2017 BTCC season launched at Donington Park
The 2017 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship has been launched at Donington Park with Media Day and an official pre-season test. Thirty-two full-season drivers are again on the entry list with cars from eleven manufacturers.
The current grid is the most successful in a history, as 16 drivers previously recorded BTCC race victories, collecting 329 wins between them. Five entrants already clinched championship titles – Gordon Shedden, Matt Neal, Jason Plato, Colin Turkington and Andrew Jordan. The number of rookies, who will fight for the Jack Sears Trophy, is also five – Senna Proctor, Josh Price, Luke Davenport, Ant Whorton-Eales and Will Burns.
BTCC drivers class 2017
On the list of manufacturers, the biggest news is a return of Vauxhall, which chose Power Maxed Racing as manufacturers’ entry with Vauxhall Astra. West Surrey Racing will continue to run BMW 125i M Sport machines with a factory support from BMW. Other entries eligible to score manufacturers’ points are Honda (Team Dynamics), Subaru (Team BMR) and MG (Triple Eight Racing). On the independents’ side of a grid, eleven teams will fight for trophies. Six more brands on the grid will be Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Chevrolet.
The 2017 BTCC calendar features 30 races, across ten events at nine venues. The season starts at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit on April 1-2 and concluding on the legendary Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit on September 30/October 1.
BTCC winner’s trophy
2017 BTCC season entry list
(R denotes rookies)
| Number | Team | Car | Driver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Power Maxed Racing | Vauxhall Astra | Tom Chilton |
| 3 | Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Duo/Motorbase Performance | Ford Focus ST | Mat Jackson |
| 4 | Team BMW/West Surrey Racing | BMW 125i M Sport | Colin Turkington |
| 5 | Team BMW/West Surrey Racing | BMW 125i M Sport | Rob Collard |
| 7 | Team Parker Racing with Maximum Motorsport | Ford Focus ST | Stephen Jelley |
| 10 | AmD Tuning | Audi S3 Saloon | Ant Whorton-Eales (R) |
| 11 | Handy Motorsport | Toyota Avensis | Rob Austin |
| 12 | Autoaid/RCIB Insurance Racing/Team HARD | Volkswagen CC | Michael Epps |
| 16 | Laser Tools Racing | Mercedes-Benz A-Class | Aiden Moffat |
| 17 | BTC Norlin Racing | Chevrolet Cruze | Dave Newsham |
| 18 | Power Maxed Racing | Vauxhall Astra | Senna Proctor (R) |
| 20 | Adrian Flux Subaru Racing/Team BMR | Subaru Levorg GT | James Cole |
| 22 | BTC Norlin Racing | Chevrolet Cruze | Chris Smiley |
| 23 | MG RCiB Insurance Racing/Triple Eight Racing | MG6 GT | Daniel Lloyd |
| 24 | TAG Racing/Team HARD | Volkswagen CC | Jake Hill |
| 25 | Halfords Yuasa Racing/Team Dynamics | Honda Civic Type R | Matt Neal |
| 28 | Team BMR Racing Academy | Subaru Levorg GT | Josh Price (R) |
| 30 | Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Duo/Motorbase Performance | Ford Focus ST | Martin Depper |
| 31 | Eurotech Racing | Honda Civic Type R | Jack Goff |
| 33 | CiceleyMotorsport with MAC Tools | Mercedes-Benz A-Class | Adam Morgan |
| 40 | MG RCiB Insurance Racing/Triple Eight Racing | MG6 GT | Aron Taylor-Smith |
| 48 | AmD Tuning | Audi S3 Saloon | Ollie Jackson |
| 52 | Halfords Yuasa Racing/Team Dynamics | Honda Civic Type R | Gordon Shedden |
| 55 | Eurotech Racing | Honda Civic Type R | Jeff Smith |
| 61 | Autoaid/RCIB Insurance Racing/Team HARD | Volkswagen CC | Will Burns (R) |
| 66 | Team Parker Racing with Maximum Motorsport | Ford Focus ST | Josh Cook |
| 77 | BMW Pirtek Racing/West Surrey Racing | BMW 125i M Sport | Andrew Jordan |
| 80 | Speedworks Motorsport | Toyota Avensis | Tom Ingram |
| 99 | Adrian Flux Subaru Racing/Team BMR | Subaru Levorg GT | Jason Plato |
| 116 | Adrian Flux Subaru Racing/Team BMR | Subaru Levorg GT | Ashley Sutton |
| 300 | Team Shredded Wheat Racing with Duo/Motorbase Performance | Ford Focus ST | Luke Davenport (R) |
| 303 | Simpson Racing | Honda Civic Type R | Matt Simpson |
Photos: btcc.net,
