With the Autosport international show starting on Thursday, you’d expect all the latest BTCC news to be announced there but Eurotech decided to get ahead of the opposition by announcing one of their 2017 drivers today.
It won’t come as a big surprise that they’ve confirmed Eurotech owner Jeff Smith as their first driver for 2017.
Smith’s best finish last season was fourth but he has been on the podium twice in his BTCC career;
“We had great race pace last year and the true qualifying pace of the car was clearly proven by Daniel Lloyd when he put it on the front row in two out of three rounds he competed in,” said Smith. “You can’t stand still in this championship, back at base in our new 8,000 square foot state of the art workshop the team have been flat out since we finished the last round at Brands Hatch. We have a full testing programme in place which includes a week long test in Spain at the end of February, so I believe we will be in a strong position to move forwards in 2017.”
The team’s second driver is still to be confirmed with a number of drivers said to be in talks for the sought after drive.
It’s certain it won’t be fromer driver Martin Depper who is confirmed to have left the team. Whether Depper will pop up elsewhere, either in the BTCC or in the wider Motorsport world, remains to be seen.
Thursday will see further BTCC announcements and launches as Autosport international gets underway. The BTCC’s involvement increases this year. The now traditional Dunlop sponsored BTCC stand will be there as usual featuring some selected cars and visits from many of the drivers. There are also likely to be other BTCC cars on stands around the show.
On top of this the BTCC will be heavily featured in the live show with drivers, including reigning champion Gordon Shedden, taking part. The first two days are trade only with the public days being held on Saturday and Sunday. If you are yet to get your ticket, it’s still possible to order online or just buy one at the show.
We’ll be bringing you plenty of coverage from the show. By Marc Waller
