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Hunter Abbott confirms for 2015 as the BTCC announces huge TV deal

By MJP Media | 12 February 2015

Hunter Abbott has confirmed that he will continue with Rob Austin Racing for the 2015 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship whilst Series Director Alan Gow has announced a multi-year TV deal in North America.

Hunter Abbott in his 2014 AlcoSense Breathalysers Racing Audi A4

Worcestershire team Rob Austin Racing will continue with its 2014 driver line-up of Rob Austin and Hunter Abbott in the 2015 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. Furthermore, Britain's best fuel additives and home breathalyser companies FAST Exocet and AlcoSense will again title-sponsor both of the team's BTCC Audi A4s along with continued support from major international aggregates expert DUO Plc.

The team is setting its sights on a thorough pre-season testing programme of both Audis as Austin and Abbott seek to improve considerably on 2014's results. Abbott commented: "2014 was my first season in the BTCC and a learning year. The BTCC is like nothing else - the depth of competition and driving skill is among the highest of any motor racing championship in the world and you have to race harder and more ruthlessly than any other championship I've been in. Give an inch and someone will have a nose in there in a nanosecond."

Rob Austin in 'Sherman' - his Exocet Racing Audi A4

Abbott continued: "I was happy to have finished in the points at my first ever BTCC event last year and the highlights for me were Rockingham and Croft where I overtook 17 cars in one race. With a year's experience under my belt and the changes that Rob has made to both the team and the cars during the winter break I am really excited about returning for 2015. I'm going after consistently strong results across all 30 races and believe that podiums are a realistic target as well."

Team Principal Rob Austin added: "The whole team is delighted to have Hunter back on board. He is a great driver, a great guy, a great friend and everyone in the team loves him. He almost won the Jack Sears Trophy and overtook more drivers than any other rookie in 2014. There were some very strong results - I am confident he can become one of the stand-out names in touring cars in 2015. Certainly we have been working damned hard behind the scenes to give Hunter a car that can enable him to fight for big results on a much more consistent basis - things will become clearer on that front in the coming weeks and certainly on Media Day when we unveil the Audis in full 2015 specification."

BTCC Series Director Alan Gow with 2014 champion Colin Turkington

The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship meantime is delighted to announce its largest ever television deal in North America after agreeing a multi-year contract which will see the championship broadcast on the giant CBS Sports Network (CBSSN) to 60+ million households across the US and Canada. CBS will present an action-packed 1 hour highlights programme of every round as well as it being available on their online service for 90 days after each event.

Global popularity in the BTCC continues to reach new heights with the championship being broadcast across five continents. This latest agreement means that the BTCC will be available to more than 500 million homes worldwide in 2015 with further significant international broadcast arrangements soon to be announced. BTCC Series Director Alan Gow said: "This is the biggest coverage the BTCC has ever had in the important and vast North American market and we are delighted to announce this long-term broadcast arrangement with Torque.TV that includes the coverage on CBS Sports Network."

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