Welcome back Martin!

I don't think I was the only fan that was surprised today when I found out that Pirtek Racing have hired Martin Depper as a team mate for BTCC champion Andrew Jordan, but it was definitely a pleasant surprise to find out he'll be back next year.

Since I got into the series in 2010, I've always been a big fan of Depper and then team mate Arthur Forster for their BTCC project. I can't imagine it is an easy task to run a team in touring car racing, even for the manufacturer teams. Forster Motorsport deserve a lot of credit for trying in 2010, and even though they didn't have that many great results, not many people can claim they have run their own team and raced in Britain's biggest motorsport championship.

In my opinion, I'm delighted to see Martin come back. He shown a lot of potential in the ageing Forster Motorsport BMW in 2010, and with his vast experience from the MINI Challenge, he should have more than enough skill to handle a front wheel drive touring car. Of course it's a completely different ball game and a huge jump up from the MINI's, but with him being back in familiar territory in a front wheel drive machine, then I honestly think that he can get consistent top 10 finishes. He's got a fantastic team mate in the reigning BTCC champion, and Pirtek's engineers have been fantastic time and time again with their Honda Civic's.

It's far too early to make any predictions yet though, and it won't be until after the first few rounds that we will see what Martin can deliver, but for me he is a fantastic addition to the 2014 grid and I can't wait to see him back in action and hopefully mixing in with the action