TEAM VERTU PREPARES FOR THRUXTON THRILLS

Team VERTU will hope to replicate the fine results it secured at Thruxton last season when the 2026 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship bursts back into life at the fastest circuit in the UK this weekend.
The high-speed Hampshire venue hosts the fifth meeting of the year as the series returns to action after an early summer break brought about by the FIFA World Cup, with the EXCELR8-run team chasing a strong weekend on track to strengthen its title challenge.
Reigning champion Tom Ingram is the best placed of the four Team VERTU drivers in the standings, with a triple podium at Oulton Park prior to the summer break having helped him to close the gap on rival Ash Sutton in the title race.
Currently sitting 48 points behind Sutton, Ingram will be chasing his fourth win at Thruxton and is bidding to take to the top step of the podium for the second season in succession.
His victory last season was the first for Team VERTU at the circuit, and helped kickstart his charge towards a second BTCC title, with a strong showing this time around being vital as he looks to defend his crown.
Ricky Collard arrives at Thruxton sitting fifth in the standings having secured a podium finish at each of the four meetings run to date this year.
Collard’s results so far at the wheel of the Hyundai i30 Fastback N have been particularly impressive given the late nature of his deal to join the team, and the fact that he was returning to front-wheel drive for the first time since 2023 – having since focused his career on sports cars.
As he continues to work on extending his programme with the team, Collard will look to add to his podium tally this weekend to maintain his championship position, with the ultimate goal being to try and secure a maiden BTCC victory.
Tom Chilton, the most experienced driver on the grid with nearly 550 BTCC starts to his name, goes into the weekend sitting in an unrepresentative twelfth place in the standings after a difficult campaign to date, with a single podium finish at Snetterton back in May.
Despite being a self-proclaimed fan of the UK’s fastest circuit, Chilton has yet to make it onto the top step of the podium at Thruxton – making it the only circuit on the schedule where he has failed to achieve that feat.
Keen to make up ground in the standings, Chilton will hope to secure three strong results from the weekend with a first win of 2026 being the target.
Nicolas Hamilton arrives at Thruxton buoyed by a solid points finish last time out at Oulton Park, where he ended the weekend with a strong twelfth place.
That followed on from an eleventh place finish at Brands Hatch earlier in the year and a points-scoring performance in the qualification race at Snetterton, where he also secured victory in the Jack Sears Trophy for the first time.
With confidence on a high, Hamilton heads for Thruxton looking to maintain the progress he has made since joining Team VERTU at the start of the season with further points being the aim.
After free practice on Saturday morning, qualifying and the qualifying race will take place from 14:00 and will air live on the ITV Sport YouTube channel.
Sunday’s three races – scheduled for 11:45, 14:40 and 17:30 – will then air live on both ITV4 and ITVX.
Tom Chilton, #3 Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N, said:
“Even though I’ve never managed to take a win at Thruxton, it remains one of my favourite circuits on the BTCC calendar as it’s so unique – there really is nowhere else like it.
“I think it’s fair to say that the season hasn’t gone the way I hoped so far, and I’ve certainly had more than my fair share of bad luck during the opening four rounds of the season. However, the fact that we topped qualifying and scored a podium finish at Snetterton shows we have the pace and it’s all about now trying to ensure that we show that across a full weekend.
“Three strong finishes are the aim and with the speed in the car, there is no reason why at least one of those can’t be on the podium.”