Ford driver Ash Sutton scored a supreme British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) double triumph at Snetterton before the Hyundai of Tom Ingram took victory in the finale at the Norfolk circuit.
The BMWs of Colin Turkington and Jake Hill both reached the rostrum on two occasions during the day. Toyota’s Rory Butcher and Ford's Dan Rowbottom completed the podium in the reverse grid race.
Sutton now holds a seven-point advantage in the standings over reigning champion Ingram, with Turkington third overall.
Ash Sutton keeps Jake Hill at bay
Three-time champion Sutton took his 30th career BTCC victory in the opening contest, as he held off a late charge from Hill’s BMW 3 Series.
Sutton made a sensational start – immediately pulling away from the chasing pack – as West Surrey Racing stablemates Turkington and Hill slipped into second and third respectively.
Sutton had pulled out a three second gap after just three laps but a fight for the lead eventually materialised when Hill made an opportunistic move by Turkington for second in the closing stages.
Hill’s pace was blistering as he hauled in Sutton’s Ford Focus ST at a rapid rate. Unfortunately for the Kent driver, he simply ran out of time, with the pair separated by just 0.270sec as the chequered flag waved.
Turkington claimed a podium ahead of Ingram and a lonely Team BMW duo of Adam Morgan and Stephen Jelley.
Sutton secures Snetterton double
Napa Racing UK star Sutton continued his domination of the event, as the former champion claimed his second win of the day and his fourth successive triumph of the season – following on from his recent successes at Brands Hatch.
The 29-year-old led from lights to flag and was never under any pressure as both he and his impressive Motorbase-run Focus looked in complete harmony around the Snetterton 300 layout.
Hill and Turkington ran line astern to complete the podium once more, while Rowbottom continued to make impressive progress with fourth place – his final pass by Team BMW’s Morgan including some contact between the two.
Ingram takes his first win of 2023
Ingram fought his way from seventh on the grid to win the finale around the 2.97-mile circuit.
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