[BTCC] BTCC 2023 season discussion, News and Rumours!

[Matt K]

Originally Posted by thetool

No there will be plenty more factory teams if that is your definition. The last genuine factory effort is probably Vauxhall in 2009. You only have to look at the liveries of the "works" entries since then to see the money was coming elsewhere. Yuasa for the Honda entry, Silverline for Chevrolet, Tesco KX Momentum for MG, Power Maxed for Vauxhall's "return", etc.

Well, I said 'factory' because they're not really factory but compared to other 'constructor' entries like Motorbase or Excelr8, WSR and Speedworks still seem 'manufacturer-backed' even though they are not. But my impression is that once BMW's and Toyota's backing ends, there'll be very few potential new 'factory' (deliberately in inverted commas) teams in the future. As the motorsport scene is getting smaller and smaller in terms of sponsorships, money, popularity, etc etc, I can't see many more 'factory' teams in the BTCC - even if they're not really backed by manufacturers they still, in a way, advertise the brands and any person happening to watch a race on ITV4 might think that WSR is really a BMW Team whereas Speedworks a Toyota one. For whatever reason I doubt we'll see any such team in the next few years.
But, of course, I'm waiting until proven wrong

[teabag1993]

Originally Posted by Matt K

Well, I said 'factory' because they're not really factory but compared to other 'constructor' entries like Motorbase or Excelr8, WSR and Speedworks still seem 'manufacturer-backed' even though they are not. But my impression is that once BMW's and Toyota's backing ends, there'll be very few potential new 'factory' (deliberately in inverted commas) teams in the future. As the motorsport scene is getting smaller and smaller in terms of sponsorships, money, popularity, etc etc, I can't see many more 'factory' teams in the BTCC - even if they're not really backed by manufacturers they still, in a way, advertise the brands and any person happening to watch a race on ITV4 might think that WSR is really a BMW Team whereas Speedworks a Toyota one. For whatever reason I doubt we'll see any such team in the next few years.
But, of course, I'm waiting until proven wrong

I'm surprised Hyundai hasn't shown any interest in the BTCC, given their strong interest in touring cars over the past few years. When WTCR imploded last year I was hoping there'd be renewed manufacturer interest in the BTCC and its relative stability, but it didn't happen. I don't think the BTCC saw the opportunity- if they'd ramped up their online presence they may have had a chance to catch a manufacturer's interest.

[Matt K]

Originally Posted by teabag1993

I'm surprised Hyundai hasn't shown any interest in the BTCC, given their strong interest in touring cars over the past few years. When WTCR imploded last year I was hoping there'd be renewed manufacturer interest in the BTCC and its relative stability, but it didn't happen. I don't think the BTCC saw the opportunity- if they'd ramped up their online presence they may have had a chance to catch a manufacturer's interest.

A good point - sadly, BTCC seems to live in the Noughties in terms of their online presence, compared to all other major championships and that certainly doesn't help things.
Hyundai would fit like a glove, not only would they have a #1 car on the grid this season but also presence in the championship that's - as you mention - a lot more stable than the ill-fated WTCR and still having something of a cult and icon status. But maybe I'm just biased

[Spanner monkey]

3 cars for PMR & 4 cars for One motorsport?

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by teabag1993

I'm surprised Hyundai hasn't shown any interest in the BTCC, given their strong interest in touring cars over the past few years. When WTCR imploded last year I was hoping there'd be renewed manufacturer interest in the BTCC and its relative stability, but it didn't happen. I don't think the BTCC saw the opportunity- if they'd ramped up their online presence they may have had a chance to catch a manufacturer's interest.

You really can’t compare a local, national series to one with World in its name. They’re totally different levels.

[thetool]

Originally Posted by peebee2

You really can’t compare a local, national series to one with World in its name. They’re totally different levels.

It doesn't help that Alan Gow is a bit of a dinosaur these days when it comes to innovation. I guess there just isn't much incentive for TOCA to try and grow the series when it's got full grids.

[mphplastering]

Originally Posted by Spanner monkey

3 cars for PMR & 4 cars for One motorsport?

Pmr are staying with 2 astras
One Motorsport rumours are a 4th Honda

[mphplastering]

Ash hand has confirmed on his Instagram he's not on the btcc grid this season. But working behind the scenes with PMR

[Matt K]

Originally Posted by mphplastering

Ash hand has confirmed on his Instagram he's not on the btcc grid this season. But working behind the scenes with PMR

Shame. I wonder if he really comes back next year. A lot can happen during this season so I wouldn't be so sure.

[Evantra]

Originally Posted by Matt K

Shame. I wonder if he really comes back next year. A lot can happen during this season so I wouldn't be so sure.

Feels like another Whorton-Eales or Gornall situation, a talented driver from the support ladder (well, Hand was a while back now) can’t make the move stick. Hope he does come back… and not just at Hard!

[Evantra]

Looks like Excerl8’s livery reveal at 7:00 today, with some terrific acting on top…!

[S griffin]

Should be an exciting event. This is a big year for them with their lineup

[cameronpoe]

Originally Posted by peebee2

You really can’t compare a local, national series to one with World in its name. They’re totally different levels.

Interesting except the modern BTCC is designed to deter too much factory involvement because it blows up spectacularly if left unchecked

[antnee]

I think BTCC's unique position is restricting the involvement of OEMs. From a technical side ('factory' support/team), they can't add much due to the strict regulations, only direct access to parts and data. The 'national sales companies' can get involved from a marketing point of view, but its a relatively expensive activity for the UK entities and it may not line up with the mother companies strategy if they did have the money.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by antnee

I think BTCC's unique position is restricting the involvement of OEMs. From a technical side ('factory' support/team), they can't add much due to the strict regulations, only direct access to parts and data. The 'national sales companies' can get involved from a marketing point of view, but its a relatively expensive activity for the UK entities and it may not line up with the mother companies strategy if they did have the money.

And I think that is entirely intentional.

If you listen to some of Gow's interviews previously, you'll know that he considers the level of manufacturer involvements as being poor for the series. Examples such as:

"towards the end of the Super Touring era we had 10 manufacturers, though that wasn’t sustainable. The costs were getting out of control.[...] It was a great era, but a lot of people look back with rose-coloured glasses because the racing we have nowadays is much, much better than ever it was in the Super Touring days. We had to introduce all sorts of artificial means, such as mandatory pit stops, in a bid to make the racing more interesting. The cars eventually became so good, with so much mechanical and aero grip, that they really couldn’t get past each other. The best races were always those in the wet, because all that grip didn’t come into play. It’s easy to look back and say, ‘Wasn’t the racing fantastic?’ but it was the cars, teams and drivers that were fantastic. The racing itself could be pretty poor.”

“Ford spent £12 million in its final season, but most – Nissan, Renault, Volvo – were spending eight to 10. I think Vauxhall got away with six million, eye-watering numbers for a national series.”


"Short to medium term, I think that the amount of manufacturers involved in motorsports certainly won't increase, it will probably decrease, or they will actually consolidate into those areas that they want to be doing. Mercedes is a good example of that. They were involved in DTM, and Formula 1 and Formula E and a few other things like GT racing. They'll consolidate down to Formula 1 and Formula E now. I imagine that most manufacturers will start doing that. Motorsport will always form an important part of the manufacturers' marketing armoury. At least I would hope it would, certainly in the medium term, but I don't think now they will do as much of it, just consolidate and polarise their efforts into one or two series."

[Andrew Abbott]

Originally Posted by teabag1993

I'm surprised Hyundai hasn't shown any interest in the BTCC, given their strong interest in touring cars over the past few years. When WTCR imploded last year I was hoping there'd be renewed manufacturer interest in the BTCC and its relative stability, but it didn't happen. I don't think the BTCC saw the opportunity- if they'd ramped up their online presence they may have had a chance to catch a manufacturer's interest.

Hyundai Motorsport GmbH is a German company operating with close links to Hyundai in South Korea.

Any Hyundai involvement in BTCC would be akin to sponsorship from a UK Dealer Network. Bristol Street Motors are one such dealer, with c. ten Hyundai franchises I think, but they also have involvement with many other car brands.

[auroan]

Originally Posted by thetool

It doesn't help that Alan Gow is a bit of a dinosaur these days when it comes to innovation. I guess there just isn't much incentive for TOCA to try and grow the series when it's got full grids.

The first touring car grid anywhere to introduce hybrid power..... how is that lacking innovation ?

[billy bleach]

Originally Posted by auroan

The first touring car grid anywhere to introduce hybrid power..... how is that lacking innovation ?

Also inventing Supertouring,rewriting the rules to keep it fresh. I would say Gow has done more for BTCC than ANYONE else! Talk about bite the hand that feeds you

[mphplastering]

https://fb.watch/i-5N4MjdXi/


Busy season for napa racing

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by antnee

Running on a shoestring is down to driver budget though. If someone turns round to Tony and says I really want to drive a Cupra and my budget is 50% more than you are charging for it but I want it to be maintained to a higher standard, parts swapped out more often, etc - I'm sure we would see a much more reliable car.

Agreed - but if a driver has that 50% extra budget they can probably get a seat at a team further up the grid. The Cupra might be better with the extra money thrown at it - but might not, it's a gamble. Also you'd be assuming the 50% extra you provide is all going to be spent on making your car more reliable and not spread amongst all of the cars (or worse - used to make up another drivers budget shortfall).

[AnnoyedMoose]

Originally Posted by Matt K

A good point - sadly, BTCC seems to live in the Noughties in terms of their online presence, compared to all other major championships and that certainly doesn't help things.

How many national series have the live TV coverage that BTCC does?

I would like to see them do a lot more online but at the end of the day ITV restrict a lot of what would make good online content and the TV deal is far more important.

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by AnnoyedMoose

How many national series have the live TV coverage that BTCC does?

A long list, with a lot easy to view globally.

[Matt K]

Originally Posted by AnnoyedMoose

How many national series have the live TV coverage that BTCC does?

I would like to see them do a lot more online but at the end of the day ITV restrict a lot of what would make good online content and the TV deal is far more important.

I will always cite Supercars as an example here - even though I'm not in Australia, I can watch all the races live or on demand and the 'production' is top class. Although, yes, a major difference is Supercars is not FTA in Australia whereas BTCC is in the UK.
So that might be some ground for argument - what's better, having to pay to watch Supercars but get a very good product + reasonably good online presence or having a quite ok FTA TV coverage with very limited online presence and no opportunities to watch abroad, like is the case with the BTCC.

Another example would be ADAC GT Masters, although I didn't watch last year so not sure if it was still widely available to watch as in the previous seasons.

[cameronpoe]

Originally Posted by peebee2

A long list, with a lot easy to view globally.

The BTCC is a UK series , like Supercars in Australia for most people it’s a destination series , for you it’s a local national championship ,so are you Fernando Alonso by any chance ?

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by cameronpoe

The BTCC is a UK series , like Supercars in Australia for most people it’s a destination series , for you it’s a local national championship ,so are you Fernando Alonso by any chance ?

No, but what's your point? Someone was asking about the coverage of other series compared to BTCC, and I was replying.