BTCC Croft - Sutton puts one hand on title after Ingram suffers disastrous weekend
- Owen Bradley
- 1 hour ago
- 6 min read
Ashley Sutton has extended his lead in the British Touring Car Championship after title rival Tom Ingram suffered a brutally disastrous weekend, scoring points at just one of the three races. Sutton's monstrous lead in the standings with just six races remaining ensure that he has put one hand on the championship trophy.
Race 1, Round 22
The first race was engulfed in chaos before the five red lights had even gone out. At the end of the formation lap, with rain pouring down, several cars entered the pits to change from slick tyres to wet tyres.
Josh Cook started from pole position, with Dan Cammish alongside him, Ash Sutton third and title rival Tom Ingram started from fifth. Daryl De Leon made an excellent start from fourth on the grid, immediately attempting a move around the outside of Sutton at the first corner. Sutton fought back, putting his No.116 NAPA Ford ahead of De Leon's BMW heading into turn three. De Leon, having picked up some standing water, slid off the circuit at the exit of turn four.
On Lap 8, Tom Ingram found exceptional grip around the outside of Tower corner, dancing around the outside of Sutton. The pair went side-by-side into the esses, with the Ford and Hyundai banging doors. Sutton managed to successfully defend his position from Ingram, but the pair came together again just one lap later - with Ingram rushing to the inside of Sutton at the final corner, the long left-hairpin turn.
Sutton squeezed Ingram to the inside, once again successfully defending his position, before he then went on the attack. Sutton went after Cammish for second place, attempting to find grip around the outside at Tower. However, with Sutton running deep into Tower, Ingram sensed an opportunity to put the nose of his Hyundai into the gap. Ingram and Sutton collided for a second time, with Sutton sent sideways.
Just a few corners later, Sutton would slide off the road after running deep into the final sequence of corners. The Ford took to the grass and struggled for grip, with Sutton eventually re-joining the circuit in fourth place. However, both Ingram and Cammish, running second and third - would be hit with five-second penalties for track limits. Sutton remained within five seconds of the pair of them.
Ingram, desperate to make a headway on title rival Ash Sutton, sent a huge dive-bomb down the inside of Josh Cook, taking the lead of the race with just a couple of laps to go. Ingram needed to build a five-second lead, with Dan Cammish also picking up a five-second penalty for track limits as well.
Rounding the final corner, Ingram took the chequered flag, but ultimately failed in his attempt to beat Cook and Sutton, with the Hyundai driver finishing in third place after his penalty was applied. Sutton made a desperate move down the inside of Cook at the final corner, the pair colliding at the exit of the corner. Cook managed to out-drag Sutton to the finish, to take victory in the opening race of the weekend.
Cook led Sutton and Ingram to the podium, with Cammish and Ricky Collard rounding out the top five. Sutton subsequently extended his lead in the standings, and would line up on the front row of the grid for the second race of the day.
Race 2, Round 23
The second race of the day featured a damp track with a drying racing line, making for some interesting overtakes around the circuit. Sutton made a strong start, pressuring Cook into the first corner. Cook struggled for grip on the exit of the first corner, sliding into the second corner, with Sutton pushing right to the rear bumper of Cook's Toyota.
Sutton eventually found the grip, dancing around the outside of Cook going into Tower corner, carrying significant momentum by braking late. Ingram then followed Sutton, overtaking Cook just one lap later on entry to Tower, using the Hybrid boost to fly past the Toyota.
After losing the lead, and second place, Cook's day went from bad to worse, losing third to Daryl De Leon. Cook attempted to retaliate at the next corner, smashing into the side of De Leon's BMW, which went spinning out.
Dan Rowbottom suddenly appeared, roaring through the pack and attacking Tom Ingram for second place. Rowbottom managed to get around the outside of Ingram into the esses after the pair bumped doors momentarily. The CPRL Mercedes went ahead of the Team VERTU Hyundai, with Ingram seemingly running out of pace during this stage of the race.
Dan Cammish was the next to catch Ingram, sending a huge dive-bomb up the inside of the Hyundai. The pair collided, and Ingram was put onto the grass. With zero grip out on the grass, trying to turn right, Ingram was forced to slide into the outside barrier. With moderate damage and a huge loss of time, Ingram found himself at the very back of the field.
Sutton confidently took victory in the second race, with Dan Rowbottom and Ricky Collard rounding out the podium places, and Dan Cammish and Charles Rainford completing the top five.
Ash Sutton extended his title lead in dramatic fashion, with title rival Tom Ingram point-less in the second race, and the Hyundai driver forced to start from the back of the grid for the final race.
Race 3, Round 24
With the track now completely dry, Mikey Doble led the field in the final race of the weekend. Sutton collided with Ricky Collard at the exit of the first corner, with the Hyundai of Collard being sent across the circuit, smashing into Dan Rowbottom's Mercedes. All three cars were stricken on the side of the road, with Sutton's Ford somehow able to drive away from the incident.
The incident caused a safety car, but just before the deployment of the safety car, Tom Ingram had managed to go from 23rd on the grid, to 12th place after just a few corners on the opening lap.
Doble led Aiden Moffat, Tom Chilton, Gordon Shedden and Charles Rainford at the restart, and Chilton wasted no time in sending a move on Moffat. The pair came together on the eighth lap, with Moffat being batted wide. Chilton snuck through on Moffat, with Shedden also getting through on Moffat at the next right-hander.
Later in the lap, Rainford also tried to take advantage of Moffat's loss in momentum, put the pair came together, with Moffat being sent sideways across the road in the final sector. Just one lap later, Tom Ingram attempted a move around the outside of Dan Lloyd for eighth position into the esses, but the Hyundai driver dipped two wheels onto the grass slightly.
Ingram was sent spinning out of the points and across the grass, the Hyundai taking a beating over the bumps. Meanwhile, Josh Cook battled his way through the field and took advantage of misfortune striking other drivers, with the Toyota of Cook eventually diving down the inside of Adam Morgan to steal fourth place.
Further behind, Sam Osborne sent a huge dive to the inside of Charles Rainford's BMW, the Ford of Osborne and BMW of Rainford coming together. Rainford was sent spinning around, as Osborne peeled off into the pits with moderate damage to the front of the Ford.
Mikey Doble was able to convert his front row start into a race victory, leading Tom Chilton and Gordon Shedden across the line for the podium places, with Cook and Morgan rounding out the top five. Both Sutton and Ingram failed to score points in the final race, with Cammish also not scoring points due to the first lap, first corner crash. None of the top three in the standings scored points.
Going into the penultimate weekend of the season, Sutton leads the championship by 115 points to Dan Cammish, with Tom Ingram's championship campaign taking a major blow, now slipping behind Cammish.
Ash Sutton has put one hand on the championship trophy as his title rivals suffered a disappointing weekend, with Sutton now able to win the championship in Silverstone, the next race meeting in three weeks' time.
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