Adam Shepherd clinches his first TCR UK title in Brands Hatch

Adam Shepherd was crowned the 2025 TCR UK champion after an intense season finale, securing the title with a commanding win in Race 1. His closest rival, Callum Newsham, ended the year on a high with victory in a red-flag-shortened Race 2.

In the standings, Shepherd finished 18 points ahead of Newsham, while Sam Laidlaw secured third position, 77 points adrift.

Race 1 - Shepherd had claimed his fourth consecutive pole position, narrowly beating Newsham. Shepherd led from pole, with Newsham slotting in behind. Laidlaw made a swift move past Maximus Hall’s Lynk & Co, which dropped to sixth. Shepherd began to pull away until the safety car was deployed on lap 2 after Harry Bloor’s CUPRA spun at Paddock Hill Bend and became stranded in the gravel.

The neutralization was followed by a brief restart, because the race was put on hold again when Jenson O’Neill-Going’s Subaru stopped with an electrical issue. Moments later, the race was red-flagged due to a fire inside O’Neill-Going’s cabin. After the interruption, the race resumed behind the safety car. Shepherd, Newsham, and Laidlaw maintained their positions at the front, while Bradley Hutchison had to fend off George Jaxon in a tense battle for fourth.

Race 2 - With the top ten reversed, Gregory Saunders started from pole position, while title contenders Newsham and Shepherd were ninth and tenth. Laidlaw launched from eighth climbing to second by the first corner. Newsham also made a rapid getaway, slotting into third. Both drivers overtook Saunder and Newsham seized the lead at Clearways. One lap later, Jaxon passed Saunders for third.

Newsham now needed misfortune to strike Shepherd, who had made a cautious start and remained mid-pack. Darelle Wilson’s Opel Astra went off at Graham Hill Bend, prompting a safety car. On the restart, Hutchison and Hall overtook Saunders for fourth and fifth and ran side-by-side over several laps. This allowed Shepherd to close the gap. He passed Hall and began pressuring Hutchison, but after light contact between the two, Shepherd backed off to avoid incident, letting Hall back through. Hall then completed a clean move on Hutchison to take fourth on lap 17.

The race was ultimately red-flagged with three minutes remaining after Alex Jones, Will Beech, and Luke Sargeant all slid off on oil at the first corner. Newsham took his fourth win of the season ahead of Laidlaw and Jaxon.

Race 1

1. Adam Shepherd (Capture Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 20 laps
2. Callum Newsham (JH Racing, Hyundai Elantra N), 1.757
3. Sam Laidlaw (Arena Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 5.714

Race 2

1. Callum Newsham (JH Racing, Hyundai Elantra N), 17 laps
2. Sam Laidlaw (Arena Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 1.929
3. George Jaxon (Vannin Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 7.360

Championship points

1. A. Shepherd, 529 pts; 2. C. Newsham, 511; 3. S. Laidlaw, 452

Picture: TCR UK/Jakob Ebrey