Sutton holds off Ingram to take first win of 2023 campaign
The three-time champion started the second race from second on the grid, but scythed his way past pole-sitter Colin Turkington with a forceful move at Paddock Hill corner on the opening lap of the race.
Reigning champion Ingram compounded Turkington's opening lap woes after the EXCELR8 Hyundai driver moved past the BMW 330e M Sport at Surtees just a few corners later.
In search of his first win of the year, that brief tussle between Ingram and Turkington allowed Sutton to establish some clean air between himself and the chasing pack. It was an advantage he would never relinquish, despite Ingram attempting to draw close during the dying stages of the race.
In typical Ingram fashion, the Hyundai i30N driver saved most of his hybrid deployment for the end of the race, which saw him close to within 0.3s of Sutton's Ford Focus ST.
However, Sutton held his nerve and re-opened the gap back to Ingram to 0.9s as the pair crossed the line.
Four-time champion Turkington's race pace looked a match against the leading duo, but the Team BMW driver finished over three-seconds by the end of the race after losing time in the early stages.
MB Motorsport's Jake Hill moved past NAPA Racing UK's Dan Cammish on lap 15 to secure a second consecutive fourth place finish, while Cammish trailed home in fifth ahead of Toyota Gazoo Racing UK's Rory Butcher in sixth.
One Motorsport's Josh Cook took advantage of final-corner drama to secure a seventh-place finish ahead of Sam Osborne, George Gamble and Ricky Collard.
