The British Touring Automobile Championship has made additional tweaks to its rules for the 2025 season following last week’s revelation that it is dropping hybrid.
Modifications to the tyre and engine guidelines are being made to respectively brighten up the racing motion and reduce prices.
BTCC organiser TOCA launched a rule for 2024 mandating that for the second race of every occasion, the highest 10 finishers from race one would run on the toughest obtainable compound of Goodyear tyre remaining from their allocation.
Whereas this led to a pair of opportunistic wins in race two for the Speedworks Motorsport-run Toyota Corolla of Josh Prepare dinner, it led to some criticism that the train proved solely that comfortable tyres are faster than medium and laborious.
For 2025, it would solely be the highest three finishers from race one who will likely be required to run the toughest obtainable tyre for race two.
Newly topped champion Jake Hill, who’s hoping to stay on with the West Surrey Racing BMW team for a fourth season, informed Autosport that he can see positives and negatives from the rule alteration.
“Sure and no,” he mentioned when requested whether or not it might be an enchancment. “I can perceive why TOCA have executed it, as a result of if all the prime 10 are on a more durable tyre, what you are inclined to get shouldn’t be many adjustments.
“I do get it from their aspect and it’s an fascinating manner of going about it, and in the end I believe it’s going to combine up the racing a bit extra.
BTCC champion Hill understands the rationale behind the tyre rule tweak for race two, however is not positive of its impression
Picture by: JEP
“There will likely be a few instances when some strategic play might occur and individuals are battling to complete fourth reasonably than third, however that’s not so dangerous if that’s in race one and also you’ve nonetheless acquired the reversed-grid to come back on the finish of the day.”
Additional to this, a two-year engine freeze will likely be launched as a cost-saving measure from 1 April 2025, with no additional developments allowed to homologated powerplants till the top of the 2026 season.
A brand new security automotive process will demand that, as soon as the protection automotive lights are turned off, every automotive should keep inside two lengths of the competitor in entrance, and the chief should keep their velocity till passing a brand new ‘restart level’ positioned between the ultimate nook and the start-finish line, with no overlapping allowed till passing the inexperienced flag.
The Jack Sears Trophy, which in 2024 featured simply six automobiles, has additionally been revised to permit drivers who’ve scored only one outright BTCC podium alongside those that have claimed none.
And a change to the formation of the grid for race one implies that these failing to progress from Q1 will line up in alternate order primarily based on positions of their group reasonably than on mixed total instances.
TOCA’s newest round-up of rule adjustments follows the information that 100% sustainable gas has been mandated for 2025.
“In fact, the introduction of 100% sustainable gas has been the headlining change for the 2025 BTCC season, however we all the time take a look at each side of our championship annually to see what may be improved,” mentioned sequence boss Alan Gow.
“I’m positive that these tweaks will all have a optimistic impact and can additional add to the good racing that’s the hallmark of the BTCC.”
Gow is optimistic that the adjustments are proper for the BTCC
Picture by: JEP
Hill additionally gave the thumbs-up to the introduction of sustainable gas – which was featured on the Goodwood Revival for the primary time in 2024, when Hill and 2022 BTCC champion Tom Ingram starred with their battle for the distinguished RAC TT Celebration race – and the removing of hybrid.
“To have a lighter automotive is what all of us need as drivers,” he added. “Hybrid is a field ticked for the BTCC however all of us suppose that sustainable gas is the long run.
“We’ve seen it in historic motorsport, and it’s the appropriate time for it to be launched to fashionable motorsport.”