What we Learned from Autosport International 2019

Last weekend the NEC in Birmingham once again hosted the annual Autosport International Show, with the 29th running of the event showcasing the best of British and World Motorsport.

Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz led the guest list as part of an event that their boss, Zak Brown, also runs. Grand Prix winners David Coulthard, Johnny Herbert and Sky Sports new pundit Karun Chandhok all graced the event that saw most of major announcements early on Thursday.

WRC NEWS

Fresh Lick of Paint

In recent years, the ASI has become a regular starting point for the World Rally Championship and this year was no exception. Around 300 people packed the tiny stage at the NEC to see the new livery’s announced for the 2019 season. Citroen were back to their Red Bull sponsorship, with the other three remaining similar.

New Numbers in Play

Following in the footsteps of its other FIA compatriots, the WRC will introduce driver-specific numbers for the new season. The series made an effort to showcase the new additions during their launch, with driver reason varying from helping with social media hashtags to having their daughter pick one.

Two more years for Ogier

If it wasn’t confirmed already, Ogier made it clear that he wasn’t fussed about beating Sebastien Loeb’s record of nine titles, saying; “Will it change the view you have about me, if I have eight or nine titles. It’s not important enough to give me the motivation to carry on.”

As for his rival Ott Tanak, he seemed less confident about winning the title this season, placing Ogier as the favourite and claiming he’d focus on a 2020 title campaign.

Loeb and Gronholm Return

It might be 2019, but it feels like 2009 all over again as Sebastien Loeb makes his return, this time with the Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT team. The nine-time champion may have different expectations than his former rival though, who confirmed his return for Rally Sweden an event he’s won five times.

NATIONAL NEWS

MINI’s on TOCA Package from 2020

Thursday started off with major news in the Touring Car world, but not for BTCC or TCR. Instead it was the MINI Challenge that announced it would join the ToCA package in replacement of the Clio Cup, which withdraws after 2019 due to Renault stopping its funding.

The new support will give the JCW class eight rounds on the BTCC calendar, while the Open and Cooper Pro are expected to fill the remaining two slots. Motorsport Radio was told this move was done to keep costs low for the JCW’s with the series expecting full grids. It already runs an average of 30 cars as a support to the British GT Championship.

More Drivers Announced for the BTCC

Prior to the weekend, defending champion Colin Turkington officially announced his return with Team BMW, while Andrew Jordan also returned to the Pirtek sponsored machine. Jordan’s move completes the line-up with Tom Oliphant previously confirmed. The news came as little surprise to many, but raised further questions about Ash Sutton who remains unsure of his 2019 plans.

At Motorbase, 2018’s third place driver Tom Chilton was confirmed to return to Motorbase and Team Shredded Wheat Racing alongside Ollie Jackson ahead of his seventh full-season campaign.

New Season New Livery’s

Of course, along with the drivers came the cars, as a number of teams opted to show off their new colours (and sponsors). Most notable to these was rookie Daniel Rowbottom’s Cataclean Racing striking black and white style…

…and Jake Hill’s #24 Audi

Team HARD. to Clio’s

While the series might be coming to a close, a last season hurray looks on the cards with Team HARD’s ex-BTCC driver Ethan Hammerton partnering multiple Clio race winner Max Coates. The pair will be given the opportunity to test for HARD. during the BTCC young driver test in the middle of the year, with a view to get full-time seats with the main outfit.

They were not the only names confirmed for the roster either, with Ronan Peterson returning for Westbourne Motorsport.

New Series on the Bill

The show represented a perfect opportunity for many national series to gain traction, with Stewart Lines promoting his brand-new Touring Car Trophy (TCT) series for the upcoming year, while Britcar announcing that 21 drivers had signed up on Friday alone, including Tim Docker, Lee Frost and Sarah Moore.

Elsewhere, the single-make series, Focus Cup officially launched with grids reportedly “very healthy” according to organiser Simon Walton, with plans to run on MSVR weekends.

INTERNATIONAL

While the days of F1 driver announcements seem far behind us, there was plenty of single-seat action available for fans attending the show, with the F1 Paddock area and Autosport Stage putting on a number of displays for the audience.

Sadly for many though, the news that McLaren would drop their support of the McLaren Autosport BRDC Award, given to an up-and-coming British talent every year, will be a blow. The prize would (on top of other aspects) offer the young driver a test in a McLaren F1 car and unless a new partner can be found, may mark 2018’s Tom Gamble as the final driver to receive the prize.

W Series in the Hot Seat

After its much talked about launch, the W Series showed its face at ASI, with CEO Catherine Bond Muir and Advisory board chairman David Coulthard on hand to talk to the media. Motorsport Radio’s Interviews with both will be released in due course.

The series would go on to announce Hankook tyres for their first season, putting them in line with Formula European Master and DTM which they will be supporting.

Porsche’s Latest Promotion

Dubbed the Moby Dick, Porsche showcased their new 935 for the first time in public. “Because the car isn’t homologated, engineers and designers didn’t have to follow the usual rules and thus had freedom in the development.” explained Porsche’s Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser.

Alongside independent traders, GT, the BRSCC and eSports/SIM Racing displayed heavily at the show, as Shaun Arnold won the latest Le Mans E-Sports Series qualifier bagging the $10k prize.

The four days offered much for the fans as well, with a variety of prominent Supercar collectors on display alongside the Historic racing machines. Formula 5000 would celebrate 50 years, while the Auction notably featured the 1966 Ford Cortina Lotus from the BSCC and 1973 Porsche 911E amongst a plethora of vehicles steeped in racing legend.

Follow Motorsport Radio for interviews from the Show, coming soon.