Rob Austin hails “biggest ever” BTCC opportunity with new Alfa Romeo

Rob Austin says he has his biggest ever opportunity to achieve great things in the BTCC, after finishing a productive winter by topping Donington Park’s media day test in his new Alfa Romeo Giulietta.

The HMS Racing driver set two lap times good enough for P1 in the four-hour test this afternoon, and while he conceded his rivals won’t have shown their true pace, he said he had not shown his hand either.

HMS Racing have brought the Italian marque back into the BTCC for 2018 in place of the outgoing Toyota Avensis, and Austin was full of praise for his team for creating what he says is a “very good” base package.

Assessing his performance in the test session, Austin told TouringCarTimes: “Last year we had that Toyota as hooked up as it could be, but this year it’s very rough around the edges and I didn’t expect to be topping the times. We’ve still got a long way to go with it.

“There’s a lot of people that aren’t showing their hand yet so I’m fully aware it doesn’t mean anything, but I’m also confident because I’ve not shown my hand yet either!”

Something Austin admitted had caught him by surprise was the difference in the characteristics of the Toyota and Alfa chassis, as the number of common NGTC parts in had led him to believe the cars would be quite similar.

He said: “It’s surprising – there are so many common components and I massively underestimated what it would take to get the balance back in it.

“By shortening the wheelbase so much, the car still weighs the same but you are reducing the footprint and pitch, so it is a lot softer. It’s a lighter car with a lower roofline, but it’s the same width as the Toyota, so it’s also stiffer and rolls more.

“We knew it was good on paper which is why we wanted to build it. The boys have done such a good job and Matt [Taylor, Austin’s engineer] in particular has overseen every nut and bolt on it. It seems like it is inherently a fast car.”

Looking ahead to the new season, Austin was bullish about his opportunities in the new Alfa.

“As a base car, it is very good. This is a much bigger opportunity for me than any other year I have been in the BTCC,” he said.