| Daniel Welch | |
| Nationality: |  British |
| Birth Date: | 1982 7, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Aldershot, England |
| Current Series: | British Touring Car Championship |
| First Year: | 2011 |
| Current Team: | Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing |
| Car Number: | 17 |
| Former Teams: | Welch Motorsport |
| Starts: | 143 |
| Wins: | 0 |
| Poles: | 0 |
| Fastest Laps: | 0 |
| Best Finish: | 15th |
| Year: | 2012 |
| Prev Series: | Britcar 24hr SEAT León Supercopa SEAT León Eurocup Ginetta G50 Cup SEAT Cupra Championship Formula Renault UK |
| Prev Series Years: | 2010 2010 2009–2010 2009 2007–2008 2001–2006 |
Daniel John Welch (born 17 July 1982) is a British racing driver. During his career he has mostly driven for his family team, Welch Motorsport. He drove in the British Touring Car Championship from 2011 to 2016. He is the son of former British rallycross driver John Welch.
Born in Aldershot, 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.
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, built to the then-new NGTC regulations.[1] He competed in the final half of the season from Snetterton 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, finishing 6th in Race 1 and then holding off Matt Neal to claim 4th in Race 2. For this he won the HiQ Champagne Moment award, as voted for by fans.[2] Welch finished the season 15th in the Drivers' Championship.
Welch and his team continued to compete in the BTCC in 2013,[3] finishing 18th in the Drivers' Championship with a best result of 6th at Knockhill. Welch finished 32nd in the 2014 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.[4]
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Formula Vauxhall | N/A | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 88 | 4th |
| 2001 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Falcon Motorsport | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 21st |
| 2002 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Cliff Dempsey Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 33rd |
| Welch Motorsport | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2003 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Welch Motorsport | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 22nd |
| 2004 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Paston Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 33rd |
| Welch Motorsport | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom | Aurok Motorsport | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 26th | |
| 2005 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Welch Motorsport | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 16th |
| 2006 | Formula Renault 2.0 UK | Welch Motorsport | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 31st |
| 2007 | SEAT Cupra Championship | Welch Motorsport | 20 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 153.5 | 5th |
| 2008 | 24 Hours of Dubai - A6 | Team RPM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 15th |
| SEAT Cupra Championship | Welch Motorsport | 20 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 183 | 6th | |
| 2009 | SEAT León Supercopa Spain | Welch Motorsport | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 19th |
| Ginetta G50 Cup | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 96 | 16th | ||
| SEAT León Eurocup | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26th | ||
| 2010 | 24 Hours of Dubai - A3T | Strategic Transport Racing 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 4th |
| SEAT León Eurocup | Welch Motorsport | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 15th | |
| SEAT León Supercopa Spain | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 13th | ||
| 2011 | British Touring Car Championship | Welch Automotive | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 22nd |
| 2012 | British Touring Car Championship | Welch Motorsport with Sopp+Sopp | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 79 | 15th |
| 2013 | British Touring Car Championship | Welch Motorsport with Sopp+Sopp | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 18th |
| 2014 | British Touring Car Championship | STP Racing with Sopp & Sopp | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -40 | 32nd |
| 2015 | 24H Series - 997 | STP Racing | |||||||
| 24 Hours of Dubai - 997 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | N/A | ||
| British Touring Car Championship | Welch Motorsport | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 29th | |
| 2016 | British Touring Car Championship | Goodestone Racing | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 23rd |
| 2018 | British Touring Car Championship | Trade Price Cars with Brisky Racing | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35th |
| Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain - Pro-Am | Welch Motorsport | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 7th |
(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)