Does The BTCC need Big names?

[Erdosfreak]

A lot of people have been saying the BTCC is loosing its reputation as the greatest touring car championship just because big name drivers are leaving. Tarquini,Kristensen, Menu have all gone but they are greats of the 90's.
How do u think new big names are made? By giving then a chance. Eaves/Priaulx/Howell/Hughes are just at the start of a Touring car carreer and will become big names.
Why hold on to the past when there is such a great future.


Do You agree?

[Eddie_harasym]

Yep I agree. Touring cars have had to change worldwide, not just the BTCC.

[Jimeth]

I agree whole heartedly, whilst the big names of the 90's were great, the new guys are just as good if not better, and they don't moan as much!

[argybargy]

Agreed - but we need to see a few more characters emerging. Who's going to be the Cleland/Menu/Harvey of tomorrow?

Personally, I found the moaning quite amusing, particularly from the likes of Cleland - he developed a style that was all his own and always had something interesting to say.Unlike Steve Soper. (Great driver, though).

[Radisichrox]

Like I said on the BTCC pages forum, I think the BTCC needs a good balance of British and Foreign drivers. Maybe someday there'll be an American BTCC driver, but I'm dreaming

[BootsOntheSide]

The real problem comes when you look where the big stars are. Aiello, Menu, Winklehock (all BTCC champions), and Alesi and Wendlinger (well known ex-F1) are all in DTM, and the ETCC has taken many big names from around Europe. It'd be great if the BTCC could attract the top drivers from continental championships, get someone like Abt Sportsline to run a team here. Also, as the big name cars from Mercedes, Alfa ans co are eligable, I hope we get them running here. The man on the street doesn't know much about MG, Proton or Lexus, and Vauxhall, Peugeot and Honda don't hold a very glamourous image.

[SPOONERBORO]

dont think we need the names like cleland, harvey, etc but we could do with the high professional drivers back eg Rydell, Menu, Aeillo and then maybe a few others from dtm gt's schneider, dumbrek, pirro, biela!! having said that you would only get them with them big budgets supported by the manufacturers - which i have to say minus the budget would like to see more high profile manufacturers return.

[AndyF]

Don't think we need the big names of old, we have plenty of up-and-coming drivers rather than filling up the grid with drivers who are past it!

[Jimeth]

from a personal point of view i'd like Rydell back, as i like him as a guy, and also his battles with Reid in 98 were excelllent. Yes with three l's!

[kmchow]

Well, I don't think that bad names are mandatory or necessary, but they certainly can't hurt. Good racing also helps. But I think the biggest factor is ENTHUSIASTIC manufacturer support. When manufacturers start leaving, it definitely hurts the reputation of the series. It's like the dominoe effect.

[rick vaux]

James Thompson, thats fairly long..

[Carrie]

Originally posted by kmchow
Well, I don't think that bad names are mandatory or necessary, but they certainly can't hurt.

Ain't it amazing the way one single typo can completely change the meaning of a sentence
As for drivers, we seem to be developing a good mix of experienced drivers and newer drivers and at the end of the day it's those newer drivers who will hopefully show the potential to be the future of the series and to become the big names.

[nicker less]

It needs a few to keep the balance, while the up and coming young drivers become big.

[adamp_uk]

i think that the many big name drivers will eventually be attracted back to BTCC, because as it looks at the moment its still expanding and will continue to, Also the cars dont look that different to the ETCC cars

[KA]

Yes, without a doubt.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticising the quality of drivers we've got, but you do need to have some of the 'name' drivers from the last few years in the series- without the presence of guys like Yvan Muller, James Thompson, Matt Neal, David Leslie etc, it's difficult to judge just how good the young drivers starting to come through really are- you need the experienced guys there as a yardstick for that reason alone.

It's also important that they're there for the image of the championship- for much of the 90's the BTCC was regarded as the best touring car series in the world- the one that all the top drivers- Winkelhock, Soper, Tarquini, Aiello, Ravaglia, Rydell etc raced in at some point. The mix of drivers we've got at present doesn't yet create that impression in quite the same way- I'm not being critical, I firmly believe that the BTCC is well on the way back to the top, but it isn't quite there at present.

If another manufactuer was to come in next year and bring back a couple of top international names- (even Menu...!), then that would be another step towards regaining the reputation the series had a few years ago. The return of Matt Neal this year has helped a lot in that respect, and I really hope that Muller stays with the BTCC for at least a couple more years.