BTCC COULD TRIM GRID SIZE DOWN
Tin-top series boss es want to trim amount of cars
British Touring Car Championship series director Alan Gow says it is his desire to see a maximum of 26 cars on the grid in the future.
Thirty-two cars participate in the series presently, and each entry has a TOCA BTCC Licence [TBL], which secures their place in the line-up. This system was implemented for the 2014 season onwards.
TBLS can be sold or leased between teams with the approval of TOCA. But, if a team defaults on the conditions of the TBL, which include appearance at every round and stipulations over the number of driver swaps during the year, then the TBL is forfeited.
Gow said that the current 32-car line-up meant the BTCC was at its very limit, and he had a desire to slash that number by six.
“I would prefer for there to be less and, in fact, I’ve been telling the teams over the last couple of years that I want to reduce the grid size. I’m not going to just take a team’s TBL from them, so have been hoping it will be achieved through natural attrition,” said Gow. “Each year, the teams bring more and more kit with them and you only have to look at the paddock – at some smaller venues, we are simply bursting at the seams. High numbers can also create problems on-track: for example on the tight Indy track at Brands or at Knockhill, with the cars so close there are just too many cars fighting for the same piece of track.
“A more consolidated entry would be better for everyone.”