Team VERTU brought the curtain down on the 2025 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season in fine style at Brands Hatch, with a race win and three further podiums resulting in two championship titles.
On a dramatic final weekend of action, Tom Ingram successfully wrapped up a second Drivers’ Championship whilst the EXCELR8-run team also overcame season-long rivals Alliance Racing to take the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ title for the first time.
Ingram had taken a lead of 33 points into the final round and would be nominated to also score for the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ titles alongside Senna Proctor, with Tom Chilton and Adam Morgan resuming their inter-team battle to make it into the end-of-season top six.
All four drivers showed top ten pace in their Hyundai i30N Fastbacks during free practice but there would be disappointment for Proctor in Q1 when he failed to progress to the second part of qualifying to end up 13th on the grid.
Ingram then departed in Q2 as the lack of additional TOCA Turbo Boost left him in seventh spot, although that was still ahead of title rival Ash Sutton who could only manage eleventh.
Chilton and Morgan both progressed to the Quick Six and would end up fourth and fifth in a session that saw the leading five runners covered by a tenth of a second.
Tyre strategies were split for race day, with Chilton and Morgan going for the soft tyre and Ingram and Proctor both sticking with the medium ahead of race one.
Taking full advantage of the quicker tyre, Chilton and Morgan battled their way through to the podium spots to take second and third as their own private battle continued, whilst behind, Ingram was able to stay out of trouble and take the flag in fifth to extend his points lead.
Running in the midfield pack, Proctor would take the flag back in 13th but scored valuable Manufacturers’ points going into race two.
This time, Ingram and Proctor bolted on the soft tyre and Ingram used it to full effect as he wrapped up a second championship title in fine style.
Picking off the cars in front in the early laps, Ingram took the lead by lap three and was able to control the race from the front despite two safety car periods to secure the points he needed to become a two-time champion.
Chilton had run second in the early stages before an alternator failure put him into retirement, but Proctor provided plenty of reason to cheer as he stormed through the field to take third spot - ensuring that the battle for the Manufacturers’ and Teams’ titles would go to the wire.
Morgan meanwhile was left in a frustrated tenth after lap one contact at Druids cost him places, although Hilton’s issues saw him move up into sixth in the points.
With the Drivers’ title secured, the focus turned to the remaining two titles for the season finale, with all four drivers now on the medium rubber.
Although Chilton would unfortunately retire after further alternator woes, Ingram and Proctor took sixth and eighth with Morgan ending the race between the pair in seventh.
Whilst second place for Ash Sutton meant NAPA Racing were able to cling on to the Teams’ title, a retirement for Dan Cammish enabled Team VERTU to grab the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ title by just three points.
That capped the most successful season yet for the team in Britain’s premier racing series, with all four drivers inside the top ten in the overall championship standings and Ingram setting a new record for most points scored in a season.
Tom Chilton, #3 Team VERTU Hyundai i30N Fastback, said:
“On a personal level, the final round has been a bit frustrating as no-one wants to end the year with two DNFs but it’s difficult to be disappointed at the end of such a fantastic season for the team. Tom has done a mega job to win his second title and for us to win the Manufacturers’/Constructors’ title is an amazing achievement.
“Things looked positive for me to get that top six finish after a really strong race one and it was great to be up there on the podium with Adam, and it all looked perfect in race two when I was sat behind Tom before the alternator failed - and then the replacement failed in race three.
“That’s just rotten luck but this has been my best season by far for a number of seasons with two wins, two seconds and two thirds. Every season since I joined the team, we’ve just kept getting better and who knows, maybe next year it could be me on top at the finish.”
Senna Proctor, #18 Team VERTU Hyundai i30N Fastback, said:
“When I messed up in qualifying, I wondered if the team had made the wrong decision to nominate me for Manufacturer points, but I’m so proud to have battled back and played my part in helping the team to lift the title.
“Race day was fantastic, particularly the second race when we bolted on the soft tyre and came through to the podium. To then come back in at the end of race three and realise we’d taken the title was fantastic, and is great for the whole team.
“On a personal level, to equal my best ever championship finish in tenth having missed the first three rounds of the season is brilliant, and it could have been ever better without some bad luck in recent events. It’s all credit to the team for the effort they have put in, and hopefully we can go again for a full season in 2026.”
Adam Morgan, #3 Team VERTU Hyundai i30N Fastback, said:
“On a personal level, I’d have loved to get a win this weekend but this has still been my best ever season in terms of my championship finish so I’m delighted. We’ve been strong at every circuit this year and have picked up multiple podiums, and I feel like it’s reignited the flame within me.
“A huge thanks has to go to everyone at EXCELR8 and at Vertu, and also my personal sponsors like Ciceley Commercials for making it all possible. Credit also has to go to the crew on my car because it’s just been an absolutely mega year.
“It’s a shame we couldn’t secure all three titles but we gave it a bloody good go and I think we can all be really proud. Tingram has done an amazing job to take the Drivers’ title and we’ve all played our part in the success we’ve had as a team.”
Tom Ingram, #80 Team VERTU Hyundai i30N Fastback, said:
“People seemed to think this was an easy weekend for us with the gap we had in the standings going in, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth. It’s actually been one of the most stressful weekends I’d say I’ve ever had, as I’ve not been the person leading into the final before and there was the pressure to not mess it up.
“If I’d locked up and stuck it in the gravel at Paddock Hill Bend in qualifying or race one, that could have changed everything so I had to be on my game, and to wrap it all up with a race win just makes it even more special.
“There is a feeling of relief, a feeling of satisfaction, a feeling of gratification - so many different feelings. I’ve never experienced the passion, enthusiasm and the want to win that I’ve seen in the whole team this year, and it all goes back to the fact we were out testing two weeks after the end of the 2024 season because we weren’t quite good enough.
“In a funny way, I’m almost sad that the season is over because it feels like this could be a once in a lifetime moment where everything has just come together and the stars have aligned - although I hope we can have a similar season next year! The car has been an absolute weapon, the team has been outrageous and it’s a special moment to share this with some amazing friends, and with some amazing fans. I can't thank everyone involved enough.”
Justina Williams, Team VERTU Team Owner, said:
“It’s honestly difficult to know what to say at the end of a season like this. It’s been absolutely fantastic and to come away from it with two championship titles is amazing, and it’s down to the hard work of every single person who has been involved this year.
“The drivers have done a brilliant job on track but they wouldn’t have been able to score the wins and podium finishes that have carried us to the titles without all of the effort that goes on behind the scenes to make this possible.
“This truly is a team effort and I’m amazingly proud of every single man and woman that has played their part in 2025. We are also extremely grateful for the support of Vertu and all of our Team Partners, as this success wouldn't be possible without them."
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