Latest Ramblings - NASCAR HOF / BTCC NGT

NASCAR Hall of Fame

2010 Inductees - Bill France Sr, Bill France Jr, Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Junior Johnson.

Last year, when the first HoF inductees were announced I thought the people going into the HoF made sense. France Sr and Jr had to be in for obvious reasons, Petty and Earnhardt were inevitable, and Junior Johnson should be in the HOF, but there were rumblings that others should have been included but were not.

2011 Inductees - David Pearson, Bobby Alison, Lee Petty, Ned Jarrett, Bud Moore.

One year on and the second set of inductees have been introduced. All the names have a significance for the history of NASCAR. Should other names have been included as well as, or instead of the class of 2010? Maybe, maybe not, however only five people are inducted each year so someone is always going to be left out.

My gripe is this; certain people seem to think they have a god given right to be in the HoF. To be nominated for the Hall of Fame should not be a given to be taken for granted, it should be an honour! All former Champions have a case for inclusion; maybe more Championships should mean you are higher up the list, maybe not. Some Crew Chiefs, Spotters, or Team Owners should be on a short list of potential inductees, along with certain organisers, officials, broadcasters and or track owners.

However the statistics resulting from a career in the sport is only part of the story. Surely who the person is, how they conducted themselves throughout their life; the human nature element must also be considered.

The Hall of Fame should mean something, being inducted should mean more, not be expected.

BTCC COT sorry NGT

At the last BTCC round a matt black Toyota Avensis debuted the Next Generation Touring car that BTCC is moving towards - turbocharged 1.6 engines, standardised (bigger) brakes, standardised suspension and gearboxes...

I am not a fan of the cars currently used in the BTCC and am in two minds about what I would do with the BTCC cars. The BTCC should reflect the cars driven on the roads.

I would not like it, but my head says if the BTCC was a Focus against an Astra, Golf, Megane, 307, Civic, Auris, A3, 1-series even, it would make sense as these are the cars the average British buyer buys.

My second mode of thinking, my heart, says the BTCC cars should be saloons, so an Avensis against a Mondeo, Insignia, Accord, Laguna, A4, 3-series. Arguably my heart says this as these are the sorts of cars that were raced in the BTCC when I last cared about it; Cleland in a Cavalier against Radisich in a Mondeo, Hoy in a 3-series, Menu in a Laguna, and the odd Volvo or Alfa 155 thrown in for good measure.

To me the evolution in BTCC cars from front wheel drive production based saloons to race cars with a roof, and wings has gone too far. The basics of the NGT look good, a saloon with standardised brakes, suspension and gearboxes to keep costs under control, but some of the specs worry me... Bigger brakes?? 1.6 turbos??

Here are the basics of my BTCC COT car... I would give the cars smaller brakes to increase braking distances, smaller wheels and tyres to lower grip levels, 2.5 V6 production based engines to give the cars less stressed engines that still create a good amount of power, and a better exhaust note, 6 speed H-pattern gearboxes (when the average Mondeo or Astra has a sequential gearbox so can the BTCC versions!), three pedals, and very very limited (standardised) aerodynamic modifications from the production shell. I would love rear wheel drive, but understand that most modern road cars are front wheel drive so will have to live with it!

Why are the rule makers besotted by making the next generation of race car quicker or stop better than the outgoing cars? So what if the NGT lapped slower than the cars do now. So what if they had to brake earlier going into corners. Give the drivers less grip, more power, longer braking distances, proper gearboxes, and less aero grip and then see who can drive, and race!