Rainford and Shedden join winners party as Hamilton brings the house down 

Rounds 7, 8 and 9 of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship took place at a scorching hot Snetterton earlier today (24 May) with Charles Rainford, Ash Sutton and Gordon Shedden sharing the victories, whilst Nic Hamilton won a hugely popular Jack Sears Trophy.

Not only was it a special occasion for several individuals it proved to be a big weekend for the WSR BMW squad, adding its name to the 2026 winners list.

The Cataclean Plato Mercedes outfit won the first ever Qualifying Race at Donington Park at the season curtain raiser and since then there have been wins for Audi, Ford, Toyota and Hyundai machinery, with BMW the only marque coming into the weekend without a triumph in a race.

Rainford immediately ended that run with success in the Qualifying Race on Saturday and he duly backed that up with a proper race win around the 2.97-mile circuit in Sunday’s opener.

A Sutton masterclass followed in Race 2 before Shedden rolled back the years with one of the best victories of his career – his 54th success – as he fended off a couple of highly talented fellow champions.

If that wasn’t enough then Hamilton brought the noise and emotion to the final BTCC podium of the day as he claimed the Jack Sears Trophy across the three races.

When the sun set over a glorious Snetterton and the tens of thousands of fans exited the circuit, it was Sutton who was still sitting atop the overall Drivers’ standings, having extended his advantage over Tom Ingram.

Alliance Racing/Ford and NAPA Racing UK top both the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ and Teams’ tables.

Shedden joined Mikey Doble at the head of the Independent Drivers’ order, whilst 

LKQ Euro Car Parts with Power Maxed Racing hold sway in the Indy Teams’ table.

James Dorlin remains in charge of the Jack Sears Trophy despite Hamilton’s unforgettable triumph today.

The next event on the BTCC calendar takes place at Oulton Park on 6/7 June.

Rainford romps home as WSR take double podium

WSR's Rainford took a commanding lights-to-flag victory in the first race of the day, claiming his second career victory, as the Surrey-based squad saw two cars reach the rostrum.

Team VERTU's Tom Ingram took a lonely second, having got the better of Speedworks Corolla Racing's Josh Cook on the opening lap.

Cook couldn't hang on to second for the duration of the race as the hard charging second WSR BMW of Daryl De Leon fired his #2 machine onto the final step of the podium.

The young gun made his way up to fifth early on before getting stuck behind NAPA Racing UK's Dan Cammish for much of the contest.

De Leon eventually made an impressive move and, in free air, immediately pulled away from the #27 Ford Focus Titanium and onto the back of Cook's #66 Toyota Corolla.

The Anglo-Filipino wasted little time in relinquishing Cook of third place as the Cambridge resident grabbed silverware at his home event.

Sutton surges to take fourth victory of 2026

NAPA Racing UK's Sutton took victory in Round 8, asserting himself at the top of the standings with half of all victories so far this season.

Starting from tenth on the grid, the four-time champion ripped through the lower end of the top ten in the early running before he gradually hauled himself into a battle with team-mate Cammish and Team VERTU's Ricky Collard.

Meanwhile, reigning champion Tom Ingram had made his way past the fading BMWs of De Leon and Rainford with the Bavarian duo struggling slightly while running on the Goodyear medium tyre as well as having a lack of available boost by virtue of their double podium in the earlier race.

Sutton saw off Cammish, Collard and both BMWs before setting his sights on attacking leader and old adversary Ingram, when disaster struck the #80 Hyundai i30N.

Ingram locked up with what was confirmed post-race as an alternator failure, as he initially dropped down the pack before later retiring with the problem.

Sutton streaked clear for the win with the Team VERTU duo of Collard and the hard-charging Tom Chilton completing the podium.

Shedden secures special Snetterton success

Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport's Shedden stood atop the podium, taking his seventh victory at the Norfolk venue in one of his best ever drives.

Despite starting from pole position, Shedden first had to fend off the Cataclean Plato Racing duo of Dan Rowbottom and Adam Morgan before later having to contend with an even more daunting sight – four-time champion Sutton and two-time champion Ingram in his mirrors.

With the Mercedes duo fading slightly after mid-distance, it was Sutton's #116 Ford Focus Titanium and Ingram’s #3 Hyundai i30N bearing down on the three-time supremo Shedden.

Not many drivers on the grid have defended in such a classy way against Sutton with the pair going side-by-side on a couple of occasions but somehow the Toyota Corolla man stayed ahead.

Sutton secured second ahead of Ingram, but there was further drama post-race when the latter was handed a ten-second time penalty for exceeding the permitted number of track limits breaches. Ingram subsequently finished Race 3 in eighth place, promoting WSR's De Leon onto the podium – his second of the day.

There was sheer joy further down the order when Team VERTU's Hamilton was confirmed as the Jack Sears Trophy winner for the Snetterton weekend.

It proved to be one of the loudest and most emotional podiums in memory with a huge crowd roaring Nic onto the rostrum, as Shedden, Sutton and Ingram joined the fans in front of the podium to cheer on the inspirational character. 

Hamilton has already scored overall points this season – at Brands Hatch last time out and during yesterday's Qualifying Race – with his improved pace there for all to see, but this proved to be a huge reward for the tireless work, effort and spirit he has shown over the years.

It truly was one of the greatest BTCC moments in recent history and for him to be joined by three champions – with nine titles between them – made the occasion even more special.

2026 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 1 – Snetterton

1. Charles Rainford, WSR 12 Laps
2. Tom Ingram, Team VERTU +3.917s
3. Daryl De Leon, WSR +8.379s
4. Josh Cook, Speedworks Corolla Racing +9.872s
5. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +10.226s
6. Daniel Rowbottom, Cataclean Plato Racing +11.593s
7. Tom Chilton, Team VERTU +12.681s
8. Ricky Collard, Team VERTU +14.893s
9. James Dorlin, Restart Racing +16.274s
10. Ash Sutton, NAPA Racing UK +20.794s

2026 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 2 – Snetterton

1. Ash Sutton, NAPA Racing UK 12 Laps
2. Ricky Collard, Team VERTU +1.009s
3. Tom Chilton, Team VERTU +2.295s
4. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +6.954s
5. Adam Morgan, Cataclean Plato Racing +9.906s
6. Daniel Rowbottom, Cataclean Plato Racing +10.942s
7. Gordon Shedden, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport +11.129s
8. Charles Rainford, WSR +12.496s
9. Chris Smiley, Restart Racing +12.613s
10. Daryl De Leon, WSR +14.047s

2026 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship – Race 3 – Snetterton

1. Gordon Shedden, Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport 12 Laps
2. Ash Sutton, NAPA Racing UK +0.728s
3. Daryl De Leon, WSR +3.226s
4. Chris Smiley, Restart Racing +4.975s
5. Charles Rainford, WSR +5.698s
6. Adam Morgan, Cataclean Plato Racing +6.945s
7. Tom Chilton, Team VERTU +7.093s
8. Tom Ingram, Team VERTU +10.923s
9. Dan Cammish, NAPA Racing UK +11.756s
10. Daniel Rowbottom, Cataclean Plato Racing +12.494s

Penalties:

Qualifying Race

Charles Rainford received a verbal warning in the Qualifying Race at Snetterton, for an incident involving Tom Chilton



Chris Smiley received a five-second time penalty in the Qualifying Race at Snetterton, for obtaining an unfair advantage in an incident involving Lewis Selby

Race 1

Sam Osborne was disqualified from Round 7 of the championship, for a significant overboost infringement


Race 2



Ash Sutton received a five-second time penalty in Round 8 of the championship, for obtaining an unfair advantage in an incident involving Daryl De Leon and Ricky Collard

Race 3



Tom Ingram received a ten-second time penalty in Round 9 of the championship, for exceeding the permitted number of track limits breaches