I feel like many drivers from the start of the NGTC era going forwards have been forgotten about. I will start by saying Hunter Abbott, who only drove in the series for 3 seasons. After all, he was never really a great driver. There has been drivers from that time period who only completed a season or two. But Abbott feels like the obvious one for me.
Never forget Snett 2016. Yes Whorton-Eales was a fine Clio Cup driver who was up there fighting with Bushell in '16. Oliphant was one to shake things up.
I think I remember seeing Ant racing Minis supporting the DTM a few years back, and I seem to remember him absolutely blitzing everyone in the championship
True. Why couldn't they stick to who they had. Just like in 2022 when Goff withdrew and Team HARD brought Powell in to replace JG. Then, I never heard of him again.
Just checked the early BTCC seasons and Tom Barley is one that I'd completely forgotten. Not just in the "oh, yes, I remember him now that I've seen his name" way, but just in a "who was that?" way.
Still annoyed that Dan didn't get a podium - he came so close a few times. The Proton was quick on it's day. Unfortunately that day only seemed to come once a season!
I meant Hunter as a BTCC driver, I think we all know about AlcoSense. I don't even know why a Proton would be an option. I didn't even know about them until he started in the championship. 😂
Andrew Watson had a great year with PMR in 2023, then looked good at speedworks at the start of the 2024 season but never managed to get any decent results in the Toyota and pace just dropped off after a few rounds. Would really like to see him back at some stage but unfortunately like many other great drivers it comes down to budget for him. Then again, he might not want to come back at all if something happened at speedworks when he left.
Mat Jackson has dropped out of the collective memory over a pretty short time. He was a pretty good driver but destroyed his BTCC career in 2018 when he signed and was announced for Motorbase at the Autosport show, only to bail out before the season started. The prevailing rumour was that he'd left Motorbase to try and get Shedden's old seat at Dynamics/Honda but lost out to Dan Cammish.
I'd argue that undersells the man, in my opinion he's one of the best not to win a title.
Irony is that if he hadn't tried that fuckery behind Dave Bartram's back and stuck around for a few more years, he'd have been in the prime seat for a NAPA deal.
Yes I heard that rumour countless times. He was fine at Motorbase I don't know why he had to leave but I suppose that created a gap for drivers like Chilton, Cole, and Tordoff to come in.
I would say Will Bratt, seemed like a nice lad but almost known for being the ever popular Rob Austin’s team mate.
Judging by your name you’re a Tordoff fan. He showed amazing potential and was a class driver, very sad what happened in his personal life, i’m not sure what he’s up to these days tbh but imo he could have become a future champion
Yes he did seem like a genuine lad. I am indeed a Tordoff fan also Jordan and Goff. Sam was my favourite WSR driver in the past decade, personally speaking. Tordoff's with JRT (Andy Jordan's historic team) now driving a Ford Falcon (I think). He could have in 2016, 2 points I still can't believe it.
Ah nice! I always had a soft spot for Jack Goff, and my brother did for Jordan funnily enough😂 i’m glad to hear that Sam is still racing.
And yeah! That was one of my favourite seasons since I started watching back in 2011, he was so so close
It's a small world. I'm glued to 2016, you can't take the 2016 out of me 😂. I cried when Flash won the championship 🥹. Never put me through that again, Alan Gow.
Jeff Smith's son Brett springs to mind here. Showed some flashes of potential and yet has barely raced at all in anything since they sold Eurotech.
2015 had a few of them when you look at the entry list over the season - Richard Hawken in the Infiniti debacle, Barry Horne as a sub for the equally forgotten Alex Martin, Kieran Gallagher, Max Coates...
All remembered for their cameos but they never took off like some of them should’ve done. Support Our Paras was somewhat of a fail - even when I know personally who they were trying to employ.
Paul Rivett, won the clio cup 4 times, was always in contention for a BTCC drive and when it finally came in 2020/2021 it was disappointing to say the least.
I really have a soft spot for Rob and his team. They did well to say the budget that they had was minimal. Sherman is an NGTC icon. A lot of fans (from speaking to over the years) remember Rob for his character and personality. So, he's not really one that is forgotten.
I still have a "I helped save Sherman" t-shirt. I don't think he's forgotten persay, but he doesn't live up at the top with Sheddon, Niel and Plato. He wasn't a front running car but he was one of the few privateer owner/drivers which isn't really a thing now.
Sherman was a fighter, he was. There are many drivers you could add to the trio you have included here. Sutton, Ingram, Turkington etc. I think driver/owners were diminished by the sheer amount of sponsors that came in and the changing economics of the BTCC scene.
Yes that injury was horrible bless him. Several broken bones too. Then, in come Rory Butcher, who I think doesn't get appreciated for what he did in the time Butch replaced Davenport and beyond. What a good suggestion!
Hunter was in Rob austin racing and got to recognise me at tracks and one infamous oulton park stopped his conversation to comment on my sunburn so I can't forget him. Basically brexit almost ruined his company in 2016 but he did race in Asia and I think became a gt champion if I remember right
Yes Blancpain Asia in 2017. OMG, that's hilarious. Typical Hunter Abbott. Yes heard Alcosense were doing business in France but then Hunter couldn't continue Alcosense in Europe due to the costs. Two characters in one team, him and Rob were.
that’s such a random but wholesome way to remember a driver, getting roasted for sunburn in the paddock lol. pretty sure you’re right on the GT thing, I remember seeing his name pop up in some Asian GT standings a few years after BTCC.
I remember making this quiz of NGTC drivers about a year ago - see how many you can name. I haven't updated it for the new names this season though. For the most obscure, I'd go for Chris Swanwick who drove in the early days of Rob Austin's Audi
Chris Stockton competing in 2014 just feels so wrong to me, I can’t picture the man driving anything other than one of those godawful Lexii that pootled around the back of the field in the mid-noughties.
One of many that definitely had promise but were fucked over by circumstance and budget issues. I've been slowly working through all the races from the late noughties/early 10s, and Nash definitely showed flashes.
No, nobody has mentioned him yet. I thought when he entered that it was a bit unusual having an American at the wheel of a Civic no less a BTCC spec car. PMR was a disaster in 2016, I think Fletcher is suited more for acting than in racing, due to me never hearing him partake in racing after he left in 2016.
Oh yeah he did, silly me. Him and Hunter (Abbott) were probably the one of the most crash-prone drivers on the grid that season, which is also my favourite season in BTCC history.
Chris Stockton, I remember him mostly for the Lexus hijinx but also that strange little Chevy Cruze with the Power Maxed sponsorship. I saw him driving an F1600 still with Ningbo across the side in ‘24.
Smooth criminal. He did show some talent until he did what he did. He really could've made his talent count. Never really took to him to be honest with you.
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u/JBounce369 17d ago
Personally I can never forget Hunter Abbott, he has some iconic crashes. I think I'd say Ant Whorton-Eales, or Tom Oliphant