WINS FOR INGRAM, COOK AND HILL ON SENSATIONAL DAY AT OULTON PARK
Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport's Jake Hill ended a sensational day of Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship racing by making a last lap move for victory at Oulton Park, as the BMW star moved to the summit of the standings.
Basked in glorious sunshine throughout the weekend (22/23 June), the relentless pace kicked off on Saturday as Tom Ingram obliterated the existing qualifying lap record to take pole position.
The Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS’ racer duly backed that up with victory in the opener, before Josh Cook supremely surged through the order to win the second contest – his first triumph since the 2022 campaign.
Ash Sutton initially relinquished the standings advantage to Ingram after race two, as the reigning champion endured a disastrous day in Cheshire, before Hill became the third championship leader on the same day with his heroics in the reverse grid race.
Hill tops the order by four points from Ingram, with Sutton dropping a further 20 points back. Dan Cammish, Josh Cook and Colin Turkington are next in the order with the latter also enduring a challenging outing at a circuit that has often been so kind to him.
Alliance Racing/Ford and its NAPA Racing UK outfit hold sway in both the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ and Teams’ championships.
Mikey Doble and Árón Taylor-Smith scored the first ever overall double podium for Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing with its drivers and team also dominating the Independents’ and Jack Sears Trophy honours.
The BTCC now enters its traditional mid-season summer break, with the action resuming at Croft in North Yorkshire on 27/28 July.
Ingram holds off Sutton to secure 30th BTCC win
Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS' Ingram held off title rival Sutton in the Oulton Park opener to secure a fantastic 30th career victory in the BTCC.
The fans had been waiting for an on-track battle between Ingram and Sutton during the 2024 season and the packed banks of spectators got their wish around the picturesque 2.23-mile circuit.
The pair touched slightly on a couple of occasions with the pivotal moment coming when Ingram's #80 straight-lined a chicane after receiving a nudge from the #1 NAPA Racing UK Ford Focus of Sutton.
They resumed battle but in truth Sutton's chance was over as the Hyundai i30N pulled away for the remainder of the contest.
NAPA Racing UK's Cammish claimed a hard-earned fourth successive podium as he came under attack from the BMW duo of Adam Morgan and Hill.
Cook storms from eighth to first in the blink of an eye
LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ’s Cook produced one of the finest laps in recent memory as he blitzed from eighth on the grid to the front on the opening tour of race two.
Running the Goodyear soft tyre, Cook avoided a melee at turn one that left Morgan’s Team BMW machine stranded in the middle of the track, and he was soon running around the outside of the leading quartet at the hairpin.
Now up to second, race one winner Ingram simply had no answer as Cook's #66 Toyota sliced down the inside on the Hyundai before the gaggle of cars had even reached the start/finish line for the first time.
Cook gradually edged clear of the pack to take his first win in Toyota machinery, ahead of Ingram, whilst the scrap for the final place on the podium turned one way and then the other.
NAPA Racing UK's problems with flailing bodywork reared its head again, this time hitting Sutton's #1 machine, forcing the reigning champ to pit and drop from third to the rear of the order.
The issue looked to have handed team-mate Cammish a fifth successive podium, but Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport's Hill had other ideas as he fired his BMW around the outside of the #27 car on the final lap of the race.
The headlines belonged to Cook, however, with his first win since Thruxton in 2022 and the 19th victory of his BTCC career so far.
Last lap heroics from Hill to claim Oulton Park triumph
Kent driver Hill is in the form of his life, having taken a double-double at Snetterton and Thruxton respectively during the previous two race weekends, but he had to remain patient at Oulton Park this weekend.
He narrowly missed out on the 'Quick Six' qualifying yesterday and had to settle for seventh on the grid, but Hill worked his way forward during race day to take fifth, third and a victory from the three races.
You had to feel for pole-sitter Doble, who led the finale almost from start to finish, but the pressure eventually told as Hill went side-by-side with the Vauxhall on the final tour. The pair ran through the chicane together, touched slightly, but it was the #24 BMW that emerged ahead with a brilliant move.
Taylor-Smith made it a double celebration for Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing by completing the podium, ahead of Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS' Ingram.
Tom Ingram, Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS, said: “We would have loved some air conditioning in the car, it gets very spicy in there. We are about 25 degrees above ambient temperature so it’s pretty warm to say the least. Ash (Sutton) is obviously quick, so is Dan (Cammish), plus I could see Jake (Hill) coming too. There was a lot to try and manage but it’s good to get the win and the first one of the day under our belts.”
Josh Cook, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ, said: “It’s nice to be back winning races. It makes it a lot easier when you’re on the soft tyres and those around you are on the hards. I got off to a really good start on lap one and the doors just opened up around me, and I ended up in a good position. I got my head down and just focused on banging in some quick laps. It probably wasn’t overly interesting to watch, but I’ll take that any day and congratulations to everyone in the team.”
Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport, said: “That was tough. A fantastic race with Árón (Taylor-Smith) and Mikey (Doble) at the end there. Credit to them because they did a great job, and it was just a really enjoyable touring car race from my point of view – just hard-fought battling and it was absolutely awesome. As much as I feel sorry Mikey, I’ve got a championship to try and win and I had to get the move done. Credit to him for leaving me a bit of space, but, what a move!”
2024 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Oulton Park
1. Tom Ingram, Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS 15 Laps
2. Ash Sutton, NAPA Racing UK +1.913s
3. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +4.557s
4. Adam Morgan, Team BMW +10.230s
5. Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport +14.700s
6. Tom Chilton, Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS +16.238s
7. Árón Taylor-Smith, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing +26.078s
8. Josh Cook, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ +26.646s
9. Aiden Moffat, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ +30.817s
10. Rob Huff, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK +31.366s
2024 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Oulton Park
1. Josh Cook, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ 15 Laps
2. Tom Ingram, Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS +8.016s
3. Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport +9.879s
4. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +10.430s
5. Árón Taylor-Smith, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing +10.856s
6. Mikey Doble, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing +11.452s
7. Colin Turkington, Team BMW +12.197s
8. Chris Smiley, Restart Racing +13.420s
9. Daniel Rowbottom, NAPA Racing UK +14.705s
10. Andrew Watson, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing UK +18.972s
2024 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 3 – Oulton Park
1. Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport 15 Laps
2. Mikey Doble, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing +0.749s
3. Árón Taylor-Smith, Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing +2.410s
4. Tom Ingram, Team BRISTOL STREET MOTORS +2.856s
5. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +3.714s
6. Daniel Rowbottom, NAPA Racing UK +4.150s
7. Adam Morgan, Team BMW +6.758s
8. Josh Cook, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ +7.474s
9. Chris Smiley, Restart Racing +9.744s
10. Aiden Moffat, LKQ Euro Car Parts with SYNETIQ +12.474s
Penalties:
Race One
Dan Rowbottom received a 30-second time penalty during Round 13 of the championship and three penalty points, for failing to observe the black/orange signal
Race Two
Daryl DeLeon received a two-second time penalty during Round 14 of the championship, for gaining an unfair advantage in an incident involving Rob Huff
