2004 British Touring Car Championship Explained

The 2004 Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship season was the 47th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season.

Changes for 2004

Teams and drivers

With the admittance of Super 2000-spec cars into the championship, the BTCC welcomed with it a new manufacturer, with SEAT Sport's UK division entering a pair of Toledos identical to those used in the European Touring Car Championship, run by RML. At the wheel were Jason Plato, returning to the championship for the first time since his title victory in 2001, and youngster Rob Huff, who earned his drive through winning the inaugural SEAT Cupra UK Championship, for which Plato had acted as a driver coach.

They were joined by reigning champions of the last three seasons Vauxhall, with Triple 8 Engineering again running a trio of Astra Coupes. 2003 champion Yvan Muller remained along with runner-up and 2002 title winner James Thompson, with Luke Hines replacing Paul O'Neill in the third car on the back of claiming the Production class title in his debut season the previous year.

Honda cut its Arena Motorsport-run Civic Type-R campaign down to a single car for the returning Tom Chilton. A three-car entry was registered on the official entry list with Alan Morrison intended as one of the other drivers but only Chilton's entry would appear all season.(https://www.crash.net/btcc/news/7854/1/entry-list-btcc-2004)

The Civic challenge was augmented by a pair of cars entered by Team Dynamics for Matt Neal, returning to his family team from the works Honda set-up, and Dan Eaves, who brought with him Halfords sponsorship after the withdrawal of Vic Lee Racing. A possible 3rd entry for Gareth Howell was mentioned but didn't come to fruition.

Proton completed the line-up of works teams, its two Impians now driven by two newcomers to British motorsport; the experienced South African Shaun Watson-Smith and the young Malaysian Farique Hairuman.

Financial trouble forced MG Rover to pull its works backing from West Surrey Racing's MG ZS assault, but the team cut down from three to two cars and returned as an independent with young gun Colin Turkington and veteran Anthony Reid staying on board.

Ex-works Vauxhall Astra Coupes were a popular choice amongst the other independents, with Michael Bentwood stepping up from the Production ranks in a 'VXR Junior' team prepared by Tech-Speed Motorsport and 2003 Independents champion Rob Collard continuing to campaign an Astra for his self-run team.

GA Motorsport (now under the 'Team Sureterm' banner) continued to run a pair of Astra Coupes for the returning Paul Wallace and Renault Clio Cup graduate Charlie Butler-Henderson, while a Super 2000-spec Alfa Romeo 156 was also entered for Carl Breeze. Wallace was soon replaced by experienced former Ford and Volvo factory driver Kelvin Burt, then later Irishman Gavin Smith and Stefan Hodgetts (son of ex-BTCC champion Chris), the latter then stepping in to replace Butler-Henderson when his funds ran out. Hodgetts then swapped cars with Breeze, who himself was replaced by Gavin Pyper for the final round.

Synchro Motorsport again returned with an ex-works Honda Civic Type R for former works driver James Kaye. Jason Hughes stepped up from the Production class, racing an ex-WSR MG ZS for his Kartworld Racing team, and John Batchelor's 'Team Varta' also switched classes, running Richard Marsh from the second round onwards in first a Super 2000 Civic Type-R, then later an ex-Vic Lee Racing Peugeot 307. Marsh was replaced by Jay Wheals for the final round, for which the team returned to the Civic.

Mardi Gras Motorsport had an abortive campaign, entering a Super 2000 Civic and later an ex-works Peugeot 406 Coupe, both LPG-powered, for businessman John George, and Edenbridge Racing briefly entered a Super 2000 BMW 320i for Justin Keen.

Carly Motors intended to enter a pair of BMW 320is for ex-Alfa Romeo driver Tom Ferrier and ex-Volvo ETCC driver James Hanson but this entry never materialised.

Other changes

The number of total races was increased from 20 to 30 by holding three races at each meeting instead of two
The grid for the second race of each meeting was decided by the results of the first but with the top ten reversed; the grid for the third race was simply the finishing order of the second race
Cars built to Super 2000 specification were allowed, with an equivalency formula designed to ensure that they would have similar performance to their BTC Spec counterparts
Points penalties for engine changes now apply only to the team, not the driver
The "production class" and its associated championship was abolished

Teams and drivers

Team	Car	No.	Drivers	Rounds
Works BTC-T Entries
VX Racing	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	1	Yvan Muller	All
		2	James Thompson	All
		57	Luke Hines	All
Team Honda	Honda Civic Type-R	9	Tom Chilton	All
Petronas Syntium Proton	Proton Impian	15	Fariqe Hairuman	All
Petronas Syntium Proton	Proton Impian	20	Shaun Watson-Smith	All
Works S2000 Entries
SEAT Sport UK	SEAT Toledo Cupra	11	Jason Plato	All
SEAT Sport UK	SEAT Toledo Cupra	12	Rob Huff	All
Independent BTC-T Entries
Computeach Racing with Halfords	Honda Civic Type-R	3	Matt Neal	All
4	Honda Civic Type-R	Dan Eaves	All
West Surrey Racing	MG ZS	6	Anthony Reid	All
West Surrey Racing	MG ZS	8	Colin Turkington	All
Collard Racing	nowrap	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	10	Rob Collard	All
VXR Junior	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	14	Michael Bentwood	1–6, 8–10
Synchro Motorsport	Honda Civic Type-R	16	James Kaye	All
Mardi Gras Motorsport	Peugeot 406 Coupé	17	John George	6–10
Team Sureterm	Vauxhall Astra Coupé	21	Paul Wallace	1–2
		22	nowrap	Charlie Butler-Henderson	1–4, 6
		23	Carl Breeze	8–9
		24	Kelvin Burt	3–4
		25	Gavin Smith	5
		26	Stefan Hodgetts	5–6
		44	Gavin Pyper	10
Team Quest/Varta	Peugeot 307	40	Richard Marsh	8–9
Kartworld Racing	MG ZS	77	Jason Hughes	All
Independent S2000 Entries
Mardi Gras Motorsport	Honda Civic Type-R	17	John George	1–3
Team Sureterm	Alfa Romeo 156	23	Carl Breeze	1–7
Team Sureterm	Alfa Romeo 156	26	Stefan Hodgetts	8–10
Team Quest/Varta	Honda Civic Type-R	40	Richard Marsh	2–7
Team Quest/Varta	Honda Civic Type-R	41	Jay Wheals	10
Edenbridge Racing	BMW 320i	46	Justin Keen	2–4

Season Calendar

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	Thruxton Circuit, Hampshire	11 April	James Thompson	James Thompson	James Thompson	VX Racing
	R2				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R3				Colin Turkington	Yvan Muller	VX Racing
2	R4	Brands Hatch (Indy), Kent	25 April	Colin Turkington	Anthony Reid	Matt Neal	Computeach Racing with Halfords
	R5				nowrap	Shaun Watson-Smith	Luke Hines	VX Racing
	R6				Matt Neal	James Thompson	VX Racing
3	R7	Silverstone Circuit (International), Northamptonshire	9 May	Jason Plato	Yvan Muller	Matt Neal	Computeach Racing with Halfords
	R8			Colin Turkington	James Thompson	VX Racing
	R9			Anthony Reid	Tom Chilton	Team Honda
4	R10	Oulton Park (Island), Cheshire	23 May	James Thompson	James Thompson	Yvan Muller	VX Racing
	R11				Dan Eaves	Dan Eaves	Computeach Racing with Halfords
	R12				James Thompson	Yvan Muller	VX Racing
5	R13	Mondello Park	13 June	Yvan Muller	Colin Turkington	Yvan Muller	VX Racing
	R14				Anthony Reid	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R15				Anthony Reid	Colin Turkington	West Surrey Racing
6	R16	Croft Circuit, Yorkshire	25 July	Anthony Reid	Anthony Reid	Anthony Reid	West Surrey Racing
	R17				Anthony Reid	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R18				Anthony Reid	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
7	R19	Knockhill Circuit, Fife	8 August	Anthony Reid	Colin Turkington	Anthony Reid	West Surrey Racing
	R20				Dan Eaves	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R21				Anthony Reid	Anthony Reid	West Surrey Racing
8	R22	Brands Hatch (Indy), Kent	22 August	Matt Neal	Matt Neal	Matt Neal	nowrap	Computeach Racing with Halfords
	R23				Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R24				Robert Huff Shaun Watson-Smith	Robert Huff	SEAT Sport UK
9	R25	Snetterton Circuit, Norfolk	5 September	nowrap	James Thompson	nowrap	James Thompson	nowrap	James Thompson	VX Racing
	R26				Jason Plato	Luke Hines	VX Racing
	R27				James Thompson	Robert Huff	SEAT Sport UK
10	R28	Donington Park (National), Leicestershire	26 September	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	Jason Plato	SEAT Sport UK
	R29			Yvan Muller	Tom Chilton	Team Honda
	R30			James Thompson	Yvan Muller	VX Racing

Drivers Championship

Points system
1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Fastest Lap	Lead a lap
15	12	10	8	6	5	4	3	2	1	1	1

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.

(key)

Pos	Driver	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts
1		1*	Ret	3	4	2	1*	4	1*	7*	2	5	3	5	2	4	4	4	4	3	Ret	4	3	4	12*	1*	7	3	2*	5	3	274
2	Yvan Muller	3	2	1*	5	3	3	2	2	Ret	1*	8	1*	1*	4	6	2	6	5	5	4	9	2	8	5	5	4	2	7	2	1*	273
3	Jason Plato	8	1*	4	Ret	DNS	Ret	3*	9	2	8	2	Ret*	9	1*	Ret*	9	1*	1*	10	1*	7*	9	1*	2*	11	3	10	1*	6	2	224
4	Anthony Reid	4	6	2	Ret	4	2	6	3	4*	10	3	Ret	2	5	9	1*	8	6	1*	7	1*	12	Ret	6	8	2	5	5	4	8	213
5	Matt Neal	2	Ret	9	1*	DNS	7	1*	8	8	3	4	2	4	10	Ret	3	5	Ret	9	2	8	1*	5	4	2	Ret	4	Ret	Ret	Ret	181
6	Colin Turkington	14	10	6	6	5	5	11	5	12	4	6	5	3	6	1*	6	7	3	4	Ret	3	10	2*	11*	4	5	7	3	7	6	173
7	Robert Huff	6	Ret	Ret	2*	11	4	10	7*	3	7	Ret	Ret	8	DSQ	Ret	5	2	2*	Ret	6	5	7	3	1*	12	8	1*	10	11	5	148
8	Dan Eaves	5	4*	12	8	8	8	5	6	6	9	1*	8	Ret	Ret	3	7	3	12	6	3	2*	Ret	9	Ret	6	11	6	8	3	4	148
9	Tom Chilton	10	Ret	10	3	6	6	18	10	1*	11	7	6	7	8	5	19	9	7	2	Ret	Ret	6	13	8	3	10	12	9	1*	12	116
10	Luke Hines	Ret	7	5	9	1*	10	8	14	11	Ret	9	11	6	3	2	8	14	8	15	5	6	5	10	7	10	1*	8	6	10	Ret	115
11	James Kaye	13	9	7	12	7	Ret	13	15	9	6	12	9	15	7	Ret	Ret	12	13	13	9	11	4	6	Ret	9	6	13	11	9	9	49
12	Rob Collard	11	5	8	10	15	15	Ret	13	DNS	5	Ret	4	13	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	8	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	7	9	11	13	8	7	44
13	Michael Bentwood	7	3	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	12	10	13	11	7	10	12	Ret	14	11	11				11	7	3	Ret	14	14	4	Ret	13	42
14	Shaun Watson-Smith	9	8	Ret	7	Ret	9	12	11	14	Ret	14	10	12	Ret	10	13	10	10	7	8	10	8	Ret	Ret	DSQ	12	15	14	12	Ret	28
15	Carl Breeze	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	DNS	DNS	7	16	5	Ret	13	Ret	11	Ret	8	11	13	14	Ret	Ret	DNS	13	12	10	14	Ret	Ret				14
16	Kelvin Burt							9	4*	Ret	12	Ret	Ret																			11
17	Jason Hughes	Ret	12	Ret	14	12	12	Ret	19	17	15	16	12	14	13	7	12	Ret	Ret	11	10	12	14	11	Ret	13	13	16	Ret	13	11	5
18	Stefan Hodgetts													Ret	DNS	Ret	10	Ret	Ret				Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	9	Ret	Ret	10	4
19	Justin Keen				13	9	Ret	14	18	16	Ret	15	Ret																			2
20	Gavin Smith													Ret	9	Ret																2
21	align=left nowrap	Charlie Butler-Henderson	12	11	Ret	11	Ret	11	Ret	Ret	13	Ret	10	Ret				Ret	15	Ret													1
22	Paul Wallace	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10	13																									1
23	Fariqe Hairuman	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	13	14	15	17	15	14	17	13	16	Ret	11	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	17	14	Ret	Ret	15	Ret	NC	Ret	DNS	0
24	John George	15	13	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	20	Ret							17	Ret	15	12	13	13	Ret	Ret	Ret	15	16	17	Ret	DNS	DNS	0
25	Gavin Pyper																												12	Ret	Ret	0
26	Richard Marsh				15	14	16	16	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	Ret	DNS	18	16	16	14	14	14	16	Ret	Ret	NC	17	18				0
27	Jay Wheals																												15	14	DNS	0
Pos	Driver	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts

Note: bold signifies pole position (1 point given in first race only, driver who finishes 10th in first race gets pole for race 2 and race 3 pole is for race 2 winner), italics signifies fastest lap (1 point given all races) and * signifies at least one lap in the lead (1 point given all races).

Manufacturers Championship

Pos	Manufacturer	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts
1	Vauxhall / VX Racing	1	2	1	4	1	1	2	1	7	1	5	1	1	2	2	2	4	4	3	4	4	2	4	5	1	1	2	2	2	1
	3	7	3	5	2	3	4	2	11	2	8	3	5	3	4	4	6	5	5	5	6	3	8	7	5	4	3	6	5	3
	Ret	Ret	5	9	3	10	8	14	Ret	Ret	9	11	6	4	6	8	14	8	15	Ret	9	5	10	12	10	7	8	7	10	Ret
2	Honda / Honda Racing &<br>Computeach Racing with Halfords	2	4	9	1	6	6	1	6	1	3	1	2	4	8	3	3	3	7	2	2	2	1	5	4	2	10	4	8	1	4
	5	Ret	10	3	8	7	5	8	6	9	4	6	7	10	5	7	5	12	6	3	8	6	9	8	3	11	6	9	3	12
	10	Ret	12	8	DNS	8	18	10	8	11	7	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	19	9	Ret	9	Ret	Ret	Ret	13	Ret	6	Ret	12	Ret	Ret	Ret
3	SEAT / SEAT Sport UK	6	1	4	2	11	4	3	7	2	7	2	Ret	8	1	Ret	5	1	1	10	1	5	7	1	1	11	3	1	1	6	2	421
3	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	10	9	3	8	Ret	Ret	9	DSQ	Ret	9	2	2	Ret	6	7	9	3	2	12	8	10	10	11	5		421
4	Proton / Petronas Syntium Proton	9	8	Ret	7	13	9	12	11	14	14	14	10	12	Ret	10	13	10	10	7	8	10	8	14	Ret	DSQ	12	15	14	12	Ret
4	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	Ret	14	15	17	15	Ret	17	13	16	Ret	11	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	17	Ret	Ret	Ret	15	Ret	NC	Ret	DNS
Pos	Manufacturer	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts

Teams Championship

Pos	Team	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts
1	VX Racing	1	2	1	4	1	1	2	1	7	1	5	1	1	2	2	2	4	4	3	4	4	2	4	5	1	1	2	2	2	1
1	3	7	3	5	2	3	4	2	11	2	8	3	5	3	4	4	6	5	5	5	6	3	8	7	5	4	3	6	5	3
2	SEAT Sport UK	6	1	4	2	11	4	3	7	2	7	2	Ret	8	1	Ret	5	1	1	10	1	5	7	1	1	11	3	1	1	6	2	360
2	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	10	9	3	8	Ret	Ret	9	DSQ	Ret	9	2	2	Ret	6	7	9	3	2	12	8	10	10	11	5		360
3	West Surrey Racing	4	6	2	6	4	2	6	3	4	4	3	5	2	5	1	1	7	3	1	7	1	10	2	6	4	2	5	3	4	6
3	14	10	6	Ret	5	5	11	5	12	10	6	Ret	3	6	9	6	8	6	4	Ret	3	12	Ret	11	8	5	7	5	7	8
4	Computeach Racing with Halfords	2	4	9	1	8	7	1	6	6	3	1	2	4	10	3	3	3	12	6	2	2	1	5	4	2	11	4	8	3	4
4	5	Ret	12	8	DNS	8	5	8	8	9	4	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	5	Ret	9	3	8	Ret	9	Ret	6	Ret	6	Ret	Ret	Ret
5	Team Honda	10	Ret	10	3	6	6	18	10	1	11	7	6	7	8	5	19	9	7	2	Ret	Ret	6	13	8	3	10	12	9	1	12
6	Synchro Motorsport	13	9	7	12	7	Ret	13	15	9	6	12	9	15	7	Ret	Ret	12	13	13	9	11	4	6	Ret	9	6	13	11	9	9	54
7	Collard Racing	11	5	8	10	15	15	Ret	13	DNS	5	Ret	4	13	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	8	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	7	9	11	13	8	7	50
8	Team Sureterm	12	11	11	11	10	11	7	4	5	12	10	Ret	11	9	8	10	13	14	Ret	Ret	DNS	13	12	10	14	Ret	9	12	Ret	10	44
8	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	13	9	16	13	Ret	13	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	11	15	Ret				Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret		44
9	VXR Junior	7	3	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	12	10	13	11	7	10	12	Ret	14	11	11				11	7	3	Ret	14	14	4	Ret	13
10	Petronas Syntium Proton	9	8	Ret	7	13	9	12	11	14	14	14	10	12	Ret	10	13	10	10	7	8	10	8	14	Ret	DSQ	12	15	14	12	Ret
10	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	Ret	14	15	17	15	Ret	17	13	16	Ret	11	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	17	Ret	Ret	Ret	15	Ret	NC	Ret	DNS
11	Edenbridge Racing				13	9	Ret	14	18	16	Ret	15	Ret																			3
12	Mardi Gras Motorsport	15	13	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	20	Ret							17	Ret	15	12	13	13	Ret	Ret	Ret	15	16	17	Ret	DNS	DNS	0
13	Team Quest/Varta				15	14	16	16	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	Ret	DNS	18	16	16	14	14	14	16	Ret	Ret	NC	17	18	15	14	DNS	0
14	Kartworld Racing	Ret	12	Ret	14	12	12	Ret	19	17	15	16	12	14	13	7	12	Ret	Ret	11	10	12	14	11	Ret	13	13	16	Ret	13	11
Pos	Team	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts

Independents Championship

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "2004 British Touring Car Championship".

Pos	Driver	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts
1	Anthony Reid	4	6	2	Ret	4	2	6	3	4	10	3	Ret	2	5	9	1	8	6	1	7	1	12	Ret	6	8	2	5	5	4	8	312
2	Colin Turkington	14	10	6	6	5	5	11	5	12	4	6	5	3	6	1	6	7	3	4	Ret	3	10	2	11	4	5	7	3	7	6	300
3	Dan Eaves	5	4	12	8	8	8	5	6	6	9	1	8	Ret	Ret	3	7	3	12	6	3	2	Ret	9	Ret	6	11	6	8	3	4	254
4	Matt Neal	2	Ret	9	1	DNS	7	1	8	8	3	4	2	4	10	Ret	3	5	Ret	9	2	8	1	5	4	2	Ret	4	Ret	Ret	Ret	253
5	James Kaye	13	9	7	12	7	Ret	13	15	9	6	12	9	15	7	Ret	Ret	12	13	13	9	11	4	6	Ret	9	6	13	11	9	9	164
6	Rob Collard	11	5	8	10	15	15	Ret	13	DNS	5	Ret	4	13	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	8	11	Ret	15	Ret	9	7	9	11	13	8	7	152
7	Michael Bentwood	7	3	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	12	10	13	11	7	10	12	Ret	14	11	11				11	7	3	Ret	14	14	4	Ret	13	131
8	Jason Hughes	Ret	12	Ret	14	12	12	Ret	19	17	15	16	12	14	13	7	12	Ret	Ret	11	10	12	14	11	Ret	14	13	16	Ret	13	11	89
9	Carl Breeze	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	DNS	DNS	7	16	5	Ret	13	Ret	11	Ret	8	11	13	14	Ret	Ret	DNS	13	12	10	15	Ret	Ret				75
10	align=left nowrap	Charlie Butler-Henderson	12	11	Ret	11	Ret	11	Ret	Ret	13	Ret	10	Ret				Ret	15	Ret													33
11	John George	15	13	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	20	Ret							17	Ret	15	12	13	13	Ret	Ret	Ret	16	16	17	Ret	DNS	DNS	27
12	Richard Marsh				15	14	16	16	DNS	DNS	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	Ret	DNS	18	16	16	14	14	14	16	Ret	Ret	NC	17	18				27
13	Kelvin Burt							9	4	Ret	12	Ret	Ret																			22
14	Justin Keen				13	9	Ret	14	18	16	Ret	15	Ret																			18
15	Stefan Hodgetts													Ret	DNS	Ret	10	Ret	Ret				Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	9	Ret	Ret	10	17
16	Paul Wallace	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10	13																									9
17	Gavin Smith													Ret	9	Ret																8
18	Jay Wheals																												15	14	DNS	7
19	Gavin Pyper																												12	Ret	Ret	5
Pos.	Driver	THR			BHI			SIL			OUL			MON			CRO			KNO			BHI			SNE			DON			valign=middle	Pts