TOM Ingram took his second victory of the season in the British Touring Car Championship behind the wheel of Speedworks' Toyota Avensis on Sunday.

However he did not get to stand on the podium’s top step at Silverstone.

Instead the 22-year-old was promoted to first place, after crossing the line third on track, following the disqualification of MG drivers Ash Sutton and Josh Cook.

During a post-race check, their cars were found to be in breach of technical rules.

“We had the pace to win race one but the MGs worked together to keep us off the top step,” said team principal Christian Dick.

“Ultimately it didn’t matter, and it’s fantastic to score our second victory; at the end of the day, you take it whichever way it comes.”

The Northwich outfit arrived at the home of British motorsport stung by failing to score a single point during a frustrating – and luckless ¬ afternoon at Rockingham last time out.

Ingram was on the pace from the start, lapping second-quickest in free practice.

He then carried that form into qualifying, missing out on a third pole position of his career by only three-thousandths of a second.

He was swifter off the line than fellow front-row starter Sutton, holding his opponent at bay until the seventh lap when he ran wide at Luffield.

Sutton completed the move following a sprint along the start-finish straight.

Cook also passed with a robust move into Becketts shortly afterwards, sending Ingram's machine sideways after making contact.

“Pace-wise there wasn’t anything between us in the first race,” said the Speedworks ace.

“I felt I had everything under control, but equally I knew the MG boys would be coming for me.

“Sutton pulled off a mint move, but I stuck with him and was confident of being able to return the favour until Cook shoved me aside.

“After that, they worked as a pair to keep me behind.

“Obviously a disqualification for them wasn’t the way I’d have liked to have won – it would have been nice to cross the finish line first on the road.

“But a win is still a win, and we had the speed to run at the front.”

Northwich Guardian:

Tom Ingram was on the pace in Speedworks' Motorsport's Toyota throughout Sunday's British Touring Car Championship meeting at Silverstone. Picture: Matt Sayle Photography

Starting from pole in race two – with 57kg of success ballast on board and on the less durable soft-compound tyres – he again grittily clung on for as long as he could before almost inevitably being shuffled down to third.

He then fended off a dual-pronged Subaru assault from Colin Turkington and Jason Plato for the remainder to take third – a sixth outright rostrum of 2016 and a first double-podium too.

Carrying the same weight in race three and from sixth on a reversed grid, the three-time Ginetta champion nabbed fifth off Turkington on the exit of Copse on the second lap.

He ran between the two Subarus in a multi-car scrap for the runner-up spoils until a suspected head gasket failure ended early his involvement.

Ingram travels to Brands Hatch for next month’s final round back inside the top 10 of the drivers’ standings, and fourth in the Independents’ Trophy courtesy of a best-yet points haul.

Speedworks sit second in the Independent Teams’ Trophy, sixth in the overall teams’ table.

“It’s fair to say that was our best weekend in the BTCC to-date,” said Dick.

“We proved we’re making progress in those areas where we’ve previously been weaker, like managing the soft tyres and carrying success ballast.

“And that around a track that has not always been particularly kind to us.

“We took a lot of pain at Rockingham, but that also taught us valuable lessons.

“To bounce back from one of our worst weekends with our best is testament to the quality of people we have working for us.”