Brands Hatch GP will forever hold a special place in Ricky Collard's racing career as he finally secured his long-awaited maiden victory in the British Touring Car Championship. Starting from pole position for the reverse-grid Race 3 after finishing ninth in Race 2, Dexter Patterson initially led the field away as the lights went out.
However, chaos erupted almost immediately on the opening tour of the 2026 season finale. Four cars were eliminated in a dramatic melee down at Paddock Hill, featuring Tom Chilton who was forced to step out of his Hyundai in the gravel trap. The incident also collected Tom Ingram, while Sam Osborne was deemed the instigator, alongside Nick Halstead and Lewis Selby who went off further down the bend.
At the sharp end of the grid, Collard made a brilliant start to snatch the lead from Patterson, forcing his rival wide at the opening corner as Dan Cammish jumped up into third place. Following a lengthy safety car period to clear the stranded cars from Paddock Hill, racing resumed on lap seven with three extra laps added to the new 18-lap distance.
Timing his throttle application to perfection, Collard bolted through Paddock Hill and Druids to hold onto his lead, while Ash Sutton quickly dispatched Cammish and Patterson to slot himself into second position. Having battled fiercely throughout the weekend, Sutton immediately put the leader under intense pressure and closed right onto the rear bumper of Collard's car by lap nine.
The intense scrap took a dramatic turn at Westfield when Sutton was forced wide onto the grass as Collard aggressively defended his position, dropping the five-time champion down to ninth place before he mounted a recovery drive. A second safety car intervention was triggered on lap 12 when Dan Rowbottom suffered a dramatic front-brake fire on his Mercedes.
When the race resumed for a final sprint to the checkered flag, Collard kept his composure under immense pressure to cross the line first. As reported by Motorsport Week, the man who previously held the unwanted record for the most BTCC podiums without a win finally stood on the top step.
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