DOUBLE DONINGTON DELIGHT
27 Aug 2024
NAPA Racing UK returned to the top step of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship podium with a pair of wins at Donington Park during the eighth meeting of the campaign.
The Alliance Racing-run team arrived at the East Midlands circuit to tackle the full Grand Prix layout seeking a first win since the Thruxton meeting in early June, with Ash Sutton and Dan Cammish both seeking to maintain their championship bids and Dan Rowbottom bidding to strengthen his top ten challenge after two podium finishes in the previous two meetings.
Sam Osborne meanwhile was looking to try and close the gap to top spot in the Jack Sears Trophy.
FREE PRACTICE
The Ford Focus was in fine form in free practice as Cammish and Rowbottom ended the first session locking out the top two spots on the times, whilst they were joined by Sutton in the top four after the second session; both of which were held in far from ideal conditions.
Unfortunately, qualifying would be something of a mixed bag as only Sutton made it through to the Quick Six segment to earn fourth on the grid, with Cammish in ninth, Osborne in twelfth and Rowbottom back in P15.
RACE 1
In improved conditions for the opening race, Sutton kicked things off with a solid run to second place to outscore the two drivers ahead of him in the championship standings with Cammish enduring a quiet start to proceedings as he gained a single spot to cross the line in eighth.
Osborne showed solid pace to spend every lap bar one running inside the top ten, although Rowbottom was left frustrated by a puncture that forced him into the pits. He was able to benefit from a safety car period however to catch up with the field before recovering through to 14th place at the finish.
RACE 2
Race two would be a Sutton masterclass at the front as he cleared the BMW of Colin Turkington on the opening lap before leading throughout to score his second win of the campaign, with Rowbottom the second Focus home after he surged through the pack to take an impressive sixth spot.
Osborne would repeat his result from race one as he again took tenth, but Cammish found himself in the wars when he was forced off track on the exit of Redgate at the start and dropped to the back of the field; recovering well from that point on to come through to eleventh by the finish.
RACE 3
That put Cammish on pole for race three, and in whilst there was action aplenty behind – and he twice lost his lead to safety car interruptions – Cammish controlled proceedings from the front in impressive fashion to score his first win of the campaign.
It ended a winless run dating back to Croft last season, and also gave him a 50th career podium in the series to leave him fifth in the points, with Osborne starting alongside him on the front row but being shuffled back to tenth by the finish. Despite that, he secured the Jack Sears Trophy win for the weekend.
Rowbottom would lose out during various squabbles in the pack, with a trip wide at the Old Hairpin also having a part to play in him finishing in 13th spot but there was disaster for Sutton after he picked up damaged suspension on lap one that resulted in him needing to make a pitstop that led to an non-classified finish.
NEXT STOP
Despite that, Sutton remains third in the standings, Dan Cammish in fifth, Dan Rowbottom in ninth and Sam Osborne in sixteenth, whilst the two wins from the weekend leave NAPA Racing UK on top of the the Manufacturer/Constructor points and the Teams’ Championship.
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