Sutton was supreme all through the half-hour in his Alliance Racing (nee Motorbase) Ford Focus ST as he bids for a fourth title.
He sat on the prime of the instances when the crimson flags flew after 9 minutes, because of barrier injury on the straight after Sheene Curve inflicted when George Gamble dropped a wheel of his Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Corolla onto the grass and cannoned off in a rearward influence.
At this level Sutton was 0.051 seconds away from Rory Butcher (Speedworks Toyota), with Ingram third in his Excelr8 Motorsport Hyundai i30 N.
Bizarrely, not one of the main positions modified as soon as the session resumed for the remaining 20 minutes, however that doesn’t imply Sutton didn’t go faster.
First he chipped 0.030s away from his earlier finest, after which he lopped the most effective a part of 0.2s away from that to finish up 0.253s to the nice.
That was regardless of Sutton, who extends his championship lead over Ingram to 46 factors, operating the minimal one second of hybrid enhance on the Ford, deployed at 135km/h.
“Effectively that’s one level additional,” stated Sutton. “I had a scary {old} lap there. We had three laps adequate for pole, however I knew I had a few tenths on the desk.
“On my finest lap I had an enormous second at Hawthorn – I used to be all around the grass and nonetheless managed to go faster.
“I knew there was a bit extra and I wished it, regardless of whether or not we would have liked it or not.”
Rory Butcher, Toyota GAZOO Racing UK Toyota Corolla GR Sport
Photograph by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Whereas Sutton was delighted together with his sixth pole of 2023, so too was Butcher together with his first front-row qualifying effort of a tricky season.
The sleek-driving Scot was on the utmost 15s of hybrid at a minimal 115km/h, and held out Ingram’s Excelr8 Motorsport Hyundai i30 N, which was on 3s/135km/h.
Dan Rowbottom made it two Alliance Fords within the prime 4, the bearded Midlander allowed 13s of hybrid at 125km/h.
Bobby Thompson put within the newest of his spectacular showings to seize fifth in his Group Arduous Cupra Leon (15s hybrid) and can the share the third row with one other Alliance Ford, that of Dan Cammish (11s hybrid).
It was a disappointing session for the West Surrey Racing BMW squadron. 4-time champion Colin Turkington was simply 0.061s off third-placed Ingram, however ended up seventh on 7s hybrid at 130km/h.
Turkington ended up one spot forward of team-mate Jake Hill, though the Kentishman was 0.130s additional again on 5s hybrid at 135km/h.
Jack Sears Trophy title contender and Silverstone poleman Mikey Doble put in one other robust displaying to take ninth in his Energy Maxed Racing Vauxhall Astra forward of the WSR BMWs of Adam Morgan and Stephen Jelley.