[BTCC] Who is the Greatest BTCC driver of all time?

[Nononsensecapeesh]

Originally Posted by BTCC frog

30. Sam Tordoff
Tordoff's career was made up of a mixture of extremely lucky and unlucky seasons. His first full seasons were 2013 and 2014 with MG, where he took a sixth and seventh in the championship, but had multiple reliability problems while in strong positions. Tordoff then moved to WSR, where he came sixth in 2015 ahead of teammates Priaulx and Collard, before a career-best second in 2016, where he took four reversed grid poles and missed out on the championship by two points. After a year out, Tordoff returned in 2018 with Motorbase, where he finished eleventh to teammate Chilton's third, but again suffered many reliability problems. His final season was 2019 with AmD which was a similar story to 2018, but pulled out before the end of the season in tragic circumstances. Will hopefully return to the grid at some point in the future.
29. Josh Cook
Cook made his debut with Power Maxed Racing in 2015, where he immediately impressed by leading the third race at Donington Park. He then moved to a declining MG for 2016, but still came twelfth and was the only teammate so far to seriously challenge Ash Sutton in thirteenth. Cook drove the first half of 2017 in a Team Parker Ford and got some great results, before a more difficult second half back in an MG, where he blotted his copybook with a series of incidents that got him banned for a race. Returned to Power Maxed in 2018 and had a successful season, including his first win at Donington, to sixth in the standings. Cook then switched to BTC Racing and was a title contender (mainly through race threes) in 2019 with fourth. 2020 was more difficult as Cook had a lot of bad luck and only managed ninth, but 2021 has so far been more successful as he lies third after three rounds.
28. Tom Kristensen
Only one season in the BTCC for a driver who had a lot of success in other categories, but it was a very impressive one. Kristensen drove one of three Honda Accords and came seventh in the championship in possibly the strongest lineup of ten drivers in the championship's history. He beat future champion teammate James Thompson, and was only a few points behind past champion teammate Gabriele Tarquini. Kristensen won three races, including a double at the season finale at Silverstone. He's the second highest rated driver with only one season of experience.
27. Andy Rouse
Rouse is possibly the greatest BTCC driver of all time, but this list only takes into account 1991 onwards, so misses the best of Rouse. In 1991, Rouse drove a FWD Toyota, and finished a very impressive third in the new car, including a double at Donington. He stayed with Toyota for 1992, but now with a more competitive teammate in Will Hoy, who finished second to Rouse's fifth, and Rouse took his sixtieth and final win at the season finale in Silverstone. He then put in one of the greatest laps of all time at the TOCA shootout to lead the race from near the back of the grid. For 1993, Rouse decided to run Ford Mondeos, which missed the first part of the season, but his best days as a driver were now behind him and he was outclassed by Paul Radisich over 1993 and 1994, at the end of which he retired as a four-time champion.
26. Rob Collard
Collard is very much a veteran BTCC driver, with twenty years of experience, but those twenty years have been very much a mixed bag. He started off in the production class, before stepping up to the main class in 2003 and winning the independents' championship. In 2005 he got a drive with WSR in the MG and won his first race in an impressive season, but struggled the next year and was totally beaten by Colin Turkington. He drove for Motorbase in 2008-2009 losing to rookie Kane but beating rookie Adam in an improved 2009 season where he was sixth overall. Then returned to WSR where he would stay for a decade. 2010 and 2011 brought promise but Collard was unlucky not to win a race, while 2012 saw an improved BMW and Collard won multiple times on his way to fifth place. He was reunited with Turkington in 2013, but struggled with NGTC and had a horror season, with 2014 an improvement. 2015 was an unlucky season for Collard as he was beaten by both teammates Tordoff and Priaulx. Then came his best yet in 2016 as Collard fought for the title despite rarely qualifying in the top ten, and had some fantastic comeback drives. 2017 was even better as Collard was almost on the pace of Turkington all season, but his season ended early with a huge crash at Silverstone. Collard was never the same driver after that, winning once in 2018, then retiring after a single season with Power Maxed in 2019.

Tordoff did make a one-off debut in 2010 and Collard's season-curtailing crash was 2018, but once again, good work. Keep it up.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by Nononsensecapeesh

Tordoff did make a one-off debut in 2010 and Collard's season-curtailing crash was 2018, but once again, good work. Keep it up.

To be accurate - Collard's 2017 season ended after a crash at Silverstone which also saw Will Burns hospitalised.
Collard's 2018 season ended after a crash at Snetteron.

'Rob Collard said: “After suffering a serious concussion in a crash at Silverstone in 2017, I was cleared to return to racing earlier this year while remaining under close monitoring by the TOCA medical team. Following a pair of high-speed, high-impact accidents in Races 1 and 2 at Snetterton, and after reviewing the results of a concussion test with the medics at the track, it was ruled that I was unfit to participate in the special ‘Diamond Double’ race and that I should not race at Rockingham or Knockhill either. I’m absolutely gutted for Team BMW, all my sponsors and supporters and I’d like to thank the TOCA medical team for their professionalism and support, as always.”'

[BTCC frog]

Originally Posted by Nononsensecapeesh

Tordoff did make a one-off debut in 2010 and Collard's season-curtailing crash was 2018, but once again, good work. Keep it up.

I was referring to Collard's crash in Silverstone 2017, although he did of course crash at Snetterton in 2018 and get replaced by Ricky Collard. And Tordoff's one-off debut was why I referred to 2013 as his first 'full season', rather than his debut. But thanks for your positive words.

[Nononsensecapeesh]

To be honest, I was starting to lose track of how many crashes Collard's had cos he's had a few over the years, it's safe to say. You're welcome BTCC Frog.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by Nononsensecapeesh

To be honest, I was starting to lose track of how many crashes Collard's had cos he's had a few over the years, it's safe to say.

- put 'Collard BTCC crash' into Google and you have plenty to pick from.

[Nononsensecapeesh]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

- put 'Collard BTCC crash' into Google and you have plenty to pick from.

Why does that not surprise me?

[mattcanary]

Originally Posted by Nononsensecapeesh

Why does that not surprise me?

Ha ha - he was excellent at getting the BMW off the line as well. I know the rear wheel drive was a big advantage but even so. He regularly made up so many places in the first few hundred yards of races

[BTCC frog]

25. Frank Biela
Perhaps a little harsh to rate him the lowest of the champions, considering just how dominantly Biela won in 1996, but in reality that four-wheel drive Audi was the dominant car. Having said that, Biela did a superb job when the car was hobbled by boost restrictions later in the season. He returned in 1997 with a more handicapped Audi and was unable to repeat the championship of the previous season, finishing second to Alain Menu, while his advantage to John Bintcliffe was greatly reduced. 4WD was outlawed for 1998 and Biela quit the championship, but achieved great success in other championships.
24. Dan Cammish
Only three seasons in the championship, but in that time Cammish went from the rookie at Team Dynamics to the undisputed team leader. He did a great job to finish tenth in 2018 just a few points behind triple champion Matt Neal, then dominated his champion teammate in 2019 and fought for the title, missing out by two points to Turkington in one of the most thrilling title deciders of all time after a brake failure on the penultimate lap. Went to the final race of 2020 again with a shot at the title, but this time finished third, again dominating Matt Neal. Lost his drive to Shedden in 2021 but made a fine cameo for BTC Racing and hopes to return to the championship in 2022.
23. Tim Harvey
Most famous, now, as the BTCC commentator, Harvey was also a driver in the 1990s. He controversially won the 1992 title after a collision between teammate Soper and title rival Cleland, after a run of five consecutive wins. The next two years were more difficult as he was soundly beaten by Alain Menu in the Renault, and he was also beaten by Rydell in his sole season for Volvo. Harvey then switched to an uncompetitive Peugeot and clearly had the upper hand over Patrick Watts for two seasons, before his position as team leader was threatened in 1998 with the arrival of Paul Radisich who beat Harvey in the standings. After two seasons out, Harvey returned with Alfa Romeo and then Peugeot in the BTC-Touring era and doing a decent job before switching to commentary for 2003.
22. Andrew Jordan
The younger Jordan began in the BTCC as a teenager in 2008 and immediately got the better of his father, with an impressive debut season gifting him a Vauxhall drive in 2009, where he struggled against Giovanardi and Neal. Jordan then drove for two seasons in an independent Vauxhall, winning a couple of races for his family-run team Eurotech. In 2012, Eurotech switched to a Honda Civic and Jordan won his first independents' title. He won outright in 2013 in fine fashion, beating works Hondas Neal and Shedden, with 2014 starting well before he faded to fifth. He left the comfort of his family team for an MG drive in 2015 which brought no race victories, and his single season for Motorbase was also disappointing by his standards as he was outclassed by Mat Jackson. The move to WSR in 2017 initially didn't seem great as he was beaten by Turkington and Collard, but Jordan rediscovered his form from the Eurotech days in 2019 and pushed Turkington hard, missing the title by two points. He lost his drive just before 2020 began, mainly due to the loss of Pirtek backing, and appears unlikely to return in the near future.
21. Will Hoy
The first champion of the modern era BTCC. Hoy won in the Vic Lee BMW by after a title battle with Cleland (where effectively having seven teammates played to his advantage), and then moved to Toyota in 1992 and outclassed his teammate, the great Andy Rouse, finishing second to Harvey in the points. He was beaten by Julian Bailey in both 1993 and 1994 but was generally the superior Toyota driver in the former season, and he joined Renault for the subsequent two seasons. He was off the pace of Menu, who was usually given preferential treatment, and he lost his drive at the end of 1996. He joined Ford in 1997 and was beaten by Radisich, but improved in 1998 and took a fine win in changeable conditions in Silverstone. He retired after one final half-season in an independent Renault in 1999.

[Nononsensecapeesh]

Originally Posted by BTCC frog

25. Frank Biela
Perhaps a little harsh to rate him the lowest of the champions, considering just how dominantly Biela won in 1996, but in reality that four-wheel drive Audi was the dominant car. Having said that, Biela did a superb job when the car was hobbled by boost restrictions later in the season. He returned in 1997 with a more handicapped Audi and was unable to repeat the championship of the previous season, finishing second to Alain Menu, while his advantage to John Bintcliffe was greatly reduced. 4WD was outlawed for 1998 and Biela quit the championship, but achieved great success in other championships.
24. Dan Cammish
Only three seasons in the championship, but in that time Cammish went from the rookie at Team Dynamics to the undisputed team leader. He did a great job to finish tenth in 2018 just a few points behind triple champion Matt Neal, then dominated his champion teammate in 2019 and fought for the title, missing out by two points to Turkington in one of the most thrilling title deciders of all time after a brake failure on the penultimate lap. Went to the final race of 2020 again with a shot at the title, but this time finished third, again dominating Matt Neal. Lost his drive to Shedden in 2021 but made a fine cameo for BTC Racing and hopes to return to the championship in 2022.
23. Tim Harvey
Most famous, now, as the BTCC commentator, Harvey was also a driver in the 1990s. He controversially won the 1992 title after a collision between teammate Soper and title rival Cleland, after a run of five consecutive wins. The next two years were more difficult as he was soundly beaten by Alain Menu in the Renault, and he was also beaten by Rydell in his sole season for Volvo. Harvey then switched to an uncompetitive Peugeot and clearly had the upper hand over Patrick Watts for two seasons, before his position as team leader was threatened in 1998 with the arrival of Paul Radisich who beat Harvey in the standings. After two seasons out, Harvey returned with Alfa Romeo and then Peugeot in the BTC-Touring era and doing a decent job before switching to commentary for 2003.
22. Andrew Jordan
The younger Jordan began in the BTCC as a teenager in 2008 and immediately got the better of his father, with an impressive debut season gifting him a Vauxhall drive in 2009, where he struggled against Giovanardi and Neal. Jordan then drove for two seasons in an independent Vauxhall, winning a couple of races for his family-run team Eurotech. In 2012, Eurotech switched to a Honda Civic and Jordan won his first independents' title. He won outright in 2013 in fine fashion, beating works Hondas Neal and Shedden, with 2014 starting well before he faded to fifth. He left the comfort of his family team for an MG drive in 2015 which brought no race victories, and his single season for Motorbase was also disappointing by his standards as he was outclassed by Mat Jackson. The move to WSR in 2017 initially didn't seem great as he was beaten by Turkington and Collard, but Jordan rediscovered his form from the Eurotech days in 2019 and pushed Turkington hard, missing the title by two points. He lost his drive just before 2020 began, mainly due to the loss of Pirtek backing, and appears unlikely to return in the near future.
21. Will Hoy
The first champion of the modern era BTCC. Hoy won in the Vic Lee BMW by after a title battle with Cleland (where effectively having seven teammates played to his advantage), and then moved to Toyota in 1992 and outclassed his teammate, the great Andy Rouse, finishing second to Harvey in the points. He was beaten by Julian Bailey in both 1993 and 1994 but was generally the superior Toyota driver in the former season, and he joined Renault for the subsequent two seasons. He was off the pace of Menu, who was usually given preferential treatment, and he lost his drive at the end of 1996. He joined Ford in 1997 and was beaten by Radisich, but improved in 1998 and took a fine win in changeable conditions in Silverstone. He retired after one final half-season in an independent Renault in 1999.

Don't forget his one-off Class B appearance in 2000.

[BTCC frog]

20. Steve Soper
The greatest BTCC driver never to win a championship, although this period doesn't cover some of his best seasons. Soper was the class of the field in 1991 and surely would have won the title had he done the full season. He was almost as impressive in 1992 as he again did a half-season, and put in one of the strongest ever drives at Silverstone to get back to fourth after being spun out early on. Unfortunately, he then hit Cleland (the man's an animal!) in order to help teammate Harvey win, and he loses marks for this as I believe the crash was completely intentional. 1993 saw Soper paired with Joachim Winkelhock, who surprisingly beat him to the title in the dominant BMW. Soper left the sport after a relatively underwhelming 1994 season, but returned in 2001 to drive a Peugeot and often challenged the far superior Vauxhalls at the start of the race. The final standings don't show it, but he generally got the better of Dan Eaves.
19. David Leslie
One of the mainstays in the championship during the super touring era, Leslie was another unlucky not to win a title. He began full-time in 1992 with the Ecurie Ecosse Vauxhall had perhaps his best season in 1993, winning at Thruxton and outscoring Jeff Allam. After a disappointing couple of years with an uncompetitive Mazda and then Honda, he had his other best season in 1996 in a stronger Honda and finished fourth in the points, with three wins. Leslie then switched to a Nissan, which got progressively stronger over his three years with the team. In 1998, he won a few races, but teammate Anthony Reid challenged for the title, and he finished a career-best runner up to teammate Laurent Aiello in 1999. After a couple of guest appearances, he returned full time in 2002 with Proton, which wasn't a particularly quick car but he clearly outperformed Phil Bennett. His final season in the BTCC was 2003, again comfortably beating Bennett's Proton.
18. Mat Jackson
After an impressive season in 2001 in the production class, Jackson returned to the championship in 2007 in a family-run BMW and instantly impressed with two wins and seventh overall. He finished runner-up in 2008, his best season, which really outlines the quality of his small team. A late move to Chevrolet in 2009 brought more wins but he wasn't able to challenge for the title as teammate Plato did, and Jackson returned to BMW in 2010 with Motorbase. This was his worst season and he was outdriven by Steven Kane. Over the next seven years, Jackson became a mainstay in the Motorbase Ford Focus, with particularly strong seasons in 2011, where he challenged for the title before a nightmare end to the season, 2014 where he finished fourth and dominated returning teammate Fabrizio Giovanardi, 2015 where he dominated the second half of the season with three consecutive poles after the team sat out the first five rounds, and 2016 where he outclassed Andrew Jordan and finished third. Jackson left the team for 2018 after attempting to get a drive with Team Dynamics, and Chilton's third in the standings suggests that Jackson may have been able to take that elusive title had he stayed. Attempted to return with Power Maxed for 2020 before the team pulled out, but hopefully will return fully at some point.
17. Paul Radisich
Radisich burst onto the BTCC scene halfway through the 1993 season and immediately outperformed illustrious teammate Andy Rouse. Despite only competing for half the season, he finished third in the standings after three wins and went into 1994 the clear favourite, but then Alfa Romeo entered and Tarquini dominated the championship. Radisch still finished third again, and won twice. The Ford Mondeo became progressively less competitive after that and Radisich was sixth in 1995 with one final win, then thirteenth in 1996 and 1997, ahead of Robertson and Hoy. He finally left the team in 1998 for Peugeot, but this proved to be a mistake as he finished fourteenth while former teammate Hoy came tenth and won a race in the Ford. Radisich still outclassed new teammate Tim Harvey, but left the BTCC at the end of the season. Again, deserved a BTCC championship.
16. Laurent Aiello
One of the greatest touring car drivers of all time only raced in the BTCC for one season, and the perfect way to describe his BTCC career is 'he came, he saw, he conquered.' Aiello drove the Nissan Primera vacated by Anthony Reid in 1999, and was teammate to the very quick David Leslie. He took a bit of time to adjust to the car, claiming that he was two seconds off Leslie in a pre-season test, but became a winner at only the second round of the championship at Silverstone. From then on, he was unstoppable, winning ten races including doubles at Thruxton and Oulton Park. Aiello was involved in a few too many incidents mid-season, and Leslie closed down his lead in the championship, but Aiello's title was never really in doubt. The final points gap of sixteen points between the Nissan teammates was not really representative of their pace difference, and had Aiello dedicated his entire touring car career to the BTCC he would surely be vying for number one spot on this list. But only doing one season has to count against him, so he instead he is number sixteen.

[S griffin]

Not sure I would put Mat Jackson in front of Soper. And I don't think the clash with Cleland was intentional, just an attack of red mist by both drivers

[BTCC frog]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Not sure I would put Mat Jackson in front of Soper. And I don't think the clash with Cleland was intentional, just an attack of red mist by both drivers

Overall, Soper was definitely the better driver, but in the modern era, I rated Jackson higher, as much of Soper's brilliance came before 1991, or in other series. Soper was massively impressive in 1991 and 1992 but only doing part-seasons has to go against him. But obviously all these drivers are extremely close together so I could easily have rated Soper above Jackson. It was difficult deciding where to place Jackson as his best season came when he was driving a family-run car with no teammate.

And I'm sure the Cleland incident has been discussed many times over, but my view is that Cleland made a desperate lunge to try and get past, but Soper then took him out intentionally. Obviously that may be wrong (only he truly knows). I don't rate it on the same level as Jerez 1997, for example; I think it was more like a more extreme version of the punts often performed by Plato, Neal or Reid.

[S griffin]

Of course Steve’s only full season in the 90s came in 93 and I think he was probably a bit unlucky to lose the title to Smokin Jo. Both were fairly evenly matched. Joachim was probably better over one lap, whilst Steve was the better racer.

I wouldn’t say his part seasons in 91, 92 or 94 counted against him, he showed enough when he appeared to show what might have been had he done a full season. And let’s not forget he had to come from the back in 7 races in 92 and did them all in style

Further on the incident with Cleland, Soper insists he didn’t do it deliberately and if he really did want to do that he would have done it in a way so that whilst John retired, he would have kept going. I just think Soper over estimated his late breaking ability

[BTCC frog]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Of course Steve’s only full season in the 90s came in 93 and I think he was probably a bit unlucky to lose the title to Smokin Jo. Both were fairly evenly matched. Joachim was probably better over one lap, whilst Steve was the better racer.

I wouldn’t say his part seasons in 91, 92 or 94 counted against him, he showed enough when he appeared to show what might have been had he done a full season. And let’s not forget he had to come from the back in 7 races in 92 and did them all in style

Further on the incident with Cleland, Soper insists he didn’t do it deliberately and if he really did want to do that he would have done it in a way so that whilst John retired, he would have kept going. I just think Soper over estimated his late breaking ability

When I say Soper's part-seasons count against him, I mean in the same way that Aiello only doing one season counts against him. I thought Soper did an incredible job in 1991 and 1992, and would certainly have won the title in 1991 had he done the full season. He was possibly the best on the grid in 1992 as well, and his fightbacks, particularly in the Silverstone finale, were spectacular. But he ranks behind the likes of Leslie, Jackson, Radisich, Ingram and Neal because he did fewer races, and longevity is also a small factor in these rankings (maybe some wouldn't factor it in, and that is fine). But with the closeness of these drivers he could easily have been about five places higher. I may re-watch the 1991 and 1992 seasons to see if they convince me to change my mind and rank him higher.

[BTCC frog]

15. Tom Ingram
Ingram is very difficult to rank as, apart from the first few races of this season, he has never had a teammate in the BTCC. He began with Speedworks in 2014 and was unlucky not to score a podium. That first podium came in Rockingham 2015 after a great dice with Jason Plato, and his first win was at Brands Hatch in 2016. He finished tenth overall that season, having been very quick but inconsistent. In 2017 he fought for the title early on, but dropped out of contention with a poor mid-season. He came third overall and won the independents' championship, a very impressive achievement. In 2018 he went one better with second, but arguably deserved the title after more bad luck than Colin Turkington, and some tremendous charges through the grid. Speedworks got works support from Toyota in 2019 and they switched to the Corolla, which Ingram won a few races in but slipped to sixth in the standings. He was an outsider for the title in 2020 and was fourth overall. Switched to Excelr8 for 2021 and has so far been as good as he was in the Toyota, while replacement Butcher has had a more difficult time. In a few years time, I would suggest Ingram will be at least in the top ten in this ranking.
14. Matt Neal
Has driven in the BTCC for longer than any other driver in the series history, with a 30-year stint between 1991 and 2020. Neal began as the mainstay in the independents' championship, with titles in 1993 and 1995, while driving for his father's team, Team Dynamics. He struggled with an unreliable Ford Mondeo in 1996 and 1997, but then switched to a much better Nissan Primera. He improved massively in 1998 and then became the first independent to win outright in Donington 1999, with what was perhaps the greatest BTCC win of all time including a beautiful pass on Thompson. He won again in 2000, then only raced once in 2001 for Peugeot. Returned in 2002 with an eggsport Vauxhall and finished third in the standings, which he matched in a works Honda in 2003 despite poor reliability. Neal returned to Team Dynamics in 2004 and came fifth, before the team entered the Honda Integra for the following season. Neal won two titles on the bounce in impressive fashion, finishing every race in 2005, and getting involved in some controversial collisions with Plato in 2006 which began the great rivalry between the two. The team switched to a Honda Civic for 2007 and Neal was beaten to third by teammate Shedden. He then made the surprise switch to Vauxhall for two seasons and was outpaced by Giovanardi. Neal returned to Team Dynamics in 2010 and came second to Plato, before taking his third title in 2011. From then on, he was generally second-best to Shedden, coming second in 2012, fourth in 2013, eighth in 2014, third in 2015, sixth in 2016 and seventh in 2017. Cammish then replaced Shedden for 2018 and Neal's final three season results were ninth, ninth and eleventh, while Cammish fought for the title in the latter two. His retirement from the BTCC was massively under the radar, with no fans and his retirement not yet confirmed at Brands Hatch in 2020, so I hope he is allowed to run a third Honda at the final round this season to end this illustrious career.
13. Joachim Winkelhock
Joined the BTCC with BMW in 1993, and was expected to be second-best to teammate Steve Soper. But Winkelhock did an outstanding job to beat Soper, arguably the best on the grid in the previous two seasons, and won the 1993 championship. The BMW was hobbled with boost reductions for the first half of 1994, but these were reduced in the second half and Winkelhock won four times on his way to sixth in the standings. After a year out, he returned in 1996 and finished fifth, only one point ahead of teammate Ravaglia. But Winkelhock was unlucky and should have been further ahead; he won four races and was arguably the main challenger to Frank Biela. However, Winkelhock did also make a few too many mistakes, often spinning when in strong positions. BMW pulled out at the end of 1996 and Winkelhock never returned to the BTCC. It may seem unfair to have him seven places above Soper, with whom he was very evenly matched, but the gaps are tiny between these drivers.

[pimmy]

Originally Posted by BTCC frog

The BMW was hobbled with boost reductions for the first half of 1994

Don't think so!

[S griffin]

I think he means that BMW were saddled with a weight penalty, which seems to be replaced with boost restrictions these days. But it wasn't just the weight penalty reduction that helped BMW regain it's mojo in the second half of 94, it was also the addition of new aero

[BTCC frog]

12. Gabriele Tarquini
Joined the BTCC in 1994 with Alfa Romeo, who were a new manufacturer but, armed with a controversial rear wing, began the season with the fastest car. Tarquini won the first five on the trot, and took three more over the course of the season to take the championship, comfortably ahead of the rest. He also had a standout drive to fourth at Donington from the back, including almost going over on the kerb. Tarquini returned to Alfa for a part-season in 1995, when the car was much less competitive, and outperformed teammates Simoni and Warwick. Tarquini's full-time return to the BTCC came in 1997 with Honda, where he was teammate to James Thompson and finished sixth in the standings with one win at Thruxton, while Thompson finished fifth. After a cameo appearance in 1999 where he finished an excellent second at Knockhill, his stop-start BTCC career started again in 2000, again with Honda. Tarquini won three times on his way to sixth in the points, and was top Honda driver, just edging out Kristensen and Thompson. Tarquini's position in these rankings is hurt by only doing three full seasons, but he was an extremely quick driver and remains a competitive touring car driver now, thirty years after dropping out of Formula 1.
11. John Cleland
One of the most popular drivers in the super touring era, Cleland went into the single-class series in 1991 already with a BTCC championship, from 1989. He drove for Vauxhall alongside the very quick Jeff Allam, but Cleland immediately had the better of his teammate and ranked second overall behind Will Hoy. He dropped to third in 1992 after losing the title to Tim Harvey in the controversial final round at Silverstone. Cleland then came fourth in 1993 and 1994 before winning his second championship in 1995, with six race wins along the way including four in a row midseason. This was the final year with the Cavalier. Vauxhall switched to a Vectra for 1996 and were far less competitive, with Cleland coming eighth to Thompson's tenth. 1997 was even worse with Cleland languishing down in twelfth, although still ahead of teammate Warwick, but improved back to eighth in 1998 with two wins, including the infamous 'Mansell race' at Donington Park. That proved to be his final win, as he retired at the end of 1999 after finishing last of the works cars.

[BTCC frog]

Sorry for the delay. My next set of BTCC drivers:

10. Gordon Shedden
After an impressive cameo appearance in the production class Ford at Knockhill in 2001, Shedden made his real BTCC debut in a Team Dynamics Honda Integra in 2006, the beginning of a career almost exclusively with that team. In his first full season he finished fourth overall as teammate Neal won the championship, also taking his first win at Oulton Park. Team Dynamics switched to a Honda Civic for 2007 and Shedden was third in the points, ahead of Neal. The car was less competitive in 2008 and Shedden only managed seventh, but clearly outpaced new teammate Tom Chilton. After one race in 2009, Shedden lost his drive to James Thompson, but returned to the series in a Cartridge World SEAT later in the year, taking a superb podium at Knockhill. Shedden was reunited with Team Dynamics and Matt Neal for 2010 and finished third in the points, just behind his teammate. He went one better in 2011 and just missed out on the title to Neal in the final race, before taking his first championship in 2012 with one race to spare. Shedden slipped to second overall in 2013 behind Jordan, and then third in 2014 as Honda experimented with the Civic Tourer and the Civic Tourer Estate, but switched to the Type-R in 2015 and Shedden won his second title after a fantastic drive in the final race to fourth from the back of the grid, to snatch the championship from Plato. Shedden made it three in 2016 after being down in ninth at the halfway stage, as a very strong second half of the season ended with him passing rival Sam Tordoff to take the championship in the final race of the season. 2017 was more difficult as Shedden could only manage fourth, before leaving the series to drive in the WTCR. After some difficult seasons, he returned in 2021 with Team Dynamics, but has so far had a difficult season with no wins.
9. Anthony Reid
The greatest driver in this era without a championship, Reid gained a reputation in the second-half of his career as a bit of a dirty driver. Nevertheless, he was outstandingly quick, and deserving of a title, and also produced some of the most entertaining interviews. He joined the BTCC with Nissan in 1997 and was only eleventh in the championship, three places behind David Leslie. Reid was often taken off by his opponents, so was unlucky with this position. In 1998, the Nissan became a much quicker car and Reid fought for the championship. He won seven times and finished a close second behind Rickard Rydell. Had Reid stayed with Nissan for another year, he may have won the title in 1999, but he instead switched to the uncompetitive Ford Mondeo and finished twelfth overall behind teammate Menu. However, the Ford went into 2000 as the best car, with the strongest ever lineup of Menu, Rydell and Reid. Reid was very consistent but only won two races, and he lost the title to Menu by two points, having dropped eight, and beat Rydell in the championship. After sitting out most of 2001, Reid returned to the series with MG and won at Brands Hatch, but was ineligible for points. He won once in 2002 and finished fourth to teammate Warren Hughes' sixth, and slipped to sixth in 2003, while Hughes was seventh and Turkington eighth. WSR lost works backing from MG for 2004 but Reid still won two races and ranked fourth overall, winning the independents' championship, despite nearly getting banned after controversial driving at Silverstone raised the number of points on his license. Reid then left the series, with a brief return in 2009 that brought little in terms of results.
8. Yvan Muller
One of the most successful drivers in the WTCC, Muller first arrived in the BTCC in 1998, driving a very uncompetitive Audi A4, as 4WD had been outlawed. Muller had an outstanding debut season to take seventh in the standings, while John Bintcliffe languished down in fifteenth. Muller switched to Vauxhall the following year, where he would remain for the rest of his BTCC career. He took his first win at Brands Hatch after a fantastic double overtake at Paddock Hill Bend, and dominated retiring teammate Cleland on his way to sixth in the points. For 2000, Vauxhall paired Muller with Jason Plato, a pairing that would turn into one of the biggest rivalries in the history of the sport. He just edged Plato that year after winning three races, but Plato made it very clear that Muller was the number one driver at the team with the way that he ceded a victory for him at Thruxton. In the switch to the BTC-Touring era in 2001, the Vauxhall Astra Coupé became the dominant car, and Plato and Muller fought for the championship in a manner reminiscent of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. After a controversial collision at Silverstone for which Plato was penalised, the pair banged wheels at Donington, costing each other time and positions, and then a car failure for Muller at Brands Hatch handed the title to Plato, despite Muller taking ten wins over the course of the season. Plato was then fired, and Muller went into 2002 with a new teammate in James Thompson. The two fought hard for the next three championships, with Thompson taking 2002 and Muller second with five wins. Muller reversed the situation in 2003 to take his first BTCC championship from Thompson after six race victories. Then 2004 was the closest yet as Thompson edged Muller by a single point in the final race, after taking the fastest lap. Thompson then left the team, but Muller had a new challenge in Matt Neal's Honda Integra. Muller fought hard in the Astra, doing a superb save at Thruxton and winning six races, but his car just wasn't quick enough and Neal beat him to the title. Muller left the BTCC at the end of 2005 to drive in World Touring Cars, after only one championship, but he was unlucky not to have more having finished runner-up four times.
7. James Thompson
One of the leading figures of the championship over the Super Touring and BTC-Touring eras, Thompson ranks just ahead of Muller courtesy of beating him two-one in the seasons that they were teammates. Thompson began in the BTCC in 1994 with an independent Peugeot, but could only manage fourth in the independents' trophy. He was given a works drive for Vauxhall in 1995 and exceeded expectations with a win at Thruxton, some great overtaking, and seventh in the points despite missing the second half of the season with an injury. Vauxhall switched to the less competitive Vectra for 1996 and Thompson was tenth to Cleland's eighth, but won a race at Snetterton. He then moved to Honda for the 1997 season and was teammate to former champion Gabriele Tarquini. Thompson won one race and beat Tarquini in the standings by two points, with fifth. 1998 was his best season yet with third overall and four race victories, and he dropped one to fourth in 1999 after a further four wins, having outperformed teammate Peter Kox in both season. Thompson could only manage ninth in 2000 behind teammates Tarquini and Kristensen, but was unlucky as he missed two rounds after a huge crash at Brands Hatch. In 2001, he switched to an eggsport Vauxhall, and finished third in the points, unable to challenge Plato and Muller but with no threat from Phil Bennett or the Peugeots behind. He was promoted to the main team in 2002, and won six races on his way to a first BTCC championship in the first of his three-part battle with Yvan Muller. The tables were turned in 2003 as Muller won the championship and Thompson finished second, the two along way ahead of the rest. 2004 was by far the closest of the three seasons, and Thompson prevailed over Muller by a single point after setting fastest lap in the final race. Thompson then left the BTCC to drive in the WTCC, but returned a few times for part-seasons. He did six rounds for SEAT in 2006 and took an incredible sixth in the championship. I would argue that Thompson would have been champion had he done the whole season, or at least would have beaten teammate Plato. He then returned again for six rounds in a Team Dynamics Honda in 2009. The car was less competitive but he still ranked ninth, after three impressive victories. Thompson did a one-off appearance in 2011 for Motorbase, his final drive in the BTCC.

[BTCC frog]

Originally Posted by S griffin

Of course Steve’s only full season in the 90s came in 93 and I think he was probably a bit unlucky to lose the title to Smokin Jo. Both were fairly evenly matched. Joachim was probably better over one lap, whilst Steve was the better racer.

I wouldn’t say his part seasons in 91, 92 or 94 counted against him, he showed enough when he appeared to show what might have been had he done a full season. And let’s not forget he had to come from the back in 7 races in 92 and did them all in style

Further on the incident with Cleland, Soper insists he didn’t do it deliberately and if he really did want to do that he would have done it in a way so that whilst John retired, he would have kept going. I just think Soper over estimated his late breaking ability

I will also say that, having rewatched the 1992 season, I agree with you that Soper should be higher. I had forgotten just how impressive his drivers through the field were. I will move him above Leslie, Jackson and Radisich to 17th.

[S griffin]

Hey that’s no problem, always good having a debate on these things

[BTCC frog]

6. Rickard Rydell
Nicknamed, 'the smiling assassin,' Rydell joined the BTCC in 1994, driving the infamous Volvo Estate, and saying that 'one moment I'm on the verge of F1, the next I'm driving an estate car.' The Volvo was not particularly competitive in 1994 and Rydell could only manage fourteenth in the championship, one place higher than teammate Jan Lammers. In 1995, Volvo replace the estate car with an 850 saloon, and were far more competitive. At the start of the season, the Volvo appeared to be the fastest car and Rydell took pole position after pole position, but only translated that into four wins across the season and faded to third in the points, comfortably beating ex-champion teammate Tim Harvey. He took another four wins and third in the championship in 1996, but this time was further away from the top as Frank Biela and Audi dominated, and then was only fourth in 1997 as Menu and Renault took over as the dominant force. However, Rydell was still seriously quick as Kelvin Burt only managed eleventh and tenth in the points over those two seasons. The field closed up in 1998 and Rydell and Volvo finally took their first championship, overcoming Anthony Reid in the quicker but less consistent Nissan. Rydell only won five races to Reid's seven, including one at Brands Hatch after Reid caused controversy by pushing him out of the lead, before being penalised, but Rydell still took his first BTCC championship, and also created the 'Swedish Shuffle,' an overtake at the Thruxton complex. The Nissan was quicker in 1999 but Rydell still won three times and finished third overall in Volvo's swansong season. He switched to Ford in 2000 and was part of the strongest lineup of all-time in the BTCC alongside Alain Menu and Anthony Reid. Rydell was quick and won three times, but was involved in a few incidents and was also unlucky, so was beaten by his two teammates to third in the championship, although Menu and Reid had an extra year of experience in the Ford Mondeo. Rydell left the BTCC as Ford pulled out and went on to pursue a career in WTCC.
5. Fabrizio Giovanardi
Giovanardi joined the BTCC as a seven-time touring car champion in 2006, and had never raced on the majority of the circuits before. It was also the least competitive Vauxhall had been since the Super Touring era, but Giovanardi beat both his teammates, Tom Chilton and Gavin Smith, and finished fifth in the championship with two wins, finally taking Vauxhall's hundredth at Knockhill. In 2007, the Vauxhall was the equal fastest car with the SEAT and Giovanardi had a superb championship battle with Jason Plato, which he won at the final round at Thruxton after some controversy as Matt Neal let both Vauxhalls pass him and then fought with Plato, but Giovanardi would have won anyway. He was also famous for some incredible saves and pieces of car control during that season and those that followed it. Giovanardi looked to have a fight on his hands with Matt Neal as his teammate in 2008 and Jason Plato driving a diesel-powered SEAT, but he drove incredibly well, always maximising his points when the SEAT was faster (hence the 'banana' interview: 'The yellow car ahead is like a banana. I am like the monkey, chasing the banana.'). Giovanardi won the 2008 championship at the first race of the final round. He was expected to take a third in 2009, but the BMW and the Chevrolet were much faster, and Giovanardi was beaten by Colin Turkington in what was an intense title battle, also losing second at the final round to Plato. Vauxhall pulled out at the end of 2009 and Giovanardi lost his drive. He had a superb one-off appearance in an independent Vauxhall at Thruxton in 2010 with two wins, but then lost sponsorship and had to leave. He returned again in 2014 in a Motorbase Ford Focus, but the less said about that season, the better, as Giovanardi struggled to adapt to NGTC machinery and finished a long way behind Mat Jackson in the championship. He ranks fractionally behind Plato because he only raced in five full seasons, while Plato drove for over two decades, but Giovanardi is now a nine-time touring car champion.
4. Jason Plato
Surely the most famous BTCC driver of all-time, Plato has gained a reputation as a 'love him or hate him' character. With more wins than any other driver in the history of the championship by a long way, he could stake a claim to be number one on this list, but only having two championships lets him down, as he often failed to string a full season together, and also gets involved in costly incidents. Plato made his debut in 1997, driving for Renault, and was instantly quick with two poles at Donington. However, his teammate Alain Menu dominated the championship and Plato was only third, taking two wins, although he has since claimed he was not allowed to fight Menu. In 1998, the Renault was no longer the dominant force and Plato slipped to fifth in the points, but was much closer to Menu who just edged him out in fourth. Menu left Renault for 1999 and Plato had a new teammate in Jean-Christophe Boullion, who he beat comfortably and placed fifth with one win. Renault pulled out at the end of 1999 and Plato got a drive with Vauxhall, alongside Yvan Muller. It became very clear that Muller was the number one driver at Vauxhall when Plato let him through to win at Thruxton, but he still took two wins and ranked fifth, just eight points behind Muller. With Ford and Honda pulling out, the Vauxhall became the only competitive car in 2001 (sorry, Peugeot) and with the eggsport team not on the pace of the main team, the championship was a straight fight between Muller and Plato. For more information on this title battle, see the section on Yvan Muller, but Plato won his first championship at the final round after a car failure for Muller. The team wanted Muller to win, and Plato was fired just after taking his crown. After two years out, he returned with SEAT in 2004. He took advantage of the reversed-grid second race by regularly dropping places in race one, and took seven wins, more than any other driver, to take third in the points. The SEAT was not a match for Muller's Vauxhall or Neal's Honda Integra in 2005 and Plato was only fourth in the championship with three wins. 2006 was the season in which the first huge rivalry in the BTCC between Plato and Muller was replaced with a similar one between Plato and Neal. Plato won eight races, but lost out on the championship to Matt Neal, after a controversial collision between them at Snetterton, while Plato was annoyed that Neal's Integra was so fast and so resilient to damage. It should be noted that Plato was generally outperformed by teammate James Thompson in 2006, but Thompson only did a part-season. In 2007, Plato fought for the title with Fabrizio Giovanardi's Vauxhall. The cars were of similar performance, and the drivers too, but Giovanardi just pipped Plato at the final round, where Neal created controversy by letting Giovanardi through. The SEAT was diesel powered in 2008. It was extremely quick but unreliable, and Plato ranked third. When SEAT pulled out in 2009, Plato switched to Chevrolet. The car was slow at the start of the year, but became the fastest out there by the end, with Plato and Mat Jackson winning nine of the last twelve races between them, including a triple win for Plato at Brands Hatch. In a tense title finale, Plato jumped Giovanardi but lost out to Colin Turkington by five points. Turkington and Giovanardi both lost sponsorship for 2010 and Plato was left to fight the Hondas of Neal and Shedden and the LPG-powered Ford of Onslow-Cole for the championship. In arguably the third-quickest car, Plato finally won his second championship at the final round. In 2011, Plato regularly complained about his car being down on power compared to the turbo cars and did a fantastic job to place third, just behind the Hondas. He then drove a new MG in 2012 run by Triple Eight, and it was another case of winning the most races but losing the championship due to reliability. This was repeated in 2013, as Plato took four double-victories in ten rounds, but only managed third in the championship, while Andrew Jordan took the title. The BMW of Colin Turkington was imperiously strong in 2014, and Plato was the only driver able to challenge him, but still ended up a distant second in the championship. After leaving MG, Plato moved to Warren Scott's BMR outfit for 2015, driving a Volkswagen CC and with Colin Turkington in his teammate in another of the strongest ever BTCC lineups. Plato beat Turkington in the championship, but still finished second by four points as Gordon Shedden's Honda took the title after carving through the pack in the final round. After this season, it should be pointed out that between 2006 and 2015, Jason Plato finished in the top three in the championship, and went into the final round as a title contender, every single season, but only took one title out of ten in that time. He deserved more, but lost out through a mixture of bad luck and incidents early in the season. This was probably the end of Plato at his peak. BMR switched to Subarus in 2016 and the tables turned between Plato and Turkington, with Colin now in his favoured RWD machinery. Plato still won a race and was seventh overall. 2017 was a disaster, as he dropped further to twelfth, while young teammate Ash Sutton won the championship. It is still a mystery as to what was wrong with Plato's car, particularly as it got considerably worse in 2018. Plato went winless for the first time in his BTCC career and finished 27th in the championship. He left Subaru to drive for a Power Maxed Vauxhall in 2019 and looked more like the old Plato, with an improvement back to seventh in the championship and a win at the final race at Brands Hatch. That could prove to be his final win as PMR pulled out of 2020, and Plato has struggled on their return to the championship in 2021. Right now, Plato is three shy of 100 wins, and I hope he reaches that mark before his retirement.

[porsche962fan]

so 2 out of top 3 have to be Turkington and Sutton

[mark_l]

I'm surprised Andy Neate hasn't been mentioned, former works driver and is consistently in the action when he races, usually at the expense of those around him.

He has done more to keep Willie Poole Motorsport in champagne than probably any driver on the grid.

[billy bleach]

Originally Posted by mark_l

I'm surprised Andy Neate hasn't been mentioned, former works driver and is consistently in the action when he races, usually at the expense of those around him.

He has done more to keep Willie Poole Motorsport in champagne than probably any driver on the grid.

Hasn’t had as many incedents as Shedden this year though so that’s why he hasn’t been considered probably