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

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK's Rory Butcher has set the pace in both Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship free practice sessions at Silverstone, boding well for the Scotsman ahead of qualifying this afternoon.

A word of caution for the manufacturer-backed driver, however, is that he also led the way at Croft during practice last weekend, before a mechanical failure in qualifying ended his challenge.

As ever, Butcher and Speedworks approach each weekend with renewed optimism and professionalism and their performances so far make them the standout favourite for pole position.

Tom Oliphant (Team BMW), Senna Proctor (BTC Racing) and Ash Sutton (Laser Tools Racing) were next in the order during FP2, whilst Daniel Lloyd showed improved pace in the Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing Vauxhall.

Tom Ingram – looking to bounce back from a challenging weekend last time out – was sixth in the Ginsters-backed Hyundai, whilst Halfords Racing with Cataclean's Daniel Rowbottom was seventh.

The Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport duo of Tom Chilton and Adam Morgan followed on the timesheets, whilst Jack Butel impressed to take tenth in his EXCELR8 Motorsport-run Jack Butel.

"The time we did just then was on the same tyres we used in FP1, we’ll see, give it a go and touch wood everything will be alright!" said Morgan.

"I think we’ve all surprised ourselves really. If you’d have said in our first year in rear-wheel drive that we’d have two wins and two podiums we wouldn’t have believed it. But I’m loving rear-wheel drive. It’s back to where I started, back to my roots and it’s all coming back to me. It just feels so nice to drive. The pace is there or there abouts. We’re still getting used to it, but I’m really enjoying it!

"I loved the Mercedes, it’s an old friend but it was knocking on a bit, so it was time to swap. It was nice to bring the BMW in. It’s a great car and the pace is coming, we’re learning every time we go out. Silverstone is quite unique in that it’s such a high-grip track, so we’re trying to adapt setup for such a high grip and the nature of the circuit, but we’ll give it a go in quali and see what happens!"

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 2 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +57.247s
2             Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.270s
3             Senna PROCTOR(GBR) BTC Racing +0.345s
4             Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.410s
5             Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.432s
6             Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.450s
7            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.459s
8             Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.456s
9             Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.501s
10          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.508s
11          Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +0.513s
12          Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.527s
13          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.554s
14          Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.555s
15          Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +0.590s
16          Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.664s
17          Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +0.685s
18          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.694s
19          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.748s
20          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.765s
21          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +0.810s
22          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.846s
23          Rick PARFRITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.848s
24          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.864s
25          Andrew JORDAN (GBR) TOCA/Cosworth/M-Sport +0.867s
26          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +0.941s
27          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +0.951s
28          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +1.018s
29          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +1.075s
20          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1.131s

The BTCC Hybrid Toyota Corolla contested a competitive session for the first time this morning during Free Practice 1 of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Silverstone.

Piloted by 2013 champion Andrew Jordan, the car went through a series of systems checks during the 40 minutes of running, only completing representative laps in the closing minutes – ending up some seven tenths off the ultimate pace.

"It’s good, I’ve done a fair bit of the testing with Cosworth, Speedworks and M-Sport with the new engine as well," said Jordan. "So, lots of miles, but obviously this is the first time in the public eye."

The entire 30-car field was covered by an astonishing 1.049s as many predict one of the most fiercely contested weekends of the season so far.

It's also building towards the business end of the season with many drivers looking to keep their title hopes alive around the shorter national circuit.

One of those racers is arguably Toyota Gazoo UK Racing's Rory Butcher, and the Scotsman kicked off his weekend by topping the times, ahead of the EXCELR8 Motorsport-run Hyundai of Chris Smiley.

The duo traded top spot before Butcher made his final effort count in the latter stages.

Laser Tools Racing – fresh from a stellar outing at Croft last weekend – continued its run of good form as Aiden Moffat and Ash Sutton were third and fourth respectively.

Tom Ingram (Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com) and Josh Cook (BTC Racing) are two other title contenders looking to keep their championship challenges on-track – they were inside the top six, ahead of Daniel Rowbottom's Team Dynamics-run Honda.

Sam Smelt (Toyota Gazoo Racing UK), Jack Goff (Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct) , Gordon Shedden (Halfords Racing with Cataclean) completed the top ten.

Free Practice 2 commences at 1205, before Qualifying for Round 22 of the 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship kicks off at 1440 – the latter will be streamed live via www.itv.com/btcc.

2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 1 – Silverstone

1            Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +57.478s
2            Chris SMILEY (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.010s
3             Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.146s
4             Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.217s
5             Tom INGRAM (GBR) Ginsters EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.247s
6            Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.270s
7            Daniel ROWBOTTOM (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.302s
8            Sam SMELT (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK +0.314s
9             Jack GOFF (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +0.401s
10          Gordon SHEDDEN (GBR) Halfords Racing with Cataclean +0.404s
11          Tom CHILTON (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.463s
12          Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team BMW +0.497s
13          Jack BUTEL (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.508s
14          Jason PLATO (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.545s
15          Daniel LLOYD (GBR) Adrian Flux with Power Maxed Racing +0.574s
16         Adam MORGAN (GBR) Car Gods with Ciceley Motorsport +0.625s
17          Senna PROCTOR(GBR) BTC Racing +0.626s
18          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.657s
19          Árón TAYLOR-SMITH (IRL) Team HARD. with HUB Financial Solutions +0.704s
20          Sam OSBORNE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.716s
21          Ollie JACKSON (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.726s
22          Andrew JORDAN (GBR) TOCA/Cosworth/M-Sport +0.750s
23          Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.769s
24           Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.814s
25          Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.828s
26          Rick PARFRITT (GBR) EXCELR8 with TradePriceCars.com +0.847s
27          Jack MITCHELL (GBR) Team HARD. with Autobrite Direct +0.864s
28          Jade EDWARDS (GBR) PHSC with BTC Racing +0.908s
29          Andy NEATE (GBR) Racing with Wera & Photon Group +0.971s
30          Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with iQuoto Online Trading +2.319s

The second half of the only doubleheader in the 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship kicks off at Silverstone tomorrow (25/26 September) as teams and drivers gear up for the eighth race weekend of the 30-round campaign.

Following an exciting outing at Croft (18/19 September), the home of British Motor Racing is set to host another trio of enthralling races, in what could prove to be a vital weekend in the championship battle.

Fans at home can enjoy a bumper weekend of BTCC action courtesy of ITV4, as Croft's highlights programme immediately precedes Silverstone's coverage, amounting to nearly nine hours of non-stop tin-top thrills.

Sunday's highlights show kicks off at 0925, before Silverstone's coverage gets underway at 1100, whilst you can catch qualifying on Saturday from 1435 over at itv.com/btcc.

Qualifying LIVE: Saturday 25 September
ITV.com/BTCC from 1435

Raceday LIVE: Sunday 26 September
ITV4 & ITV4 HD 1100-1805
ITV4 +1 1200-1905
ITV.com/BTCC 1100-1805

Silverstone Highlights: Saturday 2 October 
ITV4 & ITV4 HD 1145-1315
ITV 4 +1 1245-1415
ITV Hub Available anytime for the next 30 days

Silverstone Highlights: Sunday 3 October 
ITV4 & ITV4 HD 0810-0945
ITV4 +1 0910-1045

Silverstone Highlights: Wednesday 6 October
ITV & ITV HD 2340-0055
ITV +1 0040-0255

Ultrafast full-fibre broadband network becomes official partner

The British Touring Car Championship welcomes Jurassic Fibre to its partnership portfolio from this weekend onwards, as the ultrafast full-fibre broadband network joins the UK’s premier motorsport series. 

The South-West based business is currently fuelling the region’s economic growth by equipping businesses with the digital infrastructure they need to thrive, by building a state-of-the-art fibre network that takes ultrafast broadband straight to your door.  

Jurassic Fibre is working to bring the internet experience for families and businesses to a whole new level with faster and more reliable speeds. And with performance being synonymous with the British Touring Car Championship, it’s a perfect partnership. 

Its involvement with the BTCC will commence at the final three race weekends of the 2021 season at Silverstone, Donington Park and Brands Hatch.

The Jurassic Fibre logo will appear on some trackside hoardings, the TV interview and podium backdrops, as well as featuring on the official BTCC website and social media channels.

Alan Gow, BTCC Chief Executive, said: “We welcome Jurassic Fibre to the BTCC and look forward to the partnership between Britain’s biggest motorsport series and the country’s best ultrafast full-fibre broadband network. The BTCC prides itself on the loyalty and longevity of its partners – many of which have been with the series for more than two decades – and we look forward to adding Jurassic Fibre to that burgeoning and successful portfolio.” 

Steve Garrood, Jurassic Fibre, said: “Jurassic Fibre are thrilled to be partnering with the British Touring Car Championship. Our mission is simple - to bring ultrafast, state-of-the-art connectivity to homes and businesses in the UK and enhance the digital infrastructure of rural communities traditionally overlooked by ISPs. We are passionate about supporting local people and championing initiatives and events such as these. Jurassic Fibre and the British Touring Car Championship are united by our shared dedication to speed, performance and community and we look forward to working with them in the coming months as their official partner.”

Andrew Jordan to drive the BTCC Hybrid Toyota at Silverstone this weekend

There has been a lot of excitement and anticipation building since BTCC Series Organiser, TOCA, announced that the BTCC Hybrid car would be taking part in this weekend’s race event at Silverstone. 

With that event now upon us we thought it would be helpful to provide some pointers to look out for ahead of its debut… 

LOCATION: Silverstone 
DATE: September 25/26 
CAR: Toyota Corolla – TOCA-Cosworth Hybrid Test Car 
ENGINE: The all-new 2022 ‘TOCA Engine’ - developed and built by M-Sport 
DRIVER: Andrew Jordan 
RACE NUMBER: 2022 

INTRODUCTION: 

This is a demonstration event of the hybrid system - it is not the full competitive debut of the car. The object of this weekend 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. 

However, be mindful that this car is not in its final specification and is still validating some components and software. Therefore it may be calling into its pit garage more often, for adjustments and data downloading etc. 

ACTIVITY: 

• The car will take part in both BTCC practice sessions, the qualifying session and the three races. 
• It will use electric power to drive from its garage to the pit-lane exit, the first time in each session. 
• Its qualifying time will be disregarded when setting the grid. 
• It will start all races from the pit-lane. 
• It will have hybrid power available – approximately a 10% power increase - for a maximum of 15 seconds per lap. The hybrid deploys when Andrew pushes the hybrid button once full traction has been established. It automatically disengages when braking, or when there is less than full traction or has abnormal steering inputs etc. (Note: that there are many more such parameters built into the system, but those are the basics). 
• It will not get involved in ‘dicing’ with other cars mid-corner or under brakes - unless that driver signals Andrew through or moves over. Otherwise, he will only usually overtake cars under acceleration out of corners or on the straights. 
• It will not provide an ‘aerodynamic tow’ to aid other cars in qualifying or races. 
• Its race results will be invisible as far as points or official results are concerned. 
• The car currently has no external indication as to when the hybrid is engaged – however that feature will be on all cars next year. 

As well, the car is 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. 

This is an exciting time for the UK’s premier motorsport series and the dawn of a new era for the BTCC. This weekend’s activity should be celebrated and enjoyed, whilst taking into account that it is just the beginning of the BTCC Hybrid’s competitive life cycle. As always, thanks for your support and enjoy the show!

After a second front-row qualifying result in as many races, MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square’s Jake Hill converted an excellent qualifying into the team’s maiden victory in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Croft last weekend (18/19 September).

Having lined up second on the grid for the initial encounter, a strong start from Hill allowed the BRDC Superstar to harass pole-sitter Aiden Moffat for the full 18-lap contest, before crossing the finish line in second and sealing the squad’s first podium visit of the weekend. Team-mate Ollie Jackson meanwhile made a superb start from 11th and was up to eighth by the end of the opening lap, before an incident at the final hairpin ended his race on the third circuit.

Starting race two from opposite ends of the field, with Hill in second and Jackson 29th, the pair showed determination and resilience in two very different circumstances.

With Jackson climbing an outstanding 14 places on the opening tour alone, the 37-year-old was into the points by lap six and made up a further place by the end of a mammoth comeback to finish in 14th.

Having initially pressured race one winner Moffat, a committed move from Hill saw the #24 Ford Focus claim the lead before the end of the first lap. Managing a post-safety car restart impressively, the 27-year-old continued to head the field and began to bridge a gap to the chasing pack, taking a second career victory with a lead of more than five seconds.

The Motorbase Performance-run squad headed into race three with hopes of a strong finish to the day as both cars lined up within the top 15.

Another dose of unfortunate luck for Jackson saw the #48 car entangled in an incident early on which brought a premature end to his race due to the damage incurred.

Battling full success ballast and the softer Goodyear tyre compound, Hill defended throughout the encounter to hold on to his seventh-place starting position and claim another valuable points haul.

With less than a week until the team heads to Silverstone for Rounds 22, 23 and 24 of the campaign (25/26 September), Hill holds second in the standings and tops the Goodyear Wingfoot Award, while MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square sits sixth in the teams’ battle.

“Get in there!” proclaimed Hill. “I'm absolutely delighted to get the win and a huge amount of credit goes to the MB Motorsport and Motorbase Performance squad – the car was absolutely faultless, even with the weight. The tyres stayed with me right until the end and it's just a massive thank you to all the team.

"Overall, it was a fantastic weekend – we've done just about all we can, clawed back some ground in the Championship fight and pulled ourselves up to second in the standings. That's what we are going to have to do with every remaining round, but we are properly in the fight and it feels like the momentum is building.”

“It's been another frustrating weekend and we leave Croft with a sense of what might have been yet again,” said Jackson. “Qualifying went really well and we had put ourselves right in the mix, but our chances of success were taken away from us. Getting caught up in the incident at the hairpin in race one meant it was another recovery mission. We came through really strongly in race two, which again underlines that the pace and combination are there, but we haven't had the rub of the green as you can see yet again in race three. I'm looking forward to returning to Silverstone at the weekend, a scene of happy memories last year, and hopeful that we can create some more this time around."

“I am so pleased for everyone,” added Sporting Director Mark Blundell. “Everyone involved in the team in every role deserves that victory. Jake drove so dominantly to deliver it and I know how much it meant to him. For MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square, a BTCC outright win is new territory and I want to thank Motorbase Performance and all our incredible partners for helping make it possible."