Jake Hill scored a sensational double win for WSR and BMW on a day of ever-changing weather at Snetterton to bounce back into British Touring Car Championship contention.
The Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport driver, who had qualified on pole position, led every lap of the first two races and ended the weekend as its top points-scorer.
And with new team-mate Bobby Thompson claiming a podium finish on his debut for Zeus Cloud Racing with WSR, it was another excellent weekend for the BMW 330e M Sport.
“A great day at Snetterton for Jake with two wins, to follow Colin’s (Turkington) two wins at Brands Hatch, ” commented Dick Bennetts, Team Principal. “We have Colin and Jake within 10 or 11 points of the series lead so it’s all to play for now.
“Thruxton’s next where we’ll be on the hard tyre, and we got some good information on that tyre today that we can take forwards. Bobby did a great job and was the second-highest points-scorer to Jake, so a great achievement from everyone for the debut weekend of Zeus Cloud Racing with WSR.”
Jake was the star of the weekend. Having already dominated a fully-dry opening race, he produced arguably the drive of his life in Race Two.
Given a 10-second penalty for jumping the start, he showed his skills on wet tyres on a drying track and then benefitted from a mid-race shower to build a lead of over 16 seconds; meaning that even with the penalty applied, he still finished 6s clear.
That win – his second of the year – was also the 14th of his BTCC career and came at a track where he’d finished second twice in 2022 and again in 2023.
He led most of Race Three having taken wet tyres on a drying track, but was unable to keep his slick-shod rivals back in the closing stages and finished ninth; a result that took his weekend total to 51 points.
Team-mate Bobby Thompson made strong progress from fifth on the Race One grid to equal the best result of his career in second place; completing a one-two result for WSR BMWs.
The Hornchurch racer then backed up that result with third on the road in Race Two. Like Jake, however, a time penalty dropped him to seventh in the results.
Eighth in the finale not only took his weekend total to 34 points – the best of his career – but also made him the second-highest scorer at Snetterton.
Team BMW’s Colin Turkington remains second in the championship – just 10 points from the top spot – after a challenging weekend.
With less hybrid boost than all but one other car in Race One – due to his high championship position – progress was tough from ninth on the grid. He finished eighth.
A decision to change from wet tyres to slicks at the end of the Race Two formation lap backfired when the rain unexpectedly returned at half-distance.
Following an extra pitstop for wets the four-time champion resumed the track as one of the fastest drivers and snatched the final point on the last lap. He climbed to seventh in Race Three.
Adam Morgan started Race One from third spot – the first time he has been in the top three in qualifying in back-to-back events in the BTCC.
The Lancashire racer suffered from a less-than-ideal set-up and slipped to seventh in the opener. He – like Colin – opted for an early slick-tyre switch in Race Two and was another to need a second stop when the rain returned.
He bounced back with a strong drive from 18th on the grid to 11th in Race Three and remains 10th in the Drivers’ points.
The BTCC continues at Thruxton, Hampshire, on June 8-9.
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 3/10
DRIVERS
1/ Ash Sutton – 121 points
2/ Colin Turkington – 111
3/ Tom Ingram – 110
4/ Jake Hill – 110
5/ Josh Cook – 84
6/ Dan Cammish – 77
10/ Adam Morgan – 55
MANUFACTURERS
1/ Ford – 242 points
2/ BMW – 236
3/ Hyundai – 223
4/ Toyota – 202
TEAMS
1/ NAPA Racing UK – 205 points
2/ Team Bristol Street Motors – 184
3/ LKQ Euro Car Parts with Synetic – 172
4/ Team BMW – 169
5/ Toyota GAZOO Racing UK – 126
6/ Evans Halshaw Power Maxed Racing – 114
7/ Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport – 107
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