The 2025 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship saw Daniel Lloyd claim a popular victory in the Independent Drivers' Championship in what proved to be a tight-fought battle throughout the season.

Taking the first triumph was none other than two-time Independent Drivers' Champion Josh Cook, who qualified seventh in his Honda Civic Type R, the furthest up the field.

The #66 did not end the weekend there, after a strong opening race day for Chris Smiley (Restart Racing) and Mikey Doble (Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing) saw Cook finish third in the standings. Despite Doble's double triumph, Smiley emerged with a one-point advantage.

Doble proved the man to beat come Saturday at Brands Hatch Indy as the #88 placed his Vauxhall Astra in sixth place overall. The strong qualifying pace continued on Sunday as the 2024 Jack Sears Trophy Champion claimed the first victory of the day.

This marked the peak for Doble as Smiley reigned victorious in the final two races, allowing his Hyundai i30N to extend his lead at the top of the standings. The weekend also saw Stephen Jelley secure a double top-three finish in the Drivers' Standings as well as a second-place finish from Lloyd.

Despite being the highest qualifier among Independent Drivers' competitors, Doble did not secure victory until race three, and not only in the Independents' category, but the overall win as well. Holding off four-time champion Ash Sutton, Doble led from lights to flag to claim his maiden BTCC victory.

The opening two wins fell to Lloyd, who, after qualifying three places behind Doble, eventually finished the day's opener four places ahead of the Vauxhall Astra. Race two saw the Hyundai i30N battle for the overall lead with Daniel Rowbottom, but eventually finished fourth, enough to retain top spot ahead of Smiley and Doble on the road.

Thruxton saw a true rollercoaster weekend for the Independents' competitors as Josh Cook struck the barrier with immense force in qualifying, resulting in a heavily damaged car and a trip to the hospital for precautionary checks. Despite this setback, the #66 turned up on race day and claimed the Independent Trophy in the opening race, before facing disqualification from the same position in race two, ahead of securing victory once again to close the day.

Behind lay a race day of attrition. Smiley scored in only two of the three races, including one victory, while Doble scored in just one race. This left Lloyd as the highest scorer of the weekend, despite not claiming an individual round triumph.

The gap remained unchanged across the top four after the Oulton Park event closed out the first half of the 2025 season. Smiley initially shone, placing his Hyundai i30N on the front row for the opening race, in which he claimed top spot in class.

Despite the initial strong start to race day, it all fell short in the final exchange with Smiley not scoring. In fact, not only did the standings leader fail to score, but neither did anyone in the Independents’ standings altogether apart from Lloyd. After a devastating crash in the second race that would then see Cook take the spoils, everything turned around for the Yorkshireman as he recouped all that was lost earlier in the day.

The start of the second half of the year brought unwelcome news: One Motorsport announced it would miss the next two race weekends of the 2025 season at Croft and Knockhill. This initial announcement later extended to the full season, eliminating Cook and Jelley's championship hopes.

Doble seized the opportunity to shine and assumed control of the championship. The #88 claimed victory in the final race day of the weekend and remained the only driver in the top four to finish all three races. Dexter Patterson enjoyed his best weekend to date, securing a victory and two second-place finishes in the class.

Heading to Knockhill brought more unwelcome news when Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing discovered a fire had burnt through its premises. Through sheer determination, the team arrived at Knockhill with two Cupra Leons ready to compete for the remainder of the year.

Getting up to speed in his new chassis, Doble pressed on in damage limitation mode, as Smiley went on to claim all three triumphs—the first time a driver had done so all season. Lloyd nearly followed suit as only Patterson split the pair in the opening race before a pair of 1-2 finishes closed out the day.

The #22, and standings leader, started the weekend in the best shape possible, placing plenty of cars between himself and his nearest competitor and securing third place overall in qualifying. This pace immediately translated into 20 points in the opening bout before the Hyundai i30N encountered trouble.

Unable to finish race two, Lloyd and Doble capitalised with the former claiming the top spot for the remainder of the races at Donington Park with the latter tucked in close behind. The turn in fortune sent the leading trio into the penultimate event separated by three points.

Everything changed in the penultimate event at Silverstone, as Lloyd rose to the top of the standings after not doing so all season long, while teammate Smiley slipped from first into third.

The opening race saw the #123 claim the top spot overall in his first win since his return to the BTCC and the team's first outright victory in the series. Lloyd carried on to take the honours in race two, securing four triumphs in a row. Doble returned to the top spot, nine races after taking to his Cupra, stretching what had been a one-point gap to Smiley before the final race of the day.

Qualifying for the finale saw all four still in mathematical contention line up in order, sitting from 14th through to 17th with Smiley and Lloyd leading Patterson and Doble. The two winners from Silverstone made the most of the opening exchange, with Lloyd claiming the honours in the opening race.

The same form did not strike in the day's middle race as Smiley fought back with Doble once again tucked in close behind. Coming into the day’s last race, Lloyd held an eight-point margin over Doble and an 11-point gap to teammate Smiley. The final round saw Patterson claim the honours with the top three in the standings separated by five points. Leaving #123 to remain victorious despite not finishing higher than fourth in the first half of the campaign, making Daniel Lloyd the 2025 Independents’ Drivers’ Champion.