Smiley Secures Hat-Trick of Independent Wins at Knockhill

Published on August 18, 2025

Knockhill produced another action-packed weekend for Restart Racing, with soaring track temperatures, intense battles, and three crucial Independents’ victories that swung the championship momentum back in Chris Smiley’s favour.

Scotland’s 1.27-mile rollercoaster never fails to deliver drama, with its blind crests, punishing kerbs, and relentless sequence of corners. In uncharacteristically hot conditions, with the thermometer nudging past 24 degrees, both Chris and Dan Lloyd were forced to dig deep to deliver results across three fiercely hot and competitive races.

Qualifying on Saturday showed promise. Chris was quick from the outset, threading the Hyundai i30N through Duffus Dip and McIntyre’s with real commitment to secure 8th place, just missing out on the top-six shootout. Dan looked set to join him until a tiny half-tenth margin denied him a spot in Q2, leaving him 12th on the grid. Importantly, the pair still locked out the top two independent positions, putting them in the best position to earn maximum points on race day.

Both Chris and Dan battled hard around Knockhill to boost the team’s Independent Championship hopes. Photograph: JEP

Race one saw both drivers on the slower medium tyre, making for a defensive scrap from the start. Chris lost ground in the opening laps and slipped back to 13th after being muscled aside at Duffus, Leisle, McIntyres section, but he regrouped and fought his way back. A determined move on Dan Rowbottom into Taylor’s Hairpin brought him back up to 12th by the flag and handed him the Independents’ victory. Dan had an equally tough run, caught in the midfield shuffle at McIntyre’s before finishing 16th after fending off Gordon Shedden in the closing laps.

On the quicker soft tyre in race two, Chris made early progress, moving into 11th by the end of the opening lap with a bold dive into Taylor’s Hairpin. He was locked in a midfield tussle for much of the race, frequently gaining and dropping position with nearby rivals but he managed another clean pass at the Hairpin to secure 12th at the flag and another Independents’ win. Dan also made up ground late on, pulling off a last-lap move at the same Hairpin to grab 15th and a valuable championship point.

Race three proved the strongest showing of the day for both. From 12th and 15th on the grid, Chris and Dan ran together in a tense battle just outside the top ten. Chris’s late lunge on Daryl DeLeon at the Hairpin brought him back into 12th, while Dan followed through a corner later into Duffus to sit right behind his teammate. Both pushed hard to the finish, and when Senna Proctor was penalised post-race, the pair were promoted to 11th and 12th with Chris completing a hat-trick of Independents’ victories and reclaiming the championship lead by 13 points.

It was a weekend that underlined the team’s determination, not always spectacular on paper, but one that delivered a decisive haul of points in the fight for the Independent crowns.

DRIVER QUOTES:

Chris Smiley said: “That’s race day done at Knockhill. Three Independent wins today, which is a great result, but ultimately, we just lacked a little bit of outright pace in the car. The high temperatures, 24 or 25 degrees, which we don’t usually see here, made things tricky, and I feel like we missed a bit of a trick with the setup. Still, three Independent wins is fantastic for the championship, and it puts us in a strong position heading to Donington Park in a few weeks’ time.”

It was the perfect weekend for Chris, who took home a clean sweep of Independent victories. Photograph: JEP

Dan Lloyd said: “Yeah, really tough day in the office today. We didn’t have the pace we thought we would. We chose to run the mediums this morning to get them out of the way, but struggled a lot with traction. On top of that, the engine was running really hot, with high charge temps, which made things difficult. We managed to bring it home P12 in the last race after improving the car, but overall, we were still down on pace. A tough day, to be honest, but we still picked up good points for the team in the Independent Championship and solid points for the Drivers’ standings. Just not quite the results we wanted.”