Who will claim the title of BTCC champion in 2025? As always, there’s no lack of contenders. Six months later, the sting is still there. Tom Ingram hasn’t forgotten how his second British Touring Car Championship title slipped away in the final race of 2024 at a wet Brands Hatch.
But as the 2022 champion openly acknowledges, that loss to WSR’s Jake Hill has only fueled his desire for redemption as the new BTCC season kicks off at Donington Park.
“In some ways, you learn more from not winning,” says Ingram, who will be back behind the wheel of a Hyundai i30 Fastback N with Excelr8 this year.
Our off-season has been all about reflecting on those small details we might have missed. It’s a perfect example of how fiercely competitive the championship has become, where every tiny margin counts.
With just a single point separating them before the final race, Ingram’s challenge faltered at Brands Hatch, where the conditions favored Hill’s rear-wheel-drive BMW 330e M Sport. As Ingram’s front-wheel-drive Hyundai slipped to sixth, Hill surged to second, clinching the title by eight points.
“The way we lost the championship is tough to swallow, as it all came down to one race where we made a small mistake,” says Ingram.
“It feels like it happened ages ago, yet it still stings as much as if it were just last week. But in a way, that’s a positive—it keeps me motivated.”
His two main rivals, who complete the BTCC’s dominant trio, also enjoy a seamless transition into the new season.
Hill will return to defend his title in the 330e, while four-time champion Ash Sutton – who bagged a consolation victory in the 2024 Brands finale – continues his campaign with Alliance Racing in the Ford Focus ST.
The battle for the BTCC crown is set to rage on, with the familiar trio once again locking horns in what promises to be another nail-biting season. Picking a winner at this stage? Near impossible — and that unpredictability is exactly what makes the BTCC so thrilling.
“I might be biased — maybe everyone thinks their own era is the toughest — but it really does feel like the level is sky-high right now,” says Ingram.
“Just look at Silverstone qualifying: a tenth of a second separated a bunch of us. That kind of closeness isn’t just about the drivers — it’s the engineers, the tyre calls, a bit of luck too.
“That’s the beauty of it. As a competitor, you crave that challenge, you want to measure yourself against the very best. Racing in the BTCC? It’s not just exciting — it’s an honour.”
The headline change over the winter came with the BTCC’s bold decision to retire its pioneering Cosworth-developed hybrid system — a move that marks a significant shift in the championship’s technical direction.
Safe to say, the hybrid system won’t be mourned. In its place, the BTCC takes a significant step forward by adopting 100% sustainable fuel — a clear reflection of the direction motorsport is heading. The new Hiperflo ECO102 R100 blend, derived entirely from synthetic and biological non-crude sources, proudly carries a fully fossil-free label.
With the hybrid kit gone, the cars shed 55kg — a change the drivers have welcomed with open arms.
“We haven’t run at this weight since 2021, so it’s been a while — and it feels fantastic,” says Ingram, who was back behind the wheel just over a week after the Brands Hatch finale, testing the new-spec machine at Anglesey Circuit. “That gave us a bit of a jump on things. Honestly, we had the fastest car in 2024 — and we’ve only made it better.”
To keep the racing spicy, a variable turbo boost system still provides a performance kicker, ensuring overtaking remains very much on the menu.
As Ingram explains, “We’ve still got the push-to-pass element, only now it’s done through air rather than electricity. It’s great to have that extra boost without the headaches we had in 2021 — lugging around success ballast and turning the car into a pig to drive.”
The upside? A more consistent car feel across a race weekend. And with the BTCC’s trademark close competition, expect the championship to once again come down to the wire — just as it did in 2024.
Another key variable will be tyre strategy. Goodyear’s compounds return as a major tactical lever, with a fresh twist for 2025: the top three finishers in Race 1 must now run the hardest compound in Race 2, replacing last year’s rule that applied to the top ten.
As ever, Thruxton remains the outlier — its high-speed layout and abrasive surface demand a different approach. But at every other round, teams will face the familiar challenge of managing both standard and option tyres, with the latter permitted for use in just one of the three races.
“Tyres are the biggest variable,” says Ingram. “At a place like Oulton Park, the performance swing is massive. It’s all about staying mentally steady across the season — not letting the highs get too high or the lows drag you down.”
But while teams prepare to tackle the fine margins of tyre strategy and consistency, the 2025 grid will be missing a giant of the sport. Colin Turkington — a four-time champion and one of the BTCC’s most decorated drivers alongside Ash Sutton and the legendary Andy Rouse — steps away, leaving behind a legacy that’s impossible to overlook.
Commercial realities appear to have prematurely ended one of the most impressive BTCC careers (at least for now) with Turkington’s departure from WSR, leaving a notable gap in the series. His absence will undoubtedly be felt. Meanwhile, Sutton is now the sole contender in the race for a fifth title.
“It’s unfortunate to lose Colin, but we’ve gained Gordon,” remarks Ingram, highlighting the exciting return of three-time champion Gordon Shedden. Shedden makes his comeback to the BTCC for the first time since 2022 at the age of 46.
With a twinkle in his eye, Ingram adds, “What made Colin so special was that we knew exactly how he raced. He was always incredibly respectful. But Gordon? We know he’s got that fire…”
So, who will take the championship? Ingram is not getting ahead of himself, especially after falling short in 2024. You can never rule anyone out in this championship—that’s what makes it so thrilling, he says. “There’s bound to be a few surprises along the way.”
As I’ve come to realize, the older and less graceful I get, you just have to focus on yourself in this game.