Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport’s Jake Hill re-took the lead of the British Touring Car Championship Drivers’ standings on the weekend after a brace of third-place finishes and a fifth-place finish at Donington Park GP.
With the weekend starting in wet conditions, the opening practice of the day saw persistent light rain throughout the session in which Jake Hill finished in 12th place. Mixed conditions set the scene for the second session, and Jake improved to take sixth ahead of a pivotal qualifying session for the title contender.
Qualifying saw Jake record a seventh-place starting place for Sunday’s opening race, as Jake missed out on the ‘Quick Six’ finale by just 0.071-seconds but set a good foundation for race day.
Starting race day from the fourth row on the grid in his WSR-run BMW 330e M Sport, Jake was able to capitalise on fighting ahead of him as he passed a trio of cars, including his championship rival Ingram, to move himself up the order and into 4th place.
Now pressuring Cook for third place, Cook got sideways heading into the chicane and clipped the tyre barrier – opening the door for Jake to sweep through and take the final spot on the podium.
For the second race of the day, Jake lined up in third place and drove a clean race following the leaders Turkington and Sutton. However, Jake was soon passed by Ingram but was able to retake third place after Ingram ran into mechanical trouble and was forced into retirement.
Jake’s second podium of the day, and his eleventh of the season, saw him lead the overall standings by nine points from Sutton, with Ingram a further seven points in arrears heading into the final race of the day.
In the reverse grid draw, Jake was handed a 9th-place starting position and carefully managed his way forward in a chaotic race to finish in fifth.
With the championship now heading into the final two race weekends of the season, Jake now holds a nine-point lead in the top of the standings as the series returns at Silverstone on 21/22 September before the highly anticipated season finale takes place at Brands Hatch on 5/6 October.
“It was a tough weekend for me physically as I battled illness from the opening session but we persevered for some great results and depart Donington with the championship lead which was the main goal! Considering we started race one in seventh, making good progress throughout the races and staying out of trouble has rewarded us with strong points and the lead in the standings. It’s still so tight at the top of the standings, and things can swing so quickly so we need to stay consistent and deliver our full potential every time we hit the track for the remaining two rounds! Thank you to all of the team at Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport and WSR for their huge effort this weekend, just a nice consistent weekend of getting points – and of course a big thank you for all the support as always, it’s really appreciated!” – Jake Hill
