The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) will be decided in a three-way battle in the season finale at Brands Hatch this weekend, with Colin Turkington, Tom Ingram and Tom Chilton vying for the title.
Double champion Turkington will be the favourite in his Team BMW 125i M Sport, holding a 34-point lead in the standings over Ingram, who drives a privateer Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis. Motorbase Ford Focus RS driver Chilton is 64 points adrift of Turkington, but with a maximum possible haul of 67 points available, he would require an incredible set of results to win the title.
The championship will be decided with three races on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in Kent. There are 20 points on offer for a race win, with bonus points on offer for setting fastest lap or leading a lap in each race. The driver who tops qualifying for race one also gets a point.
Here's how the three contenders shape up.
Colin Turkington
Age 36 From Portadown, County Armagh Team Team BMW 125i M Sport
BTCC starts 389 Race wins 46 Championships 2 (2009, 2014)
2018 race wins 1
Veteran Turkington has won only one race in 2018 but has built a healthy points lead thanks to his incredible consistency. He’s finished in the top six in 17 out of the 2017 races so far in his rear-wheel-drive BMW, including a season-best 10 podium finishes. He also has the experience of two previous title wins and was the runner-up in last year’s standings.
What he says “I’ve been here before and I’m really enjoying it this year. I enjoy these moments.
“We’ve put together a strong campaign, although it’s not been without its challenges. The strike rate of podiums has been good, if not necessarily wins. The latter are very hard to come by in the BTCC.”
Tom Ingram
Age 25 From High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire Team Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis
BTCC starts 146 Race wins 9 Best championship finish 3rd (2017)
2018 race wins 3
Ingram, who drives for the small Speedworks team, has shown unstoppable pace at times this season, but he’s also had more bad luck and challenges than Turkington. He’s retired three times (compared to one for Turkington) and was disqualified from a second place at Knockhill due to a technical infringement.
