Puncture costs Jake Hill British Touring Car Championship points at Brands Hatch

A rear-left puncture cost Jake Hill valuable championship points in the British Touring Car Championship at Brands Hatch on Sunday.

The Platt's Heath charger had scored two fourth-place finishes in the opening two races and looked set to at least equal that result in the final event.

But as he rounded Paddock Hill Bend on lap 16 of 24, his BMW 330 M Sport spun violently out of control when the soft option tyre deflated.

Hill - who had climbed from eighth on the grid to run fourth - trundled back to the pitlane and eventually finished two laps down in 22nd.

“To have a puncture in the final race is a disappointing end to a very strong weekend for us," he said.

"I think I’d have been on the podium, and possibly had a shot at the win.

"I was catching Bobby Thompson quickly and obviously the two leaders were fighting hard, so I was pretty certain I would have been among it.

"It’s a real shame, because up until then we’d had two strong fourths. I feel gutted, but we’ll pick ourselves up and go again.”

Hill, 29, now sits fifth in the championship standings, 12 points behind team-mate Colin Turkington.

Wrotham-based Motorbase Performance enjoyed better fortune at their home circuit, with three-time champion Ash Sutton taking two victories in his Ford Focus ST.

His team-mate Dan Cammish - who scored pole position on Saturday - currently leads the standings, five points clear of reigning champion Tom Ingram. Sutton sits third, a further five points back.

Detling Aerodrome-based Team Hard also enjoyed strong results, with Thompson taking his Cupra Leon to second place in race three.

Rounds seven, eight and nine of the BTCC will be held at Snetterton in Norfolk on May 21. Brands Hatch will host the finale on the full Grand Prix