Daniel John Welch (born 17 July 1982) is a British

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

driver. During his career he has mostly driven for his family team, Welch Motorsport. He drove in the

British Touring Car Championship The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by TOCA. It was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and was renamed as ...

from 2011 to 2016. He is the son of former British rallycross driver John Welch.

Racing career

Born in

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

, Hampshire, Welch first began racing in the Formula Renault UK series, but never completed a full season. In 2007, he switched to tin tops, racing in the SEAT Cupra Championship. He raced SEATs for the next few years in several one-make championships, taking two wins in the British SEAT Cupra Championship.

British Touring Car Championship

Welch Motorsport (2011–2016)

In 2011, he stepped up to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, once again driving for his family team in a

Proton Gen-2 A proton is a stable subatomic particle, symbol , H+, or 1H+ with a positive electric charge of +1 ''e'' elementary charge. Its mass is slightly less than that of a neutron and 1,836 times the mass of an electron (the proton–electron mass ...

, built to the then-new NGTC regulations. He competed in the final half of the season from

Snetterton Snetterton is a village and civil parish in Norfolk, England. The village is about east-northeast of Thetford and southwest of Norwich. The civil parish has an area of . The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 201 people living in 74 h ...

onwards, finishing 22nd in the Drivers' Championship, having secured his first BTCC point at the penultimate race of the season at Silverstone. Welch continued to race in the BTCC in 2012. He had his best weekend of the season at

Oulton Park Oulton Park is a hard surfaced track used for motor racing, close to the village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington, with a nearby rail connection al ...

, finishing 6th in Race 1 and then holding off

Matt Neal Matthew Neal (born 20 December 1966) is a British motor racing driver. Neal is a triple BTCC Champion having won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. Neal is also a record 6 time BTCC Independents Champion having won the ...

to claim 4th in Race 2. For this he won the HiQ Champagne Moment award, as voted for by fans. Welch finished the season 15th in the Drivers' Championship. Welch and his team continued to compete in the BTCC in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, finishing 18th in the Drivers' Championship with a best result of 6th at

Knockhill Knockhill Racing Circuit is a motor racing circuit in Fife, Scotland. It opened in September 1974 and is Scotland's national motorsport centre. The circuit is located in the countryside about north of Dunfermline. It is the only FIA appro ...

. Welch finished 32nd in the

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Drivers' Championship after a disappointing season in which the team struggled with their new self-built engines. After a difficult 2015 season, Welch revealed plans to sell their pair of Proton Gen-2 cars at the end of the season.

Racing record

Racing career summary

Complete British Touring Car Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position – 1 point awarded in first race; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap – 1 point awarded all races; * signifies that driver lead race for at least one lap – 1 point awarded all races)

24 Hours of Silverstone results

References

External links

Welch MotorsportBTCC official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Welch, Daniel Living people English racing drivers Sportspeople from Aldershot 1982 births British Touring Car Championship drivers Porsche Carrera Cup GB drivers Britcar 24-hour drivers Ginetta GT4 Supercup drivers Renault UK Clio Cup drivers Sportspeople from Hampshire 24H Series drivers