Team Dynamics

Last updated

Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Team Dynamics Motorsport
Team Dynamics Logo.png
Founded1991
Founder(s) Ray Bellm
Steve Neal
Base Pershore, Worcestershire, England
Team principal(s)Matt Neal
Current series BTCC
Touring Car Trophy
Mini Challenge
Current drivers Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Gordon Shedden - BTCC
Teams'
Championships		 2005 BTCC
2005 Ind. BTCC
2006 BTCC
2006 Ind. BTCC
2010 BTCC
2011 BTCC
2012 BTCC
2015 BTCC
2019 BTCC
Drivers'
Championships		 1993 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
1995 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
1999 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
2000 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
2005 BTCC (Neal)
2005 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
2006 BTCC (Neal)
2006 Ind. BTCC (Neal)
2011 BTCC (Neal)
2012 BTCC (Shedden)
2015 BTCC (Shedden)
2016 BTCC (Shedden)

Team Dynamics Motorsport was a UK-based motor-racing team based in Droitwich, Worcestershire; best known for their successes in the British Touring Car Championship, including winning the Overall Drivers title in 2005, 2006 and 2011 with Matt Neal and 2012, 2015 and 2016 with Gordon Shedden. The team was founded by Steve Neal and former driver of Vic Lee Motorsport, Ray Bellm when they acquired its assets in 1993. [1] For the following season, Bellm, having bought a majority stake in the Silverstone-based motorsport equipment retailer, Grand Prix Racewear, [2] also acquired a McLaren F1 GTR and went his own way.

Contents

As well as racing cars, the team sells its own range of wheels, race simulators and vehicle remaps.

The team operated as the Honda 'Factory' entry in the British Touring Car Championship operating under the 'Halfords Racing with Cataclean' name racing two Honda Civic NGTC Type Rs. In addition to the British Touring Car Championship, the team also raced two Minis in the Mini Challenge with Matt Neal's sons, William and Henry Neal, as the drivers.

In June 2016, it was announced that Rimstock (wheel manufacturing) had been sold to investment company Safanad. [3]

Super Touring years

Independent entry (1992–2000)

BMW M3 and 318is (1992–1993)

Entered as Rimstock Racing, competing in both a BMW M3 and a 318is, Matt Neal ran his BMW entry as an Independent during the Manufacturer dominated Super Touring period of the BTCC. In 1992, he managed to finish twice in the points, scoring five points for the team. 1993, saw the first success for the team when Neal won the TOCA Challenge for Privateers (Independent Driver's Championship).

Ford Mondeo (1995–1997)

After a one-year break, the team returned with Matt Neal racing a year-old Ford Mondeo. Despite this, Neal still won the 1995 Total Cup for Privateers and managed to score the team's best finish to date when they finished fourth at Snetterton. 1996 saw a two car line up for Neal and Robb Gravett.

Nissan Primera (1997–2000)

Team Dynamics started the 1997 season with their tried and tested Mondeo, however a mid season change to a Nissan Primera was needed after two poor seasons. The poor form continued through 1998 until the start of the 1999 British Touring Car Championship season when Neal once again won the Michelin Cup for Independents for the team. The team was also able to take the first ever outright race win for an independent team during the first round's second race at Donington Park. The team went on to score three further outright podium finishes to achieve their best championship position to date, finishing sixth overall. The team's newfound form continued into 2000 with another Independent's Championship for Neal with one race win and four podiums pushing the team to fourth in the Touring Teams Championship.

Modern years

British Rally Championship

Team Dynamics sponsored British Rally driver Jonny Milner, who won back to back titles in 2002 and 2003 at the wheel of a Dynamics prepared Toyota Corolla. [4] For 2004, Milner switched to a Subaru Impreza again built by the West Midlands-based outfit. [5]

Independent entry (2003–2009)

Vauxhall Astra (2003)

A brief spell away from the BTCC was ended when the team entered a Vauxhall Astra Coupé for Gareth Howell during the final four rounds of the 2003 season.

Honda Civic Type-R (2004)

They entered as Computeach Racing with Halfords in 2004 running two Honda Civic Type-Rs, purchased from the departing Honda works team, for Neal and Dan Eaves, achieving four race wins and several podium positions.

Honda Integra Type R (2005–2006)

For 2005, under the guise of Team Halfords, they developed a Honda Integra from its basic road-going form, winning the overall drivers title for Matt Neal, making him the first driver to win the overall title with an independent team. Eaves won 4 races for them, and Gareth Howell returned in a 3rd car towards the end of the year to take one win at Silverstone. The team also won both the Teams and Independent Teams championships.

Eaves was surprisingly not retained for the 2006 season, the team instead signed Gordon Shedden alongside Neal, who went on to retain his title. The team entered a 3rd Integra at the beginning of the season, although it did not appear until the seventh meeting of the year at Snetterton, once again driven by Gareth Howell. Team Dynamics successfully defended both the Teams and Independent Teams championships.

Honda Civic (eighth generation) (2007–2009)

In 2007, Matt Neal was again paired with Gordon Shedden. However, they were driving newly developed Honda Civics, required to meet the new Super 2000 regulations all teams must meet to be eligible for championship points. Entering as neither Manufacturer or Independent, the new car scored four wins and several podiums for both drivers, allowing Shedden and Neal to finish third and fourth respectively. The team was unable to defend its title, finishing third overall.

For the 2008 season, Neal left the team to drive for the Vauxhall works team, leaving Dynamics in search of a second driver. In November the team confirmed that Tom Chilton would partner Shedden for 2008. Again entering as neither Manufacturer or Independent, the new car scored four wins as it had the previous year. However Shedden was only able to finish seventh with Chilton three places behind him. The team again finished third overall.

Halfords withdrew their sponsorship in 2009. After one year with the team Chilton was dropped and replaced by veteran racer David Pinkney. After the opening rounds at Brands Hatch, James Thompson joined Team Dynamics, replacing Shedden. Thompson enjoyed three victories with the team but could not complete the season because of prior commitments in the WTCC and Danish Touring Car Championship. His final races with the team were at Knockhill in August 2009. Having been invited by Team Dynamics to run the Civic at the 2009 Goodwood Festival of Speed and completing a testing session at Rockingham, ex-British Grand Prix winner Johnny Herbert took Thompson's seat for the final rounds of the 2009 season. A mixed season saw the team only manage fifth in the teams championship after only three wins.

Constructor entry (2010–present)

Honda Civic (eighth generation) (2010–2011)

For 2010, Team Dynamics were supported by Honda UK and ran under the Honda Racing Team banner, with Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden returning as drivers. A season long battle with Silverline Chevrolet driver Jason Plato saw Dynamics' two drivers finish runners up, with Neal second and Shedden third. However, the team was able to win both the Manufacturers/Constructors and Teams championships, after scoring ten wins which was more than any other team.

Their dominance continued into 2011, as the team fitted its Super 2000 Civic with a NGTC 2.0 litre turbocharged engine. This combination allowed the team's drivers to finish first and second in the drivers championship with 13 wins between them. The team also successfully defended both the Manufacturers/Constructors and Teams championships, giving them a clean sheet over all the silverware.

Honda Civic (ninth generation) (2012–2017)

2012 saw the team move in a new direction, being the first manufacturer team to enter a car built fully to the Next Generation Touring Car specification. Neal and Shedden would again partner each other in the newly named Honda Yuasa Racing Team after a sponsorship deal with Yuasa. After the first four rounds of the season, Shedden led the team in second place with Neal right behind him. The NGTC Civic, was the first NGTC car to win a BTCC race when it took the race two win at Brands Hatch. At the end of the season the team took all titles they were eligible for, with Shedden winning the drivers' championship for the first time, the team winning the team's championship for the third time in a row and Honda winning the manufacturers' title.

The team returned for the 2013 British Touring Car Championship season and retained Shedden and Neal as their drivers. [6]

Honda Civic NGTC Type R (2017-2023)

For the 2021 season, Team Dynamics was represented again by Gordon Shedden, accompanied by Jack Sears Trophy winner Daniel Rowbottom. Shedden finished sixth and Rowbottom finished ninth in the Drivers' Championship. Competing as "Halfords Racing with Cataclean", Team Dynamics finished third in the Teams' Championship.

Shedden and Rowbottom re-united again for the 2022 season, finishing seventh and twelfth respectively in the Drivers' Championship. [7] Halfords Racing with Cataclean ranked fourth in the Teams' Championship. [8]

On 5 April 2023 Team Dynamics announced that they would be taking a hiatus from BTCC during the 2023 season owing to difficulties in securing commercial agreements with sponsors. They are to continue supporting One Motorsport with aspects of their operation. [9] [10]

EXCELR8 Hyundai partnership (2024-)

Announced on 9 February 2024, Team Dynamics will enter a new partnership with EXCELR8. [11] As part of the agreement, EXCELR8’s Porsche Carrera Cup and BTCC programme will now be run from the Team Dynamics base in Droitwich. Several Team Dynamics personnel, including title-winning engineer Barry Ploughman, will join the Hyundai programme.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Touring Car Championship</span> Auto racing championship in the United Kingdom

The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by TOCA. It was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and was renamed as the British Touring Car Championship for the 1987 season. The championship, currently running Next Generation Touring Car regulations, has been run to various national and international regulations over the years including FIA Group 2, FIA Group 5, FIA Group 1, FIA Group A, FIA Super Touring and FIA Super 2000. A lower-key Group N class for production cars ran from 2000 until 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Neal</span> British racing driver (born 1966)

Matthew Stephen Phillip Neal is a British motor racing driver. Neal is a triple BTCC Champion having won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. Neal is also a record 6 time BTCC Independents Champion having won the title in 1993, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2005 and 2006. He is also a race winner in the European Touring Car Championship. He is 6' 6" (2 m) tall, making him almost entirely unable to race single-seaters. He is also the Group Marketing Director at Rimstock, the alloy wheel manufacturer founded by his father Steve.

Daniel John Eaves is a British auto racing driver. He competed in the British Touring Car Championship between 2000 and 2005, and again in 2009, winning a total of six races and claimed a best finish of third place in the drivers' championship in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triple Eight Racing</span> British motor racing team

Triple Eight Racing was a motorsports team formed in 1996 as Triple Eight Race Engineering, which competed in the British Touring Car Championship and the British GT Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Shedden</span> British racing driver (born 1979)

Gordon William Shedden is a British auto racing driver. He last competed in the British Touring Car Championship for the Halfords Racing with Cataclean team. He has previously won the series on three occasions; in 2012, 2015 and 2016, driving for Honda/Team Dynamics each time. He also spent two seasons in the FIA WTCR, from 2018 to 2019, driving for the Audi Sport Leopard Lukoil Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mat Jackson</span> British racing driver (born 1981)

Mathew Jackson is a former British racing driver.

One Motorsport is a British auto racing team based in Brackley, Northamptonshire owned and run by Steve Dudman. The team is best known for competing in the British Touring Car Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1999 British Touring Car Championship</span> Sports season

The 1999 Auto Trader RAC British Touring Car Championship featured 26 races across 13 rounds. It began on 5 April at Donington Park and concluded on 19 September at Silverstone. The driver's title was won by Laurent Aïello in his debut season driving for the Nissan works team, with his teammate David Leslie in second place. Reigning champion Rickard Rydell finished in third place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 British Touring Car Championship</span> Sports season

The 2010 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season was the 53rd British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season. It began at Thruxton Circuit on 4 April and finished after 30 races over ten events at Brands Hatch on 10 October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 British Touring Car Championship</span> Sports season

The 2011 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship was the 54th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season.

Eurotech Racing was a British motor racing team based in Tamworth, Staffordshire, founded by Mike Jordan and currently owned by Jeff Smith since December 2014, that last competed in the 2018 British Touring Car Championship

Next Generation Touring Car, also known as NGTC and by its Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) designation TCN-1, is an FIA and TOCA specification and classification for production based race cars. The specification covers national level touring car racing. The goal of the limited choices in engines and parts in the NGTC classification is to allow more manufacturers and privateers to race by reducing the cost of a competitive car and to reduce reliance on the increasingly expensive Super 2000 equipment. The only significant differences between different models is the external body shells and the use of front- or rear-wheel drive; the suspension, brakes and transmissions are common to all cars, and engines are of uniform performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Gilham</span> British racing driver (born 1979)

Anthony Allen Gilham is a British racing driver. He is the founder and owner of Team HARD. Racing, who currently compete in various championships including the British Touring Car Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 British Touring Car Championship</span> Sports season

The 2012 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship was a multi-event motor racing championship for production-based touring cars held across England and Scotland. The championship features a mix of professional motor racing teams and privately funded amateur drivers competing in highly modified versions of family cars which are sold to the general public and conform to the technical regulations for the championship. It is one of the most popular domestic motor racing series in the United Kingdom, with an extensive program of support categories built up around the BTCC centrepiece. It was the 55th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Welch (racing driver)</span> British racing driver (born 1982)

Daniel John Welch is a British racing driver. During his career he has mostly driven for his family team, Welch Motorsport. He drove in the British Touring Car Championship from 2011 to 2016. He is the son of former British rallycross driver John Welch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 British Touring Car Championship</span> Sports season

The 2013 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship was a multi-event motor racing championship for production-based touring cars held across England and Scotland. The championship features a mix of professional motor racing teams and privately funded amateur drivers competing in highly modified versions of Family cars which are sold to the general public and conform to the technical regulations for the championship. It is one of the most popular domestic motor racing series in the United Kingdom, with an extensive program of support categories built up around the BTCC centrepiece. It was the 56th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BTC-T Honda Civic Type-R</span> Racing car model

The BTC-T Honda Civic Type-R is a BTC-Touring class racing car that was built for the 2002 British Touring Car Championship season by Arena Motorsport, who ran Honda's official works program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Gilham Racing</span> British motor racing team

Tony Gilham Racing , competing as Re.Beverages and Bartercard with Team HARD., Autobrite Direct with Millers Oils. and Go-Fix with Autoaid Breakdown. currently, is a British motor racing team based in Dartford, Kent and founded by Tony Gilham. The team raced under the Team HARD. banner in the British Touring Car Championship until the end of 2013. They now compete in the British Touring Car Championship, Volkswagen Racing Cup, Ginetta GT4 Supercup, Mini Challenge UK and the GT Cup series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 British Touring Car Championship</span>

The 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship was a motor racing championship for production-based touring cars held across England and Scotland. It was sponsored by Dunlop. The championship featured a mix of professional motor racing teams and privately funded amateur drivers competing in highly modified versions of family cars which were sold to the general public and conform to the technical regulations for the championship. The 2018 season was the 61st British Touring Car Championship season and the eighth season for cars conforming to the Next Generation Touring Car (NGTC) technical specification. The 2018 season also marked the 60th anniversary since the series’ introduction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 British Touring Car Championship</span>

The 2021 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship was a motor racing championship for production-based touring cars held across England and Scotland. The championship features a mix of professional motor racing teams and privately funded amateur drivers competing in highly modified versions of family cars which are sold to the general public and conform to the technical regulations for the championship. The 2021 season was the 64th British Touring Car Championship season and the eleventh season for cars conforming to the Next Generation Touring Car (NGTC) technical specification. Ash Sutton successfully defended his title to become the youngest ever three time BTCC Champion.

References

  1. ↑ "RETROSPECTIVE>>BTCC SUPER TOURING YEARS PT.1 - Speedhunters". Archived from the original on 1 March 2009. Retrieved 13 January 2009.
  2. ↑ "Bio_Fiona Butterfield". foxcraft.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 August 2011.
  3. ↑ "News". rimstock.co.uk.
  4. ↑ "Here comes Jonny! Milner set to return". Yorkshire Evening Post.
  5. ↑ "Jonny Milner Scotland preview". motorsport.com.
  6. ↑ "Honda confirms 2013 attack". British Touring Car Championship . TOCA. 14 December 2012. Archived from the original on 23 July 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "Drivers Standings". British Touring Car Championship . BTCC . Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  8. ↑ "Teams Standings". British Touring Car Championship . BTCC . Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  9. ↑ "BTCC | Team Dynamics to take hiatus from BTCC in 2023". www.btcc.net. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  10. ↑ "Team Dynamics out of BTCC for 2023". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  11. ↑ "EXCELR8, Team Dynamics enter new partnership". TouringCarTimes. 9 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.