BTCC, Rounds 22-24: Transmission's Top 20: Race of Champions

By Steve Hindle•August 27, 2024•In Touring Cars•1 Minute

It was a weekend worthy of a season finale.

What started with a blistering pole position lap from Josh Cook soon developed into a raging battle for points between a triad of champions. Ash Sutton, Colin Turkington and Tom Ingram each delivered a series of stunning drives to propel themselves ever closer to the 2024 British Touring Car Championship crown, yet it was Jake Hill, the current most-winning driver (with six victories to date) who regained the lead, but not necessarily the advantage, with just six rounds remaining.

Here are twenty of our favourite images that help to tell the story of points won and lost.

All images: Steve Hindle

Three of the best: Ash Sutton, Tom Ingram, and Colin Turkington battle for the lead of Race 2 as they head into the Melbourne hairpin.
With precious points at stake, not even a bout of lurgy could stop Jake Hill from returning to the top of the BTCC drivers' standings. Two podium finishes and then P5 in the reverse-grid race saw the Laser Tools Racing man overhaul 2022 champion Tom Ingram to lead the way with just six rounds remaining.
Four-time champion Colin Turkington harnessed all of the BMW's pace to beat pole-sitter Josh Cook into the first corner and then build a lead that would never come under threat. P2 in Race 2, then P7 in Race 3, together with two fastest laps, returned a haul of points that keeps the Northern Irishman firmly in play, despite currently sitting 46 points adrift of Hill in the standings.
The season's other four-time champion, Ash Sutton, also scored a win and a P2, but contact with Tom Chilton's Hyundai in Race 3 led to suspension damage and a prolonged stay in the pits. This leaves the current #1 20 points adrift of Hill, but such is his mastery of producing exceptional results, despite the success penalties handed to the leaders at the start of every weekend, that barring a calamity, he'll once again be right up there by Silverstone's end.
Contact in Race 1, and retirement in Race 2 saw 2022 champion Tom Ingram lose his advantage at the top of the standings quicker than the fluid from his holed radiator. Ingram's outward cheerful persona often belies the intensity of emotions experienced by those giving their all in pursuit of success, so it's a testament to the depth of his resolve that he harnessed all he could muster as he raced from a seemingly impossible P19 on Race 3's grid to P2 by the flag (also producing the fastest lap of the day). This Herculean effort sees him just nine points adrift of Hill going into the Silverstone weekend ... Alan Gow must be thanking the gods of great speed and good fortune.
Dan Cammish finally broke the curse of Donington to win Race 3. This just about keeps him in touch with the championship leaders. He had a torrid weekend last year at Silverstone. This time, he's going to have to do something remarkably special if he's to dial himself into contention for Brands Hatch.
Once again, Josh Cook managed to extract sensational one-lap pace from the Toyota to earn pole position for the LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ squad. Sadly, his Corolla simply wasn't up to the job of keeping him in touch with the leaders, yet a hat-trick of P4 finishes keeps him just about in contention as the season heads towards its climax.
Dan Zelos was a long overdue BTCC debuntant. The multiple Mini champion seizing the opportunity to replace Ronan Pearson and acquitting himself with three solid points finishes.
Like Josh Cook, Rob Huff is another who seems to consistently outperform his car. It seems that some of the issues have finally been addressed, but if we're to see him truly race as we know he can, then Speedworks and Toyota are going to have to find the budget for a very long and hard winter of testing.
When you're matched with teammates like Ash Sutton, Dan Cammish, and Dan Rowbottom, it's easy to find yourself overlooked and underrated. This is very much Sam Osborne's story, yet every time I see him, he's making fewer mistakes and looking ever more comfortable racing into the top 10. He's now delivered eight consecutive points finishes and this (to me) looked like his best weekend (in terms of consistency) yet.
Daryl DeLeon is a young man with a very bright future. He's fast, tenacious, daring, and sharp. We'd all love to see Bobby Thompson back in a BMW, but I'd also like to see this young man paired with Jake Hill in a Duckhams liveried car. His pace in the Radical was often unmatched, we need to see what he can now do in a car capable of winning.
Chris Smiley (#222) and Andrew Watson both endured weekends that returned bigger damage bills than points scored. Smiley's Restart Racing squad has struggled to extract pace from the ex-Team HARD Cupras, and might just be struggling full-stop. Watson, on the other hand, had a force 12 Race 1 shunt with the tyre stack. Lucky to escape injury, the Speedworks team worked brilliantly to return him to the grid for Races 2 & 3.
Árón Taylor-Smith continued his outstanding form, earning a hattrick of Independent's wins and an overall podium in Race 3. Whilst competition from independent teams has been somewhat diminished this year, he remains the only driver to have scored points in every round, including returning six top-5 finishes.
Taylor-Smith's Power Maxed Racing teammate, Mikey Doble, is also targeting end of season silverware, this time in the shape of the Jack Sears Trophy. With 14 JST wins already (including two at Donington) his lead over Sam Osborne now looks unassailable.
For any number of reasons, Adam Morgan just hasn't found the key to delivering the pace of teammates Jake Hill and Colin Turkington. Indeed, whilst the West Surrey Racing squad has so far amassed 20 podiums this year (including 11 wins), the Ciceley man's contribution has been a solitary P3, last time out at Knockhill. We all know that he's better than this, but when you consider the queue forming at Dick Bennetts' door, he's going to need to deliver at both Silverstone and Brands Hatch to ensure that his place in the squad is secure for 2025.
Despite a win here at the opening round back in April, Aiden Moffat's season has mostly become known for his retirements, now totalling five (more than any other driver). It's clear that his father (Bob) has put together a fantastic team of partners to help fund both LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ drivers, but it's equally clear that Speedworks has to deliver a consistently better car.
It's worth remembering that next year, there'll be an ever-growing roster of former British F4 drivers in F1, F2, F3, and IndyCar ... and I readily expect Deagen Fairclough to soon be joining them. Ten wins already (with six rounds remaining), and a place in this year's Silverstone Autosport BRDC Award means that the eyes of team principals from every major series will soon be focused on Hitech's latest teen sensation.
There was also a strong showing from JHR's Ella Lloyd, claiming her third podium of the season during a grittily contested Race 2.
In Porsche Carrera Cup GB, 2021 British F4 champion Matt Rees continued to demonstrate his form with a lights-to-flag 'win' over current championship leader Hugo Ellis, only to incur a 5-second penalty for earlier track limits' infringements.
Max Coates (l) and Seb Hopkins (r) prepare for one of the feistiest Porsche Sprint Challenge GB encounters yet seen. Both have very different backstories, yet find themselves driving hard and close as they battle for the championship lead (and a future worth fighting for).
Ash Sutton btcc Colin Turkington donington park Jake Hill Tom Ingram

Written By

Steve Hindle
Steve Hindle

Steve has lived his life with motor sport; from childhood years as a fan, to racing around the greatest tracks in Europe, first as a driver and later as a team principal. Today he's a familiar sight trackside and in the pit lane, notebook in one hand, camera in another, capturing moments and contributing to some of the leading titles in motor sport and automotive media.

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