BTCC Finale: Sutton claims the title with a win in race one

The final weekend of the BTCC at Brands Hatch hosted the title decider between Ashley Sutton and Tom Ingram. Sutton went into the weekend with a lead of 45 points over Ingram, meaning all Sutton had to do to claim his fourth championship was match Ingram in one of the three races. The weekend would get off to the best possible start for Sutton, claiming pole with Rory Butcher sandwiched in between the two title protagonists.

Tom Ingram's rear door window, with the number 1 - Photo by btcc.net

Race One

Ingram instantly dived down the inside of Butcher at Druids to put his title rival under pressure from lap one. Behind the title protagonists, the Cupra of Bobby Thompson was trading paint and places in an intense battle with Butcher for the final spot on the podium, with the Toyota just about managing to hold on.

Ash Sutton prepares to get in the car - Photo by btcc.net

Meanwhile, the two Fords of Rowbottom and Cammish battled it out with the two BMWs of Hill and Turkington for fifth place. Hill fell behind the trio, but Turkington managed to dispatch of Rowbottom to become the leader of the train, which turned into fourth place as Butcher fell victim to a puncture.

With two laps to go, all looked set for Sutton to take his record-equalling fourth BTCC title. However, after Stephen Jelley went into the back of Mikey Doble’s car in their battle for eighth, Doble was stuck in the wall at Stirling’s. This brought out the safety car, and with laps being added on, this left Ingram with two laps to overtake Sutton and prolong the championship fight to Race Two. To make matters worse for Sutton, Ingram still had hybrid use available for one lap, while he had used his in the early stages of the race.

Mikey Doble' Vauxhall Astra - Photo by btcc.net

Try as he might, Ingram could not find a way past the Ford Focus ST. Therefore, Ashley Sutton took his fourth BTCC title with his eleventh win of the year; a truly remarkable season for him and the NAPA Racing UK team. Thompson would round out the podium and take the win in the independents class, with Turkington in fourth and Cammish fifth.

Sutton celebrates after Race One - Photo by btcc.net

Race Two

With the driver's championship wrapped up, there was still the matter of two other races and a few more championships to decide, including the manufacturers title. Sutton and Ingram led away from first and second in the grid to complete the top two again, but behind them it was carnage.

Dan Cammish, starting from fifth on the grid, tapped the back of Colin Turkington's BMW at turn two and broke Turkington's rear suspension, putting him out of the race. The slow BMW was then collected by Ronan Pearson and Michael Crees, putting them both out as well before the end of the first lap.

Dan Cammish's Ford Focus ST - Photo by btcc.net

After the safety car, Cammish would pass Thompson with a move into Druids to join his teammate on the podium, with Thompson losing out further to Ricky Collard who had stormed his way up from eighth on the grid to finish fourth. Another late safety car, this time for a massive accident involving Sam Osbourne, meant a one lap shootout to the line.

Once again, Sutton calmly coped with any pressure Ingram could put on, with the Hyundai having to settle for second with Sutton's teammate Cammish in third. Collard and Thompson held on to take fourth and fifth respectively, and the result would see Thompson take the win in the independents' class. With 18th overall, Andrew Watson took the Jack Sears Trophy ahead of teammate Mikey Doble, as the result gave him an unassailable lead going into the last race of the season.

Ingram congratulating Sutton after Sutton won the title - Photo by btcc.net

Race Three

The final BTCC race of the year would see Sutton starting from ninth and Stephen Jelley on pole ahead of Dan Rowbottom and Josh Cook. Rowbottom lost out at the start to Cook, Jake Hill, and Ricky Collard to find himself in a disappointing fifth from second on the grid. Hill had also jumped Cook at the start, but the Honda was able to find its way back past Hill's BMW just before the safety car was called out to reclaim second place.

After the safety car, Cook would take the lead from Jelley with a move through Sheene Curve, with the pair sharing a brilliant battle. While the two were squabbling, Hill made a fantastic opportunistic move on both of them at Dingle Dell to take the lead himself and then pushed to build a gap.

Josh Cook's Honda Civic Type R - Photo by btcc.net

Meanwhile, Rowbottom found his way past Collard and now had Ingram for company as the pair battled for fourth position, with Collard falling down to sixth. An uncharacteristic mistake from Sutton put him down the order before another safety car was called out, this time for an incident between George Gamble and Jade Edwards.

After the safety car, Ingram passed Rowbottom at Paddock Hill Bend to take fourth, but could not do anything about the podium finishers. Hill won from Cook, who was the winnning independent, with Jelley rounding out the top three.

Jake Hill wins the final BTCC race of the year - Photo by btcc.net

And with that concludes the BTCC season in 2023. Ash Sutton reigned supreme over the field, clinching a fourth title to equal the greats of Andy Rouse and Colin Turkington. With a strong weekend for the newly rebadged Alliance Racing team, Ford won the manufacturers championship by just 4 points from BMW, overturning a 19 point deficit going into the weekend. NAPA Racing UK dominated the teams championship while Josh Cook dominated the independents championship, with his One Motorsport squad also clinching the independent team's championship.

A year to remember from Sutton. Was it ever in doubt?