BTCC vs WTCC vs DTM vs V8 Supercars

[RJL25]

Anyone who thinks a V8 Supercar is a dinosaur doesn't really know anything about V8 Supercars.

Yes the engines have pushrods, and theres a live axle, and the weight limit for the catagory is quite high, but putting those thigns aside, these race cars are every bit as advanced and the engineering quality just as good as you'll find in any other touring car catagory in the world.

The teams have to work within the framework of the regulations, so if the regs require a pushrod and live axle then so be it, but that doesn't mean the race cars aren't magnificnent peices of engineering, which I can assure you if you ever get a chance to have an up close look at one you will see is definetly the case.

The Car of the Future regulations for V8 Supercars are quite exciting. They are looking at lowering the weight limit to around 1250kg, independant rear suspension, rear transaxle sequential gearbox, and more freedom in the engine regs (SOHC and DOHC will be eligable) and the strong possibility of more manufacturers joining the series.

So far Toyota, Hyundai, Nissan, BMW and even Mercedes at one point or another has been linked to V8 Supercars once the new regs come on board in 2013. (The mercedes one wouldn't actually be an official mercedes entry, rather a mercedes backed entry funded by AMG's Australian dealer network)

[racer69]

I think your being abit fanciful with how 'exciting' the COTF is going to be, it is effectively just a NASCAR COT, with a standard chassis and any bodywork covering, not Touring Car racing in my opinion.

As for the manufacturers linked, both Toyota and BMW have totally denounced the speculation of them being interested, BMW saying that the only chance of them even looking at it would be if they could run their new DTM car. The Mercedes rumour didn;t go much further than "Auto Action" magazine. I haven't read an speculation on Hyundai, but given they are introducing the Genisis to the Australian market, they could be a chance.

Problem with new manufacturers is that they were totally booted out of the series at the end of 1992, at a time when BMW and Nissan were more committed to local touring car racing than Holden or Ford, and until now have been told they were not welcome in the ATCC/V8SCS....... just because V8Supercars have decided they can now enter, hardly means other makes will be beating the door down for an entry.

[F1boat]

Really? I find the races to be of good length generally - sometimes the officiating is a bit appalling in V8s, but I suppose that applies to a lot of racing series. At least races generally aren't wreckfests like BTCC can be.

One of the things that I do find lacking in the V8 supercar calendar is circuits that allow the cars to stretch their legs a bit. There's too many purpose built circuits on the V8 calendar that are flat as a tack and 3km long or shorter. There's Winton, Hidden Valley, Queensland Raceway and Symonds Plains, and to a lesser extent Sandown Raceway that all fall into this category.

I feel that the V8 Supercars are a little overgrown for the number of club circuits on the calendar.

The V8 cars I love at Mt. Panorama. That's an amazing track. Totally awesome. About the lenght of the races, I guess that it's a matter of taste. I personally love the WTCC/BTCC format with short, but many races, this turns them into a non-stop action-packed sprint, while in V8SC sometimes are kinda F1-ish, follow the leader and explore tactics.

[UltimateDanGTR]

The V8 cars I love at Mt. Panorama. That's an amazing track. Totally awesome. About the lenght of the races, I guess that it's a matter of taste. I personally love the WTCC/BTCC format with short, but many races, this turns them into a non-stop action-packed sprint, while in V8SC sometimes are kinda F1-ish, follow the leader and explore tactics.

Currently though, V8SC races are more exciting than WTCC races. I like both formats; the BTCC is the perfect format for what it is, however I'd like to see WTCC races have longer races like V8SC, if they could improve the racing and manufacturer entry lists.

[ShiftingGears]

I think your being abit fanciful with how 'exciting' the COTF is going to be, it is effectively just a NASCAR COT, with a standard chassis and any bodywork covering, not Touring Car racing in my opinion.

As for the manufacturers linked, both Toyota and BMW have totally denounced the speculation of them being interested, BMW saying that the only chance of them even looking at it would be if they could run their new DTM car. The Mercedes rumour didn;t go much further than "Auto Action" magazine. I haven't read an speculation on Hyundai, but given they are introducing the Genisis to the Australian market, they could be a chance.

Problem with new manufacturers is that they were totally booted out of the series at the end of 1992, at a time when BMW and Nissan were more committed to local touring car racing than Holden or Ford, and until now have been told they were not welcome in the ATCC/V8SCS....... just because V8Supercars have decided they can now enter, hardly means other makes will be beating the door down for an entry.

I completely agree.

[Donney]

V8 supercars is a wonderful championship, fast cars, great engine noise and a very good mix of sprint, long and endurance races.
BTCC very ordinary looking cars but it is a championship which never fails to produce great racing and the rules seem to work very well.

WTCC and DTM both very different, one wants to be a reference and the other as said before is a glorified series for big cars with lots of wings and winglets, in my opinion both extremely boring.

[BTCC2]

BTCC by a mile IMO the only one in the same league is the V8 Supercars.

[djparky]

in terms of rules- definitely DTM or V8 Supercars.

The BTCC and WTCC are fine but they're rep mobiles with some sponsor stickers and are not desperately exciting at times.

DTM used to be brilliant under the old ITC guise, but in recent years it's turned into F1 with a roof- all decided on pit strategy and little or no overtaking on the track and is very dull to watch. They need to return to 2 race weekends and quit this boring strategy stuff.

I always enjoy Aussie V8's- I was lucky enough to go to Bathhurst back in the mid 90's- unfortunately I rarely get a chance to watch the V8 coverage nowadays, but I enjoyed what I saw at Yas Marina on Motors the other week

[DazzlaF1]

Well here's my view

WTCC
Potentially, the FIA has a real winner of a championship, great names, a super TV contract with Eurosport and super tracks which includes a visit to the world famous Macau Grand Prix, but they always seem to mess up when it comes to rule making, ever since SEAT brought the turbo-diesel engine to Touring Car racing, they've always struggled to equalize the field in the regulation stakes. Plus allowing manufacturers to field unlimited size squads certainly has not helped, for example thanks to slipstreaming tactics, SEAT were always able to make full use of their 5 or 6 car lineups in qualifying which led to precessional bore-fests in the races. 2011 will be a struggle with just Chevrolet the only full manufacturer team left and with only 4 makes of car on the grid, there is not much variety to get excited about.

BTCC
Alan Gow in my view has got this championship spot on throughout, succeeding where the FIA failed in terms of fair mechanical rules and regulations whilst still providing great and exciting thrill-a-minute racing. Like the WTCC, the BTCC has some great personalities, a brilliant TV deal with ITV and visits some of the best tracks the UK has to offer. And with a new much cheaper rules package in the offing (NGTC) the BTCC could potentially once again become the new platform for other championships to follow. Variety is something the BTCC also has going for it with 2011 potentially seeing a record TEN manufacturers represented in a near 30 car field.

DTM
This V8 series has awesome potential but its main problem is it wants to be like Formula 1 so badly, and that is a bad precedent, for instance, F1/NASCAR style pitsops, F1 style strategy, near F1 style race distances and even adopting the F1 points system (albeit the old one). The races also provide very little excitement and there is not a lot of variety in terms of manufacturers (of which they only have 2, soon to be 3) But its big strength is its all star driver lineup, the majority of the grid is instantly recogniseable to the average European racing fan. But it will never improve unless it tries to gain its own identity rather than trying to be like its more illustrious single seatered cousin.

V8 SUPERCARS
Basically NASCAR if it raced on road courses all the time instead of ovals. Thats not a bad thing though as its a great series to watch when you get the opportunity, a great mix of short sprints, hour long races and endurance races (of which they have their own marquee event, the Bathurst 1000). The big downside in my view is the lack of variety in cars, just 2 manufacturers who use cars that you could barely tell the difference of if they were painted the same colour. But thanks to the franchise system, you're guaranteed grid sizes of at least 28 cars which is good.

[F1boat]

Well here's my view

WTCC
Potentially, the FIA has a real winner of a championship, great names, a super TV contract with Eurosport and super tracks which includes a visit to the world famous Macau Grand Prix, but they always seem to mess up when it comes to rule making, ever since SEAT brought the turbo-diesel engine to Touring Car racing, they've always struggled to equalize the field in the regulation stakes. Plus allowing manufacturers to field unlimited size squads certainly has not helped, for example thanks to slipstreaming tactics, SEAT were always able to make full use of their 5 or 6 car lineups in qualifying which led to precessional bore-fests in the races. 2011 will be a struggle with just Chevrolet the only full manufacturer team left and with only 4 makes of car on the grid, there is not much variety to get excited about.

BTCC
Alan Gow in my view has got this championship spot on throughout, succeeding where the FIA failed in terms of fair mechanical rules and regulations whilst still providing great and exciting thrill-a-minute racing. Like the WTCC, the BTCC has some great personalities, a brilliant TV deal with ITV and visits some of the best tracks the UK has to offer. And with a new much cheaper rules package in the offing (NGTC) the BTCC could potentially once again become the new platform for other championships to follow. Variety is something the BTCC also has going for it with 2011 potentially seeing a record TEN manufacturers represented in a near 30 car field.

DTM
This V8 series has awesome potential but its main problem is it wants to be like Formula 1 so badly, and that is a bad precedent, for instance, F1/NASCAR style pitsops, F1 style strategy, near F1 style race distances and even adopting the F1 points system (albeit the old one). The races also provide very little excitement and there is not a lot of variety in terms of manufacturers (of which they only have 2, soon to be 3) But its big strength is its all star driver lineup, the majority of the grid is instantly recogniseable to the average European racing fan. But it will never improve unless it tries to gain its own identity rather than trying to be like its more illustrious single seatered cousin.

V8 SUPERCARS
Basically NASCAR if it raced on road courses all the time instead of ovals. Thats not a bad thing though as its a great series to watch when you get the opportunity, a great mix of short sprints, hour long races and endurance races (of which they have their own marquee event, the Bathurst 1000). The big downside in my view is the lack of variety in cars, just 2 manufacturers who use cars that you could barely tell the difference of if they were painted the same colour. But thanks to the franchise system, you're guaranteed grid sizes of at least 28 cars which is good.

You described the championships very well. Nothing to add really.