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By way of a change this time it is appropriate for me to mention the BTCC. This series has provided we armchair enthusiasts with thrilling racing for many a year and I have watched every race avidly. The British championship offers the thrills and excitement tin tops have provided we enthusiasts with for ever. Having been there myself I suppose I will always have an affinity with the sport.
This year has seen the emergence of Colin Turkington in his BMW 320si run by West Surrey Racing headed by Dick Bennetts. Throughout the year Colin has provided we TV viewers with some outstanding drives and none more than the last race of the season at Brands which must have been the closest and most thrilling for many a year.
I was happy to see him overcome the season long challenge from Fabrizio Giovanardi and Jason Plato who again both drove brilliantly throughout the season. I was also pleased he played down the threat from Matt Neal in the last race who was there to stop Colin winning!
So Colin won the 2009 HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship and it couldn't have gone to a nicer guy or a nicer team. In all the interviews we heard through the season he was pleasant, informative and above all completely realistic. Congratulations Colin on a job well done and more of it in 2010 would be appreciated.
Behind every good driver has to be a team dedicated to achieving ultimate glory. That team was Team RAC, the West Surrey Racing ran team headed by Dick Bennetts who were confirmed as Independents Team Trophy Champions for 2009, winning 348 points.At the recent BMW Awards 2009 staged in Munich's Kesselhaus, Saturday 7 December Colin was also recipient of the BMW Sports Trophy title, presented to him by none other than Mario Thyssen of BMW F1 fame.
2009 saw 198 drivers from 24 countries score points towards the overall Trophy standings in 29 international racing series. As in 2007, Colin's performance earned him the trophy and we should all be proud of his achievement. The last time a BMW driver won the award was 16 years ago in the hands of Joachim Winklehock.
Colin's 6 victories in 2009 culminated in the final race of the season at Brands and any 1 of Colin, Fabrizio or Jason could have won. Whilst things didn't go as well as expected he scored enough points to take the championship. 2009 Autosport Awards
Staged for the 28th time in the Great Room at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane the event was sponsored by the 2010 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
Jenson obviously took centre stage after his epic drives in 2009 in becoming our second F1 World Champion in a row after Lewis's title triumph in 2008.
The second award of the night went to Colin Turkington who was rightfully named as National Driver of the Year. Saturday in Munich and now Grosvenor House on Monday, will he ever come back down to earth ready for 2010! The award was presented to Colin by none other than Tom Kristensen and our very own Andy Priaulx. Dick and the WSR team are obviously very proud of their achievements in 2009 and so they should be. Colin & Stephen (Jelley) provided a formidable partnership and supported the team's car building efforts throughout the season. No DNF's is a quite remarkable achievement in what is a very strenuous event for the cars.
There were other notable award winners including:
Sarah Moore - Club Driver of the Year - Ginetta Junior Champion
Kris Meeke - Autosport Rookie of the Year
F1 in Schools - Autosport Pioneering and Innovation Award
Brawn BGP001 - Racing Car of the Year
Adrian Newey - John Bolster Award for Technical Excellence
Citroen C4 WRC - Rally Car of the Year
Mikko Hirvonen - International Rally Driver of the Year
Enzo Ferrari - Gregory Grant Award
Ron Dennis - Gregory Grant Award for Lifetime Achievement
Jenson Button - British Competition Driver of the Year
and finally and the highlight of the evening
Dean Smith - Mclaren Autosport BRDC Award Winner
Congratulations to all all the drivers, teams and marshalls during 2009 and we look forward to it all starting again 2010.
