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British Touring Car Championship
2012 Season Preview

By MJP Media | 19 March 2012

The 2012 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship gets under way in just over a week and a half when the teams and drivers make their way to Brands Hatch in Kent on March 31/April 1 for the opening rounds of the 2012 season.

On track at Silverstone Media Day
On track at Silverstone Media Day

24 cars are due to take to the grid with 10 different models from 9 different makers - Audi, BMW, Ford, Honda, MG, Proton, Toyota, Vauxhall and VW.

2012 will see the start of a new era for the BTCC as all the cars will race with a 2.0 litre turbo-charged engine. Over half the cars will be built to the championship's full Next Generation Touring Car (NGTC) regulations with the remainder being S2000-based cars fitted with turbo engines built to the NGTC specification.

The Class of 2012
The Class of 2012

Matt Neal will return with Honda Yuasa Racing Team to defend his 2011 title and will be joined once again by Gordon Shedden driving full specification NGTC Honda Civics. The team encountered a few technical problems during early testing of the new car however with a wealth of BTCC experience behind them they are certain to be competitive when the season starts.

The iconic MG name will return to the BTCC grid in 2012 with MG KX Momentum Racing running two MG6 GTs in the hands of Andy Neate and former BTCC champion Jason Plato. With a full factory-backed programme, the cars will be prepared by Triple Eight Race Engineering, one of the BTCC's most successful constructors, so they could well be a force to be reckoned with.

Jason Plato's MG KX Momentum Racing MG6
Jason Plato's MG KX Momentum Racing MG6

Elsewhere, Ollie Jackson joins AmD Tuning.com to drive their VW Golf. Tom Onslow-Cole joins Rob Collard and Nick Foster at WSR as they continue to run the fantastic handling BMW 320si under the eBay Motors team name. Adam Morgan will join Tony Hughes at Speedworks driving a Toyota Avensis thanks to his victory in the Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup. Mat Jackson and Liam Griffin remain at Motorbase and will be joined by Aron Smith who is the current Motorsport Ireland Dunlop Young Racing Driver of the Year to drive the Redstone Racing Ford Focus STs.

Other new names to look out for in 2012 include John Thorne driving the Thorney Motorsport Vauxhall Ensignia VXR-R and Mark Hazell driving the Rob Austin Racing Audi A4.

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship is set for yet another thrilling season in 2012 and it all starts on March 31/April 1 at Brands Hatch in Kent. For tickets visit www.brandshatch.co.uk or call the Ticket Hotline on 0843 453 9000. Live race-day coverage can be seen on ITV4 and ITV4 HD and full race-by-race reports will appear in these pages. Don't miss out on the action!

Touring Car content supplied by MJP Media

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A VIEW FROM THE DRIVER'S SEAT

A regular account of life in the British Touring Car Championship from the driver's point of view

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Mirror Online-sponsored Thorney Motorsport are prepping their Vauxhall Insignias for the new British Touring Car Championship season. Team boss John Thorne explains how it's done.

Preparing for British Touring Cars in 2012: We meet team owner John Thorne Preparing for British Touring Cars in 2012: We meet team owner John Thorne
We caught up with the man running the Mirror Online-sponsored Vauxhall Insignia in the 2012 British Touring Car Championships, John Thorne.

View from the driver's seat: British Touring Car driver John Thorne View from the driver's seat: British Touring Car driver John Thorne
Thorney Motorsport team owner and driver John Thorne prepares his Mirror Online-sponsored team for the 2012 British Touring Car Championship.

Mirror Online partners up with British Touring Car team Thorney Motorsport Mirror Online partners up with British Touring Car team Thorney Motorsport
BTCC team announces major additions to its team for 2012, including sponsorship from Mirror Online.

 

TOURING CARS - LATEST NEWS

Race reports and previews from the British Touring Car Championship plus British interests in other international Touring Car series

BTCC - 2012 Season Preview BTCC - 2012 Season Preview
The 2012 British Touring Car Championship gets under way in just over a week and a half when the teams and drivers make their way to Brands Hatch in Kent on March 31/April 1 for the opening rounds of the 2012 season.

Honda's woes as problems hit the new NGTC Civic Honda's woes as problems hit the new NGTC Civic
The legendary reliability of the Honda Racing Civics was for the first time under question this week as a number of issues seemed to beset the car.

Smith shines in British Touring Car testing at Oulton Park Smith shines in British Touring Car testing at Oulton Park
Oulton Park in Cheshire played host to the latest BTCC testing this week with appearances by the Motorbase, Honda Racing and Speedworks teams ahead of the season which starts on 1st April at Brands Hatch in Kent.

Thorney Motorsport announce Rob Hedley as their 2nd BTCC driver Thorney Motorsport announce Rob Hedley as their 2nd BTCC driver
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Honda Racing continue testing the new 2012 BTCC Civic Honda Racing continue testing the new 2012 BTCC Civic
The Honda Racing Team's new Civic hit the track for the second time this week with a visit to Leicestershire's Donington Park, five weeks before the 2012 BTCC season gets under way at Brands Hatch on Sunday 1 April.

Motorbase confirm Jackson, Griffin and Smith for 2012 BTCC campaign Motorbase confirm Jackson, Griffin and Smith for 2012 BTCC campaign
Motorbase have announced that Mat Jackson and Liam Griffin will remain with the team for the 2012 BTCC season and will be joined by current Motorsport Ireland Dunlop Young Racing Driver of the Year; Aron Smith.