Wrotham-based Motorbase Performance’s Ash Sutton moved a step closer to a record-equalling fourth British Touring Car Championship title at the weekend in spectacular fashion, but Platt’s Heath’s Laser Tools BMW racer Jake Hill’s bid is over for another year.

NAPA Racing’s Ford Focus driver Sutton has a 45-point lead after his 10th win of the year from 23rd on the grid at Silverstone. His stunning last-lap race-two victory - helped by Hill’s engine problems that left him 20th - combined with other results, leaves him favourite to join Andy Rouse and Colin Turkington as the series’ four-time champions in the final round of the season at Brands Hatch next month.

Only last year’s winner, Bristol Street Motors with EXCELR8’s Tom Ingram, who also battled from the back to finish race two in third, with Carstore Maxed Power’s Aron Taylor-Smith second, can stop him but with just 67 points available the title is Sutton’s to lose.

“I’m speechless, if I’m honest,” said Sutton. “I knew it was going to be tough and it fell in our favour with Jake [Hill] having engine trouble by the looks of it.

“I’ve missed hybrid, it hurt here in qualifying, but to get the full allocation - we haven’t had that since round one so we made the most of it.

“Our plan was to utilise it for passing cars that we thought might be harder to overtake, and Aron [Taylor-Smith] was one of those and it just happened to be on the last lap for the win. I’m over the moon, we maximised everything, the car, the changes we made overnight were mega, so I can’t thank NAPA Racing UK enough for their effort.

“The aim is to get some points in race one at Brands Hatch and then plan the rest of the day, but we have a 45-point margin for the lead so I can’t ask for much more than that.”

It was first blood to Hill, though, with victory in race one after making the correct call to start the race on wet tyres, his gamble that the pre-race drizzle would get heavier paying off. NAPA Racing’s Dan Rowbottom was second and Andrew Watson (Carstore Maxed Power) was third.

Hill said: “There was no safety car [in race one] so that was a surprise, so many people were still on slicks. We were sat on the grid, and I thought let’s just do it. The risk versus reward just didn’t add up for me and it came through.”

He also dedicated his win to his former team principal at Trade Price Cars Racing, Dan Kirby, who died suddenly last week.

“This win is for Dan Kirby,” he said. “I loved Dan to bits and my thoughts are with his family and friends. This one is for you, Dan.”

Hill’s victory was BMW’s 149th in the BTCC, and two races later they had their 150th with Turkington leading Ingram and Sutton home.

Broadstairs’ Michael Crees was 12th in races one and two but the Team HARD pilot failed to finish race three.

The season finale is at Brands Hatch on October 7-8.