The British Truck Racing Championship brought the curtain down on a memorable 2024 season in spectacular style at Brands Hatch last weekend (November 2/3) as Ryan Smith and John Powell celebrated title glory.
Taking centre stage in front of a sell-out crowd at the Kent venue, the super-sized series closed out what has been another action-packed campaign with five unmissable contests around the short Indy circuit.
In Division 1, Smith further cemented his status as one of the all-time greats of the sport as he powered his Daimler Freightliner to a record-extending ninth consecutive championship crown – adding five more wins to his tally for the season in the process.
Over in Division 2, the head-to-head battle between Powell and Simon Cole reached a thrilling crescendo as Powell charged to a handful of podiums in his DAF LF and with it, secured the coveted title.
Ryan Smith on cloud nine in Division 1
History repeated itself for the ninth successive season in Division 1 this year as Ryan Smith retained his title to become a nine-time champion, which has now put him within touching distance of the all-time record of ten that is currently held by Stuart Oliver.
Arriving at Brands Hatch with one hand on the title, the Mansfield racer established himself as an unstoppable force at the front of the field as he swept his way to all five race wins and one of the biggest prizes in UK motorsport.
Blitzing the opposition in qualifying to clinch pole position, Smith wasted no time in wrapping up the title in race one as he powered his way to a commanding lights-to-flag victory – a feat he would then repeat later in the day for race two.
Starting from eighth for race three, Smith had the opportunity to showcase his overtaking prowess as he charged to the front before then producing arguably the drive of the season in the penultimate bout.
As race four got underway, Smith found himself on the receiving end of unintentional contact by Neil Yates which beached him in the gravel at Clearways. With the red flag thrown and his machine recovered, a few minor repairs enabled him to start from the pit lane for the restart.
Despite joining the fray in last place, Smith powered his way to the front with minutes to spare to claim victory. To cap things off, he then signed off the season with yet another peerless drive to stand on the top step of the podium one final time.
While the newly crowned champion starred out front, the battle for second place in the standings went down to the wire as David Jenkins pipped Steven Powell to the claim runners-up laurels by a handful of points.
Both Jenkins and Powell, along with the impressive Michael Oliver and his father Stuart, would pick up silverware over the course of the weekend.
John Powell charges to Division 2 glory
After coming close on a number of occasions in recent years, John Powell etched his name into the British Truck Racing Championship record books as he reached the top of the Division 2 mountain, prevailing from a season-long duel with Simon Cole.
Having been the toast of the class for much of the year, Powell headed into the season finale with a slender advantage over Cole and all eyes were firmly fixed on each driver to see who would walk away with the bragging rights of being crowned champion.
Towards the front of the field, neither driver actually challenged for outright victory throughout the weekend; that honour instead fell to former champions Adam Bint and Paul Rivett – the latter signing off his title reign with four wins in his NAPA Racing UK MAN.
Instead, Powell and Cole took it in turns to finish ahead of one another in each contest to set up a thrilling final round. In his DAF, Powell held the initiative in the standings however as the lights went out it was the IVECO of Cole that led the pair in the early stages.
Needing to press on to turn the tables on Powell, the fan favourite would sadly see his title dreams be extinguished at mid-distance as he was forced to enter the pit lane and retire from the race with a mechanical issue.
Cole’s departure allowed Powell a trouble-free run to the chequered flag, where he was greeted with confirmation that he had finally clinched the title he had been pursuing for so long.
Having missed pretty much all of Snetterton and the subsequent round at Le Mans, Rivett’s return to the fray and to the winners’ circle saw him rewarded with third place in the standings after he was able to overhaul the impressive Archie Handy.
To view the full classification of results from all British Truck Racing Championship sessions at Brands Hatch, CLICK HERE.
All fives races from the final event of the season are available to view on the British Truck Racing Championship YouTube channel HERE.
The British Truck Racing Championship is poised to return next year, with the 2025 calendar set to be announced in due course.