how do we grow this sport?

[24v vxhall man]

With the demise of the production class without whom we would not have had a BTCC for the past three years. How do we move on? When and not if the teams drop out, do we crawl back to the teams on which we have turned our backs on and ask them to come back and recieve the two fingers, what do we do the? I would hope that we have seen the dark days in the last three years and would hate to see us go back to them. All it takes is for a team like Vauxhall of MG to pull out and we are in the thick and sticky that also smells. I for one can't believe that there is not a place in this sport for people like the Honda guys that pull their rocks off in their own time to get a car on the grid week in week out.

[Les]

I have heard that only Proton has signed up for next year so far so Alan Gow should be wary of losing the production class until his grid is full. I would hate to see a BTCC meeting with one manufacturer and some independents.




but hang on - that would mean no Vauxhalls on the podium - maybe Phil could get a win....

[Alan]

Very pessimistic round here all of a sudden aren't we?

This season hasn't even finished yet!!!

[tvgod]

Vauxhall will be back next year...and almost certainly so will Honda.

With works BMW and possibly works Seat teams also 99% certain (expect announcements before Christmas, if not sooner) I don't think there will be any danger of grids next year being any smaller than they are this year.

[Stuart]

Manufacturers come and go. Thats the Touring Car way. Always has been. Always will be. Vauxhall came back in 1989 and have stuck around since, but when we didn't have them, we had other manufacturers prepared to come out to play.
Anyone who remembers the mid eighties when 9 cars (across three classes!) would turn up at Brands Hatch for a race that for everyones sanity was shortened from 40 to 20 laps will have been so thankful for the advent of the televised BTCC in 1988.
As long as someone is prepared to broadcast the racing, I believe we are garunteed manufacturers prepared to come out and race.
I firmly believe that the addition of the Euro spec cars is about to send the BTCC back to the halcyon Super Touring days - and with it a return to the 10 or so manufacturers.

[The Stig]

The BTCC benefits manufacturers and supporters alike. Hopefully the biggest dilemma facing Mr Alan Gow is not the size of the grid but the size of the population at each event.
I have loved the four events I've been to this year, but the turnout appeared a bit mediocre.

With a continued a ITV presence, Stuart might not be far wrong.

[Peter]

Originally posted by Les
I have heard that only Proton has signed up for next year so far so Alan Gow should be wary of losing the production class until his grid is full. I would hate to see a BTCC meeting with one manufacturer and some independents.




but hang on - that would mean no Vauxhalls on the podium - maybe Phil could get a win....

If the worst case scaenario were to occur, there would be no shortage of independents. :)

[VkmSpouge]

With ETCC cars allowed in I hope that quite a few new cars will be seen, along with some works efforts...though seeing Phil Bennet take a win in a Proton would be quite something:cool: I hope Proton are nearer to the sharp end next season.

[Alan]

Now here is an idea - how about all independents and no manufacturers!! Works in Oz!

[Stuart]

The idea of all independents is great, although I think it works in Oz ironically because of the lack of manufacturers.
The Group A days of the BTCC saw very few works teams, but the problem was that everyone had the same car. 20 or so Cossies were awesome to watch, but no-one really had the nerve or resources to seriously take them on with anything different. The Toyota's, Maserati's, etc... just weren't quick enough.
Similarly, nothing would ever touch a BMW M3 in Class B.
How about an a regulation that insists that works teams have to make available a minimum number of current spec cars and set up data (could be a year old with upgrades) at a capped price to independents? Maybe everyone would be squabbling to get an Astra, but for new teams, the options would be there to at least get started.
2004 in a year old Proton or go back to a Production based series that you have already won? I know where I be racing.

[Les]

Originally posted by Stuart
How about an a regulation that insists that works teams have to make available a minimum number of current spec cars and set up data (could be a year old with upgrades) at a capped price to independents? Maybe everyone would be squabbling to get an Astra, but for new teams, the options would be there to at least get started.

don't we already have this?

[Stuart]

I've read about it in the past as a proposal but I didn't think it was ever actually formalised. I guess at the moment it is in manufacturers interest to supply cars to get grid sizes up, but I didn't think there was any obligation to make cars available... It may be that I've missed something somewhere though...:confused: