The British Touring Car Championship is loved by fans for producing great racing – which inevitably creates plenty of drama and the occasional dash of controversy. Autocar will again back the series when the 2020 season finally resumes, so to whet your appetite for whenever that might be, here are five of the most dramatic title showdowns in the BTCC’s history.
5 - Rydell collects for Volvo (1998)
The BTCC’s 1990s Super Touring era is fondly remembered, but it produced very few title showdowns. The battle did go down to the wire in the classic, ultra-competitive 1998 season, though. Eight manufacturers took part, with nine different drivers winning races. Having clashed on track earlier in the season, Rickard Rydell (Volvo S40) and Anthony Reid (Nissan Primera) battled for the crown at Silverstone. The Swede claimed the title despite Reid winning the finale.
4 - Fastest lap nets crown (2004)
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Tim Harvey's a good driver,
Tim Harvey's a good driver, all round nice guy, a talented and amusing commentator - and should never have been champion that year.
For Soper's antics, the team should have been disqualified from that round - Soper's car had bits hanging off it and he then, deliberately, drove Cleland off the track.Cleland no doubt was a hard driver and had his share of scrapes over the years, but Soper's behaviour was among the worst seen in top flight racing. Interestingly BMW seemed to attract such drivers on the track - Roberto Ravaglia did something similar driving Paul Radisich off the track and infuriating Alain Menu with his tactics.Don't know what it is about BMW - but bellends seem to love 'em.
Imagine a title decider with
The supetourers may not have had many title battles but the on track battles were great, Menu, Rydel, Biela, Tarquini, Cleland, Thompson, Plato, Harvey, Hoy, Lesley etc all regular protagonists. A great era of Btcc.