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BTCC announces further rule tweaks for 2025

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The British Touring Car Championship has announced further rule changes for the 2025 season.

Hot on the heels of the ground-breaking news that the series will discontinue the use of hybrid and instead introduce 100% sustainable fuel, the series has confirmed the ratification of amendments in a number of key areas.

Engine Freeze
As of 1 April next year, a two-year engine freeze will come into effect, so that no further developments can be made to the homologated engines for the 2025 and 2026 seasons.

Goodyear Option Tyres
For 2025, it will now be mandatory for the top three podium finishers in Race 1 to run the hardest Goodyear tyre compound available in Race 2 – as opposed to the previous top ten finishers.

Safety Car Procedure
A new safety car procedure will be introduced to ensure a smoother, closer and safer restart to all sessions.

Once the Safety Car lights are turned off, all cars must cease weaving braking and/or accelerating and stay no more than two car lengths from the car ahead of them.

The race leader will then maintain approximately the same speed the safety car was using when it turned off its lights and pass the new ‘Restart Point’ – designated at each circuit by TOCA between the final corner and the start/finish control line.

After that, the leader can then accelerate up to racing speed.

Jack Sears Trophy
Unlike previous years, 2025 will see any drivers that have previously won the Jack Sears Trophy and/or have scored more than one outright podium in the BTCC will not be eligible for the JST.

Qualifying Format
The qualifying format has also been looked at with the grid positions for cars that do not progress from both groups in the first Part of the Qualifying session undergoing a change for 2025.

Those from Group 1 who do not progress into Part 2 will line up on the even numbered side of the grid and those from Group 2 on the other side – thus preventing a change in track or weather conditions having an adverse effect on those groups and their subsequent grid positions.

“Of course, the introduction of 100% sustainable fuel has been the headlining change for the 2025 BTCC season, but we always look at every aspect of our championship each year to see what can be improved,” said BTCC Chief Executive, Alan Gow.

“I’m sure that these tweaks will all have a positive effect and will further add to the great racing that is the hallmark of the BTCC.”