Rejects Touring Car Championship
| Rejects Touring Car Championship | |
|---|---|
| [[{{{logo}}}|200px]] | |
| Category | {{{category}}} |
| Country/Region | {{{locale}}} |
| Founder(s) | {{{founder}}} |
| Inaugural Season | 1998 |
| Engine supplier(s) | BMW, Toyota, Nissan, Peugeot, Audi, Ford, Alfa Romeo, Opel, Volvo, Renault, Honda, Mazda |
| Tyre supplier(s) | Michelin |
| Records | |
The Rejects Touring Car Championship is an international Touring Car championship. The series originally started in 1998 but after it's inaugural campaign it stalled for 17 years (due to series organiser Herrmann Mann being sent to prison) before returning in 2015.
1998 season
The 1998 Rejects Touring Car Championship season was the inaugural season of the RTCC, featuring cars used in the British Touring Car Championhip from the same year. The series was formed by a breakaway group from the BTCC, with shady German businessman Herrmann Mann at the helm. Hermann is also known for being the driving force behind the 1989 F1 Team Onyx, holding lavish parties (with plenty of Jagermeister) and having the same name as successful F1RWRS drivers Douglas and Pippa Mann. The series was to visit tracks across Europe and Australia, with non-championship 24 hour race at the Manx TT and a Touring Rockingham 200 endurance race. However, the series collapsed after just four races into the season when Mann was arrested due to various drug and bribery charges (the latter apparently to cover-up and allow the then WMSC-suspended Robert Anderson to race). French driver Michael Prost was the championship leader when the series collapsed, while the teams standings were led by Team Ultimate.
2015 season
The 2015 season of the Rejects Touring Car Championship occured 17 years after the first, but was only the second in the history of the championship. The original RTCC had ceased to exist after just two rounds of the 1998 season, due to the conviction and imprisonment of series supremo Herrmann Mann on drugs possession and use charges. Impromptu champions Team Ultimate returned to contest the 2015 season (albeit with manufacturer backing from BMW), along with many of the teams that contested the inaugural season. However, the established teams were joined by new teams, most notably West Cliff Racing and Douglas-Cliff Racing. Team Wales, Zakspeed, Martini Nissan Racing, Equipe de Corse Belge, Astral Motorsport, The Good Will Out (Race You) and Taiwan Motorsport did not return to compete in 2015.
The season, held over 6 rounds, each comprised of 2 races, was largely dominated by Twinings Earl Grey BMW Racing BMW 318is and Aeroracing Engineering's Audi A4s, with Twinings and their lead driver Paul Jenkins securing both championships after dominating the final round at Lienz.
