BTCC: Sutton vs Ingram- Silverstone stand off

The penultimate round of the BTCC season made its way to Silverstone’s National circuit as Ash Sutton and Tom Ingram enter the final six races looking to claim championship gold.

Qualifying would be a difficult day for the two championship protagonists as having a lack of boost at the circuit can prove costly and with the weather being mixed for the whole of qualifying, it threw a spanner in the works for all drivers and teams. Ingram would the first to fall after being knocked out in part one of qualifying meaning he would only start fourteenth for race one. Meanwhile, Sutton managed to advance through in his group phase of qualifying but a spin on the curb at Copse would ruin his tyres and with the conditions changing as well as a lack of boost, Sutton had to settle for twelfth on the grid, only just in front of his rival.

The pair would start on the medium tyres and off the start, both drivers made a couple of places in the opening sector. Sutton would make his way passed Árón Taylor-Smith and Mikey Doble quickly while Ingram also managed to Taylor-Smith’s Toyota and teammate Adam Morgan on the opening lap.  Sutton would continue to make progress, passing Charles Rainford on the exit of Luffield to move to ninth place. On lap two, Ingram would make his way passed Doble for eleventh place and set his sights on Sutton who was being pressured by Rainford just after making the overtake.

On lap four, Rainford and Sutton would come together at Becketts allowing Ingram to have a run on the exit of the corner passing Rainford and Sutton on the run into Brooklands to take ninth place. Ingram would be on the hunt for pole sitter Daryl DeLeon as the BMW struggled with pace during the race. Ingram would put his car in a better position compared to DeLeon to make the overtake at Becketts and to put a car between himself and Sutton. Sutton would soon follow suit to pas DeLeon on lap nine into the entry of Becketts after having a better run off of Copse.

Ingram would come across Dan Rowbottom next on lap ten as Sutton’s teammate would try to defend hard against the Hyundai, forcing him to sit back behind through Brooklands but Ingram would push his way passed finding a small gap through Luffield as they run side by side through towards the end of the lap to take seventh away from Rowbottom on the inside of Copse. Rowbottom would use his extra boost to put pressure on Ingram over the next two laps, but the Hyundai would manage to stay in front of the NAPA Ford and eventually Rowbottom let Sutton by for eighth. Sutton would stick behind Ingram over the next few laps, but a Safety Car would be deployed after Nic Hamilton’s car ended up in a blaze. The race would end under the Safety Car meaning Ingram would finish seventh and Sutton in eighth, extending the advantage over his rival.

Race two would see both drivers use the extra boost in comparison to race one to their advantage. Both drivers would get a great start as Ingram had made his way into fourth place in the first two sectors while Sutton, who decided to do the second race on mediums as well to move into sixth. Both drivers would make another position by the end of the lap with Ingram moving passed Gordon Shedden to claim third and Sutton would pass Senna Proctor for fifth place.

Ingram would next overtake Dan Lloyd on the second lap of the race, taking a wider line on the entry into Becketts to take a better exit in comparison to Lloyd in front to get alongside on the run into Brooklands making his way up into second place. He would try this move again on Jake Hill a couple of laps later getting alongside into Brooklands, but Hill managed to defend against the Hyundai as they went through Luffield. Ingram would try again on the run on the exit of Copse, switching to the outside on the run-off of Becketts after putting Hill off-line to take the race lead on lap four of the race. Meanwhile further back, Sutton would make his way passed Shedden on the exit of Luffield after the Toyota fought hard with Lloyd leaving him to drop a place. Sutton would make a lunge a few laps later on Lloyd up the inside going through Brooklands to move into third place.

However, a Safety Car would be deployed on lap nine after Tom Chilton earned himself a puncture from contact sending him off into the gravel and into the barriers, breaking his suspension. The restart would see Ingram pull away from the rest of the field while Sutton waws on the attack against Hill, applying pressure to the BMW on lap fourteen. Sutton would make a dive up the inside of Hill into Brooklands on lap sixteen after spending a couple of laps behind, he moved to second place with Ingram just in front. But, Ingram would manage to pull a gap on his soft compound of tyres and would end race two taking victory ahead of Sutton in second place despite pressure from Hill throughout the rest of the race.

Race three would see the pair start further down the order after the reverse grid draw meant Sutton was placed in eleventh and Ingram in twelfth. Sutton would have the opportunity to use then soft compound of tyres for race three while Ingram would have to use the medium tyres. Both drivers would make a place at the start before contact between Taylor-Smith and Lloyd and Becketts forced both drivers off the road, Lloyd to the back and Taylor-Smith to twelfth place. Meanwhile, Sutton would be fighting with Ingram, Hill and Charles Rainford throughout the rest of the opening lap as they passed Shedden and Rainford before the end of lap one. Sutton would sit in sixth place while Ingram was in seventh continuing to battle with Rainford, but he managed to defend against the BMW. Sutton would manage to clear Hill on the run into Brooklands on lap two moving into a top five position in the opening two laps.

Sutton would next pass Mikey Doble on the inside of Becketts diving up the inside into fourth place. About half a lap later, Ingram would follow suit after Hill made the move on Doble as Ingram would get through on Doble to get sixth place on the brakes at Copse. Sutton would make another move into third place passing Aiden Moffat at Brooklands making another lunge on the entry with a late braking manoeuvre. Ingram would apply pressure to Hill to make his way by on the main straight as he looked to have the move done through Copse, but the BMW would cutback against Ingram to take the inside line for Becketts forcing Ingram wide at the corner while also allowing Rowbottom, who was on an almighty charge through the field, to make his way by Ingram on the exit.

Rowbottom spent the next six laps in front of Ingram, using his extra boost and softer tyres to keep the Hyundai behind. On lap fourteen, Ingram would try to make a move around the outside of Brooklands but the NAPA driver would use his last laps of boost to keep him behind for as long as possible. Ingram would go for the move a lap later on the run into Copse corner, taking the outside line, forcing a worse line by Rowbottom as he goes through the exit of the corner, giving Ingram the run into Becketts to reclaim sixth place.

Ingram would make one more place by race end as he would make his was passed Moffat at Brooklands and Luffield to claim fifth. By the end of the race, Sutton would finish on the podium with third while Ingram finishes fifth behind Hill, meaning Sutton would close up by a couple of points in the final race of the weekend.

Heading into the finale at Brands Hatch this weekend, the championship battle is on for the final three races of the season. Thirty-three points separate Tom Ingram from Ash Sutton as the Hyundai has the points advantage.