2009 British Touring Car Championship

Colin Turkington became the first Northern Irish driver to win the Championship

Jason Plato came second, with only a 5-point margin

Italy’s Fabrizio Giovanardi came third in the championship, 4 points behind Jason Plato

Colin Turkington became the first Northern Irish winner of the championship. In addition, he wrapped up a third consecutive independents' driver title, with his Team RAC also picking up the Independent Teams Trophy.

The 2009 HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship season was the 52nd British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season. It began at Brands Hatch on the Indy layout on 5 April and finished after 30 races over 10 events on the Grand Prix layout at Brands Hatch on 4 October. Colin Turkington won the championship for the first time, ahead of Jason Plato and Fabrizio Giovanardi.

The season also saw Airwaves BMW score their first win in the series when Rob Collard won the second race of the day at the opening meeting at Brands Hatch. The team seemed to have added a second win in race three as Jonathan Adam crossed the line first but he was demoted to second after making contact with Jason Plato handing Plato the win.

Andrew Jordan became the youngest driver to qualify on pole at Donington after team-mate Fabrizio Giovanardi was excluded for failing technical checks.

Also, Stephen Jelley took his first win in the series at the first race at Rockingham. He followed this up with another victory in race 3, a race that saw Tom Chilton become the first driver to score a podium position in a Ford Focus following a collision between Plato, Turkington and Plato's team mate James Nash.

At the final meeting at Brands Hatch, Chilton took pole position becoming the first Ford driver to do so since 2000. All three races were won by Jason Plato, becoming only the second driver to do so following Dan Eaves' hat-trick at Thruxton in 2005; but this was not enough to win the title. Colin Turkington became British Touring Car Champion for the first time, coincidentally becoming the first Northern Irishman to do so.

Former British Grand Prix winner Johnny Herbert contested the final three meetings in a Team Dynamics Honda Civic.

Entry list

Team	Car	No	Drivers	Rounds
Constructors Entries
VX Racing	Vauxhall Vectra	1	Fabrizio Giovanardi	All
		5	Matt Neal	All
		77	Andrew Jordan	All
Independent Constructor Entries
Team Aon	Ford Focus ST	6	Tom Onslow-Cole	5, 8–10
		10	Tom Chilton	All
		20	Alan Morrison	1–4
Team Dynamics	Honda Civic	35	James Thompson	2–7
		45	Johnny Herbert	8–10
		52	Gordon Shedden	1
		55	David Pinkney	All
Independent S2000 Entries
RML Racing Silverline	Chevrolet Lacetti	2	Mat Jackson	2–10
		3	Jason Plato	All
		23	James Nash	4–6, 8–9
Team RAC	BMW 320si E90	4	Colin Turkington	All
		14	Anthony Reid	8–10
		44	Stephen Jelley	All
Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing	SEAT León	9	Adam Jones	1–6
		52	Gordon Shedden	6–7
		85	Dan Eaves	1–5
Airwaves BMW	BMW 320si E90	11	Rob Collard	All
		12	Jonathan Adam	All
Team AFM Racing	BMW 120d	16	Nick Leason	1–3
Tempus Sport	Chevrolet Lacetti	17	Harry Vaulkhard	1–5
bamboo engineering				6–10
Maxtreme	SEAT Toledo Cupra	27	Liam McMillan	1–3
Club SEAT	SEAT León	52	Gordon Shedden	9–10
Independent BTC-T Entries
Sunshine.co.uk with Tech-Speed Motorsport	Honda Integra Type-R	15	Martyn Bell	1–5, 8, 10
		29	Paul O'Neill	2–10
TH Motorsport Racing with JAG	Honda Integra Type-R	50	John George	All
TH Motorsport Racing with Inten	Honda Civic Type-R	98	Matt Hamilton	9–10
Boulevard Team Racing	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	63	Martin Johnson	All

Driver changes

Changed teams

• Tom Chilton: Team Dynamics → Team Aon
• Mat Jackson: BMW Dealer Team UK → RML/Racing Silverline
• Adam Jones: Team Air Cool → Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing
• Andrew Jordan: Team Eurotech → VX Racing
• Tom Onslow-Cole: VX Racing → Team Aon
• Jason Plato: SEAT Sport → RML/Racing Silverline
• Gordon Shedden: Team Dynamics → Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing/Club SEAT
• Harry Vaulkhard: Robertshaw Racing → Tempus Sport/bamboo engineering

Entering/re-entering BTCC

• Jonathan Adam: SEAT Cupra Championship (Total Control Racing) → Airwaves BMW
• Dan Eaves: Three-year sabbatical → Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing
• Matt Hamilton: FIA GT4 European Cup → TH Motorsport
• Johnny Herbert: Speedcar Series (JMB Racing) → Team Dynamics
• Martin Johnson: Renault Clio Cup (Boulevard Team Racing) → Boulevard Team Racing
• Nick Leason: 18-month sabbatical → AFM Racing
• Liam McMillan: SEAT León Supercopa (Triple R) → Maxtreme
• Alan Morrison: Five-year sabbatical → Team Aon
• James Nash: SEAT León Eurocup (SUNRED) → RML
• Paul O'Neill: British GT Championship (Team RPM) → Sunshine.co.uk with Tech-Speed Motorsport
• David Pinkney: British GT Championship (Tech 9 Racing) → Team Dynamics
• Anthony Reid: Porsche Carrera Cup → Team RAC
• James Thompson: World Touring Car Championship (N.Technology) → Team Dynamics

Leaving BTCC

• Michael Doyle: In-Tune Racing → Unknown
• Mike Jordan: Team Eurotech → Britcar (JordanSport.co.uk)
• Steven Kane: Motorbase Performance → FIA Formula Two Championship Test Driver
• Erkut Kızılırmak: Arkas Racing → Turkish Touring Car Championship (Arkas Racing)
• Stuart Oliver: BTC Racing → Truck racing only
• Chris Stockton: BTC Racing → Unknown
• Alan Taylor: Robertshaw Racing → Unknown
• Darren Turner: SEAT Sport → Le Mans Series (Aston Martin Racing) and FIA GT Championship (Gigawave MotorSport)

Mid-season changes

• Gordon Shedden was replaced by James Thompson at Team Dynamics after the opening race weekend.
• Liam McMillan and Nick Leason's respective teams both dropped out after the first three rounds.
• Tom Onslow-Cole replaced Alan Morrison at Team Aon at Croft. The team ran a single car for Tom Chilton in the subsequent two meetings.
• Martyn Bell missed rounds six and seven due to a knee injury; he was not replaced, leaving Paul O'Neill to race the sole Techspeed entry.
• Shedden replaced Dan Eaves at Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing ahead of round six of the championship.
• Thompson will miss the final three race weekends due to other commitments. He has been replaced at Team Dynamics by Johnny Herbert.
• Anthony Reid raced a third Team RAC car from Silverstone.
• Cartridge World Carbon Zero Racing left the championship before Silverstone.
• Matt Hamilton joined the series at Rockingham.
• Shedden returned to the series at Rockingham under the Club SEAT banner.

Calendar

All races were held in the United Kingdom. The 2009 season had ten race weekends with three BTCC rounds at each. Provisional dates were announced by series organisers on 11 July 2008.^[1] The calendar was finalised on 17 March 2009, when all race timetables were announced.^[2]

Round		Circuit	Date	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Team
1	R1	Brands Hatch Indy, Kent	5 April	Matt Neal	Rob Collard	Matt Neal	VX Racing
	R2				Matt Neal	Rob Collard	Airwaves BMW
	R3				Jonathan Adam	Jason Plato	RML
2	R4	Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire	26 April	Fabrizio Giovanardi	Fabrizio Giovanardi	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
	R5				Fabrizio Giovanardi	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
	R6				Mat Jackson	Mat Jackson	RML
3	R7	Donington Park, Leicestershire	17 May	Andrew Jordan	Mat Jackson	James Thompson	Team Dynamics
	R8				Fabrizio Giovanardi	James Thompson	Team Dynamics
	R9				Paul O'Neill	Rob Collard	Airwaves BMW
4	R10	Oulton Park, Cheshire	31 May	Jason Plato	Mat Jackson	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
	R11				Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
	R12				Rob Collard	James Thompson	Team Dynamics
5	R13	Croft Circuit, North Yorkshire	14 June	Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
	R14				Colin Turkington	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
	R15				Andrew Jordan	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
6	R16	Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit, Norfolk	2 August	Jason Plato	Fabrizio Giovanardi	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
	R17				Jason Plato	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
	R18				Jason Plato	Colin Turkington	Team RAC
7	R19	Knockhill Racing Circuit, Fife	16 August	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline
	R20				Fabrizio Giovanardi	Fabrizio Giovanardi	VX Racing
	R21				Jason Plato	Mat Jackson	Racing Silverline
8	R22	Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire	30 August	Mat Jackson	James Nash	Mat Jackson	Racing Silverline
	R23				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline
	R24				Mat Jackson	Mat Jackson	Racing Silverline
9	R25	Rockingham Motor Speedway, Northamptonshire	20 September	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Stephen Jelley	Team RAC
	R26				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline
	R27				Stephen Jelley	Stephen Jelley	Team RAC
10	R28	Brands Hatch GP, Kent	4 October	Tom Chilton	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline
	R29				Matt Neal	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline
	R30				Gordon Shedden	Jason Plato	Racing Silverline

Championship standings

• No driver may collect more than one "Lead a Lap" point per race no matter how many laps they lead.
• Race 1 polesitter receives 1 point.

Drivers Championship

Pos	Driver	BHI			THR			DON			OUL			CRO			SNE			KNO			SIL			ROC			BHGP			Pts
1	Colin Turkington	3*	2*	4	4	1*	9	Ret	5	2	1*	1*	11	1*	1*	6	5	2	1	4	3	5	4	4	3	10	4	4	8	3	2*	275
2	Jason Plato	6	10	1*	10	6	4	7	4	3	2	3	5	3	3	5	Ret	3	13	1*	Ret	2	2	1*	7	2	1*	12	1*	1*	1*	270
3	Fabrizio Giovanardi	2	16	Ret	1*	2*	8	8	3	5	4	2	6	5	5	1*	1*	1*	2	6	1*	3	5	2	5	6	3	11	3	2	4	266
4	Matt Neal	1*	3	3	2	3	7	3	2	8	7	4	3	6	6	8	9	14	3	Ret	4	4	10	Ret	13	Ret	NC	Ret	5	8	5*	170
5	Mat Jackson				8	9	1*	10	6	4	19	Ret	8	Ret	DNS	DNS	2	NC	DNS	3	2	1*	1*	3*	1*	3	2*	5	12	12	11	165
6	Rob Collard	4*	1*	8	17	5	5	4	9	1*	9	Ret	4	4	4	7	Ret	7	Ret*	Ret	12	Ret	6*	9	2*	4	Ret	Ret	6	4	Ret	145
7	Stephen Jelley	7	4	Ret	7	4	6	Ret	DNS	DNS	5	14	Ret	2	2	3	6	13	Ret	8	8	10	7	12	4	1*	6*	1*	14	11	6	137
8	Jonathan Adam	Ret	9	2*	12	11	12	6	7	13	3	5	13	7	Ret	9	4	6	8	5	7	Ret	8	7	6	5*	5	6	7	5	8	116
9	James Thompson				11	7	3	1*	1*	6	8	7	1*	11	9	2*	Ret	4	5	Ret	6	6*										114
10	Andrew Jordan	Ret	5	Ret	3	18	16	2	Ret	11	10	6	2	8	7	4	12*	12	4	7	10	7	12	6	15	7	8	2*	4	16	Ret	114
11	Adam Jones	5	7	7	6	8	2	9	8	Ret	6	8	7	16	8	Ret	7	11	7													62
12	Paul O'Neill				5	10	Ret	Ret	11	16	12	9	9	9	10	Ret*	3	5	6	9	5	9	9	10	9	9	Ret	Ret	9	7	Ret	60
13	Tom Chilton	11	14	11	15	17	Ret	12	17	9	13	12	Ret	Ret	DNS	10	11	Ret	Ret	11	11	8	11	5	Ret	18	9	3*	2*	6*	3	55
14	Gordon Shedden	Ret	6	5													Ret	10	12	2	9*	Ret				12	Ret	8	Ret	10	9	34
15	James Nash										11	Ret	17	13	15	Ret	NC	8	DSQ				3	Ret	8	8	7	Ret				24
16	Harry Vaulkhard	8	11	9	9	12	11	5	10	7	Ret	15	12	Ret	DNS	DNS	10	9	Ret	10	Ret	11	14	11	11	13	11	Ret	11	13	Ret	22
17	Dan Eaves	9	8	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	16	13	14	Ret	DNS	DNS																10
18	David Pinkney	15	13	Ret	14	13	10	14	12	10	15	11	Ret	10	11	Ret	8	Ret	9	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	16	10	15	13	Ret	15	14	10	10
19	Johnny Herbert																						13	8	Ret	Ret	10	7	Ret	Ret	14	8
20	Anthony Reid																						Ret	14	12	11	12	Ret	10	Ret	7	5
21	Tom Onslow-Cole													Ret	NC	Ret							Ret	13	14	14	Ret	9	13	9	12	4
22	Martin Johnson	12	Ret	13	16	16	14	11	16	12	18	16	Ret	12	12	Ret	14	15	10	12	13	13	Ret	DNS	16	16	14	10	Ret	DNS	DNS	2
23	Martyn Bell	10	12	10	13	14	13	15	15	19	17	17	15	15	13	11							15	15	18				17	Ret	Ret	2
24	Alan Morrison	13	15	12	Ret	Ret	Ret	16	13	15	14	10	10																			2
25	John George	Ret	Ret	14	18	15	Ret	17	14	17	Ret	DNS	16	14	14	12	13	16	11	13	14	14	16	17	17	17	Ret	13	16	15	Ret	0
26	Liam McMillan	14	Ret	Ret	Ret	19	Ret	13	Ret	14																						0
27	Matt Hamilton																									Ret	Ret	14	Ret	Ret	13	0
28	Nick Leason	Ret	17	15	NC	20	15	Ret	Ret	18																						0
Pos	Driver	BHI			THR			DON			OUL			CRO			SNE			KNO			SIL			ROC			BHGP			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).

Manufacturers/Constructors Championship

• * Vauxhall penalised 10 points for exceeding engine limit.

Teams Championship

• * VX Racing, Racing Silverline and Tempus Sport penalised 10 points for exceeding engine limit.

Independents Trophy

Pos	Driver	BHI			THR			DON			OUL			CRO			SNE			KNO			SIL			ROC			BHGP			Pts
1	Colin Turkington	3	2	4	4	1	9	Ret	5	2	1	1	11	1	1	6	5	2	1	4	3	5	4	4	3	10	4	4	8	3	2	313
2	Jason Plato	6	10	1	10	6	4	7	4	3	2	3	5	3	3	5	Ret	3	13	1	Ret	2	2	1	7	2	1	12	1	1	1	283
3	Mat Jackson				8	9	1	10	6	4	19	Ret	8	Ret	DNS	DNS	2	NC	DNS	3	2	1	1	3	1	3	2	5	12	12	11	183
4	Rob Collard	4	1	8	17	5	5	4	9	1	9	Ret	4	4	4	7	Ret	7	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	6	9	2	4	Ret	Ret	6	4	Ret	173
5	Stephen Jelley	7	4	Ret	7	4	6	Ret	DNS	DNS	5	14	Ret	2	2	3	6	13	Ret	8	8	10	7	12	4	1	6	1	14	11	6	165
6	Jonathan Adam	Ret	9	2	12	11	12	6	7	13	3	5	13	7	Ret	9	4	6	8	5	7	Ret	8	7	6	5	5	6	7	5	8	159
7	James Thompson				11	7	3	1	1	6	8	7	1	11	9	2	Ret	4	5	Ret	6	6										144
8	Paul O'Neill				5	10	Ret	Ret	11	16	12	9	9	9	10	Ret	3	5	6	9	5	9	9	10	9	9	Ret	Ret	9	7	Ret	110
9	Adam Jones	5	7	7	6	8	2	9	8	Ret	6	8	7	16	8	Ret	7	11	7													98
10	Tom Chilton	11	14	11	15	17	Ret	12	17	9	13	12	Ret	Ret	DNS	10	11	Ret	Ret	11	11	8	11	5	Ret	18	9	3	2	6	3	83
11	Harry Vaulkhard	8	11	9	9	12	11	5	10	7	Ret	15	12	Ret	DNS	DNS	10	9	Ret	10	Ret	11	14	11	11	13	11	Ret	11	13	Ret	58
12	Gordon Shedden	Ret	6	5													Ret	10	12	2	9	Ret				12	Ret	8	Ret	10	9	48
13	David Pinkney	15	13	Ret	14	13	10	14	12	10	15	11	Ret	10	11	Ret	8	Ret	9	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	16	10	15	13	Ret	15	14	10	33
14	James Nash										11	Ret	17	13	15	Ret	NC	8	DSQ				3	Ret	8	8	7	Ret				32
15	Martin Johnson	12	Ret	13	16	16	14	11	16	12	18	16	Ret	12	12	Ret	14	15	10	12	13	13	Ret	DNS	16	16	14	10	Ret	DNS	DNS	19
16	Dan Eaves	9	8	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	16	13	14	Ret	DNS	DNS																16
17	Johnny Herbert																						13	8	Ret	Ret	10	7	Ret	Ret	14	14
18	Anthony Reid																						Ret	14	12	11	12	Ret	10	Ret	7	13
19	Martyn Bell	10	12	10	13	14	13	15	15	19	17	17	15	15	13	11							15	15	18				17	Ret	Ret	11
20	Tom Onslow-Cole													Ret	NC	Ret							Ret	13	14	14	Ret	9	13	9	12	9
21	Alan Morrison	13	15	12	Ret	Ret	Ret	16	13	15	14	10	10																			8
22	John George	Ret	Ret	14	18	15	Ret	17	14	17	Ret	DNS	16	14	14	12	13	16	11	13	14	14	16	17	17	17	Ret	13	16	15	Ret	6
23	Liam McMillan	14	Ret	Ret	Ret	19	Ret	13	Ret	14																						1
24	Matt Hamilton																									Ret	Ret	14	Ret	Ret	13	0
25	Nick Leason	Ret	17	15	NC	20	15	Ret	Ret	18																						0
Pos	Driver	BHI			THR			DON			OUL			CRO			SNE			KNO			SIL			ROC			BHGP			Pts

Independent Teams Trophy

• * Racing Silverline and Tempus Sport penalised 10 points for exceeding engine limit.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2009 in British Touring Car Championship.

• Official website of the British Touring Car Championship