The 2026 British Hillclimb Championship, presented by Nova Motorsport, burst into life last weekend (26/27 April) at Prescott Hillclimb for the opening two rounds of the series.

Glorious sunshine bathed the Gloucestershire venue, with quick times there for the taking right from the off. After a day of practice on Saturday, allowing competitors two runs to dial themselves into the new season, Sunday was where it all counted — with round one at lunchtime and the second coming in the early evening.

How it played out

All the way from Australia, Dean Tighe became the first Australian to make it into a BHC run-off. Running first, the former Australian champion set the benchmark for others to beat in his 1300cc Empire with a 39.23. The experienced David Warburton was next up and slashed that to 37.67. The times kept tumbling as 2015 champion Alex Summers dragged his 1100cc DJ Firehawk to a 37.61 — an impressive time that would see him high up the order.

Then, the big five were unleashed. Dave Uren (36.09) moved to the top, while Trevor Willis (36.13) slotted in just behind. Wallace Menzies was the first to dip under the 36-second barrier with a 35.65 in his Gould GR59. Reigning champion Matt Ryder produced a clinical run to snatch the lead just minutes later with a 35.29.

Will Hall, who qualified with the same time as Ryder, went last with the tension building. Could he repeat his run-off win of 12 months ago? Visor down, it was super smooth from the off. After 1,128 yards of climbing, three hundredths of a second made the difference. An exciting start to the year.

Elsewhere, fireworks were lit when Alex Coles took to the hill. The exciting Plymouth-based driver has more power at his disposal for 2026 and looked ready to giant-slay on run one — but a few scrappy moments left him in 10th, just enough to score the final point.

Jonathan Varley (GWR) and Harry Pick (OMS) were also delighted with their runs, bagging their first points of the season — both eager to secure a top-10 number in 2026. Sadly, Paul Haimes suffered a difficult weekend, with mechanical gremlins hitting his 1300cc turbocharged Gould, which limped its way to the top of the hill.

The final bout of the day

David Warburton, who produced a strong run in the first run-off, was the first driver to get the final shoot-out underway with a 38.10. Harry Pick went two hundredths slower just a few minutes later, while Jason Tunnicliffe — who qualified for his first run-off of the year — made a small mistake at Ettore’s, scrubbing off speed and losing time. The Empire driver had to settle for a 39.69.

Alex Summers produced more gold in run-off two, confirming a minimum of two championship points with a 37.77 to set the target time — albeit only briefly — before a reinvigorated Jonathan Varley went quicker by half a second.

The bigger cars came next, with Trevor Willis hustling his OMS to a 36.72 before Alex Coles, in the rapid Force, slotted into second behind the experienced Willis.

Paul Haimes was looking to salvage some points after being dogged by mechanical gremlins earlier in the day. Coming into Ettore’s, the Farnham-based driver lost the back end of his Gould as it rotated — ending with the rear of the car in the wall. Paul jumped out unscathed, but the course had to be cleared before proceedings could resume.

After a short delay, Dave Uren in the Gould GR55B was up next and, despite a slower start at the bottom of the hill, produced a pulsating run to snatch the lead from Willis with a 36.65.

Then came the top three. A pressure-cooker environment. The final runs of the day — who would leave Prescott with the bragging rights?

Matt Ryder stepped up first and beat Uren’s marker, lowering the time to beat to 35.41. Will Hall was next, and the Englishman gave it everything, leaving nothing on the table to record a 35.28.

All eyes then turned to four-time champion Wallace Menzies. The flying Scotsman wasn’t fully at one with his Gould but managed to wrestle his GR59 into another third-place finish.

Will Hall and Matt Ryder shared the spoils with a win and a second apiece. Hall left with the bragging rights, having been just one hundredth quicker than Ryder’s first run-off victory. He rounded out the weekend with a celebratory drive up the hill to great applause from marshals and spectators alike.

The next round of the series takes place this weekend, with a first trip overseas to Craigantlet for a one-day tussle on the closed-road course above Belfast on Saturday 2 May.

Photography kindly provided by Tom Gay Photography