BTCC to run significantly enhanced safety system

TOCA, organiser of the British Touring Car Championship, today (29 September) announced that all cars will run an onboard visual signalling system from next season.

Similar to that seen in the likes of Formula 1, the BTCC Race Control will be able to immediately inform all drivers via their in-car dashboards of yellow flag zones, red flag stoppages, Safety Car periods, black or black/white flag notifications as well as other important safety messages – further supporting the traditional flag system and LED light boards deployed by marshals situated around each circuit. That same information will also immediately flash up on the timing screens.

It is expected that all BTCC support championships – some 100 cars at each race weekend – will also adopt the system into their cars, thus enhancing driver safety to a level not seen before within British motorsport. The race control system software has been developed by Timing Solutions Limited (TSL), the long-time supplier of timing and scoring systems to TOCA.

The introduction is a first for British motorsport and follows other pioneering developments in the BTCC, such as hybrid technology and more sustainable fuel – both also being welcomed in 2022.

Alan Gow, BTCC Chief Executive, said: “TOCA continues to take the lead when it comes to introducing technology, sustainability and safety innovations within British motorsport, and we are proud to be introducing this onboard visual signalling system from 2022 onwards. This is a very significant safety enhancement for our BTCC drivers and indeed our trackside marshals, and one which I’m sure will also be adopted by our valued support championships. 

“It’s vital to stress, however, that this important safety tool will supplement – not replace – the traditional flag system deployed by the marshals, which remains such an intrinsic part of the safety protocols.”

Team HARD. Racing is pleased to announce today (29 September) that the team will be retaining the services of BTCC race winner Árón Taylor-Smith after an agreement was reached over a new multi-year British Touring Car Championship contract for the Irishman.

Taylor-Smith, who made his series return in the new-for-2021 CUPRA Leon after a three-year hiatus, has enjoyed nine points-finishes so far this season and is aiming to continue the development of the machines into the 2022 campaign.

Árón Taylor-Smith said: “I have never felt more at home in a team than I do at Team HARD. and that has been one of the main contributing factors to remaining here. The work that they are doing behind the scenes is second to none and I am 100% confident that we can make the CUPRA a force to be reckoned with in the BTCC.

“To have the security of knowing that I will be on the grid for years to come is amazing. I firmly believe that continuity breeds success, both on track with the development and progression of the CUPRA, but also off track with my partners. I really feel as though this is only the beginning of what is to come.

“I want to thank Tony [Gilham] and everyone at Team HARD. for their work, and of course my partners in making this dream a reality. I am under no illusions that it is a privilege to be on the BTCC grid and without their continued support it wouldn't be possible.

“I always knew that the first year would be about the development of the CUPRA and weaning out any potential weaknesses. I’m positive that we will see a significant jump in performance in the remainder of this season and into 2022 – the possibilities in the future are endless! I know that with Team HARD. I will have the best chance of succeeding in the BTCC, and I look forward to repaying their efforts with some silverware.”

Tony Gilham, Owner of Team HARD. Racing, added: “Árón has been a breath of fresh air since joining the team in December of last year. His enthusiasm for the CUPRA project, the development of the team and our fans is fantastic and has helped take us to another level. Árón has great attention to detail, and this has massively helped us move in the right direction as we look to the hybrid era next season and beyond.

“The results may not have fallen Árón’s way so far this season, but he has always shown strong pace and with a little more luck he will be back fighting at the sharp end. He has the talent and we are working hard to provide Árón with a consistent car that will allow us to sustain a challenge at the very front of the field in 2022.

“Having secured the services of both Árón and Jack [Goff] for next season is testament to how far this team has come in a short space of time. They are two of the very best talents in British motorsport and being able to have that continuity with our driver line-up puts us in a strong position for next season.”

Taylor-Smith will be entering his eighth season in the BTCC in 2022 and will be joining team-mate Jack Goff behind the wheel of Team HARD. Racing’s CUPRA Leon as the championship begins a new era with hybrid technology.

Andrew Jordan contests every official session in the BTCC Hybrid Toyota Corolla

The BTCC Hybrid era truly began at Silverstone last weekend (25/26 September) as the BTCC Hybrid Toyota Corolla contested all official sessions during the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship event around the 1.64-mile National Circuit.

The car was entered as part of a demonstration of the Hybrid system, albeit not regarded as the full competitive debut of the car. 

Piloted by 2013 champion Andrew Jordan and overseen by both Cosworth and M-Sport personnel, the car spent Saturday not seeking to set competitive lap times, but rather to go through various systems-checks and obtain important mileage and setup information – given that the car has not had any meaningful chassis development or performance running since its introduction last year.

On race day, the car was in a more normal competitive configuration. Jordan set the third-fastest lap time in race one, before going on to set the fastest lap out of all 30-cars in the second race. Just as impressive as recording the fastest lap of the race was the fact that in doing so it did not even set the fastest speed trap times; thus demonstrating that the car was being run without artificially increasing its performance level above its normal. 

As directed by TOCA, the car started every official session from the pitlane with Jordan staying away from ‘dicing’ with other cars. 

Unfortunately, the car retired on lap six of the final race with a cracked weld in its exhaust manifold, which was unrelated to the Hybrid system.  

The car successfully and consistently deployed its hybrid power throughout the weekend – approximately a 10% power increase – for a maximum of 15 seconds per lap. The hybrid deploys when Jordan pushes the hybrid button once full traction has been established.  

As previously noted, the object of the weekend was to replicate full real-time BTCC race event conditions for the Hybrid system, as part of the carefully planned ongoing test and development cycle. The car was not in its final specification and is still validating some components and software.  

As well, the car was also equipped with the all-new 2022 ‘TOCA Engine’ – developed and built by M-Sport. This new engine has very successfully completed all of its durability and performance programmes (both in-car and on-dyno) in readiness for introduction from next season, for those teams that don’t wish to develop their own engine.  

M-Sport confirmed that the engine ran faultlessly throughout the Silverstone weekend, other than the minor cracked weld in the exhaust manifold – in fact that particular exhaust manifold had completed over two seasons worth of testing mileage, both on the dyno and in the car. 

The BTCC Hybrid project will now continue apace ahead of its full introduction, with the rear-wheel drive Hybrid BMW joining the Hybrid Toyota during testing and development over the coming weeks and months.  

Every car will run the Hybrid system from the beginning of the 2022 British Touring Car Championship. 

Alan Gow, BTCC Chief Executive, said: “The fast laps the Hybrid car achieved – running on the exact same tyres as the rest of the grid, as well as a normal race setup – underlined the inherent performance of the car. And nor was the Hybrid system merely ‘cranked up’ to achieve that performance – in fact, as the TSL timing data underlines, setting the fastest lap in race two was achieved despite it not even recording the fastest speed trap times in that race. 

“So, we are all delighted with the way the Hybrid system ran during the Silverstone race weekend, as the car achieved everything we wanted it to. The main goal was to go through an entire race weekend sequence; putting the car, the system and our partners – Cosworth and M-Sport – through the ‘stress-test’ that a race weekend brings, as well as comparing the performance of the car, albeit at the very beginning of its competitive life cycle. 

“Overall, it has been an extremely successful demonstration and we now continue to the next phase of the Hybrid project’s development cycle ahead of the full introduction for the 2022 season.” 

EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com enjoyed another strong weekend on track as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship headed for Silverstone for the eighth race weekend of the campaign.

The Suffolk-based team went into the second of back-to-back meetings aiming to impress with drivers Tom Ingram, Chris Smiley, Jack Butel and Rick Parfitt all optimistic that the short National circuit would be well suited to the Hyundai i30 Fastback N.

Free practice provided an encouraging start to the weekend as Smiley topped the times for a large part of the initial session before being pipped by just 0.010s at the end, with Ingram also in the top ten and Butel and Parfitt both within a second of the pace. Free Practice two then saw Ingram end up sixth quickest, with Butel an encouraging tenth, Smiley in 15th and Parfitt in 23rd – leaving all four drivers in a solid position going into qualifying.

Silverstone marked the return of the two-part qualifying session seen previously at Snetterton, with the top ten drivers in the first stage of qualifying going through to Q2 and the battle for pole.

As Ingram safely made it through with the third-best time, the 28-year-old was almost joined by team-mate Smiley, who ended up 15th on the grid with a best time that was only 0.060s away from the top ten.

Butel would end up 19th on the grid, while Parfitt took 27th, the pair having both shown the potential to run higher.

Once Q2 got underway, Ingram vaulted up into provisional pole and looked set to secure his place at the head of the field before being edged into second place by Rory Butcher by just 0.016s.

The opening race on Sunday saw the team adding to its ever-growing list of silverware, with Ingram managing to jump ahead of Butcher off the line to secure the early lead. The ballast-light Toyota got ahead on lap three, with Ingram then putting in a fine drive to keep Dan Lloyd’s Vauxhall at bay as he picked up a solid second place.

From 15th on the grid, Smiley kicked off race day with a solid 13th place to pick up more points, with Butel battling ahead of Tom Chilton’s BMW and then Jake Hill’s Ford Focus to take 18th – his impressive pace seeing him set the fastest first sector time of anyone in the race.

Parfitt’s pace was also impressive, particularly towards the latter stages, as he started the day with 23rd place.

Ingram would slot into second place at the start of race two and spent most of the race in a frenetic battle to keep the faster Honda of Josh Cook at bay. Cook eventually managed to sneak ahead after a mid-race safety car period, but Ingram was able to stay ahead of Colin Turkington’s BMW to the finish to take a second podium of the day.

He would later be promoted into second spot when Cook was excluded from the result, which also handed Smiley more points from the race after he fought his way into the top ten.

A strong opening lap saw the Northern Irishman up into tenth, and solid moves on Lloyd’s Vauxhall and the BMW of Stephen Jelley saw him cross the line in eighth before he was then moved up into seventh.

Butel came close to a fourth points-finish of the campaign as he was classified in 16th place, with Parfitt recovering after losing ground on the opening lap following contact to take 25th; the biggest encouragement being the fact that he would set the fastest lap amongst the Hyundai quartet for the first time.

The reverse grid final race saw Smiley starting fifth and he wasted little time in moving up to fourth ahead of Jason Plato, and then grabbed third from Jelley on lap four. A podium finish looked to be on the cards until he was overhauled by points-leader Ash Sutton six laps from the end, although fourth place was a strong way to end his weekend.

The additional ballast on Ingram’s car hampered his chances of replicating his earlier results, and he would fight hard in the lower reaches of the top ten before taking the flag in 12th spot; the points across the weekend moving him back up to second in the title race.

Butel’s pace had shown he was capable of pushing for points but, having lost ground while forced to take avoiding action when two cars clashed ahead on the exit of Copse, he dropped down the order to finish in 23rd despite again showing pace to run much higher up the pack.

It was a similar story for Parfitt – who was delayed at the start when a car in front failed to get off the line but then lapped quickly and consistently to take 22nd.

"I think if it had been any driver other than Ash behind me in the final race, we’d have had a podium, but he was just too quick,” said Smiley. “However, I’m pleased that we were able to get into the position to fight for a podium considering where we started as we had to push forwards for it.

"The car felt brilliant in FP1, and the times were doing there were really strong, but for some reason, it wasn’t quite as good for the remainder of the weekend. Track conditions changed quite a lot and that seemed to affect my car, but we’ve come from 15th on the grid to take two top tens and went close to a podium, so we’ve had worse days."

"I’d have loved better results on paper,” admitted Parfitt, “but I think this has been my best weekend in terms of how I’ve driven and my pace has been really strong – as I showed by being the fastest Hyundai in race two.

"I had contact early on in race two which cost me ground but I got my head down from that point on and made some solid overtaking moves, and my speed was the best it has been. It shows that the pace is coming now, and it’s now a case of getting a bit further up the order so I don’t get caught up in the melee that you can find in the pack.

"I can take a lot of confidence from this weekend, particularly knowing that I have two circuits still to come that I really enjoy."

"We made up ground on Ash in the standings in the opening two races which was really good, and it showed the impact that carrying weight into a weekend has had in recent events,” reflected Ingram. “The reverse grid is always tough when you’ve been on the podium in race two because you are up against cars that are a lot lighter than you so it was a case of getting what we could from it.

"We’ve closed the gap slightly in the points, although it would have been nice to get more, and we’re back up to second in the championship. Ash still has a buffer, but we just need to get our heads down and reflect on a job well done this weekend, with a solid haul of points and two trophies to take home."

“I’m taking a lot of positives away from the weekend as the pace we showed throughout has been really strong,” added Butel. “Had I been able to hook up my best lap in qualifying, we’d have been in the top ten shootout, which would have been a massive achievement.

"Race day proved to be a bit more tricky as even though we had a quick car, we didn’t have track position and there were a few things that didn’t go my way. It’s a nice feeling to come away from the weekend with my first purple sector however, and I hope we can replicate this pace when we go into the final two rounds and end the season on a high."

Sutton keeps firm grip on title as BTCC brings the heat to Silverstone

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK’s Rory Butcher bagged a brilliant double, before MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square’s Jake Hill ended his weekend on a high by winning the final Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship encounter at Silverstone. 

Butcher enjoyed the most remarkable weekend of his BTCC career so far, as the Scotsman topped both free practice sessions and qualifying on Saturday, before going on to win the first two races on Sunday. 

Having initially lost the lead to fellow front-row starter Tom Ingram in the opener, Butcher lunged past the Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com Hyundai at Brooklands on lap three.  

He eventually pulled away to take a comfortable victory, whilst Ingram held on to second, albeit coming under race-long pressure from the Vauxhall Astra of Daniel Lloyd. 

Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing’s Lloyd performed brilliantly, as he did all weekend, to take his first podium since 2018. 

The dream weekend for Speedworks Motorsport continued in race two as Butcher secured a more routine lights-to-flag success, with Ingram again following him home in the final results ahead of Team BMW’s Colin Turkington. 

Josh Cook had finished second on the road but was later disqualified for a technical infringement when his car failed a post-race ride height check. 

The final bout belonged to Hill as he completed the perfect recovery performance throughout Sunday. 

Hill – fresh from his triumph at Croft – arrived in Northamptonshire with a ballast-laden Ford Focus, which seriously dented his hopes during qualifying. 

Steady progress in race one was followed by a great drive in race two – finishing ninth from 21st on the grid – setting up a race-winning opportunity in the finale.

With only the Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing duo of Lloyd and Jason Plato ahead of him, he easily dispatched the latter off the line. 

A game of cat and mouse ensued as Hill’s Ford went side-by-side with Lloyd’s Vauxhall on a number of occasions, before the former made a firm move through Copse shortly after mid-distance. 

Lloyd kept Hill honest throughout, whilst championship leader Ash Sutton completed the podium. 

Chris Smiley hung on well to fourth in his EXCELR8 Motorsport-run Hyundai, ahead of Team BMW’s Stephen Jelley and Plato, who had dropped down the order following a sluggish start. 

Laser Tools Racing’s Sutton scored another trio of top six finishes as he extended his advantage in the Drivers’ standings to 36 over Ingram, with Hill now a further two in arrears. 

The same Sutton/Laser Tools Racing combo also top the Teams’ and Independents’ tables, whilst BMW heads the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ order. 

Halfords Racing with Cataclean’s Daniel Rowbottom leads the Jack Sears Trophy. 

It was an historic weekend for the UK’s premier motorsport series as the BTCC’s Hybrid era began with 2013 champion Andrew Jordan piloting the all-new Hybrid Toyota Corolla.

The car contested all official sessions at Silverstone – setting the fastest lap in race two – as part of a demonstration of the hybrid system. All BTCC cars will run hybrid energy from the 2022 season onwards.

The penultimate race weekend of the BTCC season takes place at Donington Park in two weeks’ time (9/10 October). 

Rory Butcher said: “We’ve almost had a clean sweep this weekend! Race one was just an enjoyable race, it was fantastic. I knew that on lap one I wasn’t going to get the lead. But it was nice to have the pace to get back onto Tom [Ingram’s] bumper and get past him.  

“Things were tougher with a whole chunk of ballast on-board in race two, but the team managed to get the Corolla into such a good window, and I was amazed by how the car handled. I could obviously feel the extra weight, but it didn’t actually hurt me that much, which is testament to the incredible job done by all the Speedworks boys and girls.  

“They’ve given me such a fantastic car over the last few weekends, and it was great to be able to reward them for everybody’s hard work. We just fine-tuned the car over the weekend – the car is just doing exactly what I want it to do. 

“A quite special and near-perfect weekend. We’re not going to stop pushing. We’re going to keep trying to find more time from both me and the car.” 

Jake Hill said: “This is what relief looks like – wow! Obviously, that’s what I wanted. I knew the car was suffering [with the weight] on Saturday, so I wanted to get the reverse grid and to finish somewhere sensible, but I didn’t expect a win quite like that. It was great, what a fantastic race with Dan [Lloyd], I thoroughly enjoyed it. We come home winners again, I’m absolutely over the moon. 

“I pulled a comfortable gap, kept him there and it was all good. I did make a couple of little mistakes, he reeled me back in and got close again. Then, I don’t know if he made a small mistake, he dropped back a bit and let me breathe for the last couple of laps. It was a really good race, I enjoyed it a lot. I really want to say a massive thanks to my engineer Craig and all the team at MB Motorsport for turning this thing around, because we were genuinely struggling, and they’ve brought it back to being a race-winning car. 

“They re-engineered the front of it, we were really struggling with the front of the car, we just had to think quick. We’re lucky with having three other team-mates all running slightly different things, we just picked the best of both worlds and it paid dividends.” 

Ash Sutton said: “This is what we aim for! Obviously race one and two you just have to bag those points, and when they all fall behind you it’s time to make hay while the sun shines. We did exactly that! 

“Realistically, I wouldn’t have had enough laps to put a move on [Hill and Lloyd]. Around here, you’ve got to get set up quite early on. I was hunting it down and gave it a good shot in those last few laps, to pull that gap down, but I didn’t have as many laps as I needed. 

“That result way key. I know those guys dropped back a little bit, so to pull 11 points out of them in that one race, just shows where we are with the championship. If we look back at where the car was when we first rolled it out, obviously we’ve got a few little things up our sleeves. The car’s phenomenal. We got it dialled in [at Donington Park] last year, so I’m buzzing to get there.” 

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 22 laps
2            Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +3.262s
3            Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +3.666s
4            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +4.263s
5            Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +6.674s
6            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +6.929s
7            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +7.379s
8            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +8.113s
9            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +10.154s
10          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +10.564s

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 25 laps
2            Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +3.021s
3            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +3.162s
4            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +3.456s
5            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +3.492s
6            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +4.182s
7            Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +4.494s
8            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +5.550s
9            Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +6.706s
10          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +7.031s

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 3 – Silverstone

1            Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square 22 laps
2            Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.698s
3            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1.444s
4            Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +4.474s
5            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +4.906s
6            Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +5.269s
7            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +5.476s
8            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +6.146s
9            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +7.740s
10          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +8.731s

Penalties:

Race 1
Senna Proctor received an official reprimand and had his licence endorsed by the addition of two penalty points for an incident involving Gordon Shedden

Andy Neate received a written reprimand and had his licence endorsed by the addition of two penalty points for instigating an altercation with a member of another team

Race 2
Josh Cook was excluded from the result after his car failed post-race ride height checks

Jade Edwards received an official reprimand and had her licence endorsed by the addition of two penalty points for an incident involving Gordon Shedden

MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square ended a challenging weekend on an unbelievable high as Jake Hill won Round 24 of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Silverstone.

Hill – fresh from his triumph at Croft – arrived in Northamptonshire with a ballast-laden Ford Focus, which seriously dented his performance during qualifying.

Steady progress in race one was followed by a great drive in race two – finishing in ninth from 21st on the grid – setting up a race-winning opportunity in the final encounter.

With only the Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing duo of Daniel Lloyd and Jason Plato ahead of him, he easily dispatched the latter off the line.

A game of cat and mouse ensued as Hill's Ford went side-by-side with Lloyd's Vauxhall on a number of occasions before the former made a firm move through Copse shortly after mid-distance.

Lloyd kept Hill honest throughout as he enjoyed his best weekend of the season so far, whilst championship leader Ash Sutton completed the podium.

Chris Smiley hung on well to fourth in his EXCELR8 Motorsport-run Hyundai, ahead of Team BMW's Stephen Jelley and Plato, who had dropped following a sluggish start.

Laser Tools Racing's Aiden Moffat completed another solid weekend with seventh, ahead of an interesting battle between four-time champion Colin Turkington and the Team Dynamics-run Honda of Daniel Rowbottom.

Ollie Jackson made it a double celebration for MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square as he rounded out the top ten.

Jake Hill said: “This is what relief looks like – wow! Obviously, that’s what I wanted. I knew it was suffering on Saturday, so I wanted to get the reverse grid and to finish somewhere sensible, but I didn’t expect a win quite like that. It was great, what a fantastic race with Dan [Lloyd], I thoroughly enjoyed it. We come home winners again, I’m absolutely over the moon.

“I pulled a comfortable gap, kept him there and it was all good. I did make a couple of little mistakes, he reeled me back in and got close again. Then, I don’t know if he made a small mistake, he dropped back a bit and let me breathe for the last couple of laps. It was a really good race, I enjoyed it a lot. I really want to say a massive thanks to my engineer Craig and all the team at MB Motorsport for turning this thing around, because we were genuinely struggling and they’ve brought it back to being a race-winning car.

“They re-engineered the front of it, we were really struggling with the front of the car, we just had to think quick. We’re lucky with having three other team-mates all running slightly different things, we just picked the best of both worlds and it paid dividends.”

Dan Lloyd said: “I’m over the moon, to be honest. I felt a little bit disappointed when we were on the weighing scales and Jake [Hill] jumped out and everyone screamed, but other than that I’m over the moon with that. Jake was mega quick then he had the pace on me. I made a decision not to fight him and I’m pretty sure it was the right one. We just followed him.

“The car improved throughout the weekend so a big thanks to the boys at the team. I’m over the moon, we’ve had a tough year and it’s coming to the end of the season now and this is the result we’ve been looking for, we’ve done mega with the sponsors and support, and I’ve been working all year, we needed to complement that with some results and it’s just fantastic.

“If there’s anyone you don’t want to see in your mirrors, it’s Ash [Sutton]. It was just a case of not making mistakes. I got a track limits warning with three laps to go, which isn’t what you want either because that backed me up a bit more just being cautious, but I’m just so pleased we kept it together. It’s been a fantastic day and again thanks to all the team.”

Ash Sutton said: “This is what we aim for! Obviously race one and two you just have to bag those points, and when they all fall behind you it’s time to make hay while the sun shines. We did exactly that!

“Realistically, I wouldn’t have had enough laps to put a move on [Hill and Lloyd]. Around here, you’ve got to get set up quite early on. I was hunting it down and gave it a good shot in those last few laps, to pull that gap down, but I didn’t have as many laps as I needed.

“That result way key. I know those guys dropped back a little bit, so to pull 11 points out of them in that one race, just shows where we are with that championship. If we look back at where the car was when we first rolled it out, obviously we’ve got a few little things up our sleeves. The car’s phenomenal. We got it dialled in [at Donington Park] last year, so I’m buzzing to get there.”

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 3 – Silverstone

1            Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square 22 laps
2            Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.698s
3            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1.444s
4            Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +4.474s
5            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +4.906s
6            Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +5.269s
7            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +5.476s
8            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +6.146s
9            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +7.740s
10          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +8.731s
11          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +8.938s
12          Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +10.652s
13          Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +11.434s
14          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +12.965s
15          Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +13.277s
16          Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +13.566s
17          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) BTC Racing +14.111s
18          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +15.390s
19          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +15.487s
20          Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +16.120s
21          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +16.273s
22          Rick PARFITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +20.854s
23          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +21.147s
24          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +21.405s
25          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +22.992s
26          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +27.816s
27          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +28.265s
28          Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +28.534s
29          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +14 laps

The best weekend in Rory Butcher's BTCC career so far continues as the Toyota Gazoo Racing UK star claimed his second successive victory at Silverstone.

This was a lights-to-flag performance from the Scotsman as he first held off the Hyundai of Tom Ingram before withstanding an exciting last lap attack from BTC Racing's Josh Cook, although the latter was disqualified for a technical infringement after his car failed a post-race ride height check.

The Honda Civic Type R of Cook was bottled up behind Ingram for much of the contest, but when he finally made a move stick in the latter stages he was free to hunt down Butcher's Toyota.

Ingram and Cook went side-by-side on a number of occasions in an eventful and respectful scrap, but arguably the most exciting moment was still to come as the lead battle built to a climax on the final tour.

With Cook finally free of Ingram's #80 machine he immediately hauled himself towards the ballast-laden Corolla of Butcher, making a late late lunge for victory at Brooklands.

A collective gasp from the Silverstone grandstands could be heard all around the famous former airfield, as Cook ran wide with Butcher holding on to triumph.

As mentioned, there was yet more disappointment for Cook after he was disqualified, which handed Ingram second, ahead of Team BMW's Colin Turkington, who had seen off the attentions from Laser Tools Racing duo Ash Sutton and Aiden Moffat.

Daniel Rowbottom (Halfords Racing with Cataclean), Chris Smiley (Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com) and Stephen Jelley (Team BMW) were sixth, seventh and eighth respectively.

Jake Hill performed outstandingly to score a top ten finish in the MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square Ford Focus, as he surged from 21st on the grid to take ninth. Jason Plato was tenth in the Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing Ford Focus.

There were two safety car periods in the contest, firstly following an incident where Nic Hamilton was tipped off by a rival and then contact between Gordon Shedden and Jade Edwards' Hondas forced the latter into retirement.

Race 3 will take place at 1705 and will be screened live on ITV4.

Rory Butcher said: "We’ve just had a clean sweep so far this weekend! That was a lot harder with the 75kg of success ballast on board, but I’m amazed with how the car’s handled it, because you never know! We’ve got the car in such a good window. I could feel it, but it didn’t hurt too much.

"I kind of had [Josh] in the mirrors for the last five or six laps, and he was just getting a tenth off with every lap. I got to that final lap and that focus I had went to tunnel vision and I just thought I needed to make it to the line now. I felt like, at Brooklands, he sort of made a move to the inside and I thought ‘there’s no way he’s going to do that’ but I just saw his car in the mirror. You know what, I probably would’ve done the same thing, but luckily it didn’t pay off and I held on for the win.

"We’re going to be in the pack now and it’s going to be even harder. The difficulty level is going up! But we’ll have a look at where we are and if we can make any changes to try and make the car even quicker, but I think we’ll just try and stay out of trouble and bring some points home."

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 25 laps
2            Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +3.021s
3            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +3.162s
4            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +3.456s
5            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +3.492s
6            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +4.182s
7            Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +4.494s
8            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +5.550s
9            Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +6.706s
10          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +7.031s
11          Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +7.036s
12          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +7.796s
13          Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +8.348s
14          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +9.570s
15          Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +9.728s
16          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +10.036s
17          Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +10.166s
18          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +10.773s
19          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +11.066s
20          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +13.752s
21          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +14.902s
22          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +15.589s
23          Rick PARFITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +15.754s
24          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +24.217s
25          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +6 laps
26          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) BTC Racing +7 laps
27          Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +15 laps
28          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +18 laps
DSQ     Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK's Rory Butcher claimed victory in the opening Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship race at Silverstone, after getting the better of fellow front-row starter Tom Ingram.

The Ginsters-backed Hyundai of Ingram blasted into the lead off the line as Butcher had to contend with a slippery side of the track, after fluid was dropped by a car from one of the previous support races.

Butcher remained composed and lunged past Ingram's #80 machine at Brooklands on lap three and he eventually pulled away to take a comfortable victory.

Ingram held on to second until the finish, albeit coming under race-long pressure from the Vauxhall Astra of Daniel Lloyd.

Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing's Lloyd performed brilliantly, as he has done all weekend, to take his first podium since 2018.

Aiden Moffat – fresh from his recent victory at Croft – narrowly missed out on more silverware as he pressured home both Ingram and Lloyd to take fourth.

The next trio ran line astern as BTC Racing's Josh Cook, Team BMW's Colin Turkington and Laser Tools Racing's Ash Sutton took fifth, sixth and seventh respectively, the latter having made a nice mid-race pass on the Team Dynamics-run Honda of Daniel Rowbottom on the approach to Copse.

Team BMW's Stephen Jelley and Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing's Jason Plato completed the top ten results, as the third manufacturer-backed BMW of Tom Oliphant looked on.

Rory Butcher said: "It was quite interesting sitting on the grid and seeing that massive damp patch there. I just knew that Tom [Ingram] would be quite happy in his car, because he was going to get the better start off the line. I knew that on lap one I wasn’t going to get the lead. But it was nice to have the pace to get back onto Tom’s bumper and get past him. It was just quite an enjoyable race. I’m really enjoying the car this weekend, it’s fantastic.

"I felt confident the first two laps I felt good on the brakes into there, relative to Tom, and then decided to make a move.

"The car probably wont feel quite as good [with 75kg of success ballast] as it did there. But that’s just how it I in this championship, so I’m just going to get the most out of it that I can."

Tom Ingram said: "It was a cracking move, I let him have it. There was a yellow flag there coming down from a crash that had gone on a couple of laps previous, so I was never going to defend it under a yellow. I sort of let Rory go and thought ‘I’m not going to shut the door.’

"It was a fairly steady race really, nothing too dramatic. Rory has been mega quick this weekend, so I was more than happy to watch the back of his car for the rest of the race and just concentrate on scoring some big points, staying second and scoring as many points as possible. Dan was coming up strong behind and every time he got a little bit closer I could just about cover it off. But I think for the first race it’s just our plan to stay out of trouble and get some good points, it’s just what we needed."

Dan Lloyd said: "I’m over the moon! Fifth was a great achievement for us yesterday, the best performance in qualifying we’ve had all year, but to move up two positions and get on the podium. It’s been a tough year for us. The team’s worked really hard and I’ve worked really hard. But I’m over the moon. It’s great to get a podium, I’ll really enjoy that trophy.

"It means everything. To be honest, the morale in the team’s been down a few times, because we thought we were going to be stronger this year. We’ve kept working and working, the mechanics last night were here until midnight. So it’s not just me, for the engineers, the sponsors, mechanics, it means a lot! There’s still a lot of improvements to make on the car, we were struggling a bit then and we were holding on but I’m just going to enjoy this at the moment – it’s great!"

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 22 laps
2            Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +3.262s
3            Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +3.666s
4            Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +4.263s
5            Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +6.674s
6            Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +6.929s
7            Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +7.379s
8            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +8.113s
9            Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +10.154s
10          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +10.564s
11          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +10.757s
12          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +16.981s
13          Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +17.270s
14          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) BTC Racing +17.621s
15          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +18.009s
16          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +18.763s
17          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +19.410s
18          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +19.886s
19          Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +23.460s
20          Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +23.822s
21          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +24.904s
22          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +25.239s
23          Rick PARFITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +26.015s
24          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +28.099s
25          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +20 laps
26          Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +21 laps
27          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +22 laps
28          Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +22 laps
29          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +22 laps

Yesterday at Silverstone we saw the return of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship's Top Ten Showdown qualifying format, following its implementation at Snetterton earlier in the campaign.

After an initial 25-minute session, the top ten drivers were promoted to the pole position showdown, where they had ten minutes to give it their all to secure that coveted P1 on the grid for today's opening contest.

Catch what the top three drivers had to say after an action-packed session using the audio players below, and listen back to the full session using the Listen Again qualifying commentary podcast...

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK's Rory Butcher had a stellar day at Silverstone, with the Scotsman topping every session:

Tom Ingram held the top spot for a time during the session, but the Ginsters EXCEL8R8 with TradePriceCars.com man settled for second in his #80 Hyundai:

It's P3 for Laser Tools Racing driver Aiden Moffat for the initial encounter:

Relive all the action from the Top Ten Showdown now:

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK star takes BTCC pole position

Rory Butcher enjoyed a super Saturday at Silverstone as the Toyota Gazoo Racing UK star secured pole position for Round 22 of the 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, having topped every session throughout the day (25 September).

The Scotsman – running in his relatively ballast-free Toyota Corolla – set the pace during both free practice sessions, before going on to top the times in the first segment of qualifying, setting up a potential clean sweep heading into the showdown.

With time running out in the all-important ten-minute finale, the #6 Speedworks Motorsport-run machine flashed past the Silverstone grandstands one last time to snatch pole position in the closing moments.

The Qualifying Showdown was first introduced as a one-off last season and was subsequently increased to three events – Snetterton, Silverstone and Donington Park – for the 2021 campaign, providing more entertainment for fans and drivers alike.

A marginally-reduced window to record initial lap times took place, before the top ten fastest competitors at the end of the 25-minute session were rewarded with the opportunity to clinch P1 on the grid during a ten-minute pole position showdown.

The earlier segment was largely uneventful until a puncture for Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport's Tom Chilton sent his BMW spinning wildly through Copse. The other main headlines were made by front-runners that failed to make the showdown as MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square's Jake Hill and Halfords Racing with Cataclean's Gordon Shedden both missed out.

With lap times reset, the showdown itself produced a frenetic flurry of action where positions changed at almost every moment.

Aiden Moffat fired his Laser Tools Racing Infiniti up to second late on, seemingly to join Tom Ingram's Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com Hyundai on the front row, before Butcher's flier relegated them to second and third respectively.

Championship contender Josh Cook performed well to take fourth in his BTC Racing Honda, whilst Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing enjoyed its best Saturday of the season so far – Daniel Lloyd and Jason Plato ended up fifth and tenth in the order.

Team BMW had both Colin Turkington and Stephen Jelley inside the top ten in sixth and ninth respectively, whilst Halfords Racing with Cataclean's Dan Rowbottom and Laser Tools Racing's Ash Sutton were wedged between the Bavarian machines on the timesheets.

It was an historic day for the UK's premier motorsport series as the BTCC's Hybrid era also began with 2013 champion Andrew Jordan piloting the all-new Hybrid Toyota Corolla.

The car is contesting all official sessions throughout the weekend as part of a demonstration of the hybrid system. The objective is to replicate full real-time BTCC race event conditions for the hybrid system, as part of the carefully planned ongoing test and development cycle, whilst it is not regarded as the full competitive debut of the car. All BTCC cars will run hybrid energy from the 2022 season onwards.

Rounds 22, 23 and 24 of the 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship take place at Silverstone tomorrow and every race will be broadcast live on ITV4 from 1100.

Rory Butcher said: "The car’s been a pleasure to drive all day. We’ve built into the season and developed the car more around me. Since Oulton Park it’s just been a total change for me. At Croft I felt like we could have potentially got pole position, but it wasn’t to be due to the engine failure.

"Today, I was like ‘right, who cares about that, let’s focus on each session as it comes, get the most out of myself, get the most out of the car’, it got a little bit close at the end, but we did it!"

Tom Ingram said: "We’re still going around with 39kg of success ballast, so I’m pleased, really, really pleased. We needed this. This is where we’ve been struggling: Saturdays. We need to be light on a Saturday, to stand a chance of getting a good first race result.

"I’m looking forward to tomorrow. It’s a circuit that I love and do well here. Since 2016 I don’t think I’ve been off the podium, and I’ve had a win every year since as well. From that point of view it’s a circuit that I really enjoy, so it’s good! I know [Butcher’s] car; I know where it’s fairly strong and where it’s fairly weak, so I can exploit that tomorrow."

Aiden Moffat said: "That was something new for us, carrying weight in qualifying, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But P3, I’m over the moon with that!

"I just need to get as many points as possible. The big thing is, Ash [Sutton] has to do what he has to do for the championship, and if things are ever a bit of a dog fight, I’d look to help him. But we’re leading the Teams’ Championship too. It’s crucial that we both score good points and it would be nice if I carry on moving up the table a bit. We’re up to P7 now and starting third tomorrow so points are the main thing."

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Top Ten Showdown – Silverstone

1             Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 57.440s
2             Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.016s
3             Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.070s
4             Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.175s
5             Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.200s
6             Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.238s
7             Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.289s
8             Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.334s
9             Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +0.371s
10          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.461s

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Qualifying – Silverstone

1             Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK 57.383s
2             Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.069s
3             Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.103s
4             Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.196s
5             Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.217s
6             Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.249s
7             Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.269s
8             Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.273s
9             Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.307s
10          Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +0.307s
11          Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.309s
12          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.320s
13          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) BTC Racing +0.338s
14          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.355s
15          Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.367s
16          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.375s
17          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.392s
18          Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +0.405s
19          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.471s
20          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.506s
21          Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.551s
22          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.562s
23          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +0.590s
24          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.708s
25          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +0.714s
26          Rick PARFITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.725s
27          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +0.742s
28          Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +0.773s
29          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +1.050s