As the 2014 BTCC season draws ever closer, things are starting to
form nicely; a number of driver announcements have been made, all of the ToCA
licenses have been issued and bar a few teams, the fans have an idea of who to
expect on the grid for the first round of the 2014 season at Brands Hatch in
March.
After a number of rumours circulating
that there could be seven BTCC champions in the series this year, Airwaves Racing have officially confirmed that double champion, Fabrizio Giovanardi, who has been away from the series since 2010, will be returning to the series, and will be lining up alongside Jason Plato, Gordon Shedden, Matt Neal, reigning champion Andrew Jordan and another returning champion, Alain Menu. 2009 champion
Colin Turkington has yet to announce his plans for the season, with his team
from last season eBay Motors also keeping their plans under wraps for the time
being, but it is very likely that he too could be back alongside the other champions.
The only other
uncertainty regarding the series so far is whether we will see Speedworks back on the grid, as well as the full driver line up for Airwaves alongside Giovanardi. There is also uncertainty regarding the future of ES Racing,
despite team boss Chris James stating his intent on returning to the series in
NGTC machinery.
On the whole though, the majority of the
teams have already confirmed their entries on the grid, and the cars that they
will be competing in. Some of the teams have already begun pre-season testing
too, with Honda Yuasa completing a five day test at Rockingham in their new
Civic Tourer. Reigning champion Andrew Jordan has also been out testing in the
hatchback model of the Civic along with his new team mate Martin Depper, as
well as Rob Austin giving his re-shelled Audi A4, Sherman, a maiden run out.
Until media day has come and passed, it is
very hard to make any predictions yet as to who will shine or fall in the
upcoming season. However, with Alain Menu and Fabrizio Giovanardi returning, it is very likely that
this year's BTCC season could be the most competitive yet, depending on how
quickly teams get their cars set up and, of course, what incidents may occur in
the 30 unpredictable races.
