WSR’s Charles Rainford produced a charging drive to claim his fourth British Touring Car Championship podium finish of the season at Silverstone on Sunday.
The Horsham racer and team-mate Daryl De Leon tallied four top-10 finishes between them to ensure that WSR head into the final round of the year in contention for the Independents Trophy.
Charles, sporting a new livery for the remainder of the season, started race day from seventh on the grid and after a feisty performance on the less preferable medium tyre, he was able to hold position – setting him up for an even stronger showing in Race Two.
Making a strong launch in the BMW 330i M Sport, Charles worked his way up the order on the soft tyre and after finding a way past Daryl late on, the multiple race winner pushed on to secure third overall and a fourth Independent win. He then closed out his day with points in a wet finale.
Daryl meanwhile showed plenty of front-running pace with two top-five finishes. Celebrating his 100th BTCC race start in Race One, the Anglo-Filipino driver led the contest in the opening exchanges before dropping to fifth late on to others with superior TOCA Turbo Boost.
The reigning Jack Sears Trophy champion opted to run the soft tyre for a second successive time in Race Two and once again battled for the podium positions, losing out to Charles late on to secure fourth. He too then fought valiantly to cap off his day with a points finish in Race Three.
Lewis Gilbert demonstrated pace and potential in his rear-wheel-drive machine. Despite having to endure contact in Race One and a slight technical issue in Race Two, he tallied three more finishes, with his best come in Race Three as he soared into the points-paying positions in wet conditions.
Charles Rainford: “What a day, that’s Silverstone and the penultimate round of the season done; the event where we revealed our incredible new livery. It has been a good day. We said yesterday that we would be in the position to get some trophies and we did just that. Third place and the Independent win in Race Two was brilliant, and we also enjoyed some top ten performances too. All of that has gone towards banking points in the Championship. Let’s give it everything and see you at Brands Hatch.”
Daryl De Leon: “Silverstone is finished and overall it has been a good day. We set ourselves up for a strong day on Saturday and were able to run towards the sharp end of the grid for a majority of the day – even leading Race Two at one stage. It’s crazy how fast time goes and now we have one more to go. I feel like we can leave this weekend with our heads held high. Although we haven’t got any pots, it has been a strong weekend. I’ll see you all in two weeks time.”
Lewis Gilbert: “That’s race day finished at Silverstone and it was a bit of an up and down day as things didn’t ideally play out like we hoped. We got caught up in an incident in Race One and then had a slight problem at the start of Race Two. I was glad to make up some positions in Race Three and grab a point. To end the day on a high leaves me pleased and now I’m looking forward to signing off the season on a high at Brands Hatch.”
Dick Bennetts, Team Principal: “Having three cars in one piece at the end of a race day is always good to see. It has been challenging at times but all three drivers drove well and Charles in particular must be congratulated for his podium and Independent win in Race Two. We hope that the current engine regulations are to be assessed over the off-season but before then, we’ll give everything we’ve got at Brands Hatch in the battle for the Independents’ titles.”
The 2026 BTCC season concludes around the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit on October 10-11.
