British Touring Car Championship – Silverstone National Circuit | 26–27 September 2026
Silverstone once again provided a fitting stage for one of the biggest weekends of the 2026 British Touring Car Championship season, as the BTCC descended on the Northamptonshire circuit for its penultimate meeting of the year.
With three races, a new-look Saturday format and a championship title hanging in the balance, there was plenty at stake around the Silverstone National Circuit.
But by the end of Sunday afternoon, one name had been written into the history books.
Ash Sutton became the first driver to win five British Touring Car Championship Drivers’ titles.
The NAPA Racing UK driver arrived at Silverstone with a substantial championship advantage and needed only to maintain his points advantage over his nearest rivals to secure the crown. Instead, Sutton did what he has done throughout much of 2026 – he went racing.
Saturday sets the tone
The weekend began with an incredibly close Free Practice session.
CPRL’s Dan Rowbottom topped the timesheets with a 56.776-second lap, but the margin at the front was almost impossibly small. Mikey Doble was just 0.022 seconds behind, with WSR’s Charles Rainford and CPRL teammate Adam Morgan also within six hundredths of a second.
The competitiveness of the field was immediately apparent, with the top four separated by little more than five hundredths.
Sutton, meanwhile, was down in 20th during practice, although the championship leader had little reason to panic with three races still to come. (BTCC)
The revised 2026 qualifying format then produced the weekend’s new Saturday feature – the 15-lap Race to Pole, with half points available and the finishing order determining the grid for Sunday’s opening race.
Mikey Doble emerged victorious, continuing the impressive form of the LKQ Euro Car Parts with Power Maxed Racing squad. (BTCC)
Moffat strikes first on Sunday
Sunday’s opening BTCC race produced another winner in what has become an exceptionally competitive season.
Aiden Moffat converted a front-row start into victory, taking the lead from teammate Doble at Copse and controlling the race from there.
It was Moffat’s first victory of the 2026 season and made him the 11th different BTCC race winner of the year.
Tom Chilton completed the podium for Team VERTU, while Josh Cook finished fourth and Daryl De Leon and Gordon Shedden followed closely behind. (BTCC)
For Sutton, however, the race became a frustrating affair. A mechanical issue for championship rival Dan Cammish briefly appeared to have opened the door for Sutton to secure the title, but Sutton could only finish 12th.
The championship would therefore go down to Race 2.
History made at Silverstone
If Sutton had been waiting for the perfect moment to seal his fifth championship, Race 2 provided it.
Starting from 12th on the grid, Sutton produced one of the drives of the weekend.
The NAPA Racing UK Ford moved aggressively through the field, reaching the lead by lap nine of the 22-lap contest.
His decisive move on Daryl De Leon was particularly impressive, with Sutton positioning the Ford before making his move down the inside on the run towards Copse.
From there, the championship leader was able to control the race.
The victory was Sutton’s ninth of the season and the 56th of his BTCC career, and, more importantly, it gave him an unassailable championship lead.
History had been made.
Sutton was now a five-time British Touring Car Champion. (BTCC)
Adam Morgan finished second for CPRL, with Charles Rainford completing the podium for WSR.
It was also another strong showing for the rejuvenated CPRL operation, with Dan Rowbottom finishing fifth behind De Leon.
Rain arrives for a dramatic finale
With the championship decided, the final race of the Silverstone weekend could have been forgiven for lacking some of the tension of Race 2.
Instead, the weather provided its own storyline.
Heavy rain transformed the final 22-lap race into a very different challenge, and Team VERTU’s Tom Ingram proved himself the master of the conditions.
Starting from the front row, Ingram initially slipped backwards before finding his rhythm as the race developed.
He eventually moved past Aiden Moffat to take control of the race and secure his first victory since Thruxton.
Sutton produced another impressive recovery, charging from ninth to finish second and complete his championship-winning weekend with another podium.
Moffat took third, while Gordon Shedden produced one of the drives of the race, climbing eight places to finish fourth.
Dan Cammish, Tom Chilton and Josh Cook then battled their way home in fifth, sixth and seventh respectively. (BTCC)
Silverstone once again delivers
The Silverstone National Circuit may be only 1.64 miles long, but the compact layout continues to provide plenty of opportunities for touring-car racing.
Six corners, long straights and heavy braking zones create the kind of environment where the BTCC can produce the close, aggressive racing for which it is renowned. (BTCC)
And this weekend demonstrated exactly that.
Three races produced three different winners:
Aiden Moffat.
Ash Sutton.
Tom Ingram.
But ultimately, the weekend belonged to one driver.
Ash Sutton arrived at Silverstone chasing history.
He left as the first five-time BTCC Drivers’ Champion.
For NAPA Racing UK, it was another major milestone in what has been an extraordinary season. For Sutton, it was another chapter in a career that is rapidly becoming one of the most significant in modern British touring-car racing.
And with the championship now decided, attention turns towards the final meeting of the 2026 season at Brands Hatch.
One title may be settled.
But there is still plenty to race for.