The 2026 Time Attack Championship arrived at Brands Hatch as part of Tunerfest South, where the compact and technical Indy circuit delivered a very different challenge to the opening rounds at Cadwell Park and Donington Park.
With limited straight-line running and an increased emphasis on chassis balance and precision, Brands Hatch proved capable of reshuffling the established order. By the end of the day, new winners had emerged, familiar frontrunners had been pushed harder than ever, and several class benchmarks had been lowered around one of the championship’s most demanding layouts.
PRO — Dorward Arrives Late and Takes Control
The Pro category delivered its third different winner in as many rounds as Colin Dorward returned to the championship and immediately established himself as the driver to beat.
Josh Barrett initially set the pace in Attack 1, putting the Barrett Racing Caterham 620R at the top of the timesheets and securing his first session victory of the season. But the picture changed dramatically in Attack 2 when Dorward’s Track Formula Evo arrived at the top of the leaderboard with a 48.121-second lap.
The G-R Performance driver then lowered the benchmark again in Super Attack, producing a 47.883-second lap to secure overall victory and become the third different Pro winner from the opening three events.
Behind him, the Club Pro battle became one of the closest contests of the day. Aleksandr Volkov looked on course to continue his winning streak after leading much of Super Attack, but Dean Taylor found more time in the closing stages to edge ahead and secure his first Club Pro victory of the season.
Volkov remained within striking distance throughout, while Mike Taylor and Ilya Krylov continued their consistent campaigns in a tightly packed Club Pro field.
👉 Key takeaway: Brands Hatch produced another new Pro winner, underlining just how open the 2026 title fight has become.
CLUB CLASS — Fan Survives the Pressure
For the first time this season, Vincent Fan looked genuinely vulnerable.
The Toyota GR Supra driver returned to the top of the timesheets in Attack 1, but the chasing pack was closer than ever. Jonny Fletcher, Ryan Barker, Luke Capehorn and Neil Robson all remained firmly in contention as the margins tightened around the Indy circuit.
Attack 2 delivered the biggest surprise of the day when Capehorn’s Vauxhall Astra dethroned Fan by just 0.025 seconds. Having finally returned to full power with a revised engine package, Capehorn looked poised to take the fight all the way into Super Attack.
Unfortunately, his challenge came to an abrupt end when he failed to complete a representative lap in the final session.
That left the door open for Fan, but victory was far from straightforward.
Neil Robson produced his strongest challenge yet in the BMW 135i, finishing just 0.128 seconds behind the Supra in Super Attack, while Jonny Fletcher completed another impressive performance to finish third.
Ultimately, Fan delivered when it mattered most, producing a 50.985-second lap to secure another Club Class victory despite facing more pressure than at any previous round this season.
👉 Key takeaway: Fan remained unbeaten, but Brands Hatch showed the gap to the chasing pack is continuing to close.
CLUBMAN / POCKET ROCKET / CLASSIC & RETRO — Riley Leads a Day of New Benchmarks
The combined Clubman, Pocket Rocket and Classic & Retro categories once again produced some of the closest competition of the event, with several drivers lowering established Brands Hatch benchmarks throughout the day.
Dean Riley was one of the standout performers of the weekend. The Mickeytoones Racing Vauxhall VX220 topped Attack 1, Attack 2 and Super Attack to complete a clean sweep in Classic & Retro while also finishing as the quickest driver of the combined categories.
Clive Hopwell continued his strong form in Clubman, placing his Volkswagen Golf R at the top of the class in every session and steadily lowering the pace benchmark as conditions evolved through the afternoon.
David Dyson remained his closest challenger throughout in the Ninemeister Porsche, but was unable to prevent Hopwell from securing another Clubman victory.
In Pocket Rocket Naturally Aspirated, Michael Hume’s Honda-powered Renault Clio 182 continued its impressive run of form. Hume topped every session in class and lowered the benchmark pace on multiple occasions during the day.
Pocket Rocket Forced Induction delivered a slightly different story. Gary Papworth led the category through the timed sessions, but Super Attack saw Tommy Langley’s Ford Fiesta edge ahead on outright pace. As a Single Round Entry, however, Langley remained outside the championship classification, leaving Papworth to secure another important class victory.
By the end of the event, new Brands Hatch benchmarks had been established in Classic & Retro, Clubman and Pocket Rocket Naturally Aspirated, underlining just how competitive the field had become.
👉 Key takeaway: Riley, Hopwell and Hume combined outright pace with consistency as several class benchmarks moved forward around Brands Hatch Indy.
Next Stop: Oulton Park
The 2026 Time Attack Championship now heads north to Oulton Park on 4th July as part of Tunerfest North.
With three rounds complete, multiple winners already established and margins continuing to tighten across the field, the battle for championship honours is building momentum heading into the second half of the season.
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