Bristol Street Motors with Excelr8’s Tom Ingram claimed his second win of the season in the second Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship race of the day at Donington Park, passing race one winner and championship leader Ash Sutton in the process.
Ingram started third on the grid but moved up second at the Old Hairpin on the first lap as he squeezed past Jake Hill.
Pole sitter Sutton built up a 0.7s lead in his NAPA Racing UK Ford Focus ST on the first tour, but Ingram in his Hyundai i30N sliced into that, lapping half a second quicker than his main rival on lap two.
Two laps later, and after following in Sutton’s wheeltracks, Ingram pounced up the inside of Redgate, and the pair ran side by side through the Craners, but the Hyundai took the inside line at the Old Hairpin and completed the move.
Ingram held a small lead for the first half of the race, but when Hill launched an attack on Sutton on lap nine, the lead doubled to 1.9 seconds, and from there Ingram was able to extend his margin to almost three seconds to take his first victory since Snetterton.
Sutton had to fight off the attentions of Hill for the second half of the contest, and finished just a couple of tenths clear of the BMW, with Hill taking his second podium of the day.
Hill’s WSR teammate Colin Turkington was close to the scrap too, finishing half a second further back in fourth.
One Motorsport with Starline Racing’s Josh Cook had a lonely race on the way to fifth ahead of Toyota Gazoo Racing UK’s Ricky Collard, who finished half a second clear of Sutton’s teammate Dan Rowbottom.
Rory Butcher (Toyota), Adam Morgan (BMW) and Aron Taylor-Smith (Vauxhall) completed the top-10.
The final BTCC contest of the day, the reverse grid race, is due to commence at 17.25.
Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship, Donington Park GP, race two result:
1. Tom Ingram, Bristol Street Motors with Excelr8, Hyundai i30N, 14 laps
2. Ash Sutton, NAPA Racing UK, Ford Focus ST, +2.831s
3. Jake Hill, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport, BMW 330e M Sport, +3.045s
4. Colin Turkington, Team BMW, BMW 330e M Sport, +3.638s
5. Josh Cook, One Motorsport with Starline Racing, +8.016s
6. Ricky Collard, Toyota Gazoo Racing UK, Toyota Corolla GR Sport, +11.577s
7. Daniel Rowbottom, NAPA Racing UK, Ford Focus ST, +12.157s
8. Rory Butcher, Toyota Gazoo Racing UK, Toyota Corolla GR Sport, +19.757s
9. Adam Morgan, Team BMW, BMW 330e M Sport, +20.487s
10. Aron Taylor-Smith, CarStore Power Maxed Racing, Vauxhall Astra, +21.273s
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