JOSH COOK AT THE DOUBLE AS TITLE CONTENDERS HIT TROUBLE

Tom Ingram reignites championship challenge with race three win

BTC Racing’s Josh Cook claimed a commanding double win, before Toyota star Tom Ingram took victory in the final contest, as a number of title contenders hit trouble during an extraordinary day of Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship action at Croft.

Cook kicked off proceedings with two lights-to-flag victories – following his pole position on Saturday – as the Bath racer finally enjoyed a trouble-free weekend in his Honda Civic Type R.

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters’ Ingram then bounced back from his qualifying disappointment to take a fully deserved triumph in the final bout.

A trio of title protagonists – Colin Turkington, Ash Sutton and Rory Butcher – all endured drama at the North Yorkshire circuit as the race for the championship continues to build towards an exciting climax.

Cook fended off a determined effort from MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square’s Jake Hill to claim success in the opener.

Hill and Cook went side-by-side on one occasion, before going on to trade fastest laps, but the latter held on as the lead duo pulled clear of Turkington’s BMW.

Turkington’s trip to the podium was to be the high point of an otherwise dismal day for the Northern Irishman, as a mechanical issue in the final bout followed an uncharacteristic off in race two.

Cook was then deservedly awarded the race two win amid a frenetic encounter.

Last lap contact between Cook and three-time champion Matt Neal looked to have handed the latter his first victory since his ‘Diamond Double’ success at Snetterton in 2018.

Unsurprisingly, however, the incident was reviewed post-race and the positions were subsequently reversed with Neal’s over-zealous move being deemed as gaining an unfair advantage.

Cook’s impressive double was just one of many stories during this barnstormer of a race, which commenced with reigning champion Turkington out-braking himself into turn one and ending up in the gravel.

With Turkington out of the bout, the title pendulum swung back towards Laser Tools Racing’s Sutton, who was pressuring both Cook and Hill ahead of him.

The Infiniti Q50 driver attempted to squeeze down the inside of Hill’s Honda at the final hairpin on lap six and the pair made contact, forcing the #116 machine to pit with a puncture.

Motorbase Performance’s Rory Butcher had also spun out of contention on the opening tour, although the Ford man was able to score a single point for setting the fastest lap after he’d returned to the action.

Hill took his second successive rostrum, which was part of the Kent driver’s impressive weekend overall.

Ingram then rounded off a breathless weekend by winning the final race, completing Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters’ story of redemption having started the opening contest from the back of the grid.

The 27-year-old grabbed pole position on the road during yesterday’s qualifying session, only for his Toyota Corolla to fail post-session ride height checks, resulting in a charge through the order during race day.

He surged from 25th to 13th in the first race before a hugely impressive fourth place in the next one, but it was his performance in the finale that will live long in the memory for the Bucks ace.

Starting from third on the grid, Ingram blasted by Dan Cammish’s Honda Civic Type R off the line and shortly after, he was making a sensational pass by BTC Racing’s Tom Chilton on the run towards Sunny In.

Cammish closed in after he eventually passed Chilton with a similar move, but time ran out before the #27 machine could really make a concerted attack and the victory went to the Speedworks Motorsport squad.

Chilton completed the podium positions ahead of Halfords Yuasa Racing’s Matt Neal and the phenomenal Sutton – the championship leader having made up a total of 15 places.

Honda’s Cammish was the main beneficiary on a manic day as a trio of top ten finishes increased his hopes of winning the UK’s most coveted motorsport crown, whilst Ingram’s victory fired him back into contention.

Sutton now leads by seven points from Cammish, with Turkington a further five in arrears. Ingram is 29 points off the summit with 134 still to play for.

Team BMW leads both the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ tables, whilst Sutton and Laser Tools Racing still hold the advantage for both Independents’ honours.

GKR TradePriceCars.com’s Bobby Thompson tops the Jack Sears Trophy despite his Audi S3 enduring a frightening barrel roll in the final race.

The Essex man had starred earlier in the day with two impressive eighth-place finishes, as he diced with BTCC champions and multiple race winners.

He was then running in the pack early on in race three when his car slid off-track and rolled several times at high speed before coming to rest on its roof. Despite the violent nature of the accident it was of great relief to see the 24-year-old emerge from the wreckage without any visible injuries of note.

The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship now travels to Snetterton in Norfolk for its penultimate event on the 24/25 October.

Josh Cook said: “The team has just done such a fantastic job this weekend, having come from Silverstone where we struggled. We led every lap in race one, P1 and the fastest lap too. Then we had another really good race with maximum ballast in the next one. I’m gutted that we didn’t get to experience that second win across the line as I think we all deserved it. I’m really happy for the team, it’s mine and the team’s first double win – it has been a good weekend.”

Tom Ingram said: “I think the day has surprised us. From starting back in Darlington this morning, to finishing race three with a win, and I’m so, so happy. It just goes to show that you can never get down in the BTCC; the day can turn around. You’ve just got to stay positive because it’s amazing what you can drag back from seemingly nowhere. I’m so, so pleased with how we’ve done as a team today.”

Jake Hill said: “After our start to the year it’s all about podiums and wins. This is the first time ever that I’ve scored two podiums in a weekend so it’s a right result! I think I used nine lives in one go in the opening laps of race one and race two was a great result for me too – it was a really hard, fair race. It’s been my best weekend ever and I just absolutely love the way the team and the car are going at the minute.”

Ash Sutton said: “As much as it’s good for you folks at home, and I love [the recovery drives] to bits, I’m making life very hard for myself. The car was mega, the Laser Tools Infiniti guys have done an absolutely amazing job and BMR Engineering have delivered me a car that allowed me to get there, and it’s all worked in our favour.”

Dan Cammish said: “Such a rollercoaster weekend, it can change so fast, you come here thinking you are going to have a tough day and you end up having a pretty strong one. My qualifying was pretty poor but I brought it back through the field. We’ve had a good haul of points so I'm pretty happy with my day, though disappointed with second in race three as I thought I could have won it.”

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Croft

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Croft

Penalties:

Qualifying:
Tom Ingram was excluded from the result after his car failed post-session ride height checks
Senna Proctor was excluded from the result after his car failed post-session ride height checks

Race 1:
Rory Butcher was penalised by the addition of 2 seconds to his overall race time for gaining an unfair advantage during an incident with Ash Sutton

Race 2:
Matt Neal was penalised by the addition of 0.7 seconds to his overall race time for gaining an unfair advantage during an incident with Josh Cook
Tom Ingram was penalised by means of a reprimand for gaining an unfair advantage whereby he was found to have cut the chicane
Adam Morgan received a verbal warning for an incident involving Rory Butcher

Race 3:
An incident involving Andy Neate and Carl Boardley will be reviewed at Snetterton in two weeks’ time

VICTORY FOR INGRAM AS DRAMA CONTINUES AT CROFT

Tom Ingram rounded off an extraordinary weekend of BTCC action by winning the final race at Croft, completing Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters' own story of redemption having started today's opening contest from the back of the grid.

Ingram grabbed pole position on-the-road during yesterday's qualifying session, only for his Toyota Corolla to fail post-session ride height checks, resulting in a charge through the order during race day.

He surged from 25th to 13th in the opener before a hugely impressive fourth place in the second bout, but it was his performance in the finale that will live long in the memory for the Bucks ace.

Starting from third on the grid, Ingram blasted by Dan Cammish's Honda Civic Type R off the line and shortly after, he was making a sensational pass by BTC Racing's Tom Chilton on the run towards Sunny In.

Cammish closed in after he eventually passed Chilton in a similar move with the #27 machine the strongest on-track during the closing stages. Thankfully for Ingram, however, Cammish ran out of time and the victory went to the Speedworks Motorsport squad.

"I think the day has surprised us," said Ingram. "From starting back in Darlington this morning, to finishing race three with a win, and I’m so, so happy. It just goes to show that you can never get your head down in Touring Cars; the day can turn around.

"You’ve just got to stay positive because it’s amazing what you can drag back from seemingly nowhere. I’m so, so pleased with how we’ve done as a team today. We’ve kept positive, kept our chin up and just focussed towards race three and trying to bag big points in the third race.

"I was counting each lap down; I was counting each corner down – corner by corner by corner. Spencer came over the radio to say there were nine laps to go, and those nine laps felt like about 900 laps.

"I was so pleased to get to the end, I could see Dan was coming at me again, like we have done the past few weekends, like a freight train. To recover from where we did is a huge thing for Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters and I just cannot say thank you enough to everyone at home for all their support as well because we’ve had loads of it so thank you!"

Chilton completed the podium ahead of Halfords Yuasa Racing's Matt Neal and the phenomenal Ash Sutton – the championship leader having made up a total of 15 places in his Laser Tools Racing Infiniti.

Team BMW's Tom Oliphant was sixth, whilst Jake Hill completed a fantastic day personally with seventh following his early double podium.

Josh Cook was still the star of the weekend as he backed-up his pole position, two race victories and one fastest lap with a solid eighth place in the finale.

Excelr8 Motorsport's Senna Proctor and Laser Tools Racing's Aiden Moffat came home in ninth and tenth respectively.

There were two other separate incidents of note in the final race – both dramatic but for very different reasons...

Colin Turkington slid out of contention as he picked up a puncture in the opening skirmishes, which compounded a difficult day for the man so often dubbed the 'King of Croft'. The Northern Irishman returned to the track, taking the fastest lap in the process to score a solitary championship point. It could still be a critical score for the four-time champion, but he's now 12 points behind Sutton in the standings.

The other moment was shocking in every sense as Thompson's GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3 endured a frightening barrel-roll. Thompson was running in the pack and whilst the incident wasn't made completely clear via the TV picture, the Essex man's car was flung into the air at high speed and rolled several times before coming to rest on its roof. Despite the violent nature of the accident it was to everyone's delight to see Bobby emerge from the wreckage without any visible injuries of note.

Sutton now leads by seven points from Cammish with Turkington a further five in arrears, whilst Ingram's latest success fires him back into title contention.

The UK's elite motorsport series now moves on to its penultimate event at Snetterton in two weeks' time (24/25 October), before the season finale at Brands Hatch next month (14/15 November).

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 3 – Croft

1          Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters 18 laps
2          Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.278s
3          Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +5.001s
4          Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +6.453s
5          Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +6.472s
6          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +7.129s
7          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +8.099s
8          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +8.548s
9          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +10.235s
10        Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +10.435s
11        Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +10.894s
12        Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +11.438s
13        Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +13.535s
14        Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +16.681s
15        Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +16.825s
16        Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +17.677s
17        Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +18.639s
18        Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +18.975s
19        Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +25.669s
20       Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +29.487s
21        Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with Team HARD +31.497s
22        Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD +1:22.945s
23        Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +4 laps
24        Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +16 laps
25        Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +16 laps

COOK AWARDED RACE TWO WIN AMID FRENETIC CONTEST

Josh Cook claimed his second successive Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship victory at Croft Circuit in what turned out to be one of the most extraordinary races in recent times.

Championship contenders – Colin Turkington, Ash Sutton and Rory Butcher – all hit trouble, whilst last lap contact between Cook and three-time champion Matt Neal looked to have handed the latter his first victory since his ‘Diamond Double' success at Snetterton in 2018.

Unsurprisingly, however, the incident was reviewed post-race and the positions were subsequently reversed with Neal’s over-zealous move being deemed as gaining an unfair advantage.

Cook’s impressive double was just one of many stories during this barnstormer of a race, which commenced with reigning champion Colin Turkington out-braking himself into turn one and ending up in the gravel.

With Turkington out of the bout, the title pendulum swung back towards Laser Tools Racing’s Ash Sutton, who was pressuring Cook and MB Motorsport accelerated with Blue Square’s Jake Hill ahead.

Motorbase Performance’s Rory Butcher had also spun out of contention on the opening tour; further strengthening Sutton’s position at the top of the points order.

Sutton is renowned for being an outright racer, however, and rather than settling for a podium position the Infiniti Q50 driver attempted to squeeze down the inside of Hill’s Honda at the final hairpin on lap six. The pair made contact and incredibly Sutton’s #116 machine suffered from an immediate puncture.

Butcher and Sutton pitted following those early exchanges – both ruing a lost haul of championship points – and set about a battle for the fastest lap on their return to the track, a contest which the former eventually won.

The charging Neal nipped by Hill in the latter stages with Honda machinery now occupying the top three positions, and the Halfords Yuasa Racing man began reeling in the identical Civic Type R Fk8 of Cook ahead of him.

Cook – carrying maximum success-ballast onboard his #66 machine – was defending stoutly on the final lap, but Neal tagged the Honda ahead of him on the approach to Sunny-In and he was able to get by. Neal took the chequered flag ahead of Cook, but it was soon clear that the stewards would be investigating the incident with an inevitable outcome.

"I think the video speaks for itself, doesn’t it?," said Cook. "Obviously, with 60kg in the car, BTC Racing has done a great job all day. I just keep coming back to the mega effort the team are putting in. Everyone is flat out committed and I think the results are just showing what a good job they’re doing."

"Obviously Josh was laden with 60kg so he did a great job with that," conceded Neal. "I was a bit lighter, so where I seemed to be able to pull on him was through the quick stuff, under braking into Sunny. I got within striking distance the lap before and he covered me off, I went for the inside and he covered me off, I just managed to avoid contact. And then I got another good run on him on the last lap. I went for the inside and he didn’t try and cover me off, but when I had just committed, he went for the apex."

Hill completed the podium ahead of a fantastic performing Tom Ingram – the Toyota star having surged from 25th to 13th in the first race and then through to fourth in the next encounter.

"It was a really good race," said Hill. "Josh was up at the front holding his pace. And, fair play, with the weight, he had on he was still really quick, and I just couldn’t quite live with him. But still, a great result for me.

"With regards to Ash: I saw the lunge, I thought I gave him the room, but I don’t know if he just understeered into my door or my seal, but somehow he got hooked onto my car and that led to his retirement or whatever’s happened to him. As far as I’m concerned, it wasn’t down to me."

Halfords Yuasa Racing's Dan Cammish is only 13 points off the championship summit after taking fifth, ahead of BTC Racing's Tom Chilton – the latter also being rewarded with pole position for today's reverse grid race.

Tom Oliphant (Team BMW), Bobby Thompson (GKR TradePriceCars.com), Senna Proctor (Excelr8 Motorsport), Stephen Jelley (Team Parker Racing) completed the top ten positions.

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Croft

1          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing 16 laps
2          Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.171s
3          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.635s
4          Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters +1.087s
5          Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +4.673s
6          Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +8.164s
7          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +8.346s
8          Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +8.960s
9          Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +14.044s
10        Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +14.944s
11        Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +16.867s
12        Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +18.523s
13        Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +22.306s
14        Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +22.447s
15        Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +22.740s
16        Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +27.451s
17        Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +28.371s
18        Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +30.616s
19        Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +46.106s
20       Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1 lap
21        Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +4 laps
22        Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +15 laps
23        Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +16 laps

CLASSY COOK PRODUCES COMMANDING CROFT WIN

BTC Racing's Josh Cook secured a commanding lights-to-flag victory in the opening Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship race at Croft, holding off a determined effort from MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square's Jake Hill.

Cook held the lead from pole position off the line, whilst Hill's Honda briefly lost out to the fast-starting BMW 3 Series of Colin Turkington. Hill hung on around the outside at Clervaux before impressively tucking back in ahead of Team BMW's Turkington prior to the wriggle through Hawthorn Bend.

Hill and Cook went side-by-side on occasion, as well as trading fastest laps, but the latter held on to claim a hugely deserved victory as the lead duo pulled clear of Turkington.

"It’s always the aim but it’s definitely not easy; that was a tough race!" admitted Cook. "I almost dropped it quite a few times actually, so I was lucky to bring it back. Obviously Jake [Hill] was adding a lot of pressure, but I’m just pleased to bring it home in P1 for the guys at BTC Racing.

"It was fairly damp out the back and I was pretty brave in the engineer’s office – turns out you’ve got to back that up on circuit. But that was not easy, I’ll probably tone it down a little bit for the next race, I think. I’ve probably had about five years knocked off my life expectancy after that race!

"Obviously we spent a lot of last year carrying weight, so we’ve got a decent amount of data. But the guys behind, Colin [Turkington] and Ash [Sutton], are going to be taking some weight out. So I’m just going to get my elbows out, make it as wide as possible and I think it’ll be another race of just trying to keep everyone behind me and bring home the win."

Turkington's podium promise was made slightly easier following early contact between two fellow title rivals, as Rory Butcher's Ford got into the back of Ash Sutton's Infiniti.

Sutton's Laser Tools Racing machine had already taken a nibble out of Turkington's BMW on the opening lap, before Butcher sliced his Motorbase Performance car down the inside of Tom Oliphant's BMW on the penultimate turn. Such was the bunched up nature of the quartet that Butcher's move by Oliphant led to the latter making contact with Sutton's rear – spinning the #116 around in the process.

Butcher importantly held on to fourth at the finish, whilst Sutton impressively snatched fifth, despite dropping to 13th following the aforementioned incident.

Sutton is one of the most exciting drivers to watch and the 26-year-old put on a show as he charged back through the order, often making moves at the final hairpin, and he was further rewarded post-race when stewards reversed his and Butcher's due to the race one clash.

Tom Chilton made it a double celebration for BTC Racing with sixth, ahead of Halfords Yuasa Racing's Matt Neal.

Bobby Thompson produced arguably the best performance of his BTCC career so far as he claimed eighth in the Trade Price Cars-run Audi S3. Whilst not the best overall result for the Essex-driver, he was able to run in a pack that included several multiple race winners and BTCC champions – boding well for the rest of his afternoon in North Yorkshire.

Adam Morgan made progress in the drying conditions to take ninth in the Ciceley Motorsport-run Mercedes, whilst Halfords Yuasa Racing's Dan Cammish completed the top ten – not necessarily having made the inroads he was hoping for.

Tom Ingram bounced back from his pole position disappointment yesterday to grab an encouraging 13th at the finish. The Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters driver had set the fastest lap time during qualifying, only to be sent to the back of the grid when his Toyota Corolla failed post-session ride height checks. From 25th, the Bucks ace improved 12 positions during the course of the opening contest.

Race 2 will take place at 1429 and Race 3 will commence at 1706 – all the action is now live and exclusive on ITV4.

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Croft

1          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing 15 laps
2          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.653s
3          Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +3.573s
4 Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +10.348s
5 Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +10.592s
6          Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +13.245s
7          Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +13.436s
8          Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +16.909s
9          Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +17.248s
10        Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +17.663s
11        Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +17.890s
12        Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +21.148s
13        Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters +21.553s
14        Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +23.441s
15        Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +23.748s
16        Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +25.347s
17        Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +27.187s
18        Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +27.663s
19        Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +28.220s
20       Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD +40.219s
21        Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +55.454s
22        Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +1 lap
23        Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +4 laps
24        Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with Team HARD +9 laps
25        Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +11 laps

CONSTABLE WITHDRAWS FROM CROFT BTCC EVENT

After feeling unwell overnight, Power Maxed Car Care Racing driver Jac Constable has been withdrawn from Rounds 19, 20 & 21 of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship at Croft on medical grounds.

JOSH COOK JOY AT CROFT CIRCUIT

BTC Racing star takes pole position as a number of contenders hit trouble

Heavy rain ahead of qualifying for Round 19 of the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship contributed to one of the most dramatic sessions of the season so far, with a number of contenders hitting trouble as BTC Racing's Josh Cook eventually secured pole position at Croft Circuit.

There was drama before, during and after the 30 minutes of action as a huge downpour descended on the North Yorkshire venue.

A tentative start to proceedings in wet conditions initially saw Laser Tools Racing's Ash Sutton star in his Infiniti Q50, before the championship leader's afternoon incredibly unravelled in two separate incidents.

Sutton looked set to improve even further with ten minutes of the contest remaining, only for his team-mate Aiden Moffat to slide off at turn one and bring about an immediate stoppage to the session. The #116 of Sutton was on a quicker lap at the time, before having to abort his effort in the final sector.

Frustration turned to dismay shortly after the restart as Sutton produced a carbon copy moment to Moffat, also ending his session in the gravel at Clervaux. As Sutton was responsible for bringing about a further stoppage, the rules determined that the 2017 champion would lose his fastest lap, as well as being prevented from taking part in the remainder of the session.

Sutton's misfortune seemed to benefit Excelr8 Motorsport's Senna Proctor, who was now sitting atop the timesheets, with a final flurry to the chequered flag still to come.

Halfords Yuasa Racing's Dan Cammish was the next driver whose happiness was short-lived as he blasted his Honda Civic Type R into P1, only to subsequently lose his lap time for a track limits infringement, as did several others during the running. This sent title contender Cammish tumbling down to 14th in the order.

As Cammish was having his moment it was now the turn of Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters' Tom Ingram to grab provisional pole position, with Cook slipping into second ahead of Proctor.

The chequered flag finally waved to bring a close to a breathless session, but the drama was far from over as it immediately became clear that both Ingram's Toyota Corolla and Proctor's Hyundai i30N failed post-session ride height checks – the former's was subsequently found to be because of a front-right wishbone failure.

Rules are rules at the highest level of motorsport so when the rain had finally cleared at Croft it was Cook celebrating his first pole position of the season, ahead of MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square's Jake Hill and Team BMW's Colin Turkington.

The lead trio had already showed their hand by occupying the top three positions in the final Free Practice session earlier in the day, so it was little surprise to see them contending come qualifying.

Team BMW's Tom Oliphant took fourth, ahead of GKR TradePriceCars.com's Bobby Thompson – the latter scoring his best ever grid position in the BTCC.

Sutton's scare eventually passed without too much punishment as the 26-year-old secured sixth ahead of BTC Racing's Tom Chilton.

Matt Neal (Halfords Yuasa Racing), Micheal Crees (The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing) and Rory Butcher (Motorbase Performance) completed the top ten positions.

Round 19, 20 and 21 of the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship take place at Croft tomorrow (11 October) with all three races being broadcast live and exclusively on ITV4 from 1130.

Josh Cook said: "It’s fairly ironic for me as I failed the ride height check at Oulton Park and lost the win. I’m gutted for those guys if that has happened, it can be cruel sometimes. All I can say is it was just a mega job by the guys at BTC Racing! It’s been obvious that we’ve struggled on a Saturday the past few weekends, and we’ve worked really really hard since [Silverstone] and we just came out swinging in FP1 today and the car is phenomenal. I feel a bit like we had a little more in the tank, but everyone says that.

"The guys and girls at BTC Racing have worked really hard and obviously Team Dynamics have been helping out too so it’s good to be working with them again to resolve our issues. All I can say is credit to the team, it’s been a tough season and all you can do is get your head down and keep on going, and that’s all we’ve done. It’s been a good day today, but obviously it only counts tomorrow.

"I’m hoping for three wins and three fastest laps tomorrow! We know we’ve got a good car, we’ve always had a better race car than qualifying car. We look after our tyres really well which is super important on this circuit – those rear-wheel drive cars are going to be coming through. Who knows, but it’s going to be one to watch for sure!"

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Qualifying – Croft

1          Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing 1:27.350s
2          Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.150s
3          Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +0.160s
4          Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.224s
5          Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +0.243s
6          Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.285s
7          Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +0.331s
8          Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.345s
9          Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +0.379s
10        Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.410s
11        Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.847s
12        Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +0.958s
13        Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +1.051s
14        Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +1.144s
15        Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +1.153s
16        Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +1.421s
17        Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +1.803s
18        Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +1.867s
19        Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD +2.027s
20       Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +2.386s
21        Jac CONSTABLE (GBR) Power Maxed Car Care Racing +2.687s
22        Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +2.971s
23        Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +2.979s
24        Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with Team HARD +5.583s
25        Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport NO TIME
26        Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters NO TIME

'KING OF CROFT' DOUBLES UP

Colin Turkington's affection for Croft Circuit has been there for all to see so far today (Saturday) as the Team BMW star topped both Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship practice sessions at the North Yorkshire venue.

His 1:21.768s lap time in FP2 was quicker than his benchmark from earlier this morning, and falls just short of Andrew Jordan's qualifying lap record from 2019.

Turkington has taken 12 career victories at Croft and he'll be hoping for more this weekend, having recently relinquished his lead of the overall standings to rival Ash Sutton following the events at Thruxton and Silverstone.

"Croft differs from other circuits we go to because it’s a lot more technical – particularly the first and third sectors," said Turkington. "You’ve got second, third gear corners and the first gear Hairpin, but then the middle bit’s flat out. It’s that challenge and compromise of setting the car up for both. But it’s a circuit I’ve always enjoyed and the BMW has always been strong here so that probably helps a little bit!

"You can never be too confident in the BTCC; I know that from previous experiences. We’re focussed on our car and it’s going well. It’s handling as I want and we’re chipping away at it, trying to improve. But in quali everything steps forwards and the time shoots down, so I’ll be expecting that, but hopefully we can keep improving."

Josh Cook (BTC Racing) and Jake Hill (MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square) ran in tandem on the timesheets in FP1, and they did so again in the second session – ending up in second and third respectively. Misfortune has hit both racers on occasion during the 2020 campaign, but it does mean they tend to arrive at circuits with very little success ballast onboard. Cook in the newer Fk8 – with the Hill running the older Fk2 shaped Honda Civic Type R – will expect to be pole position contenders later this afternoon.

Ciceley Motorsport continues to squeeze more performance from its Mercedes A-Class with Adam Morgan grabbing fourth, ahead of the recovering Tom Ingram who failed to set a time in the morning due to an issue with the Speedworks Motorsport-run Toyota Corolla.

Team BMW's Tom Oliphant edged out Laser Tools Racing's Ash Sutton to claim sixth, whilst Mike Bushell impressively took eighth on his return to Team HARD. Bushell's weekend has not been without problems, however, as the Kent driver then crashed out at turn one immediately after setting his fastest lap time.

Motorbase Performance's Rory Butcher was ninth, with Halfords Yuasa Racing's Dan Cammish rounding out the top ten – the latter having had the subframe changed to his Honda Civic Type R ahead of the session.

Qualifying for Round 19 of the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship comes from Croft at 1455 this afternoon and will be streamed via www.itv.com/btcc.

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 2 – Croft

1        Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +1.21.768s
2        Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.057s
3        Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.147s
4        Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +0.152s
5        Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters +0.229s
6        Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.278s
7        Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.285s
8        Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +0.410s
9        Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.434s
10      Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.458s
11      Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.467s
12      Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +0.578s
13      Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +0.656s
14      Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +0.732s
15      Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +0.733s
16      Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.769s
17      Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +0.915s
18      Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +0.916s
19      Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD +1.177s
20      Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.295s
21      Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +1.440s
22      Jac CONSTABLE (GBR) Power Maxed Car Care Racing +1.517s
23      Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.763s
24      Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +1.808s
25      Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with Team HARD +2.260s
26      Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +2.269s

TITLE CONTENDERS UP TOP IN FP1

Free Practice 1 is not always a pointer to the weekend ahead in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, but a number of title contenders have fired out of the block this morning with Colin Turkington, Ash Sutton and Dan Cammish leading the way in the opening session at Croft.

With just three events of the campaign remaining and 17 points separating the lead trio it seems that the race for supremacy may have started earlier than usual at the North Yorkshire circuit with Team BMW, Laser Tools Racing and Halfords Yuasa Racing all putting in considerable mileage during the 40-minute run.

It was Turkington who claimed FP1 bragging rights with his 1:22.145s lap time topping the order, as the Northern Irishman completed a total of 20 laps of the 2.13-mile circuit – the most of any driver in the field.

Team BMW team-mate Tom Oliphant also holds hopes of winning the UK's most coveted motorsport crown and he ended up fourth, just behind Sutton and Cammish.

There were mixed fortunes for the other championship protagonists as Motorbase Performance's Rory Butcher ended up tenth, whilst Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters' Tom Ingram failed to set a lap time.

Motorbase Performance produced a fantastic effort to ready Butcher's Ford Focus after the Scotsman suffered a huge accident at Silverstone last time, so kudos to the Kent team for ensuring that their man has been able to kick off his weekend in steady fashion.

Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters is on the back foot, however, as a manifold issue with its Toyota Corolla prevented Ingram from setting a time. The Speedworks Motorsport-run outfit is looking to bounce back after misfortune at Silverstone in races 2 and 3, and now they'll be needing to make up for lost time in FP2 here at Croft.

MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square's Jake Hill was best of the rest in fifth, with BTC Racing's Josh Cook in sixth – both benefitting from relatively ballast-free Hondas at this stage of the weekend.

Adam Morgan's Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools Mercedes grabbed seventh – continuing his solid run – whilst Honda man Matt Neal and Laser Tools Racing's Aiden Moffat were eighth and ninth respectively, ahead of the aforementioned Butcher.

RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport experienced a mixed session with Jack Goff running extremely well in 11th, whilst returning team-mate for the weekend – Mike Bushell – went off at Turn 1 in the early running.

Free Practice 2 takes place at 1205, before Qualifying for Round 19 of the 2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship commences at 1455 – the latter being streamed live via www.itv.com/btcc.

2020 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Free Practice 1 – Croft

1        Colin TURKINGTON (GBR) Team BMW +1.22.145s
2        Ashley SUTTON (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.125s
3        Dan CAMMISH (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.158s
4        Tom OLIPHANT (GBR) Team BMW +0.164s
5        Jake HILL (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +0.240s
6        Josh COOK (GBR) BTC Racing +0.505s
7        Adam MORGAN (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +0.549s
8        Matt NEAL (GBR) Halfords Yuasa Racing +0.586s
9        Aiden MOFFAT (GBR) Laser Tools Racing +0.712s
10      Rory BUTCHER (GBR) Motorbase Performance +0.751s
11      Jack GOFF (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +0.827s
12      Tom CHILTON (GBR) BTC Racing +0.836s
13      Chris SMILEY (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +0.898s
14      Bobby THOMPSON (GBR) GKR TradePriceCars.com +0.968s
15      Senna PROCTOR (GBR) Excelr8 Motorsport +1.032s
16      Ollie JACKSON (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.155s
17      Michael CREES (GBR) The Clever Baggers with BTC Racing +1.183s
18      Stephen JELLEY (GBR) Team Parker Racing +1.332s
19      Mike BUSHELL (GBR) RCIB Insurance with Fox Transport +1.457s
20      Carl BOARDLEY (GBR) HUB Financial Solutions with Team HARD +1.463s
21      Andy NEATE (GBR) Motorbase Performance +1.971s
22      Sam OSBORNE (GBR) MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square +2.035s
23      Jac CONSTABLE (GBR) Power Maxed Car Care Racing +2.242s
24      Nicolas HAMILTON (GBR) ROKiT Racing with Team HARD +2.485s
25      Jack BUTEL (GBR) Carlube TripleR Racing with Mac Tools +3.638s
26      Tom INGRAM (GBR) Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with Ginsters NO TIME

NORTHERN HIGHLIGHTS TO SPUR ON EXCELR8 DUO AT CROFT

Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship team Excelr8 Motorsport turns its attention to Croft this weekend, as the squad celebrates reaching new heights and far outweighing the achievement of its maiden 2019 campaign with three events remaining.

For Senna Proctor, Yorkshire’s premier destination for the top Touring Car series in the country marks his local event. The Driffield driver will be determined to put on a good show for his supporters who will be eagerly watching the live ITV coverage at home.

Having picked up his best result of 2019 at Croft, team-mate Chris Smiley will be relishing returning to a happy hunting ground, as the pair will aim to repeat their successes and fight for more silverware.

It has been a rollercoaster ride for the team in 2020, bringing in new technical staff, two new drivers and the pair of newly built Hyundai i30s. In doing so, the team has gone from strength to strength, developing from an outfit aiming to score points to one who has proven a podium threat.

Already this year, the team has picked up a maiden reverse pole, podiums and numerous double top-ten finishes, and heads into the seventh race weekend of the campaign seventh in the overall and fifth in the Independent Teams’ standings.

“I’m glad to be back here at Croft as we prepare for the final push in the championship fight,” said Team Owner Justina Williams. “Excelr8 Motorsport has made a multitude of major improvements this year and with a top three in the Independents’ championship and top five in the Teams’ Championship still a viable goal for our talented engineers, I'm confident we can work together to achieve it.

“There will be a lot of positivity among our drivers as well this weekend, not least from Senna, who will be hoping to put on a performance on home turf, continuing that momentum he displayed at Silverstone. For Chris too, this place will bring back many happy memories with the previous season’s podium and I’m confident he can translate it into a promising result.”

The track action begins today, 10 October, with qualifying on itv.com/btcc from 14:40, while all three races can be caught live on ITV4 on Sunday from 1130.

BUTCHER'S FORD: BEFORE AND AFTER

Following Motorbase Performance's confirmation that Rory Butcher will be contesting this weekend's Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship event at Croft, here's a recap of the moment it all went awry during Race three at Silverstone...

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialBTCC/videos/668923507061564/

...and an insight into the squad's mammoth effort to rebuild the car for Rounds 19, 20 and 21...