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Old 3 Nov 2015, 23:42 (Ref:3587965)   #1
iceman-1987
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iceman-1987 should be qualifying in the top 10 on the grid
Best touring car driver in the golden era

Who was according to you the best touring car driver in the golden era?
Here a list of some drivers who won in the best championship from 1993 to 2001 with D2 regulation:

Abt
Champion in stw 1999

Aiello
Champion in ftcc 1994, stw 1997, btcc 1999
Vice champion in ftcc 1993, stw 1998
Third in ftcc 1995, stw 1996

Biela
Champion in ftcc 1993, wtc cup 1995, btcc 1996
Vice champion in stw 1994, btcc 1997
Third in stw 1995

Capello
Champion in italian superturismo 1996
Vice champion in italian superturismo 1995
Third in italian superturismo 1997

Cecotto
Champion in stw 1994, 1998
Vice champion in italian superturismo 1996
Third in stw 1997

Cleland
Champion in btcc 1995

Giovanardi
Champion in italian superturismo 1998, 1999, euro stc 2000, 2001
Vice champion Italian superturismo 1993, 1997
Third Italian superturismo 1994, 1995

Menu
Champions in btcc 1997 & 2000
Vice champion in btcc 1994, 1995, 1996

Muller
Champion in ftcc 1995
Third in ftcc 1994

Naspetti
Champion in italian superturismo 1997
Vice champion in italian superturismo 1998, 1999
Third in italian superturismo 1996

Pirro
Champion in italian superturismo 1994, 1995, stw 1996
Vice champion in wtc cup 1995

Radisich
Champion in wtc cup 1993, 1994
Third in btcc 1993, 1994

Reid
Vice champion in btcc 1998, 2000

Ravaglia
Champion Italian superturismo 1993

Rydell
Champion in btcc 1998
Third in btcc 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000

Soper
Champion in jtcc 1995
Vice champion in btcc 1993, wtc cup 1994, stw 1996
Third in jtcc 1994, wtc cup 1995

Tarquini
Champion in btcc 1994
Third in italian superturismo 1993, euro stc 2001

Winkelhock
Champion in btcc 1993, stw 1995
Vice champion in stw 1997
Third in wtc cup 1994

As you can see all of these drivers I consider the between the bests. Which one is your favourite?
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 09:32 (Ref:3588065)   #2
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Radisich was my favourite growing up. I don't think people give him enough credit for his efforts in uncompetitive cars in his later years of the BTCC.

Menu was probably the best though.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 09:49 (Ref:3588069)   #3
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Aïello tops that list for me, although with a tiny margin. The level was increadibly high in those years.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 10:05 (Ref:3588072)   #4
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Aïello is tough to beat... But Biela is also a god. Damn, it's hard to choose one
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 11:05 (Ref:3588082)   #5
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i think maybe aiello was the most complete (specially if we consider that he won also dtm and i think le mans too) being the only one who won in 3 different championship french german and british.

but for everyone of them we could say a story.

4 ex. menu was always on top in btcc years from 1994 until 2000 a part 1999. In 1998 although he finished fourth in standing he was fighting for the championship until the end!

Pirro was almost unbeatable winning 3 championship in a row with audi before that audi was penalized with 30 kg in more.

Giovanardi as well was another strong one being always on top in italian championship winning the last 2 italian title and then the 2 european. Maybe the only limit was that he never had a chance to fight in btcc and stw.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 11:33 (Ref:3588084)   #6
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Giovanardi as well was another strong one being always on top in italian championship winning the last 2 italian title and then the 2 european. Maybe the only limit was that he never had a chance to fight in btcc and stw.
You can also include his Spanish Touring Car title in '97, and whilst outside of this 'Golden Era', he proved his talent when he did go on to take two BTCC titles.

As an aside, what makes this time period golden over others?
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 11:53 (Ref:3588087)   #7
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id give another vote to Aiello, he was a monster back then. won pretty much every race i watched, one of the few names i remember. i was rather young though
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 11:58 (Ref:3588089)   #8
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Aiello - just. From Menu and Giovanardi. I would have loved to have seen Giovanardi in the BTCC during that period.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 12:12 (Ref:3588092)   #9
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Aiello was an outstanding driver there's no doubt about it. Probably the best of the era ahead of Menu, Biela and Giovanardi.

Like you Bert, I'm gutted we didn't get to see Gio in the BTCC during the supertouring era. That would have been fascinating to see how he got on.

Cleland and Rydell will always be favourite drivers from that period though!
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 12:51 (Ref:3588099)   #10
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I'm afraid that the golden age, whatever that means, has to be the 1960s and into the 70s, when you had real drivers behind the steering-wheels and none of the driver aids that even existed in the 90s.

When a driver like Jim Clark completed a race at Brands Hatch in a Lotus Cortina with a broken seat and holding on to the roll-bar with his right hand to keep him in place and driving for virtually the whole race just using his left hand. Incidentally, he also won the race against the strongest of rivals such as Sir John Whitmore, Graham Hill and if I remember correctly, Roy Salvadori plus many, many more other brilliant drivers.

There were so many phenomenal drivers during those years, but unfortunately my failing memory doesn't allow me to name them at this time. Hopefully someone can step in to help me.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 13:05 (Ref:3588102)   #11
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Probably not a golden age per se due to the lack of variety, but I've always been hugely impressed with Andy Rouse's performance in the Ford Sierra days, with him building his own cars and winning a bunch of championships.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 13:33 (Ref:3588108)   #12
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As an aside, what makes this time period golden over others?

it's called the golden era because from 1993 until 2001 the D2 spec. was adopted by all national touring series and because there was a whole interest from all main manufacture who ran with their model belonging to D segment (or C i dont remember exactely)

btw there were involved alfa romeo, audi a4, bmw 320, ford mondeo, honda accord, mazda, nissan primera, opel vectra, peugeot 406, renault laguna, toyota carina, volvo s40 and the main 2 championship were btcc and stw.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 15:10 (Ref:3588132)   #13
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it's called the golden era because from 1993 until 2001 the D2 spec. was adopted by all national touring series and because there was a whole interest from all main manufacture who ran with their model belonging to D segment (or C i dont remember exactely)

btw there were involved alfa romeo, audi a4, bmw 320, ford mondeo, honda accord, mazda, nissan primera, opel vectra, peugeot 406, renault laguna, toyota carina, volvo s40 and the main 2 championship were btcc and stw.
Given the criteria that the golden era was effectively the dates when high-calibre championships ran to what was in effect Super Touring Car regs, then surely the period 1990-1992 in BTCC could also be considered part of this era?

If so, then Cleland's 2nd places in 1990 and 1991, alongside his almost title in 1992 should be noted. Also, the 1992 TOCA shooutout victory merits a mention here.
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 20:11 (Ref:3588219)   #14
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Aiello and Biela both did well to win the btcc in their first year. Yes their cars were dominant, but they still had to learn the circuits.

Gio was certainly one of the greats. If only Alfa had done their planned entry into the BTCC in 1998, as his name was on the entry list
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 22:03 (Ref:3588249)   #15
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1. Aiello
2. Giovanardi
3. Biela
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Old 4 Nov 2015, 22:52 (Ref:3588257)   #16
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Based purely on the time period you've given, I'd have to say Aiello & Menu.

Based on the entirety of their careers, I'd say Giovanardi, Muller & Ravaglia.
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 11:12 (Ref:3588332)   #17
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strange that noone has considered Winkelhock or Cecotto in the own favourite list.

so i ask you: who would u prefer between them 2?
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 11:58 (Ref:3588340)   #18
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Winkelhock was a charming guy, although got involved i a few incidents. Cecotto was a touring car great, shame the 95 BTCC BMW wasn't up to it.
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 17:47 (Ref:3588388)   #19
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Winkelhock was a charming guy, although got involved i a few incidents. Cecotto was a touring car great, shame the 95 BTCC BMW wasn't up to it.

well honestly i never understood how was possible that in 1995 bmw won the title in stw, french supertourisme and jtcc but it was not at all competitive in btcc (not even a podium) and in italian superturismo (just 2 win as best result but never fighting for the title in the whole season).

ok in italian superturismo the bmw had the yokohama tyres who maybe were not performance as michelin but in btcc cecotto had michelin tyres same as winkelohock in stw so for me it remain a real mistery why they got so low results.
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 18:10 (Ref:3588399)   #20
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To be fair the results did start to pick up when the weight penalty. But don't forget Schnitzer left the series at the end of 1994, and were taken over by a team that I can't remember the name of.
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 18:20 (Ref:3588403)   #21
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taken over by a team that I can't remember the name of.
Team Warthofer, based at the Nurburgring.
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Old 5 Nov 2015, 18:51 (Ref:3588413)   #22
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Aiello

Winning STW, BTCC and DTM...
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Old 17 Nov 2015, 13:07 (Ref:3591025)   #23
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To be fair the results did start to pick up when the weight penalty. But don't forget Schnitzer left the series at the end of 1994, and were taken over by a team that I can't remember the name of.
Britain was not a priority for them that year and they were a bit surprised by the development of the some of the others imo?

I consider Tarquini to be right up there as well, although he won only one title, with the superior 155 in 1994, he was always a top competitor in the category.

Pirro would be another one...
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Old 17 Nov 2015, 13:12 (Ref:3591027)   #24
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Menu by a nose from Aiello for me. The BTCC in the 1990s was so competitive, so professional and so strong that his record there sort of speaks for itself doesn't it? Every season one of the absolute frontrunners, beating most of the other drivers on the list. Aiello's record is very comparable, probably better on paper - but in my book the BTCC was where it was at in those years and by the time Aiello got there, he had a dominant car and that era was drawing to a close.
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Old 18 Nov 2015, 06:40 (Ref:3591193)   #25
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The Germans series was as strong if not stronger in the latter years of the category in terms of manufacturer effort.

Aiello winning both was a great achievement.

Menu would be leagues ahead of any other driver if he had managed to tackle more than one of the series I think.
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