Tom Ingram
controlled the free practice sessions for the first round of the British Touring Car Championship at Donington Park, leading ahead of former champion Ash Sutton.
Ingram, who claimed the championship in 2022, dominated the initial session very early in the day driving his Excelr8 Motorsport Hyundai i30 N Fastback. Each of his timed runs out was noticeably faster compared to what others managed, ending the day ahead by 0.565 seconds from his teammate.
Tom Chilton
.
The second practice session moved at a somewhat more leisurely pace compared to the initial one; however, four-time titleholder Ash Sutton improved upon his FP1 timing to secure second spot driving for Alliance Racing with his NAPA Ford Focus ST. He finished just 0.360 seconds behind Ingram’s top time from FP2 and lagged by 0.425 seconds relative to the fastest lap set during the first free-practice session.
It feels great, really good,” Ingram confirmed. “I believe we’ve all been attempting to find the right balance during these recent tests due to fluctuating weights. In a way, we’re all beginning anew, but this is accomplishing exactly what I hoped it would.
Interestingly, despite losing 55kg due to the removal of the hybrid system but increasing the power boost from the turbo engine to match what would be expected during the hybrid era, Ingram was the sole driver under the qualifying lap record – albeit by just a narrow gap.
“Considering the reduction in weight and the enhancement of the TOCA turbo boost – which sounds as effective as a vaccine for a badger! – I believe we should anticipate being faster during qualification,” Ingram added.
I believe we have not yet witnessed the full potential of people, and similarly, we haven’t fully unleashed what we can do ourselves.
Ashley Sutton, with NAPA Racing UK driving a Ford Focus ST
Image courtesy of: JEP / Motorsport Images
Ingram was among numerous drivers penalized during free practice for breaching track-limit rules multiple times. Those who also faced penalties include Ronan Pearson (thrice) and Nic Hamilton (twice).
Adam Morgan
, Michael Crees, Max Hall and
Dan Cammish
.
The BTCC organizer TOCA has put money into acquiring four video cameras to enhance the current track sensors. These new cameras have been placed at locations such as Redgate, Old Hairpin, and each apex of the Esses. This technological upgrade led to the elimination of the tire barriers around the Esses; however, it appears they will be reinstated before the qualification rounds.
Chilton’s FP1 time was still strong enough for third place overall, ranking him above Adam Morgan, who secured positions one through four with his Excelr8 Hyundai. Following closely behind were the Alliance Ford duo, consisting of Dan Cammish and Dan Rowbottom.
Other than Sutton, the current title holder
Jake Hill
He was the sole driver within the overall top 10 to enhance their position during FP2, moving his West Surrey Racing BMW 330i M Sport from ninth to seventh place—and sixth in the session.
Hill missed the beginning part of FP2 because they were still making adjustments to improve the car’s speed, however, they didn’t manage to finish everything within the allotted time.
Mikey Doble concluded in eighth placeOverall with his Power Maxed Racing Vauxhall Astra, positioning himself ahead of BTCC newcomers Charles Rainford driving for WSR BMW and James Dorlin competing with Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Corolla.
Launch day test-topper
Josh Cook
experienced a challenging start to the day as he had to replace the engine of his One Motorsport Honda Civic Type R prior to FP2 because of an issue with low oil pressure.
Aiden Moffat
missed most of FP1 due to a power issue with his WSR BMW.
BTCC at Donington Park – Practice outcomes
FP2
|
|
Cla |
Driver |
Car / Engine |
Time |
Delay |
Laps |
| 1 | Hyundai | 1’07.364 | 17 | ||
| 2 | Hyundai | 1’07.929 | 0.565 | 14 | |
| 3 | Ford | 1’08.104 | 0.740 | 18 | |
| 4 | Hyundai | 1’08.113 | 0.749 | 19 | |
| 5 | Ford | 1’08.116 | 0.752 | 21 | |
| 6 | Ford | 1’08.187 | 0.823 | 17 | |
| 7 | Vauxhall/TOCA | 1’08.367 | 1.003 | 19 | |
| 8 | BMW | 1’08.375 | 1.011 | 20 | |
| 9 | Toyota | 1’08.427 | 1.063 | 20 | |
| 10 | Hyundai | 1’08.434 | 1.070 | 17 | |
| 11 | Honda/TOCA | 1’08.442 | 1.078 | 14 | |
| 12 | Toyota | 1’08.443 | 1.079 | 15 | |
| 13 | Hyundai | 1’08.473 | 1.109 | 17 | |
| 14 | BMW | 1’08.551 | 1.187 | 14 | |
| 15 | Ford | 1’08.732 | 1.368 | 20 | |
| 16 | Cupra/TOCA | 1’08.832 | 1.468 | 18 | |
| 17 | Toyota | 1’08.937 | 1.573 | 14 | |
| 18 | Honda/TOCA | 1’08.942 | 1.578 | 20 | |
| 19 | BMW | 1’08.944 | 1.580 | 21 | |
| 20 | Cupra/TOCA | 1’09.078 | 1.714 | 19 | |
| 21 | Toyota | 1’09.125 | 1.761 | 19 | |
| 22 | Cupra/TOCA | 1’09.979 | 2.615 | 17 | |
| 23 | Hyundai | 1’10.060 | 2.696 | 15 | |
| 24 | BMW | – | 1 |
