Sam Tordoff's BTCC switch to WSR BMW led to 2015 ELMS deal
British Touring Car Championship race winner Sam Tordoff's switch to a rear-wheel-drive BMW for 2015 made his entry into the international sportscar arena possible
Tordoff, who has moved from the Triple Eight MG squad to drive one of West Surrey Racing's BMW 125i M Sports, revealed that he would not have contemplated the additional programme in the European Le Mans Series with the JMW Ferrari GTE team if he had still been racing a front-wheel-drive MG 6.
"This is something I have wanted to do for a few years, but it wouldn't have been possible if I was still racing the MG — I didn't want to be going back and forth between front and rear-wheel-drive," he told AUTOSPORT.
"A few things had to align to make allow this to happen and the switch to a rear-drive car was one of them.
"The ELMS programme is also going to be good for me, because it is going to give me a lot of extra miles in a rear-drive car and will make me a bit sharper for the BTCC."
The 25-year-old stressed that the BTCC would be his priority in 2015, which is why he will miss the Paul Ricard ELMS race in September to contest the clashing Rockingham BTCC fixture.
WSR team-mate Andy Priaulx will miss the British event to race at Ricard with the factory-backed Marc VDS BMW team.
LE MANS AIM
Tordoff revealed an ambition to race in the Le Mans 24 Hours, which will not be part of his programme with JMW Motorsport this season.
"Le Mans has to be the ultimate goal: I want to impress this year so that Jim [McWhirter, JMW's boss] and other team owners look at me for the 24 Hours in the future," he said.
"I don't want to be pigeon-holed and want to prove that BTCC drivers can be good GT drivers."
Tordoff's deal to share a Ferrari 458 Italia with George Richardson and Rob Smith in the ELMS came through his manager Tim Sudgen, who is part of the management team at JMW.
His previous experience racing GT machinery came in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB, in which he finished third in 2012.
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Lamborghini not concerned over Le Mans reliability despite rain-interrupted test
Peugeot won't replace Vergne, Vandoorne for Spa WEC amid Formula E clash
How rain and strategy spelled disaster for Ferrari in WEC Imola 6 Hours
Bushell replaces Tordoff in AmDTuning Honda for rest of 2019 BTCC
Bushell pauses engineer job to replace Tordoff in BTCC at Knockhill
Thruxton BTCC: Tordoff takes first win in almost a year, Plato punished
How a BTCC reunion yielded glory in Britain's 'other' tin-top series
Leading BTCC outfit BTC gets new name and expands into GT racing
The grassroots rise that shaped an understated BTCC star
The F1 hero to zero dividing line that has never been so thin
Lamborghini not concerned over Le Mans reliability despite rain-interrupted test
The implications of F1's vote on a new points structure
Why Turkington's desire for a record fifth BTCC crown can't be questioned
How Ingram is seeking to reclaim the BTCC crown from Sutton
The tin-top world champion seeking to tick a "missing box" in the BTCC
How a BTCC Alliance swept the field away in 2023
How a top-down overhaul formed the basis of Sutton's 2023 BTCC dominance
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments