The 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship campaign is all set to kick into action in earnest this week as driver and car unveilings take centre-stage at the NEC's Autosport International (12-15 January).

In recent years, the Dunlop BTCC stand has proved to be one of the most popular attractions at the show, drawing industry professionals as well as media and fans alike over the four days. The new-for-2017 stand will play host to West Surrey Racing, Motorbase Performance, Handy Motorsport and AmDTuning.com as they unveil their new machines.

Andrew Jordan will pull the covers off the new Pirtek-liveried WSR BMW 125i M Sport; AmD are too set to make their arrangements for the coming campaign clear with a livery unveiling and driver announcement. Motorbase will be revealing its completed line-up in front of the new striking Shredded Wheat-backed Ford Focus. Handy Motorsport will also show off its new look Toyota Avensis, as the stars and cars of the BTCC set the scene for what is sure to be another fantastic season ahead.

Furthermore, interviews with a host of BTCC personalities – drivers, key team personnel, partners and leading figures from the championship including Series Director Alan Gow, Dunlop's James Bailey as well as ITV Motorsport's team.

On Saturday and Sunday there will be autograph and selfie sessions where fans will get a chance to meet their heroes. On the subject of selfies, we'll be running a competition throughout the show where fans, using #BTCCSelfie, can send in their best BTCC-related shots from all over the show floor to be in with a chance of winning a money-can't-buy experience.

The best #BTCCSelfie will receive two tickets, a grid walk, a garage tour plus a photo with your favourite driver at the Donington Park race weekend in April.

Donington Park will also be offering fans an exclusive ticket offer over the course of the event via the Dunlop BTCC stand (Stand 6440 in Hall 6).

 

Autosport International - Dunlop BTCC timetable (All times are subject to change)

Thursday

09:30               AmD: Car Unveiling/Driver Announcement

10:00               Halfords Yuasa Racing: Car Unveiling (on Rimstock Stand)

10:20               Handy Motorsport: Car Unveiling

10:40               Simpson Racing: Car Unveiling (on Simpson Racing Stand)

11:00               Motorbase Performance: Car Unveiling/Driver Announcements

12:00               Pirtek Racing: Car Unveiling

13:00               Tom Ingram, Jeff Smith & James Cole interview

14:00               Alan Gow (TOCA)/James Bailey (Dunlop) interview

15:00               Paul Tunnicliffe (Subaru)/Warren Scott (BMR Racing) interview

16:00              ITV Team - David Addison & Co. interview

TBC                 Jason Plato

 

Friday

10:00               Aron Taylor-Smith, Dan Welch & Mark Howard interview

11:00               Adam Morgan, Jake Hill & Will Burns interview

12:00               PMR Vauxhall: Adam Weaver & Senna Proctor interview

13:00               Colin Turkington & Rob Austin interview

14:00               Tom Ingram, Martin Depper & David Addison interview

15:00               Halfords Yuasa Racing: Gordon Shedden & Matt Neal interview

16:00               Dave Newsham, Jeff Smith & Chris Smiley interview

 

Saturday

10:00              Halfords Yuasa Racing: Gordon Shedden & Matt Neal interview

11:00               Tom Ingram, Senna Proctor & Matt Simpson interview

12:00               Adam Morgan, Ashley Sutton & Ollie Jackson interview

13:00               Dunlop Discussion: New Year, New Tyres!

14:00               Autograph signing with selected drivers

15:00               Selfie session with selected drivers

16:00               Team Hard: Tony Gilham, Michael Epps & Will Burns interview

 

Sunday

10:00               Ashley Sutton, Matt Simpson & Mark Howard interview

11:00               Dunlop Discussion: New Year, New Tyres!

12:00               Rob Austin, Senna Proctor & Michael Epps interview

13:45               Andrew Jordan interview

14:30               Autograph signing with selected drivers

15:00               Selfie session with selected drivers

16:00               Aron Taylor-Smith, Adam Morgan & Martin Depper interview

Please follow BTCC's social media feeds for latest information or check Dunlop BTCC stand on arrival for latest schedules

Eurotech Racing has confirmed that Jeff Smith will return to drive a Honda Civic Type R in the 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

Team Principal Smith will contest his sixth full season in BTCC, having reached the podium twice in his career so far. His best result last year was a fourth place finish at Thruxton.

“We had great race pace last year and the true qualifying pace of the car was clearly proven by Daniel Lloyd when he put it on the front row in two out of three rounds he competed in,” said Smith.

“You can’t stand still in this championship, back at base in our new 8,000 square foot state of the art workshop the team have been flat out since we finished the last round at Brands Hatch. We have a full testing programme in place which includes a week long test in Spain at the end of February, so I believe we will be in a strong position to move forwards in 2017.”

The team is currently in negotiations with a number of drivers for the second seat to complete their two-car 2017 line-up.

Halfords Yuasa Racing is pleased to announce a newly-formed sponsorship agreement with Steel Seal for the coming 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season.

This agreement will see the Steel Seal brand getting even more fantastic coverage in the BTCC on the newly-liveried Honda Civic Type R – launching at the Autosport International show next week.

Steve Harrison – Global Brand Director of Steel Seal said: “I am really pleased to have a presence on one of the most televised and photographed teams in the BTCC paddock, you know if either Matt or Gordon are at the back, in the middle or leading the race, you can guarantee they will be getting maximum exposure for our brand.”

Steve Thomas – Marketing Manager for Team Dynamics added: “It’s great to have another recognised name in Steel Seal join us for 2017.  I think many people are familiar with the brand and we are looking to exploit that even further for them this year. We go into the season looking to replicate what we have achieved over the past two years and hopefully crown one of our drivers a four-time BTCC Champion.”

A flurry of announcements, unveilings and driver appearances will ensure the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship is the talk of the town next week, as the NEC’s Autosport International (12-15 January) kick-starts the 2017 motor sport campaign.

The Dunlop BTCC stand has firmly established itself in recent years as one of the most popular at the show, drawing industry professionals, media and fans alike over the four-day duration. A new, stand for 2017 underscores the championship’s burgeoning success, with cars from West Surrey Racing, Motorbase Performance, Handy Motorsport and AmDTuning.com set to take pride of place.

Thursday morning will witness livery unveilings by Andrew Jordan – who will remove the wraps from his new Pirtek-branded BMW 125i M Sport – and AmD, while Motorbase is set to reveal the identity of the driver who will pilot the second of its three striking Shredded Wheat-backed Ford Focuses.

These will be complemented by interviews with a whole host of BTCC drivers, key team personnel and leading figures from the championship and its partners – including series boss Alan Gow, Dunlop’s James Bailey and ITV stars – as well as regular autograph and selfie sessions, all hosted by our own incomparable compere Alan Hyde.

Defending title-holder Gordon Shedden will be performing various duties around the show across all four days, including interviews on the main stage and Dunlop BTCC stand in company with fellow champions Colin Turkington, Matt Neal and Andrew Jordan.

A full timetable of activities on the Dunlop BTCC stand will be published in due course, while there will be further car unveilings by Halfords Yuasa Racing on the Rimstock stand and Simpson Racing on the Simpson Exhausts stand on Thursday morning.

The Dunlop BTCC stand can be found in Hall 6, so be sure to drop by to say hello if you’re attending the show!

LATEST AUDIO: With the return of the Vauxhall Astra to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship confirmed, another #BTCC returnee, Power Maxed Racing’s Tom Chilton, and Team Principal Adam Weaver look forward to the 2017 campaign and an exciting project ahead.

 

Dunlop, the Official Tyre Partner to the MSA British Touring Car Championship, is predicting a significant increase in grip and traction following the introduction of bigger tyre sizes and new constructions for the 2017 season.

The new Dunlop Sport Maxx BTCC range will be a larger size -  265/660R18, compared to the previous 245/650R18, a width increase of 20mm.

In addition to the increase in size, the performance improvement will come from the use of advanced compounds to provide consistent, enduring performance. Dunlop are also introducing an enhanced construction to improve steering response and braking stability.

A new naming convention will help spectators to follow who is using which tyre. At all races (apart from Thruxton) the Sport Maxx Prime tyre will be used. This was formerly known as the Sport Maxx Medium and, as before, will be used by drivers in two of the three races at each event.

In one race at each event a ‘Sport Maxx Option’ tyre will be used.  This will be either a softer or harder compound than the Prime. Dunlop will announce which Option tyre will be used at each circuit before the start of the season. These will use a dark grey sidewall marking to help spectators differentiate them from the bright yellow sidewalls of the Sport Maxx Prime tyre.

At Thruxton, the Sport Maxx Hard Option tyre will be the compulsory dry tyre for all three races, as this uses a compound and construction that has been successfully proven on the abrasive Hampshire circuit.

In addition, Dunlop have upgraded the ‘BluResponse Wet’ tyre to improve aquaplaning resistance with a revised tread pattern and the same 20mm width increase as the Sport Maxx Prime and Option dry tyres.

The new BTCC tyres have been developed from Dunlop’s long experience in other championships as James Bailey, PR and Communications Director, Dunlop Motorsport EMEA explained: "On the gruelling Nurburgring Nordschleife, the Dunlop 265/660R18 tyre was the choice of the 2016 VLN Endurance Champions. These endurance races on the World’s toughest circuit are the perfect testing ground for tyres. The new Dunlop Sport Maxx and BluResponse BTCC tyres combine these endurance racing learnings with our existing BTCC circuit experience to create a tyre range that will provide greater traction and grip in 2017.  We are confident that the new range will bring greater performance to an already spectacular championship."

Rob Austin is in reflective mood this festive season but the BTCC race winner also has his eyes firmly set on a renewed challenge in 2017.

Austin has huge support among the BTCC fanbase and there was some surprise when he switched squads ahead of the 2016 season, moving from his own family-run team to Simon Belcher’s Handy Motorsport.

It wasn’t just a move of teams but it would also see Rob line-up on the grid in front-wheel machinery for the first time, as he swapped his Audi A4 for a Toyota Avensis.

“It was definitely a learning curve and it maybe took a little longer than we’d hoped,” he said. “We were following solid set-up advice initially but it became clear that we may be needed to go down a different route.”

After a series of troubled qualifying sessions at the start of the year, plus a number of occasions where Austin narrowly missed the chance of a reverse grid pole position, the team used the mid-season Dunlop tyre test to experiment with a new direction on set-up.

“Mid-summer testing at Snetterton was key,” he continued. “The first couple of changes didn’t do much, but just as we were about to start tearing our hair out we tried one last thing and it transformed the car – we found half a second instantly. From that change we haven’t looked back and have found more and more pace every time out during the second half of the season. The Toyota was a completely different car in the second half of the season.”

A podium at Snetterton followed, but it wasn’t until the final two events where Austin and Handy really showed their potential. Sixth in qualifying at Silverstone resulted in a podium in the opening contest, but it was his near pole position at Brands Hatch that really turned heads.

“It’s actually a little frustrating," claimed Austin. "If we had gone on new tyres a couple of laps later I’m sure we could have had pole. In truth though it was a great result and we finally knew we had a front-running car underneath us.

“We took second in the first race at Brands and overall it was a positive end to the season. We really didn’t want 2016 to finish – knowing what I know now, how we developed the car and how I improved in a front-wheel drive car throughout the season – I was ready to go again the day after Brands.”

That has remained Austin’s stance ever since and he can’t wait to get back down to business in the 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

“We haven’t finalised everything but we’re working hard and we're very positive," he concluded. "Hopefully we’ll be in a position to announce our plans early in the New Year. The team are already fully prepared for the new season and maximising the pre-season testing opportunities will be key. I felt like I had been racing with a hand tied behind my back with the Audi and the pressure that goes with running the whole team. This year was a transitional/learning year, but if I can put the deal together and get back on the grid, in that car with Handy Motorsport, then I feel I’ll finally have a fair shot at this.”

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