Wet weather and a storming drive produced MG’s first British Touring Car Championship victory of the season and rookie Ashley Sutton’s first-ever win in the final race of the day at Croft.
Sutton closed down and overtook pole-sitter Sam Tordoff’s pole-sitting BMW in a mature drive to add to his first podium finish earlier in the day.
Light rain was falling as the field lined up and all but four of the 32 cars wore wet-weather rubber, decisions soon vindicated as the rain increased in intensity as the race started. Just as in the earlier two races, the safety car appeared before a lap was run, this time Team BMR owner Warren Scott ending a trying day with his Subaru Levorg in the turn one gravel. Tordoff’s Team JCT600 BMW led away at the restart ahead of Tom Ingram’s Speedworks Toyota, Jack Goff’s IHG Rewards Club BMW, Colin Turkington’s Silverline Subaru and the Pirtek Ford of Andrew Jordan, Goff soon losing out in a three-wide effort at Tower bend. Coming fast, meanwhile was Sutton, recovering from a slow start.
The safety car was then called into action again, however, as Matt Jackson’s Ford Focus, struggling on slick tyres, ran through the turn one gravel trap and on rejoining hit and broke the Mercedes A-Class of the luckless Aidan Moffat.
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