As we now enter the final week before the BTCC season resumes at Croft, we continue our celebration of 2025’s BTCC winners so far — the Perfect Ten.
The eighth man on this list is the only independent driver to take a victory so far this campaign, and it is none other than Mikey Doble of Motor Parts Direct with Power Maxed Racing.
Here is how the reigning Jack Sears Trophy (JST) Champion achieved his triumph…
Snetterton – Race 3
Starting from the front of the field in the reverse-grid final race of the day, Doble had a comfortable start to the race as Chris Smiley’s Hyundai, which should have started alongside the #88, did not make the start of the contest.
After such a clean launch, the last thing the pilot of the Vauxhall Astra would have wanted was a safety car… but a first lap coming-together between Tom Ingram, Daryl DeLeon, and Stephen Jelley saw the latter in the barriers and the circuit was brought under yellow flag conditions.
Launching clear once again, Doble took to the fore and built up an impressive margin whilst leading the pack. At the restart, four-time champion and current championship leader Ash Sutton was sitting in fifth place, and in the closing stages, the #116 Ford passed Josh Cook for second with a 2.2-second gap to close to Doble.
Setting the fastest lap of the race, closing in would unnerve many a driver, but not the reigning JST Champion. Doble built his fort and stood resolute, as the 26-year-old would combat any attack sent his way by Sutton, crossing the line with a 0.770-second gap.
The victor, who lost a shot at a maiden victory to 2024 Champion Jake Hill on the final lap at Oulton Park last year, would not fall foul of the same painstakingly close feeling again. Doble became the BTCC’s third maiden winner of the year and the 148th, and most recent, first-time-winner in the 68 seasons in the championship's illustrious history.
The triumph also saw the first independent win in the series for 1,001 days.
Championship Outlook
At the halfway point of the season, Doble sits on the cusp of the top ten in the Drivers’ Standings, currently sitting in 11th place.
In his third season in the Vauxhall Astra, the #88’s attention is firmly on the Independents’ title. As we approach Croft, Doble stands 25 points behind the current leader, Smiley.
Looking to add to his four victories and eight podiums in the Independents’ championship, the driver from Caterham will be buoyed despite the gap following three retirements in the last six races.
The 2025 season resumes at Croft (2-3 August), where Doble will be looking to replicate his race-winning high-point of Snetterton once again.
