Honda Racing's Matt Neal is hoping for an improved 2015 season, after a disappointing campaign for him and the team last season.
The three times BTCC champion struggled in the all new Honda Civic Tourer in 2014, finishing eighth in the overall drivers standings and over 200 points behind champion Colin Turkington.
Speaking at the recent Autosport Show in Birmingham, Neal is hopeful that 2015 will be a better year both for him and the team:
"I had a rough 2014 so I'm looking forward to getting that behind me and hopefully having a much better 2015. It's a shame because the Tourer was a great car and I'm still a fan of it but that's finished now so we're looking ahead for 2015 and building new cars; it hasn't been decided exactly which model yet but I'm excited about it".
There haven't been many announcements from the team so far during the off-season, but Honda did confirm that Gordon Shedden will be running again with the team in the second car alongside Neal, something which he is very happy about:
"We know each other well and we got on with each other off the track as well as on it, and it's continuity which is good. It's great to have Honda back in too, Dynamics never seem to build a slow car, and my engineer reminded me that in every year ending in five we normally have a good year so I'm hopeful".
As well as MG, Honda have also been joined by another manufacturer, with the Infiniti Support Our Paras Racing team entering the series with Richard Hawken and Derek Palmer Jr behind the wheel. Neal, though, is confident that Honda can continue to compete at the front and in the hunt for the manufacturer's title.
"Hopefully the Infiniti won't give us too much trouble, but it's the established packages such as BMW and MG who will give us the most trouble, and it'll be tough because we're going to have a new car. Having said that I don't think the championship is going to be any less competitive than it has been over the last few years, it's just that those teams are going to be tough to beat, but whoever wins it is going to have a fight on their hands".
Neal also admits that he is looking forward to the opening round the most, with Brands Hatch being one of his favourite circuits, and with Honda running their new car both he and the team will be looking to get a result.
It will be interesting to see which model Honda choose to run for the 2015 BTCC campaign, and whether it will be a challenger after the disappointment of the Civic Tourer last season.
Written and interviewed by Alan Faulkner
Photo Credit: Alan Faulkner
"Hopefully the Infiniti won't give us too much trouble, but it's the established packages such as BMW and MG who will give us the most trouble, and it'll be tough because we're going to have a new car. Having said that I don't think the championship is going to be any less competitive than it has been over the last few years, it's just that those teams are going to be tough to beat, but whoever wins it is going to have a fight on their hands".
Neal also admits that he is looking forward to the opening round the most, with Brands Hatch being one of his favourite circuits, and with Honda running their new car both he and the team will be looking to get a result.
It will be interesting to see which model Honda choose to run for the 2015 BTCC campaign, and whether it will be a challenger after the disappointment of the Civic Tourer last season.
Written and interviewed by Alan Faulkner
Photo Credit: Alan Faulkner
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