1999 British Touring Car Championship

The 1999 British Touring Car Championship featured 26 races across 13 rounds, starting at Donington Park on 5 April and ending at Silverstone on 19 September. The driver's title was won by Laurent Aïello in his debut season driving for the Nissan works team, with his teammate David Leslie in second place. Rickard Rydell, the 1998 champion, came third.

Laurent Aiello won the drivers championship driving a Nissan
1999 BTCC season
Previous: 1998 Next: 2000

One of the surprises of the season was the performance of independent driver Matt Neal. Driving for his father's Team Dynamics in a 1998 Nissan Primera,[1] Neal became the first independent driver to win a championship race in the feature race of the first Donington round; series organisers TOCA had put up a reward for £250,000 for this achievement.[2]

David Leslie finished in 2nd position driving a Nissan
James Thompson finished fourth overall driving a Honda Accord.
Matt Neal won the Michelin Cup for Independents and finished 9th overall driving a Nissan

Team and Driver Changes

Six manufacturer backed teams contested the 1999 championship,[3] Audi and Peugeot having withdrawn at the end 1998. Seven independent drivers appeared on the initial entry list[3] however neither the Atford Ford Mondeo[4] of Gareth Howell or the TRM Motorsport BMW 320i of Collin Gallie made an appearance.

Just a single tyre manufacturer was represented (Michelin) and all competitors used the same tyre, most notably including independent runners.[5]

Night racing was introduced to the BTCC for the first time for the rounds at Snetterton in July. The pit lane and main spectator areas were floodlit, whilst other parts of the circuit were in total darkness. To aid the drivers eyesight for the sharp changes from light to dark, the cockpits had a soft red light glowing inside.

Tom Walkinshaw Racing again ran Volvo's effort, defending champion Rickard Rydell came into the 1999 season with a new team-mate in Belgian Vincent Radermecker who had previously raced in the Belgian Procar series and replaced Italian Gianni Morbidelli.

1998 manufacturer champions Nissan once again entered two Primeras engineered by RML. David Leslie remained with the team for a third season and was joined by Frenchman Laurent Aiello, a former STW and French champion who took the seat vacated by Anthony Reid.

After a successful year in 1998 with Prodrive, Honda's effort was now to be run by WSR in a straight swap with Ford. James Thompson went into the season as title favourite and topped pre-season testing[6] and he was joined by Peter Kox for the second year in a row. The team entered a third car for 1994 champion and STW Honda works driver Gabriele Tarquini at the Knockhill and Brands Hatch rounds.

The Williams campaign, running a pair of Renault Lagunas, was headed by Jason Plato who was promoted to lead driver following the departure of Alain Menu to Ford. He was joined by Jean-Christophe Boullion, a former Williams F1 test driver, Sauber F1 race driver and 1994 Formula 3000 champion. Boullion had missed out securing the Renault drive to Plato in 1997.[7]

The Triple Eight Racing Vauxhall Vectras were driven by 1995 champion John Cleland, his 11th season driving for the manufacturer and he was joined by Yvan Muller following Audi's withdrawal. He replaced Derek Warwick who retired from full-time racing to focus on running the team.[8]

Completing the factory team line-up was Ford, now run by Prodrive who had what many regarded as the strongest driver line up in the pit lane, with ’97 champion Alain Menu partnering ’98 runner-up Anthony Reid. They replaced the 1998 lineup of Will Hoy, Craig Baird and Nigel Mansell.

The Independents field was spearheaded by title favourite Matt Neal, whom had shown throughout 1998 his ability to mix it with the manufacturer backed teams. Neal’s Dynamics team would again have a year old ex STW Primera[1] at their disposal, a car that Neal had shared with Steven Richards at Bathurst in 1998.[9]

1998 Vectra Challenge winner Mark Blair, entered a 1996 Vauxhall Vectra[10] which had been a prize for winning the support series and had been driven by Mark Lemmer in 1998. The car was updated with the 1999 aero kit but was unable to use the latest specification engines.

Lee Brookes returned to the series driving a 1998 Honda Accord.[11] Brookes missed four races after injuring his arm and then withdrew from the series after the second visit to Thruxton stating that nothing they did to the car made it competitive.[12]

Paula Cook also drove a 1998 Honda Accord[13] that she had previously driven in the final two rounds of 1998 and run by D.C Cook Motorsport. The team withdrew after the Snetterton rounds citing lack of budget.

Russell Spence started the season driving a 1998 Renault Laguna[14] run by Arena International Spence would suffer a frightening crash at Oulton Park and step down soon after due to business commitments. He was replaced by 1991 champion Will Hoy from Snetterton onwards.

Entry list
Team Car No. Drivers Rounds
Manufacturers
Volvo S40 Racing Volvo S40 1 Rickard Rydell All
11 Vincent Radermecker All
Ford Team Mondeo Ford Mondeo 2 Anthony Reid All
4 Alain Menu All
Team Honda Sport Honda Accord 3 James Thompson All
33 Peter Kox All
55 Gabriele Tarquini 10–11
Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault Renault Laguna 5 Jason Plato All
37 Jean-Christophe Boullion All
Vodafone Nissan Racing Nissan Primera GT 6 David Leslie All
23 Laurent Aïello All
Vauxhall Motorsport Vauxhall Vectra 7 Yvan Muller All
8 John Cleland All
Independents
ADR Motorsport Vauxhall Vectra 15 Mark Blair All
Arena International Renault Laguna 17 Russell Spence 1–7
Will Hoy 8–13
DC Cook Motorsport Honda Accord 22 Paula Cook 1–8
Max Power Racing Team Dynamics Nissan Primera GT 77 Matt Neal All
Brookes Motorsport Honda Accord 99 Lee Brookes 1–3, 6–9

Calendar

All races were held in the United Kingdom.

Round Circuit Date Pole Position Fastest Lap Winning Driver Winning Team Winning Independent
1 R1 Donington Park (National), Leicestershire 5 April James Thompson David Leslie James Thompson Team Honda Sport Matt Neal
R2 Matt Neal Anthony Reid Matt Neal Max Power Racing Team Dynamics Matt Neal
2 R3 Silverstone Circuit (International), Northamptonshire 18 April David Leslie David Leslie Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R4 Laurent Aïello Laurent Aïello Jason Plato Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault Paula Cook
3 R5 Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire 3 May Rickard Rydell Laurent Aïello Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R6 Rickard Rydell Vincent Radermecker Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Lee Brookes
4 R7 Brands Hatch (Indy), Kent 16 May Alain Menu Jason Plato Yvan Muller Vauxhall Motorsport Mark Blair
R8 Laurent Aïello Jason Plato Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
5 R9 Oulton Park (Fosters), Cheshire 31 May Laurent Aïello Rickard Rydell Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R10 Laurent Aïello David Leslie Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
6 R11 Donington Park (Grand Prix), Leicestershire 20 June James Thompson Rickard Rydell James Thompson Team Honda Sport Matt Neal
R12 David Leslie David Leslie David Leslie Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
7 R13 Croft Circuit, North Yorkshire 4 July James Thompson David Leslie James Thompson Team Honda Sport Matt Neal
R14 James Thompson Rickard Rydell Rickard Rydell Volvo S40 Racing Matt Neal
8 R15 Snetterton Circuit, Norfolk 17 July Laurent Aïello David Leslie David Leslie Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R16 Laurent Aïello Laurent Aïello Peter Kox Team Honda Sport Matt Neal
9 R17 Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire 1 August Rickard Rydell Rickard Rydell Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R18 Rickard Rydell Rickard Rydell David Leslie Vodafone Nissan Racing Will Hoy
10 R19 Knockhill Circuit, Fife 15 August Laurent Aïello Laurent Aïello Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R20 Alain Menu Gabriele Tarquini Alain Menu Ford Team Mondeo Mark Blair
11 R21 Brands Hatch (Indy), Kent 30 August Laurent Aïello David Leslie Rickard Rydell Volvo S40 Racing Matt Neal
R22 Rickard Rydell J-C Boullion Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
12 R23 Oulton Park (Island), Cheshire 12 September David Leslie David Leslie Laurent Aïello Vodafone Nissan Racing Matt Neal
R24 David Leslie James Thompson James Thompson Team Honda Sport Matt Neal
13 R25 Silverstone Circuit (International), Northamptonshire 19 September Laurent Aïello Jason Plato Rickard Rydell Volvo S40 Racing Will Hoy
R26 Laurent Aïello Rickard Rydell Rickard Rydell Volvo S40 Racing Matt Neal

Drivers Championship
Points system
 1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th   6th   7th   8th   9th   10th  Pole Position Lead a lap
in feature race
15 12 10 8 6 5 4 3 2 1 1 1
  • No driver may collect more than one "Lead a Lap" point per race no matter how many laps they lead.
  • Drivers' top 22 results count towards the championship.
Pos Driver DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts
1 Laurent Aïello 11 Ret 1 6 1 1* 3 1* 1 1* Ret 2* 5 3 Ret 7 1 5* 1 DSQ 2 1* 1 2 9 (Ret) 244(245)
2 David Leslie 4 Ret 2 7 11 Ret 6 2 2 8* 2 1* 2 4 1 2* 4 1* 9 3 4 2* 2 4* 11 2* 228
3 Rickard Rydell 7 Ret 3 Ret 2 2* Ret Ret 7 Ret Ret 4 4 1* 2 8 2 Ret* 6 5 1 5* 3 3 1 1* 192
4 James Thompson 1 2* 5 4 5 8 7 6* 11 Ret 1 3 1 2* 9 15 7 Ret 14 Ret 3 3 DSQ 1* 2 9 174
5 Jason Plato 3 3 6 1* Ret 4* 4 Ret* Ret Ret 3 8 6 6 4 6 5 4 Ret Ret 6 8 Ret 6 Ret Ret 122
6 Yvan Muller 6 10 Ret 2 Ret 11 1 5 8 3 4 5 8 8 Ret 3 8 6 10 7 12 Ret 9 5 3 5 119
7 Peter Kox 9 7 9 5 6 5 Ret 4 9 7 7 Ret 3 9 6 1* 9 9 Ret 2 9 4* 5 Ret 7 Ret 113
8 Vincent Radermecker 10 5 11 Ret 4 3 Ret Ret 5 4* 10 12 7 7 3 5 3 2 11 8 10 7 4 13 Ret 4 113
9 Matt Neal 5 1* 4 Ret 3 Ret Ret 3 10 2 9 7 10 5* 7 10 6 Ret 7 Ret 5 10 6 10 Ret 6 109
10 Jean-Christophe Boullion Ret 6 8 3 9 7* 5 7 6 6 8 10 11 Ret 5 4 13 11 5 4 7 6 7 7 8 Ret 97
11 Alain Menu 2 Ret 13 Ret Ret 6 12 Ret 3 Ret 5 6 Ret Ret 8 9* 11 3 3 1* Ret Ret Ret 9 12 Ret 84
12 Anthony Reid Ret Ret 7 DSQ 8 Ret 2 8 4 5 11 9 Ret 10* Ret 11 Ret 7* 4 Ret 8 12* 12 8 4 3 78
13 John Cleland 8 4* 10 8 7 9 8 9 12 Ret 6 Ret 9 Ret 12 12 12 Ret 8 9 11 9 8 Ret 5 10 51
14 Gabriele Tarquini 2 6 Ret Ret 17
15 Will Hoy 10 13 10 8 13 11 13 11 10 11 6 7 15
16 Mark Blair 13 Ret 12 11 12 12 9 10 13 9 12 11 12 Ret 13 DNS Ret 10 12 10 14 13 11 12 10 8 11
17 Lee Brookes 12 9 Ret 10 10 10 DNS DNS 13 Ret 13 12 11 16 14 Ret 5
18 Russell Spence 15 8 Ret Ret 13 14 11 Ret DNS DNS 14 Ret 15 11 3
19 Paula Cook 14 Ret Ret 9 Ret 13 10 Ret Ret Ret 15 13 14 13 Ret 14 3
Pos Driver DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts

Note: bold signifies pole position (1 point awarded all races), italics signifies fastest lap.

* signifies that driver lead feature race for at least one lap (1 point given).

Michelin Cup for Independents
Pos Driver DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts
1 Matt Neal 5 1 4 Ret 3 Ret Ret 3 10 2 9 7 10 5 7 10 6 Ret 7 Ret 5 10 6 10 Ret 6 353(361)
2 Mark Blair 13 Ret 12 11 11 12 9 10 13 9 12 11 12 Ret 13 DNS Ret 10 12 10 14 13 11 12 10 8 183
3 Will Hoy 10 13 10 8 13 11 13 11 10 11 6 7 131
4 Lee Brookes 12 9 Ret 10 10 10 DNS DNS 13 Ret 13 12 11 16 14 Ret 78
5 Paula Cook 14 Ret Ret 9 Ret 13 10 Ret Ret Ret 15 13 14 13 Ret 14 41
6 Russell Spence 15 8 Ret Ret 13 14 11 Ret DNS DNS 14 Ret 15 11 25
Pos. Driver DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts

Manufacturers Championship
Pos Manufacturer DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts
1 Nissan / Vodafone Nissan Racing 4 Ret 1 6 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 1 2 3 1 2 1 1 1 3 2 1 1 2 9 2 464
11 Ret 2 7 11 Ret 6 2 2 8 Ret 2 5 4 Ret 7 4 5 9 EX 4 2 2 4 11 Ret
2 Honda / Team Honda Sport 1 2 5 4 5 5 7 4 9 7 1 3 1 2 6 1 7 9 2 2 3 3 5 1 2 9 296
9 7 9 5 6 8 Ret 6 11 Ret 7 Ret 3 9 9 15 9 Ret 14 6 9 4 DSQ Ret 7 Ret
3 Volvo / Volvo S40 Racing 7 5 3 Ret 2 2 Ret Ret 5 4 9 4 4 1 2 5 2 2 6 5 1 5 3 3 1 1 295
10 Ret 11 Ret 4 3 Ret Ret 7 Ret Ret 12 7 7 3 8 3 Ret 11 8 10 7 4 13 Ret 4
4 Renault / Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault 3 3 6 1 9 4 4 7 6 6 3 8 6 6 4 4 5 4 5 4 6 6 7 6 8 Ret 227
Ret 6 8 3 Ret 7 5 Ret Ret Ret 8 10 11 Ret 5 6 13 11 Ret Ret 7 8 Ret 7 Ret Ret
5 Vauxhall / Vauxhall Motorsport 6 4 10 2 7 9 1 5 8 3 4 5 8 8 12 3 8 6 8 7 11 9 8 5 3 5 186
8 10 Ret 8 Ret 11 8 9 12 Ret 6 Ret 9 Ret Ret 12 12 Ret 10 9 12 Ret 9 Ret 5 10
6 Ford / Ford Team Mondeo 2 Ret 7 Ret 8 6 2 8 3 5 5 6 Ret 10 8 9 11 3 3 1 8 12 12 8 4 3 164
Ret Ret 13 DSQ Ret Ret 12 Ret 4 Ret 11 9 Ret Ret Ret 11 Ret 7 4 Ret Ret Ret Ret 9 12 Ret
Pos Manufacturer DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts

Teams Championship
Pos Team DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts
1 Vodafone Nissan Racing Ret 6 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 3 1 2 2 210
Ret 7 Ret 2 8 2 4 7 5 DSQ 2 4 Ret
2 Team Honda Sport 2 4 5 4 7 3 2 1 9 2 3 1 9 132
7 5 8 6 Ret Ret 9 15 Ret 6 4 Ret Ret
3 Volvo S40 Racing 5 Ret 2 Ret 4 4 1 5 2 5 5 3 1 127
Ret Ret 3 Ret Ret 12 7 8 Ret 8 7 13 4
4 Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault 3 1 4 7 6 8 6 4 4 4 6 6 Ret 108
6 3 7 Ret Ret 10 Ret 6 11 Ret 8 7 Ret
5 Vauxhall Motorsport 4 2 9 5 3 5 8 3 6 7 9 5 5 83
10 8 11 9 Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret 9 Ret Ret 10
6 Team Dynamics 1 Ret Ret 3 2 7 5 10 Ret Ret 10 10 6 55
7 Ford Team Mondeo Ret Ret 6 8 5 6 10 9 3 1 12 8 3 53
Ret DSQ Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret 11 7 Ret Ret 9 Ret
8 Arena International 8 Ret 14 Ret DNS Ret 11 13 8 11 11 11 7 10
9 ADR Motorsport Ret 11 12 10 9 11 Ret DNS 10 10 13 12 8 7
10 Brookes Motorsport 9 10 10 DNS Ret 12 16 Ret 4
11 DC Cook Motorsport Ret 9 13 Ret Ret 13 13 14 2
Pos Team DON SIL THR BRH OUL DON CRO SNE THR KNO BRH OUL SIL Pts

Points System

The points system used for the 1999 British Touring Car Championship was as follows. For the drivers championship, 15 points were awarded to the winner of each race, 12 to second place, 10 for third and 8,6,5,4,3,2,1 for fourth to tenth place respectively. At the end of the season, drivers would drop their four lowest scores. A point would be awarded to the driver who achieved pole position for each race, and a point was awarded to anyone who led the feature race.

For the manufactures championship, the same number of points for the top ten finishing positions were awarded as for the drivers championship but only the top two per manufacturer would receive points for the manufacturer. At the end of the season, manufacturers would drop the points from their worst four rounds of the championship. No points were received for leading laps or pole position.[15]

References
  1. "Nissan Primera (50)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  2. "April 5th 1999, Matt Neal won himself a £250,000 privateer bonus at Donington". www.goodwood.com. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  3. "BTCC: 1999 Entry List, News 99-03-03". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  4. "Ford Mondeo". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  5. "Famous races: Matt Neal talks about Donington 1999 - TouringCarTimes". TouringCarTimes. 2015-01-02. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  6. "Car Enthusiast - The 1999 Auto Trader British Touring Car Championship". www.carenthusiast.com. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  7. "Jean-Christophe Boullion - The Williams Grand Prix Database". The Williams Grand Prix Database. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  8. "Heritage | Triple Eight Racing BTCC". www.tripleeight.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  9. "ASTC: AMP Bathurst 1000 Race Report". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  10. "Vauxhall / Opel Vectra B (V96B-001)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  11. "Honda Accord (PRO-ST/H-9803)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  12. Autosport (1999). Touring Car Year: The Official Review of the Auto Trader RAC British Touring Car Championship: 1999-2000. Haymarket Specialist Publications. ISBN 0860249298.
  13. "Honda Accord (PRO-ST/H-9806)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  14. "Renault Laguna (98/04)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  15. Vic Lennard (Editor). Auto Trader British Touring Car Championship – Donington Park Official Programme. (1999) p.30 The Really Motoring Group.
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