2006 British Touring Car Championship

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The 2006 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season was the 49th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season. As in 2005, there were ten racing weekends at nine different circuits; each round comprising three races, making a thirty round competition in total.

The Triple 8-run works Vauxhall effort continued with a trio of entries in their second season with the Astra Sport Hatch. Yvan Muller left the team after six seasons to contest the World Touring Car Championship for SEAT, and was replaced by Italian veteran Fabrizio Giovanardi, a multiple champion in several European series but contesting his first season in British touring cars. Tom Chilton replaced Colin Turkington in the second car after three seasons with the Arena Motorsport-run Honda programme, while Gavin Smith spent a second season in the third car. Turkish touring car champion Erkut Kizilirmak also appeared at two rounds in a fourth entry.

Vauxhall's only opposition for a sixth straight Manufacturers title came from SEAT, who replaced its trio of Toledos with a pair of new Leons. Jason Plato again headed their assault, while the second seat was alternated throughout the year between the returning James Thompson (also racing for SEAT in the WTCC) and sportscar star Darren Turner. Both drivers ran at the final meeting with Thompson using his WTCC car.

Reigning Teams and Independents champions Team Dynamics ran their pair of self-developed Honda Integra Type Rs for a second year, with champion Matt Neal remaining with his family team. Scottish driver Gordon Shedden graduated from the SEAT Cupra championship to replace Dan Eaves, while Gareth Howell again appeared in a third car later in the season as he had in 2005.

In its third year as an independent, West Surrey Racing continued to run its ex-works MG ZSs, in spite of (MG Rover in fact having gone out of business during 2005. Colin Turkington returned to the team after a disappointing year at Vauxhall, partnering Rob Collard, who had been the team's sole driver in 2005. A 3rd WSR entry appeared on the official entry list but never materialised. (https://www.touringcartimes.com/2006/03/29/btcc-2006-entry-list-released/)

Among the most competitive newcomers to the series were two teams making the transition from GT racing with Team Dynamics' 2005 title-winning Integras. Team Eurotech ran team boss Mike Jordan, the most experienced driver on the grid, back in the BTCC after well over a decade away in sportscar and GT racing. Motorbase Performance ran David Pinkney, another returning veteran, who was making his first BTCC appearance since 2001. Tom Ferrier also returned to the series with Motorbase in the final round, driving an ex-works SEAT Toledo.

Synchro Motorsport ran James Kaye in their Honda Civic Type-R for a fourth straight season, while Jason Hughes also returned driving an ex-works MG ZS for his Kartworld Racing team. Both Kartworld and the WSR team switched their MGs to bio-ethanol fuel later in the year. Running bio-ethanol fuel for a second year were Tech-Speed Motorsport, who once again ran Fiona Leggate in their Vauxhall Astra Coupe. Leggate was replaced by ex-Vauxhall works driver Paul O'Neill for the final two rounds.

Mark Proctor switched from his Astra Coupe for his second season, his Fast-Tec Motorsport team instead running the Honda Civic Type-R driven by Tom Chilton in 2005. BMW and Alfa Romeo were represented on the BTCC grid for the first time since 2004, with club racers Martin Bell (Geoff Steel Racing) and Mark Smith (In-Front Motorsport) making their debuts in ex-WTCC BMW 320i's and Alfa Romeo 156s respectively.

The championship welcomed several more entries across the course of the season. Xero Competition entered a Lexus IS200 (converted to Super 2000 rules from the Dutch touring car series) for British GT racer Adam Jones, Quest Racing ran young Irishman Eoin Murray in the ex-works Alfa Romeo 156 he won for taking the Alfa Romeo 147 Challenge title in 2005, while Richard Marsh returned to the field racing an ex-Vic Lee Racing Peugeot 307 for Team Griffin Racing. This car was converted to run on bioethanol fuel for the final meeting at Silverstone.

The final two rounds saw another raft of new entries, all of which were planning full campaigns in 2007. The pair of Lexus IS200s run by SpeedEquipe in 2005 were entered by BTC Racing for Chris Stockton and Darren Dowling, while a third Lexus was fielded by Team Forward Racing (a satellite squad of Xero Competition) for Mark Jones. Daniels Motorsport made a second late-season appearance with their Astra Coupe, with Nick Leason at the wheel.

• In 2006, the number of grid places to be reversed for race three’s starting grid will vary between six and ten. The actual number will be unknown at each race meeting until it is randomly drawn by the winner of race two, immediately after that race. This was introduced to replace the previous season's rule of reversing the top ten finishers to set the grid for race three, as this had seen drivers deliberately trying to drop to tenth place in race two in order to secure pole for race three.
• The base-weight of BTC-spec cars will increase to 1175 kg (although the difference in base weight between BTC and S2000-spec cars will be the same as existed at the end of 2005)
• Cars of those who enter the BTCC late, or dip in and out of the championship, will be penalised with a maximum success ballast at their first meeting or on their return. The ballast amount will subsequently reduce in the second and third meeting in which that car competes.

Team	Car	No.	Drivers	Rounds
Works BTC-T Entries
VX Racing	Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch	5	Tom Chilton	All
		10	Gavin Smith	All
		11	Fabrizio Giovanardi	All
		90	Erkut Kızılırmak	5, 7
Works S2000 Entries
SEAT Sport UK	SEAT León	4	Jason Plato	All
		14	James Thompson	1–3, 5, 7, 10
		24	Darren Turner	4, 6, 8–10
Independent BTC-T Entries
Team Halfords	Honda Integra Type-R	1	Matt Neal	All
		25	Gareth Howell	7–10
		52	Gordon Shedden	All
Team RAC	MG ZS	6	Colin Turkington	All
		7	Rob Collard	All
Fast-Tec Motorsport	Honda Civic Type-R	12	Mark Proctor	1–3, 5, 7–8
Team Farécla	Peugeot 307	16	Richard Marsh	6–10
NJL Racing with Daniels Motorsport	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	19	Nick Leason	9–10
Synchro Motorsport	Honda Civic Type-R	20	James Kaye	All
Kartworld Racing	MG ZS	28	Jason Hughes	All
Motorbase Performance	Honda Integra Type-R	55	Dave Pinkney	All
Team Eurotech Racing with John Guest	Honda Integra Type-R	77	Mike Jordan	All
Thurlby Motors Boston Bowl with Tech-Speed	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	82	Fiona Leggate	1–7
			Paul O'Neill	9–10
Independent S2000 Entries
Geoff Steel Racing	BMW 320i	15	Martyn Bell	All
Quest Racing	Alfa Romeo 156	17	Eoin Murray	5–7, 9–10
Xero Competition	Lexus IS200	21	Adam Jones	3–6, 8–10
Team Forward Racing		79	Mark Jones	9–10
Motorbase Performance	SEAT Toledo Cupra	23	Tom Ferrier	10
BTC Racing	Lexus IS200	42	Darren Dowling	9–10
		43	Chris Stockton	9–10
InFront Motorsport	Alfa Romeo 156	66	Mark Smith	1, 3–7, 9–10

All races were held in the United Kingdom (excepting Mondello Park round that held in Ireland).

Round		Circuit	Date	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Team
1	R1	Brands Hatch Indy, Kent	9 April	Tom Chilton	Tom Chilton	James Thompson	SEAT Sport UK
	R2				Jason Plato	James Thompson	SEAT Sport UK
	R3				Gordon Shedden	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
2	R4	Mondello Park	23 April	Matt Neal	Matt Neal	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R5				Jason Plato	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R6				Rob Collard	Mike Jordan	Team Eurotech Racing
3	R7	Oulton Park Island, Cheshire	14 May	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Gordon Shedden	Team Halfords
	R8				Colin Turkington	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R9				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
4	R10	Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire	4 June	Gordon Shedden	Gordon Shedden	Gordon Shedden	Team Halfords
	R11				David Pinkney	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R12				Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
5	R13	Croft Circuit, Yorkshire	16 July	James Thompson	James Thompson	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R14				Gordon Shedden	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R15				Gordon Shedden	James Thompson	SEAT Sport UK
6	R16	Donington Park National	30 July	Gordon Shedden	Gordon Shedden	Gordon Shedden	Team Halfords
	R17				Rob Collard	Gordon Shedden	Team Halfords
	R18				Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
7	R19	Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit, Norfolk	13 August	Jason Plato	Gavin Smith	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R20				Colin Turkington	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R21				Gordon Shedden	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
8	R22	Knockhill Racing Circuit, Fife	3 September	Jason Plato	Gordon Shedden	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R23				Colin Turkington	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
	R24				Gordon Shedden	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
9	R25	Brands Hatch Indy, Kent	24 September	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R26				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R27				Tom Chilton	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
10	R28	Silverstone National	15 October	Gareth Howell	Gareth Howell	Gareth Howell	Team Halfords
	R29				Gordon Shedden	Matt Neal	Team Halfords
	R30				Gareth Howell	Gareth Howell	Team Halfords

Pos	Driver	BHI			MON			OUL			THR			CRO			DON			SNE			KNO			BHI			SIL			Pts
1	Matt Neal	3	3	Ret	1*	1*	3	4	1*	8	2	1*	2	3	1*	4	4	5	7	6	8	1*	2	5	1*	2	2	Ret	4	1*	Ret	289
2	Jason Plato	Ret	5	1*	2	2	8	14*	6	1*	Ret	Ret	3	1*	2*	3	7	Ret	Ret	1*	1*	6	1*	Ret*	DNS	1*	1*	3	8	Ret	4	241
3	Colin Turkington	4	2	2	4	3	2	7	17	5	8	6	1*	4	3	2	2*	8	1*	Ret	3	4	7	9	Ret*	3	3	4	2	DSQ	2	240
4	Gordon Shedden	Ret	Ret	4	5	DSQ	6	1*	3	Ret	1*	2	11	12	4	17	1*	1*	3	Ret	6	5	6	Ret	2*	7	4	2	6	2	Ret	204
5	Fabrizio Giovanardi	Ret	8	6	7	Ret	5	5	2	9	Ret	8	12	6	Ret	5	3	4*	2	3	Ret	Ret	4	1*	6	6	5	1*	7	3	16	163
6	James Thompson	1*	1*	5	3	Ret	4	11	4	2*				2*	5	1*				2	2	2							5	Ret	5	162
7	Tom Chilton	2*	7	3*	6	Ret	9	9	7	3*	4	9	8	Ret	8	6	5	Ret	6	Ret	7	3*	12	Ret	Ret	4	6	8*	3	Ret	3	139
8	Gavin Smith	6	4	7	8	5	7	8	10	6	6	12	7	9	6	8*	6	2	5	4	Ret	7	Ret	2	5	Ret	NC	10	11	4	10	123
9	Rob Collard	7	6	DSQ	Ret	10	Ret	6	5	4	5	3	6	5	Ret	10	9	13	Ret	11	5	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	5	7	6	10	5	7	97
10	Mike Jordan	5	Ret	Ret	9	7	1*	2	12	7	Ret	Ret	Ret	11	10	7	8	3	Ret	5	4	12	5	Ret	DNS	8	Ret	7	9	Ret	DNS	91
11	Gareth Howell																			7	9	Ret	3	7	3	Ret	8	5	1*	6*	1*	80
12	James Kaye	8	9	Ret	10	6	DNS	3	9	DNS	7	7	4	8	7	9	10	7	8	9	Ret	8	Ret	Ret	DNS	11	13	Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	61
13	David Pinkney	Ret	10	8	13	4	10	10	8	Ret	Ret	4	5	7	9	Ret	11	Ret	9	12	Ret	11	Ret	3	9	9	9	Ret	13	11	12	56
14	Darren Turner										3	5	Ret				12	9	4				10	DSQ	4	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	10	6	41
15	Jason Hughes	9	11	9	11	DNS	Ret	12	Ret	10	9	10	9	14	12	11	15	Ret	Ret	10	Ret	15	8	4	Ret	Ret	10	9	15	9	11	27
16	Mark Proctor	Ret	Ret	DNS	12	8	Ret	13	11	13	DNS	DNS	DNS	Ret	14	Ret				8	11	9	9	6	8							18
17	Eoin Murray													10	11	12	13	6	Ret	Ret	10	10				Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	8
18	Martyn Bell	10	Ret	Ret	15	9	11	Ret	13	14	12	Ret	DNS	16	15	16	14	12	10	14	Ret	13	Ret	8	10	14	Ret	13	16	Ret	15	8
19	Tom Ferrier																												12	7	8	7
20	Paul O'Neill																									10	11	11	14	8	9*	7
21	Fiona Leggate	Ret	12	10	14	Ret	DNS	15	14	11	10	13	10	Ret	16	14	DNS	DNS	DNS	13	12	Ret										3
22	Adam Jones							Ret	15	12	11	11	13	13	13	13	16	10	Ret				11	Ret	DNS	12	Ret	12	DNS	DNS	DNS	1
23	Mark Smith	11	Ret	DNS				16	16	Ret	NC	14	14	17	17	18	17	11	Ret	Ret	Ret	16				17	14	14	18	13	13	0
24	Chris Stockton																									13	12	Ret	19	16	Ret	0
25	Richard Marsh																18	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	17	12	14	0
26	Erkut Kizilirmak													15	Ret	15				Ret	13	14										0
27	Darren Dowling																									16	Ret	15	20	14	Ret	0
28	Nick Leason																									15	DNS	DNS	NC	15	DNS	0
29	Mark Jones																									18	Ret	16	Ret	NC	Ret	0
Pos	Driver	BHI			MON			OUL			THR			CRO			DON			SNE			KNO			BHI			SIL			Pts

• Note: bold signifies pole position (1 point given in first race only, and race 2 and 3 poles are based on race results), italics signifies fastest lap (1 point given all races) and * signifies at least one lap in the lead (1 point given all races).

Pos	Driver	BHI			MON			OUL			THR			CRO			DON			SNE			KNO			BHI			SIL			Pts
1	Matt Neal	3	3	Ret	1	1	3	4	1	8	2	1	2	3	1	4	4	5	7	6	8	1	2	5	1	2	2	Ret	4	1	Ret	337
2	Colin Turkington	4	2	2	4	3	2	7	17	5	8	6	1	4	3	2	2	8	1	Ret	3	4	7	9	Ret	3	3	4	2	DSQ	2	290
3	Gordon Shedden	Ret	Ret	4	5	DSQ	6	1	3	Ret	1	2	11	12	4	17	1	1	3	Ret	6	5	6	Ret	2	6	4	2	6	2	Ret	233
4	Rob Collard	7	6	DSQ	Ret	10	Ret	6	5	4	5	3	6	5	Ret	10	9	13	Ret	11	5	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	5	7	6	10	5	7	174
5	Mike Jordan	5	Ret	Ret	9	7	1	2	12	7	Ret	Ret	Ret	11	10	7	8	3	Ret	5	4	12	5	Ret	DNS	8	Ret	7	9	Ret	DNS	162
6	James Kaye	8	9	Ret	10	6	DNS	3	9	DNS	7	7	4	8	7	9	10	7	8	9	Ret	8	Ret	Ret	DNS	11	13	Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	126
7	David Pinkney	Ret	10	8	13	4	10	10	8	Ret	Ret	4	5	7	9	Ret	11	Ret	9	12	Ret	11	Ret	3	9	9	9	Ret	13	11	12	124
8	Jason Hughes	9	11	9	11	DNS	Ret	12	Ret	10	9	10	9	14	12	11	15	Ret	Ret	10	Ret	15	8	4	Ret	Ret	10	9	15	9	11	98
9	Gareth Howell																			7	9	Ret	3	7	3	Ret	8	5	1	6	1	97
10	Mark Proctor	Ret	Ret	DNS	12	8	Ret	13	11	13	DNS	DNS	DNS	Ret	14	Ret				8	11	9	9	6	8							55
11	Martyn Bell	10	Ret	Ret	15	9	11	Ret	13	14	12	Ret	DNS	16	15	16	14	12	10	14	Ret	13	Ret	8	10	14	Ret	13	16	Ret	15	46
12	Fiona Leggate	Ret	12	10	14	Ret	DNS	15	14	11	10	13	10	Ret	16	14	DNS	DNS	DNS	13	12	Ret										36
13	Eoin Murray													10	11	12	13	6	Ret	Ret	10	10				Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	33
14	Adam Jones							Ret	15	12	11	11	13	13	13	13	16	10	Ret				11	Ret	DNS	12	Ret	12	DNS	DNS	DNS	32
15	Paul O'Neill																									10	11	11	14	8	9	24
16	Tom Ferrier																												12	7	8	18
17	Mark Smith	11	Ret	DNS				16	16	Ret	NC	14	14	17	17	18	17	11	Ret	Ret	Ret	16				17	14	14	18	13	13	13
18	Richard Marsh																18	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	17	12	14	4
19	Chris Stockton																									13	12	Ret	19	16	Ret	3
20	Darren Dowling																									16	Ret	15	20	14	Ret	0
21	Nick Leason																									15	DNS	DNS	NC	15	DNS	0
22	Mark Jones																									18	Ret	16	Ret	NC	Ret	0
Pos	Driver	BHI			MON			OUL			THR			CRO			DON			SNE			KNO			BHI			SIL			Pts