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Ash Sutton arrives at Silverstone with the chance to move another step closer to making British Touring Car Championship history. The four-time champion has built a huge lead heading into the penultimate weekend of the 2026 season, sitting on 424 points ahead of NAPA Racing UK teammate Dan Cammish on 309 and reigning champion Tom Ingram on 301. That leaves Cammish 115 points behind and Ingram 123 adrift with only Silverstone and the Brands Hatch finale remaining.
There is more at stake than simply another championship. No driver has ever won five BTCC Drivers’ titles, with Sutton currently tied on four. A fifth would therefore put him alone at the top of the record books, and his recent form suggests he has no intention of simply protecting his advantage. Sutton took his eighth victory of the season at Croft earlier this month, bringing his career total to 55 BTCC wins and moving him up to fifth on the championship’s all-time winners list.
Croft also showed why the title fight isn’t completely over yet. Sutton, Cammish and Ingram all encountered problems at different points during the weekend, but Sutton’s closest rivals couldn’t take enough advantage. By the time the championship left North Yorkshire, his lead had actually grown. Silverstone therefore presents a difficult situation for Cammish and Ingram. They don’t just need strong results themselves, they need to start taking significant points out of Sutton before the championship reaches Brands Hatch.
There will be plenty of opportunities to do that. For the first time in 2026, BTCC weekends include a Saturday Qualifying Race that awards championship points and determines the grid for Sunday’s opening race. That is followed by the traditional three-race programme on Sunday, giving Sutton’s challengers four opportunities to change the championship picture across the weekend.
Silverstone’s short National Circuit could also produce the kind of racing they need. At just 1.64 miles, with long straights and tight corners, the layout regularly creates close battles and overtaking opportunities. But the biggest question this weekend isn’t simply who wins at Silverstone. It’s whether anyone can take enough points from Sutton to keep the championship fight alive when the BTCC arrives at Brands Hatch for its final meeting.
Sutton has spent the season building a commanding advantage. Cammish and Ingram are running out of opportunities to take it away.
Can anyone stop Ash Sutton from becoming the first five-time BTCC champion?
