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

[touring fan01]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

So which teams do we expect to return after the summer break in the 2023 BTCC Season with an all-new EV based model?

i think sarcasm might be lost on some

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by touring fan01

i think sarcasm might be lost on some

I read that posting as being sarcasm because this is the 2023 thread, so I am certain that crm hadn't misunderstood the various other posts about the pros and cons of an electric vehicle. Of course no team will be entering an EV this or any other season in the near future.

[coffinpilot]

Did see Bobby Thompson wandering around up at Knockhill, didn't want to broach the Team HARD subject, but it seems he knew for quite a while what was coming.
Spoke to the driver coach of the lad who' replacing him - reckons he's faster than the test suggested, but will need to get his elbows out early to stop any intimidation.

[BtccLee]

With F4 confirming a new deal today, that means MINI/Porsche/British F4 all confirmed as the basis of the package until the end of 2026.

Interesting to see if we continue to have guest series or a 'new' support category is confirmed from 2024.

[Evantra]

Originally Posted by BtccLee

With F4 confirming a new deal today, that means MINI/Porsche/British F4 all confirmed as the basis of the package until the end of 2026.

Interesting to see if we continue to have guest series or a 'new' support category is confirmed from 2024.

I reckon Legends will be back with so much positive feedback, although not sure they could to stretch it to cover many more rounds whilst keeping the entry fee in line.

Still don’t see this new junior formula happening.

[SSmith]

Originally Posted by Evantra

I reckon Legends will be back with so much positive feedback, although not sure they could to stretch it to cover many more rounds whilst keeping the entry fee in line.

Still don’t see this new junior formula happening.

I think it will be a similar arrangement to this year.

F4 is provisionally confirmed for all 10 rounds. The MINI arrangement probably won't change either with JCW x7 and Trophy x3.

What happens for next year (in terms of guest series) will probably be dictated by the Porsche calendar. At present we have Carrera Cup GB at 8 rounds and Sprint Challenge at 6 rounds. They only race together 4 times (this year at Don Nat, Don GP, Sil Nat, Brands GP).

Depending on how many rounds both Porsche series go to (and where those rounds are) will determine how many guest series are needed

As for the junior series - if there is going to be one - I'd imagine an announcement would have to come in the next couple of rounds.

[crmalcolm]

After 18 rounds - how do the relative performances of each chassis compare?

The Honda is marginally better than the Vauxhall at the back of the field.
Toyota has closed the gap to Hyundai.
Ford has closed the gap to BMW.

The BMW is still the strongest performing chassis in this comparison.

[Greem]

Small nit (and definitely not singling out any specific individual here): each BTCC race is a "round", and each weekend is a "meeting". I get very confused, because I'm a bear of very little brain, when I see the word rounds used to describe both races and meetings alongside each other

It's not helped by other high-profile series using the term interchangeably in their own PR, either!

[Andrew Abbott]

Or even on the TSL website, where if you navigate to the BTCC index, we have Rounds 1-10, but then go and find a results sheet, and we have the 'Round 18' race result!

[S griffin]

I do enjoy the TSL website. Obviously it's very debatable whether a meeting or a race is a round. Personally I think the race is the round

[SSmith]

https://www.autosport.com/btcc/news/...pra-/10505983/

Rob Huff announced as Nicolas Hamilton's replacement for Knockhill. Hamilton has left the team. Huff confirmed only for Knockhill right now due to clashing WTCR commitments (San Luis, Argentina round clashes with Donington GP)

[touring fan01]

Originally Posted by SSmith

https://www.autosport.com/btcc/news/...pra-/10505983/

Rob Huff announced as Nicolas Hamilton's replacement for Knockhill. Hamilton has left the team. Huff confirmed only for Knockhill right now due to clashing WTCR commitments (San Luis, Argentina round clashes with Donington GP)

covered in the knockhill thread

[SSmith]

Originally Posted by touring fan01

covered in the knockhill thread

I know. I was the one who kick-started the discussion on this topic in the other thread this morning...

[coffinpilot]

What chance TCR UK being on the support. A few people at Croft were saying the bloke who runs TCR for Stewart Lines spent a fair bit of time (in his TCR gear) at a table with Alan Gow. Or is Gow looking beyond the NGTC regs (only joking, but the thread does say rumours.)

But you do wonder what conversation they'd have been having, with TCR and BTCC grids shrinking, a split class series? A massive NGTC/TCR endurance race (actually, I'd pay good money to see that on the Silverstone GP layout!!)

[auroan]

Originally Posted by coffinpilot

What chance TCR UK being on the support. A few people at Croft were saying the bloke who runs TCR for Stewart Lines spent a fair bit of time (in his TCR gear) at a table with Alan Gow. Or is Gow looking beyond the NGTC regs (only joking, but the thread does say rumours.)

But you do wonder what conversation they'd have been having, with TCR and BTCC grids shrinking, a split class series? A massive NGTC/TCR endurance race (actually, I'd pay good money to see that on the Silverstone GP layout!!)

Zero at the mo, as Mr Lines has signed a contract with BRSCC to be run by them.

TOCA is with BARC which is a totally separate club.

In the UK the big players are 750MC, BARC, BRSCC and MSV-R

They are the ones who rent the circuits... then sell on the track time to each series running under their umbrella

[coffinpilot]

Originally Posted by auroan

Zero at the mo, as Mr Lines has signed a contract with BRSCC to be run by them.

TOCA is with BARC which is a totally separate club.

In the UK the big players are 750MC, BARC, BRSCC and MSV-R

They are the ones who rent the circuits... then sell on the track time to each series running under their umbrella

Just stoking some rumours with the TCR guy. But if you remember, British F4 was a BRSCC series up until the end of 2021 - and that worked on the TOCA/BARC bill, in the same way the the BARC administered Ginetta championships have now flipped to the BRSCC run British GT package....

[billy bleach]

Originally Posted by coffinpilot

What chance TCR UK being on the support. A few people at Croft were saying the bloke who runs TCR for Stewart Lines spent a fair bit of time (in his TCR gear) at a table with Alan Gow. Or is Gow looking beyond the NGTC regs (only joking, but the thread does say rumours.)

But you do wonder what conversation they'd have been having, with TCR and BTCC grids shrinking, a split class series? A massive NGTC/TCR endurance race (actually, I'd pay good money to see that on the Silverstone GP layout!!)

Probably talking about Track limits and MS UK respect project

[antnee]

TCR are their own headline act this year, which allows them grid walks, use of garages, etc. It would be a step down to now be on the TOCA support bill (and probably push costs up while doing so)

[Greem]

Originally Posted by coffinpilot

Just stoking some rumours with the TCR guy. But if you remember, British F4 was a BRSCC series up until the end of 2021 - and that worked on the TOCA/BARC bill, in the same way the the BARC administered Ginetta championships have now flipped to the BRSCC run British GT package....

Permits/officials are still with BARC but Ginetta are moving everything of theirs over to the BRSCC next year.

[Evantra]

Originally Posted by antnee

TCR are their own headline act this year, which allows them grid walks, use of garages, etc. It would be a step down to now be on the TOCA support bill (and probably push costs up while doing so)

Even on the commentary, they obviously skirt around mentioning the BTCC by name (I think it get name-dropped last time though), and the series wants to be a rival to the BTCC not a feeder series, so I really don’t see any cooperation from the two in the near future - although interesting that there was some discussion going on between them.

I suppose with NGTC costs on the rise, there has to be some consideration given to TCR regs.

[antnee]

Originally Posted by Evantra

Even on the commentary, they obviously skirt around mentioning the BTCC by name (I think it get name-dropped last time though), and the series wants to be a rival to the BTCC not a feeder series, so I really don’t see any cooperation from the two in the near future - although interesting that there was some discussion going on between them.

I suppose with NGTC costs on the rise, there has to be some consideration given to TCR regs.

I would disagree with that point - Lines has made the point multiple times that BTCC is too expensive, he is trying to promote TCR as an alternative with much lower budgets (and then the benefits that the cars can be used elsewhere easily too). I think its a sensible approach, BTCC is an almost series unique across the world that manages to demand such high budgets for a national series yet has no (real) manufacturer involvement.

They both have their place on the UK calendars.

[Tracsmart]

Reminds me of the time when the National Saloon Car Championship existed and then merged with BTCC in 2000. Many of us competitors and teams were priced out of existence. Hope TCR remains as a separate championship

[thetool]

Originally Posted by Tracsmart

Reminds me of the time when the National Saloon Car Championship existed and then merged with BTCC in 2000. Many of us competitors and teams were priced out of existence. Hope TCR remains as a separate championship

I think changes at the european level had quite an effect on production class racing too. The evolution of the ETCC, which was initially going to be for lightly upgraded production-spec cars before morphing into something quite different, moved a lot of focus away from production-spec cars to Super 2000. It is notable that the only new production-spec cars to appear post-2001 were UK home brews.

[AnnoyedMoose]

There's always someone with more money and someone with less. TCR is still massively expensive.

[Adamcas87]

Originally Posted by AnnoyedMoose

TCR is still massively expensive.

Compared to what?