.

A podium finish in mixed conditions at Silverstone was the highlight and it was clear for the team to see that there was potential in the Infiniti - but not with the overweight and compromised car that was now being used.

Although the season to that point had been a challenge, the Mercedes was a proven, racewinning car whilst the Infiniti had trundled round at the back of the grid in its single season of racing in 2015 - taking just one points finish with the Support Our Paras Racing team.

When Laser originally acquired the cars, it hadn’t been with a plan to bring them back into active competition in the series - with the aim instead being to use them for promotional purposes for a newly-created family business.

However, when engineer Federico Turrata took a proper look at the outdated Infiniti in the team workshop, he saw untapped potential that resulted in the decision to update a car to run with RML-spec parts and put it back on track.

That was something that was being worked on behind the scenes however, with plans being formulated to join forces with BMR, which was coming to the end of its factory deal with Subaru.

With Ash Sutton having already enjoyed a positive test in the car, bringing the 2017 champion onboard become a key part of the plan and by November, all of the deals had been done and the new programme was announced.

Work then began on the build of two new Q50s using the expertise of the newly-named

Page 109

BMR Engineering squad as well as experienced car builder Willie Poole.

Although they might have looked the same as the car that Moffat had raced in the latter part of 2019, the car that hit the track for the media day event at Silverstone couldn’t have been more different although there was only limited running before the pandemic halted the campaign.

The season launch proved to be little more than a shakedown as Sutton completed only 18 laps all day, although he would end up with the ninth best time to show the promise in the car.

Sutton remained confident that the Infiniti would be capable of fighting at the front and that proved to be the case when the season eventually kicked off at Donington Park in August - with the Q50 right on the pace and victorious first time out.

The rest, as the saying goes, is history although it isn’t true to say that a title

challenge was expected in all quarters when the new look programme was first out together…

"When we decided to build the new Infiniti, we knew that we would have a good car," team boss Bob Moffat admits, "but to win the championship in the first season? I wouldn’t have thought that was possible if you had asked me at the time.

"We had a horrible start to the season at the media day where we didn’t get much running, but we relied on the fact that in merging with the guys at BMR, we were bringing a lot of expertise with rear wheel drive to the party.

"We knew that would help with the process of getting us towards the front and bringing in Ash and BMR made good sense if we wanted to try and challenge.

"He has gone on to do a remarkable job this season, and shown that he is a class act."

Page 110

Following the win at Donington Park, Sutton added a brace of podium finishes at Brands Hatch and then won again at Oulton Park.

- marking the first time that the team had secured that championship title.

The 26-year-old’s second title would prove to be the first for a non-works driver since Colin Turkington’s win for WSR under the eBay Motors banner in 2014, and was the first for a car powered by the TOCA engine - which had been part of the grid since 2010.

If it wasn’t already clear that he was going to be a title contender, a double success at Knockhill put him firmly in the mix and he would regularly pick up solid points - even if there were only two podium finishes from the next four meetings.

It kept Sutton right in contention heading into the season finale, where the conditions worked in his favour and he joined the likes of Alain Menu, Jason Plato, John Cleland and the BTCC’s original champion Jack Sears as a twotime title winner.

Sutton also wrapped up the Independents’ title for the first time to make him the first driver to win the overall, Independents’ and Jack Sears titles since the latter was introduced into the series.

Laser Tools Racing meanwhile would be crowed as the Independent Teams’ champions

"People say that the second championship is easier to win, but I certainly wouldn’t say that is the case," he said. "Back in 2017 with the Subaru, there wasn’t the expectation that we would win the title as I hadn’t done it before.

"Even with a new package this season, there was more pressure because people expect to you to fight for the championship as someone who has done it before.

"When the season started, I wanted to try and fight for the title - so to end the year having won three is a fantastic achievement for everyone involved with this programme.

Page 111

"For an Independent team to win the overall title is great as it hasn’t happened for a while, and this feels sweeter than the first title did."

have had our ups and downs, everyone has pulled together and it’s turned out to be a mega season.

Over the course of the season, Sutton had been wholesome in his praise for the Q50, referring to it more than once as the "best touring car that I’ve ever driven".

"I have to thank all of the team sponsors, my personal sponsors, my family and friends - as none of this would have been possible without them."

That was down in no small part to the work put in by the same people who had carried him to his maiden title in the Subaru, and who had moved across to Laser Tools as part of the new programme.

The only downside for Sutton - and something shared by his rivals up and down the grid - had been that fans had been unable to make it trackside, with the COVID pandemic ultimately ensuring the entire season would run behind closed doors.

"Huge credit has to go to BMR Engineering for building two fantastic cars, and everyone at Laser Tools Racing who has run them during the season," he said. "When we rolled the car out at Silverstone, we knew there was potential but then we had to park it up again before we could go racing.

"We came out fighting when we got to Donington and I was blown away by the performance at the first round. Although we

"Standing on the podium and lifting the trophy without the fans wasn’t the same as they are a big part of making the BTCC what it is," he said.

"Hopefully we have been able to put on a show for everyone this season during a really difficult year, and fingers crossed we will be able to welcome them back trackside in 2021."

Page 112

Page 113

TOP TEN DRIVERS OF 2020

Page 114

One of the most difficult things to do at the end of any season is to look back across the year as a whole, and try to determine who have been the stand out drivers.

Before delving into the top ten, there were some drivers on the grid who might not have been in consideration, but who are still worthy of an honourable mention for their performances on track.

In a series like the BTCC, where things can be decided by the smallest of margins, that can be particularly challenging - even more so when there are multiple drivers who would all be equally deserving of the title at the end of it.

Included amongst them is Jack Sears Trophy winner Michael Crees, who raised his game following his switch to BTC Racing and matched up well against his more experienced team-mates in terms of pace.

The 2020 season was no exception and whilst no-one would begrudge Ash Sutton his second title, it could easily have been Colin Turkington who walked away from Brands Hatch as the first five time champion in the long and illustrious history of the series.

Matt Neal might have personally disappointed at once again failing to add to his win tally but his achievement in reaching 700 races and still being in contention for podium finishes in his 30th season in the series shouldn’t be underestimated.

We’ve tried to look at a wide range of factors before deciding on who we felt were the top ten drivers from a season like no other - which means that our final list isn’t necessarily going to simply match up with the final championship standings.

The single point scored by Nicolas Hamilton, considering all the obstacles he has faced in his career, should also be celebrated.

Anyway - without further ado, our top ten drivers of the year…

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A first career win, a new personal best points score and a top six championship finish pointed to a positive season for Tom Oliphant in his second year with WSR.

SIXTH

WINS:

1

PODIUMS:

4

POLES:

0

FASTEST LAPS

0

LAPS LED

16

POINTS

228

problem at Silverstone, a run of below par results in the closing rounds ultimately derailed his challenge.

The Brands Hatch victory in particular was impressive given that he had to keep Ash Sutton at bay for the duration, and there were also podiums at Donington Park and Oulton Park early on that suggested Oliphant could be a dark horse in the title race.

However, even though he would only fail to score once all season after a suspension

STANDINGS:

Across the final two meetings, Oliphant would only manage a single top ten finish and whilst that wasn’t all of his own doing after multiple bouts of contact, it meant his campaign ended on a more of a low than it should have done.

With arguably the best car underneath him, and with one of the best teams, more consistent top results are a must going forwards.

10: TOM OLIPHANT Page 116

9: ADAM MORGAN After a difficult 2019 season that saw him end up with his worst championship result since his difficult debut campaign, Adam Morgan was very much hoping to return to form in 2020.

There would be two further podiums across the season whilst Morgan was a regular figure in the points scoring positions - only failing to score three times all season.

Hard work from his Ciceley Motorsport squad, most notably engineer Steve Farrell, allowed Morgan to return to the top step of the podium for the first time since Rockingham 2018 when he won on home soil at Oulton Park - an emotional result at a venue where he had suered his fair share of misfortune in the past.

STANDINGS:

EIGHTH

WINS:

1

PODIUMS:

3

POLES:

0

FASTEST LAPS

0

LAPS LED

10

POINTS

206

It was that consistency that meant he finished just six points away from matching his previous best of seventh in the standings, and left Morgan optimistic about the future.

The Mercedes is no more after being retired at the end of the year - and Morgan should expect to be a regular front runner when he switches to a BMW for 2021.

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Josh Cook was very much one of the fancied runners going into 2020 having taken fourth in the standings the previous season - so ending up ninth in the championship wasn’t part of the plan.

A podium at Donington wasn’t a bad start, but Brands Hatch was a disaster thanks to contact and mechanical trouble that left him unable to score.

A fine drive at Oulton Park went unrewarded when he was stripped of victory for failing the ride height test and then there was Knockhill -

STANDINGS:

NINTH

WINS:

3

PODIUMS:

4

POLES:

1

FASTEST LAPS

4

LAPS LED

55

POINTS

196

where a race one puncture led to a huge hit into the barriers and he was then tipped out of race two.

That run of form ended his chance of the title but from Thruxton onwards, he was never out of the top ten - taking another win in Hampshire and then an impressive double at Croft.

Even with his early season misfortune, Cook still ended the year as the best placed BTC Racing driver in the standings, and is certainly a better driver than his position suggested.

8: JOSH COOK Page 118

7: OLLIE JACKSON Very much a left field choice within our top ten, Ollie Jackson earns his place for massively exceeding the expectations anyone had at the start of the season - including Jackson himself.

Going into the campaign, Jackson was hopeful that the new Focus would be the car that allowed him to regularly run inside the top ten, and he opened eyes at Brands Hatch GP where he backed up a strong qualifying performance with a fine podium finish.

A few tough meetings followed before Silverstone, where he held o Tom Oliphant to STANDINGS:

TWELFTH

WINS:

2

PODIUMS:

3

POLES:

0

FASTEST LAPS

0

LAPS LED

29

POINTS

152

secure an impressive maiden win in race three - but it was Snetterton where he really shone.

Having been run o track at the start of race one, he stormed through the field into the top ten in race two and then made one of the moves of the season to wrestle the lead from Adam Morgan at the start of race three.

His drive from there to keep the Mercedes at bay showed the Silverstone win was no fluke, and that Jackson is a better driver than he is given credit for with the right package underneath him.

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No wins, no poles, no fastest laps and not a single lap led all season don’t point to a stellar season for Jake Hill - particularly when he’d managed to bag a seat in one of the best cars of the NGTC era in the FK2 Honda Civic Type R. However, that Hill managed to somehow finish seventh in the championship standings after a start that was nothing short of a disaster was a remarkable feat.

Although the newer cars clearly had an edge on the Honda, Hill’s pace was evident when

STANDINGS:

SEVENTH

WINS:

0

PODIUMS:

6

POLES:

0

FASTEST LAPS

0

LAPS LED

0

POINTS

212

you look at how he performed through practice and qualifying across the season where he was one of only three drivers to qualify in the top ten at every round.

Early season engine issues would ruin any hopes Hill had of challenging for silverware but from Oulton Park onwards he would take six podiums finishes and only fail to score once.

Already committed to MB Motorsport again for 2021, Hill will hope to add to the one win he already has to his name.

6: JAKE HILL Page 120

5: RORY BUTCHER After two titles in 2019, there were some who questioned Rory Butcher’s decision to swap his AmD-run Honda for a return to Motorbase for 2020 - but from the outset it was clear that the new Ford Focus was a huge step forward compared to the car it replaced.

A double podium in the season opener at Donington Park was an impressive start and a first win would have followed at Brands Hatch where the put the car on pole in qualifying had it not been for a tyre failure as the team worked to discover how to really make the new car work.

STANDINGS:

FIFTH

WINS:

3

PODIUMS:

8

POLES:

2

FASTEST LAPS

2

LAPS LED

72

POINTS

286

An inherited win at Oulton Park was followed by a home success at Knockhill and a title challenge was very much on the cards before his monster shunt in the final race of the weekend at Silverstone.

Failing to make the podium at Croft and Snetterton - and clashing with Ingram twice at the latter - all but ended his title chances although he ended the year on a high with victory in the final race of the year.

More consistency next season could see Butcher end the year with greater rewards.

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A lesser driver than Dan Cammish might have been broken by what happened two laps from the end of the 2019 season, so the fact that he went out and won the first race of 2020 showed what the Team Dynamics driver is made of.

For the second year in a row, Cammish was the best placed front-wheel drive car in the end of season standings after another strong campaign that saw him take four wins and comprehensively outperform experienced team-mate Matt Neal.

STANDINGS:

THIRD

WINS:

4

PODIUMS:

10

POLES:

2

FASTEST LAPS

3

LAPS LED

58

POINTS

334

Issues in the final two races at Brands Hatch GP ultimately hampered his chances and would be the only two times he would fail to finish in the points all season.

As well being a driver who is capable of fighting through the field - as he did in race one of the finale - Cammish is one of those racers who can go under the radar on a weekend and come out with a decent haul of points without you really noticing.

That consistency will surely see him win a title sooner rather than later‌

4: DAN CAMMISH Page 122

3: TOM INGRAM Yet again, Tom Ingram headed into the business end of a BTCC season in contention for the title after continuing to impress in the Speedworks Toyota.

puncture, Ingram was left to wonder what might have been when you consider he ended the year just 24 points off top spot.

Even when he didn’t have the outright pace to fight for wins, such as in the Donington season opener, Ingram was there or thereabouts inside the top ten - but luck certainly wasn’t on his side.

The challenge of continually taking the fight to the big teams as a single-car outfit also shouldn’t be discounted, and Ingram was one of the men to beat in the closing stages of the season - with six of his eleven podiums coming in the final nine races.

Taken out at Brands GP, unable to start race three at Oulton with driveshaft failure and then robbed of a potential win at Silverstone by a

Although he will have to wait another year at least, you can’t help but feel it won’t be long until he has a BTCC title to his name.

STANDINGS:

FOURTH

WINS:

3

PODIUMS:

11

POLES:

1

FASTEST LAPS

4

LAPS LED

80

POINTS

326 Page 123

If you can score more points over the course of a season than Colin Turkington, then there is a good chance you’ll be taking home a title at the end of it - and that was proven to be correct in 2020.

Turkington was the man everyone wanted to beat again this season and with good reason, as the Northern Irishman looked to become the most successful driver ever with a fifth championship win.

That he fell just short of moving ahead of Andy Rouse wasn’t for a lack of trying, with

STANDINGS:

SECOND

WINS:

5

PODIUMS:

13

POLES:

2

FASTEST LAPS

4

LAPS LED

71

POINTS

336

Turkington once again producing the goods on a consistent basis across the season.

A mechanical issue at Thruxton and error at Croft - both of which were as surprising as they were rare - proved to be key, as was the wet weather than worked against him during the finale.

Qualifying in particular was impressive, given he was carrying weight all season, and it was only thanks to the smallest of margins that he finished second in both the points, and our countdown.

2: COLIN TURKINGTON Page 124

1: ASH SUTTON Choosing the top driver from any season isn’t always about who scored the most points, but this time around it is the champion who tops our top ten drivers of the season.

Clearly at one with the car, you always wondered whether anyone else would have been able to get the same results from the car on a consistent basis.

That’s largely because of the fact that Ash Sutton went into the season with a package underneath him that - whilst good on paper was very much unproven, but still managed to beat the might of WSR.

Okay, at times he seemed to be on the ragged edge trying to get the best from the car and there were mistakes along the way - such as the ill-advised move on Jake Hill at Croft.

Sutton showed how quick the Infiniti could be when he won first time out at Donington Park, and would be a front-runner throughout.

STANDINGS:

CHAMPION

WINS:

5

PODIUMS:

10

POLES:

1

FASTEST LAPS

10

LAPS LED

86

POINTS

350

However, the stats don’t lie and winning the most races, setting most fastest laps and leading the most laps shows how Sutton performed during 2020.

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STANDINGS Page 126

DRIVERS STANDINGS DRIVER

POINTS

DRIVER

POINTS

Ash Sutton

350

Sam Osborne

29

Colin Turkington

336

James Gornall

18

Dan Cammish

334

Carl Boardley

18

Tom Ingram

326

Rob Austin

13

Rory Butcher

286

Jack Goff

11

Tom Oliphant

228

Andy Neate

3

Jake Hill

212

Ollie Brown

3

Adam Morgan

206

Jack Butel

2

Josh Cook

196

Mike Bushell

1

Tom Chilton

184

Nicolas Hamilton

1

Matt Neal

181

Glynn Geddie

1

Ollie Jackson

152

Paul Rivett

1

Senna Proctor

141

Tom Onslow-Cole

0

Chris Smiley

106

Jade Edwards

0

Aiden Moffat

105

Ethan Hammerton

0

Stephen Jelley

72

Jess Hawkins

0

Michael Crees

50

Brad Philpot

0

Bobby Thompson

44

Jac Constable

0

MANUFACTURERS STANDINGS MANUFACTURER

POINTS

BMW

776

Honda

739

Toyota

401

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INDEPENDENT DRIVERS STANDINGS DRIVER

POINTS

DRIVER

POINTS

Ash Sutton

415

James Gornall

46

Rory Butcher

348

Andy Neate

32

Adam Morgan

298

Jack Butel

32

Tom Chilton

287

Rob Austin

26

Jake Hill

284

Mike Bushell

17

Josh Cook

249

Paul Rivett

12

Ollie Jackson

231

Glynn Geddie

12

Senna Proctor

223

Nicolas Hamilton

7

Chris Smiley

197

Ollie Brown

6

Aiden Moffat

191

Tom Onslow-Cole

6

Stephen Jelley

155

Ethan Hammerton

2

Michael Crees

122

Jessica Hawkins

1

Bobby Thompson

104

Jade Edwards

0

Sam Osborne

86

Brad Philpot

0

Carl Boardley

74

Jac Constable

0

Jack Goff

74

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JACK SEARS TROPHY DRIVER

POINTS

DRIVER

POINTS

Michael Crees

358

Paul Rivett

79

Carl Boardley

310

Ollie Brown

67

Jack Butel

300

Ethan Hammerton

59

Sam Osborne

295

Glynn Geddie

54

Bobby Thompson

280

Brad Philpot

34

Andy Neate

228

Jessica Hawkins

33

James Gornall

156

Jade Edwards

20

Nicolas Hamilton

116

Jac Constable

0

Mike Bushell

103

GOODYEAR WINGFOOT AWARD DRIVER

POINTS

DRIVER

POINTS

Colin Turkington

125

Senna Proctor

26

Dan Cammish

124

Aiden Moffat

20

Rory Butcher

121

Michael Crees

18

Jake Hill

110

Chris Smiley

18

Tom Ingram

103

Stephen Jelley

17

Ash Sutton

91

Bobby Thompson

11

Josh Cook

77

Mike Bushell

10

Tom Oliphant

76

Paul Rivett

7

Matt Neal

74

Sam Osborne

4

Adam Morgan

49

Carl Boardley

3

Ollie Jackson

48

Jack Goff

2

Tom Chilton

45

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TEAMS STANDINGS TEAM

POINTS

Team BMW

550

Halfords Yuasa Racing

505

Laser Tools Racing

439

Motorbase Performance

426

BTC Racing

371

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters

316

EXCELR8 Motorsport

246

Carlube Triple R Racing with Mac Tools

207

MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square

183

Team Parker Racing

72

GKR TradePriceCars.com

63

The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing

40

HUB Financial Services with Team HARD

19

RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport

16

Power Maxed Car Care Racing

13

ROKiT Racing with Team HARD

1

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INDEPENDENT TEAM STANDINGS TEAM

POINTS

Laser Tools Racing

447

Motorbase Performance

424

BTC Racing

368

Carlube Triple R Racing with Mac Tools

332

EXCELR8 Motorsport

308

MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square

274

Team Parker Racing

219

GKR TradePriceCars.com

200

RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport

184

The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing

157

HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD

144

Power Maxed Car Care Racing

99

ROKiT Racing with Team HARD

60 Page 131

SUPPORT ROUND-UP

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BRITISH F4 CHAMPIONSHIP If the battle to secure the BTCC title proved to be dramatic, then the fight for honours in British F4 raised the bar to another level during the season finale at Brands Hatch.

The fight for the championship would ultimately come down to a two-way battle between Fortec’s Luke Browning and Carlin’s Zak O’Sullivan after a season long fight between the pair that would go right to the wire.

Having gone back in front with victory in race one around the Brands Hatch Indy circuit, Browning then extended his lead by finishing ahead of O’Sullivan in race two after the latter was handed a penalty.

Race three however would see early drama when Browning suffered a spin on lap one that dropped him to the back of the field, and left O’Sullivan in position to take the title as he moved through to the lead.

A run of five wins in six races at Oulton Park and Knockhill looked to have put Browning firmly in the driving seat in the standings and he held a lead of more than 50 points after the Thruxton meeting.

The arrival of heavy rain then forced officials to red flag the race and with under 75% distance covered, half points were awarded - meaning Browning took the title in his second season in the series.

From there however, O’Sullivan roared back across the next three events - taking five wins from the next eight races and not finishing lower than second to draw level with Browning heading into the season finale.

O’Sullivan had to settle for second, with the top three completed by F4 Scholarship winner Casper Stevenson of Argenti Motorsport.

Carlin’s Christian Mansell took the Rookie Cup.

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Having clinched the Ginetta GT4 Supercup in 2019, Harry King secured the coveted role of Porsche GB Junior Driver ahead of 2020 - but few would have expected the teenager to then dominate on track in the way that he did during his debut year.

Although former champion Josh Webster won the opening race from King after he clipped a tyre stack and damaged the splitter on his Team Parker Racing-run car, victory in race two meant King secured the early advantage in the championship.

And that was where he would stay.

Double victories followed at Brands GP and Oulton Park, before a stunning recovery from a race one DNF to come from tenth to first at Knockhilll.

Two retirements after tyre issues at Thruxton gave the chasing pack hope, but King then reeled off four straight wins to wrap up the title

at Snetterton - and then celebrated his success with another double during the season finale to end the year with twelve wins from 16 starts.

Webster, Matty Graham, Will Martin and Ross Wylie would be the only other winners during the season.

It was Webster who was left to finish second to King in the standings with Graham following behind in third. Graham also secured the Rookie title ahead of Ginetta graduates Martin and Lorcan Hanafin.

Graham’s rookie title was the only championship not won by Team Parker Racing, with Esmee Hawkey beating team-mate Ryan Ratcliffe to the Pro-Am title and Justin Sherwood dominating the Amateur category.

Team Parker also wrapped up the Entrant Championship ahead of Redline Racing.

PORSCHE CARRERA CUP GB Page 134

GINETTA JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP The Ginetta Junior Championship is famous for the all-action nature of the racing, and that proved to be the case once again in 2020 even if the title decider turned out to be something of an anti-climax.

Although it was Georgi Dimitrov who started the season on top with a double win at Donington Park, the fight for the championship would develop into a three-way battle between Josh Rattican, Bailey Voisin and Tom Lebbon.

Aside from two further wins for Dimitrov, the trio would share the remaining victories to head into the season finale dicing for the championship title.

Silverstone to go into the final weekend on the back of four successive wins.

Rattican meanwhile had won three times, and consistently running towards the sharp end meant he was still very much in contention for the crown.

The Brands weekend would be affected by red flags and safety cars, with Rattican winning race one thanks to a brave move on Lebbon who moved into the points lead after a penalty for Voisin.

As Josh Miller won the final race of the year, the three contenders fought for second spot and it would be Lebbon who took the place to add the overall title to the rookie crown he had already secured.

Voisin and Lebbon had gone wheel-to-wheel throughout the season, with Voisin taking seven wins to hold the points lead heading to Brands Hatch.

Lebbon however was the driver in form, having recovered well from ending up on his roof at

Despite Voisin’s best efforts to fight back from dropping to eighth early on, he just missed out on third to Rattican at the line - giving Rattican second in the championship in the process.

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Having twice finished as runner-up in the Ginetta GT4 Supercup, Will Burns headed into the 2020 season with one goal - and it would be the year in which he finally got his hands on the championship title.

Burns laid down a marker when the season kicked off at Donington Park with a double win, but it was clear that the Rob Boston Racing driver wasn’t going to have it all his own way and by the end of round two at Brands Hatch, Gus Burton, Tom Hibbert and Adam Smalley had all taken to the top step of the podium.

It was Hibbert who held a slender lead over Burns and Burton at the half-way stage of the season, but Burns then moved back to the top of the points with a double win at Croft and extended his lead at Snetterton to put one hand on the trophy.

Burton was the only person who could still stop Burns heading into the Brands Hatch

finale but it would have needed the points leader to suffer a complete disaster on track.

Burns crossed the line in fourth spot in race one to wrap up the championship title, with Burton left to rue two DNFs during the season as he ended up second. Hibbert meanwhile edged Smalley for third by just four points.

Colin White would emerge on top of the ProAm category to wrap up the title during the final weekend ahead of Chris Salkeld, although Tom Emson would end the year with more wins than anyone else having swapped from the Pro Class after the opening round.

Former BTCC racer Stewart Lines was crowned Amateur champion although things might have been different had rival Carl Garnett not had three no scores in the first two meetings.

Garnett would take eleven wins compared to Lines’ two, but fell two points short of overturning a deficit that had been over 100.

GINETTA GT4 SUPERCUP Page 136

MINI CHALLENGE The MINI Challenge joined the TOCA package for 2020 to replace the Renault Clio Cup, with the original plan being for the series to run at eight events across the season.

The onset of COVID-19 however resulted in the calendar being cut back to five meetings to help teams and drivers on both a financial and logistical basis.

Ant Whorton-Eales, Nathan Harrison and Max Coates shared the wins when the season kicked o at Donington Park, before the trip to Scotland for round two at Knockhill saw Max Bird become the first two-time winner of the season.

Lewis Brown was also a winner north of the border to move into the championship lead prior to round three at Silverstone, but he failed to score in the opening two races - won

by Harrison and Whorton-Eales - as his title chances took a major hit.

Whorton-Eales headed Harrison and Dan Zelos in the points going to Snetterton for penultimate meeting, but Harrison took the points lead with pole and then extended his advantage with victory in race one.

When Whorton-Eales then retired from race two, Harrison found himself 27 points clear of Whorton-Eales heading into the final, but with eight drivers still in mathematical contention for the title.

Although Bird and Brown shared the race wins, Harrison secured the points he needed to take the title, with Zelos getting ahead of WhortonEales to finish as runner-up despite being the only driver in the top eight not to win a race over the course of the year.

Zelos did win the Graduate Cup, whilst there were also titles for Isaac Smith (Rookie Cup) and James Griffith (Directors Cup).

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