2001 AA.Com BTCC - A Year of Questions...

[Mp3 Astra]

...mostly from me.

This was the first year when I became an absolute and true BTCC fan (beforehand they had just been "cars with rooves") and I remember my own reaction to the stunningly thin grid offered by the first rounds of the championship. But I want to know what you all thought!

1) What did you think when you saw the thin grids, or heard that the BTCC grid would be amazingly small? Also, if you were actually at those rounds, describe the reaction by the crowd when they saw the grid.

2) Were you optimistic for the future, or did you think this could be a slow death for the Country's best tin-top championship?

3) When they started changing the rules, such as the delayed start for the production cars, what was your opinion?


4) At the end of the year, what did you think for the future of the BTCC?

5) Any other comments?

Sorry about the survey nature of this thread, but I want to know what everyone else thought about it! Answer and debate... GO!

[VkmSpouge]

1) What did you think when you saw the thin grids, or heard that the BTCC grid would be amazingly small? Also, if you were actually at those rounds, describe the reaction by the crowd when they saw the grid.

I watched the first race on TV and thought, "8 cars isn't good". I suspected that they would have to make the Touring Class and Production Class cars race together in both races.

2) Were you optimistic for the future, or did you think this could be a slow death for the Country's best tin-top championship?

I was reasonably optimistic because I knew there were 2 Lexus and 1 Alfa Romeo scheduled to join the grid at the next race and that Peugeot were bound to improve and catch up with Vauxhall by some stage in the year (of course the 2nd Lexus never actually showed and Peugeot remained as far behind Vauxhall as ever but I wasn't to know that at the time). Plus the Production Class was extremely healthy and provided plenty of good racing.

3) When they started changing the rules, such as the delayed start for the production cars, what was your opinion?

I thought it would help to distract from the severe lack of cars in the Touring Class.

4) At the end of the year, what did you think for the future of the BTCC?

At the end of the year I thought things were looking up with MG having joined and beaten Vauxhall. The Peugeots, Alfas and Lexus had improved through the year and the Production class was quite competitive. In terms of competition and Touring Class grid size things could only get better for 2002.

[racer69]

From an Australian perspective......

1) I wasn't really suprised, given the drama's of the previous season or two with slowly diminishing grids, change of championship management & rules changes, that only a small amount of BTC-T cars fronted, plus the fact that the BTCC was going it alone rules wise. I was actually of the belief that they probably should have made the championship for Super Production cars, and implemate common rules with other championships for 2002/3.

2) I wasn't optimistic of the BTC-Touring class' future (I was wrong ), but the championship as a whole will always survive no matter what the rules package is.

3) I thought the production class headstart was abit of a farce.

4) By the end of the year things had come along well, coupled with a championship battle at the end of the season....just a shame Plato didn't come back to defend it.

5) I still think it was a mistake to go their own way rules wise in 2001. Whilst admittedly they couldn;t really have gone on with Super Touring into 2001 like the ETCC did along with the STCC, working together on a common rules package for Europe would surely have been more desireable. Having said that, the BTCC has kept getting stronger (perhaps with the exception of 2005 where it plateaued abit)

[Les]

I had friends in the production class so for me it was great. I was (and still am) not so concerned with what the leading class type of car is - super tourer, the btcc spec or s2000 spec but that the racing is tight.
A close race of 8 cars is far better than a 20 car procession.
so
1) there would be more
2) never thought there would be a problem - if the top class went then the production cars would take over.
3) liked it and enjoyed it
4) it would be better next year

[touringlegend]

I knew at the time it was only a cyclical phase the championship was going through, knew it would come good again.

RE the BTC-T rules if I remember, they were all set to be adopted by the then ETCC until BMW opposed them and wanted S2000, a fancier Super Production set of rules to which they had a suitable car already..

[BDunnell]

1) What did you think when you saw the thin grids, or heard that the BTCC grid would be amazingly small?

I thought that it wouldn't be good for crowds, media coverage or TV viewing figures.

2) Were you optimistic for the future, or did you think this could be a slow death for the Country's best tin-top championship?

Optimistic for the future, because Super Touring was obviously dying.

3) When they started changing the rules, such as the delayed start for the production cars, what was your opinion?

I didn't like that. It didn't really spice up the show for me.

4) At the end of the year, what did you think for the future of the BTCC?

It looked good, because the potential was there for the future, and 2001 was clearly the lowest point. Vauxhall and MG had both committed to 2002, as well.

5) Any other comments?

Yes. The racing may not always have been at its cleanest, but 2001 was one of the most dramatic championship battles the BTCC has ever seen, in my opinion — even though it was rather bitter! There were also some great individual performances, such as Steve Soper nearly winning at Oulton Park and Anthony Reid's incredibly skilful — if lucky — victory for MG at the final meeting. By that time, the BTC Touring part of the championship was already looking a lot healthier. The MGs were there and clearly competitive, and the Lexus and Alfas, although not race-winners, weren't embarrassingly slow.

[BDunnell]

RE the BTC-T rules if I remember, they were all set to be adopted by the then ETCC until BMW opposed them and wanted S2000, a fancier Super Production set of rules to which they had a suitable car already..

This is my recollection as well. Looking back, the FIA's decision caused the BTCC a thorny problem which it is only just seeing the back of, in the shape of the BTCC/S2000 'equivalency' rule.

[wedge]

Just one of those things in motorsport. As been noted most motorsport championships goes through cyclical phases.

As Chairman Mao once said: a great revolution starts with one single step.

[SEATFreak]

Such deep thoughts for a fan so new as myself at the time but here goes....

1) What did you think when you saw the thin grids, or heard that the BTCC grid would be amazingly small? Also, if you were actually at those rounds, describe the reaction by the crowd when they saw the grid.?

I began following about halfway in 2001 and I didn't give the thin grids any thought as it didn't occour to me it was a thinner grid than normal.

I went to only Croft for the first time in 2001 supporting Tommy Erdos and I must admit I didn't pay any attention to the looks on other faces. Whether they were angry or plain bored ridgid.

2) Were you optimistic for the future, or did you think this could be a slow death for the Country's best tin-top championship?

No. I never thought about what the BTCC would be like in the future.

3) When they started changing the rules, such as the delayed start for the production cars, what was your opinion?

"Blimey....give me a chance to catch up with everything!"

4) At the end of the year, what did you think for the future of the BTCC?

Again I didn't think about the future.

5) Any other comments?

No. But I do think that 2001 wasn't all that bad. It wasn't all Vauxhall Motorsport dominated despite Peugeot Sport UK and JSM being nowhere near the pace of the Astras. HTML proved you can do well without having factory backing - the man in charge now Team Manager at SEAT; Jonathan Haynes, and Tommy Erdos I felt competed well in a Lexus that was as far as I know new to the BTCC

[Mark]

Why not go to the archive and see what people were posting on the forum at the time!