BTCC Live - Disappointing

Words I would use to describe my day at Rockingham for the latest round of the British Touring Cars...

Shocking, distant, disappointed, lacking, cold, windy.

Let me try this again.

In 2012, can families be expected to pay £30 per adult (children were free) just to watch cars race round a track. You may think that a strange question, after all I was at a race meeting where the focal point tends to be cars racing round a track... But hear me out.

I was brought up going with my Dad to watch BTCC meetings at various tracks, DTM at Donington, and Eurocar meetings at Mallory Park among others, along with other race meetings.

Back then BTCC was in its hey day, the height of the 2.0 litre era with Cleland, battling Hoy, Menu, Tarquini among many others. Vauxhall, Ford, Renault BMW, Audi, Alfa Romeo etc, back then the list was long. I saw Nigel Mansell stuff his Mondeo in the wall at the Old Hairpin at Donington. You get the idea.

That was then, and this is now. Now I am the Dad taking my girls to see racing live... And I question whether it is enough for an events organiser in 2012 to simply say here is some racing, come see?

At a club level this is fine. The focus is more on the drivers than the spectators. However BTCC is supposed to be the top National racing series, and therefore the event should be the best day out in the Country as well.

Unfortunately I was disappointed. If the BTCC is to attract sponsors the show must not only look good on TV but also at the track, and to me families are the key. Gone are the days of a Dad taking his son to a cold, muddy circuit with smelly toilets and bad food. In 2012 families have many options and little money so a day out must be complete. The Mom must be entertained, the children must have fun and the Dad must enjoy himself as well. Smelly toilets and a muddy bank don't cut it anymore.

Now Rockingham has never had old school facilities and does not do muddy banks and I was glad to see that the place looked as good as ever!

However one thing Rockingham used to understand was how to put on a show for a family. How to get the fans and the families involved in the day, how to bring the business of "show" to the races.

A BTCC meeting could do with a bit more "show" and a bit more family. It could also do a lot more to take the racing and the cars to the paying public. We wanted to walk round the support paddock before the first touring car race only to find the paddock appeared to be closed to spectators! We found a gap in the fence and went in anyway but we were the only people there. Since when did stopping the fans going into a paddock become the norm, I was appalled. Even the BTCC pit road walkabout at lunch time was not good enough. The teams could at least push one of their cars out of the garage so the fans can actually get close to a real race car, er no.

Maybe my day was blighted by the bitterly cold weather. Maybe returning to Rockingham is harder for me than I expected because of my history with the place. Maybe I am a bit out of touch with live motorsport in this country, or maybe just maybe putting some cars on a track and saying there you go is not good enough anymore.

When I was at Rockingham we did everything we could to firstly take the racing, the cars and the drivers out of the garages and up to the fans, and secondly make the events a full family day out. I had hoped British motorsport had learnt something from that... Apparently not.

My daughter is now an MG fan with a picture of Platos MG6 on her wall so it wasn't all bad, but as a family day out it could have been so much more.

Come on Mr Gow, you are getting the Championship right, now concentrate on the events.

In 2012 a family day out at the touring cars should be so much better.

Good days racing... S'pose...

Good family day out... No...

Shame...

PS Thank you to Colin and Sue White of CWS for your hospitality. It was good to catch up!

Dodge, Road Racing BS, and AJ

Get the Hell Outta Dodge… Actually… Please Don’t

I am saddened by the news that Dodge is pulling out of NASCAR racing at the end of this season. Ever since Ray Evernham brought the third of Detroit’s big three manufacturers back into the sport I have enjoyed watching the Chevy Vs. Ford Vs. Dodge battles.

As a Mopar fan I may be biased, I drive a Chrysler PTCuiser and also have a Chrysler Voyager (Dodge Caravan in the US) in the family, but the 2012 Nationwide Series Challenger and the 2013 Cup Series Charger are two good looking race cars! The new 2013 Cup Series bodies suited the Charger so well, allowing Dodge to finally race a car that looked like the bold road car. Next years grid will be worse off without the Dodge in the field.

 

AJ – What a Waste

 

I was also saddened to hear what has happened to AJ Allmendinger. I think he was one of the next “stars” of the sport, and was impressed by his performances in some average machinery over the past few years. Remember he qualified for every race while driving for Richard Petty, at a time when the team had no provisionals to fall back on! Regardless of whether what happened was an innocent mistake or something else I am sorry to see such a talented young driver jeopardise his racing career in this way. NASCAR are right to do what they have done, I just hope AJ can sort himself out and do what is necessary to get behind the wheel of a Cup car again.

Road Racing… With An Edge

I am from England, where the average racetrack turns left and right, and an oval is a small, less than quarter mile long short track (Rockingham excepted), and the racing on the ovals is not exactly mainstream. NASCAR however does not race in England. In America a race track is oval shaped and a road course is a track with right hand turns.  

Twice a year, however, NASCAR turn right and at Watkins Glen we got one hell of a finish! Should NSCAR have thrown a caution and cleaned up the oil that was being dropped on the track? The English race fan in me says yes. The oil was dangerous and NASCAR should have put out the yellow, cleaned up the track and then finished with a G-W-C. Had this scenario taken place on an oval, this is what would have happened. Thankfully this did not happen last weekend.

NASCAR let the race finish under green and in doing so gave us one of the seasons most dramatic finishes. Road racing with an edge. Car slipping and sliding, slithering and spinning, on track and off, dust flying, and a last lap lead change. What’s not to like!

Close, hard racing without the “BS” as Keselowski put it!

Well said Brad, and well done Marcos!

 

Plato Vs. Neal… Again…

 

At Watkins Glen we saw racing with no, well you know, from Keselowski and Ambrose, in the BTCC, at Snetterton, we got our fair share of, you know, from Jason Plato and Matt Neal.

Jason Plato in his MG6 was obviously holding up the following cars, including Matt Neals Honda Civic, but he was also teaching a defensive driving master class, until Neal changed the game.

With a couple of laps to go Neal went for a “gap” that was never there and pushed Plato sideways. Plato, giving another master class, this time in front wheel drive car control, gathered it all up and followed Neal to the next, the last, corner. Nobody was surprised by what happened next. Plato used Neal as a brake and shoved the both the Civic and his own MG off the track.

 

 

I must admit I did not blame Plato for retaliating. Neal’s move was stupid and uncalled for; Plato’s was payback! NASCAR would have called it “have at it” and America would have loved it! The BTCC officials may not have loved it, but they did leave it alone. They both gave and they both got, so that makes them even.

On a different note, I was pleased to see the new Motorbase NGTC Ford Focus driven by Matt Jackson doing so well on its debut! Bring on more NGTC cars and the racing can only get better. The challenge for Alan Gow and his staff is to keep the technical specs of the cars close, and to keep costs down! I wish them well!

BTCC OTT

Touring car racing, by its very nature, is a physical form of racing. Cars make contact, lean on each other, they may even bang and loose mirrors, but at its heart it is still a "non contact" sport... Kinda...

However it appears nobody told Mr Plato... que Donington...

Race 1 - A very good race proving BTCC drivers are capable of racing cleanly, and that includes Mr Plato!

Race 2 - Two wide round the last corner at Donington will go if the drivers give each other room! Again nobody told Mr Plato as he moved over on his fellow driver exiting the corner inadvertently putting himself into the tyre barrier and out of the race. Oops...

Race 3 - After a fabulous drive from the back of the grid, making his way up to third, Mr Plato lowered the tone going into the last corner of the last lap in the last race of the day with a move so blatant Stevie Wonder would have seen it.

Pity.

In all seriousness there were other incidents, and in a Championship as closely contended as this years BTCC it is to be expected... but Mr Platos name seems to crop up more than most this year.

The pity of the two incidents at Donington was that for the rest of the races Mr Plato drove brilliantly. Coming from the back of the grid in race 3 to get to third with two laps to go was a great drive, and he drove cleanly up until the last corner.

Just as at Brands Hatch there was no way the BTCC Officials were going to let him get away with such an OTT move, and I am being polite, this is a family blog.

Pushing another car... pushing it all the way down the back straight and not letting go until after they had passed the braking point... putting Gordon Sheddens Honda off the track was, how did I put it... OTT!!

I would like to applaud the Championships Clerks of the Course for the penalty they handed Mr Plato. They could have thrown him out of the race for such a blatant move however the only drivers affected were Shedden and Mr Plato so giving the MG driver a 2 second penalty, dropping him back behind the Honda, seems totally appropriate.

It would have been totally understandable if Mr Plato had been disqualified from the race however this would have set a precedent where all drivers gaining a place by using contact would have to be disqualified with no room for debate. Swapping the two drivers round gives the Officials room to manoeuvre and the ability to treat each incident individually as some will be worse than others. It would also have had a dramatic effect on the overall Championship points table, something that they will not want to mess with unless it is absolutely necessary.

The two second penalty sends a clear message to the drivers, "there is a line and if you cross it we will not let you gain from crossing it". For this balanced, seeing the big picture, approach I applaud the people concerned. Keep pushing the line though, Mr Plato and I am sure you will not be looked upon so kindly next time.

It appears the Officials are watching and they have a rule book and know how to use it... if you go OTT.

Start Wrecking... First Contact

Lets face it, unlike most other forms of top level professional racing NASCAR racing can be a contact sport. On the right weekend, at the right track, contact is permitted. Whether it's at a restrictor plate track when it is called "bump / tandem drafting" or on some of the sports smaller venues or "short tracks" when it is called, well the "norm" really, there are occasions when contact is allowed. Actually it's more than that, on the short tracks it's expected.

After what was universally thought to be a fairly lacklustre Bristol Sprint Cup Series race, the drama of the last few laps at Martinsville came as a welcome change of pace. In fact it brings hope that once Bruton Smith is finished with his concrete half mile the same level of excitment and drama might return for the beloved "night race" later in the year.

So why are some of the sports journalists and commentators having to defend or explain the contact to the fans? Headlines like "Newman makes no appologies for race win?" or statements like "it's just racin'" show the authors explaining why it's allowed. Only a few short weeks ago the vast majority of fans told Mr Smith this was the kind of racing they wanted to see at Bristol, and now after Martinsville the sport is feeling the need to defend that very style of racing?

To this discussion I would like to add the following thought... this is the sport of NASCAR. In NASCAR, on a short track, contact is a way of life, get over it! If you don't like it then watch F1 or touring cars where over the top contact is frowned upon... Mr Plato...

Three wide into Paddock Hill bend, on the grass, was never going to be considered a good idea. Lean on each other, bang mirrors by all means but you can't attempt a move like that and get away with it. For not letting that happen, and for not letting the penalties issued affect the results I applaud the Championship officials.

For the BTCC the first meeting of the year at Brands Hatch has to be considered a success. Three different winners from three races, lots of new cars and all with the new turbo engines. I wish the new NGTC era well!

Now onto David Reutimann...

Old Car New Car

NASCAR New Car Blues

What a disappointment.

I had hoped Charlotte was going to be the race where the Chase drivers got it together and gave us the race, the show, this years Chase needs and wants, but it was not to be.

The highlight of the race was Jimmie Johnsons hard hit into the outside wall. That was not the highlight because it involved the 48 hitting the wall, honest, but because good racing was severely lacking.

After Kansas I found myself pondering the riddle of the edgy setups but Charlotte was a different story. This was the aero push story. The drivers could not run close together without loosing the air off the front splitter and could not run side by side without loosing the air off the rear spoiler.

For the first time since the current Cup car was introduced I am wondering if something about the COT is hurting the racing. Maybe the answer is to run the current front with the unloved rear wing out back. The whole point of the wing was that it allowed air to pass under it and on to the following car, unlike the spoiler. I know this is not going to happen but something not only needs to be done to redress the aero balance, when the cars are facelifted for the 2013 season, but also to limit the aero push, which is hurting the racing.

On paper the Championship looks really close and competetive but on track the racing is not living up to the top billing.

RIP Dan Wheldon

I am still in shock over the loss of Dan Wheldon at last weekends Indycar race.

Now is not the time to debate the decision to allow so many cars in the race or whether it was a good idea to dangle such a large carrot in front of any driver who won the race after starting from the back of the grid.

Now is about Daniel Wheldon.

Many experts with a lot more exprience and authority than me have said all there is to say about his life and career. However I will say this. When I was younger I was fortunate enough to race Cadet and then Junior TKM karts. When I raced three names mattered, Jenson Button, Anthony Davidson and Daniel Wheldon... and Wheldon was the best.

As someone who has more of a passion for American motor racing than F1, I was so pleased when Wheldon won the Indy 500, once and then twice.

As has been pointed out there is an unfortunate irony in the fact that Wheldon, who has spent this year developing the new Indycar race car, a car which should be safer and less likely to hit wheels, was killed in the last race for the old spec car which his efforts were working to replace.

Dan Wheldons death is a great loss and my thoughts go out to his family and friends.

BTCC Champ Crowned

Congratulations three time British Touring Car Champion, Matt Neal!

We can now look forward to next season, which I hope will see all the top runners in NGTC spec turbo cars.

My only comments about the next gen. car...

As always make them all rear wheel drive like this years Audi, and make them less liable to rear suspension damage when making contact, sorry racing, side by side.

Neals car this year had a bumper sticker... "Does my Turbo look big in this?"... No and the trophies don't look bad either!

85 Wins... and... NGTC Podiums

85, that’s 85 Wins!!

Jeff Gordon is now third on the all time NASCAR win list!

I find it easy to forget, in the era of the 48, just how much the 24 has achieved. Remember Jeff Gordon started racing against the black 3 in Luminas, and you were either a 3 fan or a 24 fan. Yes I was a 3 fan, but I can now look back and appreciate what an achievement those Championships and all those wins add up to.

Watching Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon slipping and sliding their way round Atlanta at the end of the race was great. How sideways was the 48 coming off of the last turn??

And how about Tony Stewart, where did he come from. In the last 100 laps he worked his way from about 20th into the top 10, and with about 10 to go looked like an 8th place finish was as far as he was going to get. However as we watched the leaders go at it, he stormed his way up to third!

So with one race to go the 48 is leading the points standings... am I supposed to be surprised by this? He does not, however, look as dominant as he has in the past. Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon among others can race with and beat the 48. I think the title race will be between those three.

Knock Knock Knockhill at the door...

If you look in a racing encyclopaedia under the topic “bad day”, it will say see the 2011 BTCC Knockhill round and refer to Matt Jackson. He went in to the meeting leading the Championship and came out with three DNF’s. Oops...

It was good to hear that next years new Honda Civic race car will be a NGTC spec car. Following the first two podiums for the new spec car, (well done Frank Wrathall) next year needs to see the series moving forward, and not have another year like this one. Don’t slow the NGTC cars too much. If they are to be the future, encourage them, I want an NGTC car to win a race!

In one way I feel sorry for Plato... but no by much. Even after playing with the turbo boost levels the old naturally aspirated cars cannot keep up with the newer turbo cars on the straights. My answer to that, get a turbo! However... Plato has been known to drive aggressively and when he is on the receiving end of that kind of driving it is hard not to think, “what goes around...”

I find it hard to believe the MSA will not ask Tom Boardman to write a cheque for the restart accident he caused on his way to the win. The leader can dictate the pace and can decide when to accelerate, but stopping in the middle of the track is just plain stupid, and he was lucky not to be taken out himself. Slow the field down, yes, stop, er... no!

There is one thing the drivers need to get their collective heads around. It appears the new spec cars are prone to terminal damage when making contact with another car. This means they will have to give each other room and race cleanly if they want to finish races! That would make a change!

I still say the organisers should ban the old naturally aspirated engines from next year and then just allow the NGTC spec cars from 2013! Firstly it would stop Platos whinging, create a more level playing field, and move the series a step closer to the future!

Performance Parity - BTCC

The highlights of the Oulton Park meeting?

The Hondas taking each other out... and Platos rant afterwards!

Firstly why do BTCC drivers insist on blocking. Matt Neal locked up and put his team mate and himself out of race two, robbing either of them of the win, but to me that was only half the story.

I was glad to hear of the Honda team rule that says on the last couple of laps they are allowed to race each other for a win, as long as they don’t take each other out... oops... but why did Sheddon move over on Neal going into the corner? Yes Neal was never going to make the corner but why do touring car drivers feel they have to block each other? The other big wreck of the day was caused when a driver moved over on another car and put himself out of the race!

So on to Platos rant after he won the second race of the day.

Was it a rant or is there some substance to what Plato was saying.

The trouble the BTCC has always faced, and will always face, is “performance parity". This is because the cars are based on road cars and some are front wheel drive, some are rear wheel drive. This year some have turbo engines, some are naturally aspirated. Some are “BTCC spec” some are “WTCC spec” and some are “NGTC spec". Not an easy start if you want an evenly matched grid of cars.

However this years attempts at “performance parity" are not working. Plato does have a point when he complains that his Chevy is down on power. The ease of which a turbo car overtook him in race three, literally out powering him in a straight line, forcing him to slot in behind before they even reached the braking point was a bit much! Plato didn’t stand a chance!

If this was NASCAR, Platos Chevy, and Neals Honda would have been taken straight from parc ferme, away from the teams, to a series organised test to find out how much power the different engine configurations are putting out, and to see what can be done to equalise them... but this is the BTCC, and whatever the organisers have done so far, is not working.

The trouble is, as it stands right now, we are in for more of the same for the remainder of this year and next year until the full NGTC spec cars become the norm in 2013. If it was up to me I would do everything I could to bring in the new spec cars next year, banning the naturally aspirated engines and old cars after this season. The issue is money, or a lack of it.

Which brings me back to Plato. Why is he so vocal with his issues this year. My guess... is it because, unlike the past few years, Plato is paying to race? Has he provided his sponsorship Pounds so he can go racing? If this is the case he is going to get very frustrated when race after race he has no chance of actually competing, and is powerless to do anything about it.

Money is in short supply in motorsport at the moment, to the point where the “works” teams of Chevrolet and Honda aren’t really “works”. The teams are privateers who are faced with the prospect of buying new engines and developing totally new cars, and this is not going to happen overnight.

Maybe one step towards “performance parity” is to ban the old spec engines after this season, and ban the old spec cars at the end of next season, ready for the 2013 NGTC restart!

Several things have been bothering me about the NGTC cars this year. Firstly I still do not understand the idea of a rear wheel drive Audi A4. Since when have Audi ever had anything to do with rear wheel drive? If the cars are supposed to reflect the road car layouts then the Audi should be four or front wheel drive. Or, and this is my personal preference, if you are going to allow a rear wheel drive Audi then why not just make them all rear wheel drive!

I have said it before and I am happy to say it again... Bring back rear wheel drive!

The other thing that I have been thinking about is the new spec NGTC cars lack of pace compared to the older cars. For the 2011 and 2012 seasons this may be become an issue as no team is going to develop a new car if they have no chance of winning races with that car for up to two years. Is this lack of “performance parity" due to the differing car specifications, or due to the NGTC teams lack of budget to develop the cars?

I hope the NGTC cars are slower than the old cars! We know that the new spec engines will produce more power than the old ones, once the turbo boost is turned up, but it does not bother me if the cars are not as “good” as the older spec cars. More power in more technically even but lower spec cars, maybe even rear wheel drive cars, sounds like fun to me!

Whatever your opinion is I am glad Jason Plato said what he said, when he said it, and I agree, Mr Gow you should tell the fans what is being done to sort the problem of “performance parity”!