22 Apr Prodrive: Bringing the super touring cars era back to life
MIA Member Prodrive has shared the following news article.
Bringing the super touring cars era back to life
Prodrive will help bring to life one of the headline attractions at this weekend’s 83rd Goodwood Members’ Meeting, as the golden era of British Touring Car racing returns to the Goodwood Motor Circuit.
The event will host nearly 50 Touring Cars from the period, with The Super Touring Shootout promising a rare and evocative celebration of late 1990s touring car racing, with legendary machinery and drivers returning to the circuit. Among the standout entries will be the Prodrive-built and run 2000 Ford Mondeo, driven during the season by Anthony Reid, who will once again take the wheel as the car competes in the timed Shootout itself.
Alongside the on track action, Prodrive will bring two significant cars from its Heritage Collection for static display. The Ford Mondeo driven by Reid’s teammate, Alain Menu, to the 2000 British Touring Car Championship Drivers’ title will be on show. One of the most sophisticated touring cars ever built, it represents the culmination of Prodrive’s Super Touring programme.
Joining it on display will be a 1998 Honda Accord, raced by James Thompson for the Prodrive-run Honda factory team. A 1997 Honda Accord, also built by the team, and driven in period by Gabrielle Tarquini, is set to take part in the timed competition.
Beyond the Super Touring era, Prodrive also ran Alfa Romeo’s BTCC team in 1995. Earlier still, the company played a pivotal role with BMW, running the marque’s works programme from 1987 to 1992 and securing three driver’s championships in successive years from 1988 to 1990 with Frank Sytner and James Weaver.
The 83rd Members’ Meeting offers an evocative snapshot of an era when innovation, competition and personality defined the BTCC. It also underlines Prodrive’s enduring role in touring car racing, from the showroom derived battles of the late eighties to the no holds barred Super Touring era that many fans still regard as the championship’s high point.
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