Best features of 2012: BTCC 1992 revisited

The British Touring Car Championship came down to another three-way decider this season, won by Gordon Shedden. It was all rather more straightforward than 20 years earlier, when a dramatic Silverstone shoot-out thrust the BTCC into the national media. Two decades on, Kevin Turner relived that day with the main protagonists...

It's one of the most famous races in tin-top history. The 1992 British Touring Car finale on Silverstone's Grand Prix circuit had everything that epitomised the Super Touring era: manufacturers battling it out for supremacy, incredibly tight racing, and controversy.

The clash between Vauxhall's John Cleland and Steve Soper's BMW that helped Tim Harvey win the crown is what everyone remembers, but there was far more to the race than that.

As the BTCC gears up for another title decider at Brands Hatch this weekend, AUTOSPORT takes a look back at the events of 20 years ago - and talks to those involved, including someone still vying for BTCC honours...

THE FACTS

After an action-packed Donington Park round, at which Soper helped his Vic Lee BMW team-mate Harvey to victory, the title fight was finely poised.

Cleland, leader for much of the season, still had the edge with 145 points. Harvey, on a roll in the new-for-1992 E36 318is, was on 142, while the Toyota Carina of reigning champion Will Hoy was also still in the hunt on 141.

Mixed conditions caught out all three title contenders in qualifying. While veteran Andy Rouse scorched to pole in his Toyota, Cleland's Cavalier qualified seventh, Hoy ninth and Harvey 12th. Soper, meanwhile, lined up fourth.

The pack ran together tightly during the late stages at Silverstone

Hoy made a great start to jump Cleland, and then Soper clashed with the Ecurie Ecosse Vauxhall of David Leslie at Club. He spun and was hit by Robb Gravett's Peugeot, but the BMW's damage was only superficial and Soper was able to start a comeback drive from the rear.

At the end of the first lap Hoy thus held fourth, while Cleland and Harvey were soon up to fifth and sixth, albeit a little way behind their rival.

Those positions would have made Cleland champion; Hoy needed to catch the battling lead trio of Rouse, Leslie and Jeff Allam (Vauxhall), while Harvey had to pass Cleland and put another car between himself and the Cavalier.

Harvey and Cleland swapped places cleanly twice before Harvey used the BMW's superior ABS-enhanced braking to dive ahead into Copse. He then started hauling in Hoy, who himself was now not far behind the lead battle.

Just as Harvey and Cleland caught Hoy, Soper arrived on the tail of the group, having made up a huge amount of ground.

With less than two laps to go, Harvey barged past Hoy at Copse and ran him out wide, dropping the Toyota back to seventh. But the BMW was also delayed and Cleland and Soper shot by into fourth and fifth. Still Cleland was set to be champion.

Then Soper dived by Cleland into the left of Vale/Club, with Harvey passing the Vauxhall at Bridge. Soper then allowed Harvey by into Priory and at that moment the Harvey-Soper-Cleland-Hoy order would have given Harvey the title by a single point.

Cleland needed to pass Soper to win the championship and he immediately put the Cavalier down the inside of the BMW at Brooklands.

He went up onto two wheels as he forced Soper wide and got ahead. But as Cleland turned into the first Luffield right-hander, Soper retaliated on the inside, using the grass and kerb.

Contact was made and both cars crashed out of the race. Cleland branded Soper "an animal", while Harvey completed the last lap in fourth to take the crown with 152 points to Hoy's 149 and Cleland's 145.

Take a look at the race on YouTube

There was an RAC tribunal on the clash, which attracted a significant amount of exposure for the BTCC, but both Soper and Cleland claimed it was a racing accident and avoided serious censure.

Now, 20 years on, AUTOSPORT talks to Harvey, Cleland and Soper to see what they really make of the events of October 4, 1992.

TIM HARVEY - THE CHAMPION

Harvey had taken his first BTCC victory as long ago as 1987 and secured his first BMW triumph at the Silverstone finale in '91.

After a shaky start with the new E36, he had become the man to beat. Coming in to Silverstone, Harvey had won six of the previous eight races.

"I was on a roll and the momentum was with me," he recalls. "But I took the underdog mentality. It's far harder to defend the lead that John had all through the year than go into the race feeling you've got nothing to lose.

"We'd done some testing in the week and I thought Steve's car was better than mine so we swapped cars. I was very positive going into the weekend."

Soper, BMW damaged, catches up with Hoy, Harvey and Cleland © LAT

Soper had to miss a couple of races in 1992, but even so, Harvey says they fought each other hard until late in the season. "At Pembrey I put it on pole and beat Steve, with no team orders, fair and square. It was one of my best-ever races. At that point the team decided to concentrate on one of us and I had more points.

"The car was good everywhere. We had the ABS brakes, which were good, but we were heavier [than rivals]. They balanced each other out."

Harvey, who showed his prowess in wet and damp conditions several times in his BTCC career, agrees he didn't make the most of qualifying at Silverstone. "We were probably too busy watching each other," he says. "The gameplan was to just beat the other two and I think they had the same plan.

"I was quite patient for the first half of the race, letting things unfold. John and I were pacing off each other and it gave Steve the opportunity to catch up.

"About three-quarters of the way through I thought it was now or never. I got up the inside of Will going through Copse and ran him out a bit wide - forceful but nothing outrageous - and that allowed John and Steve by."

While the Cleland-Harvey battle had been clean, Harvey believes the arrival of Soper put more pressure on Cleland.

"Steve passed John into Club and John had lost it in the car," he says. "He was screaming and shouting at Steve, not that Steve had done anything wrong, but John could see the scenario where Steve was in a position to help.

"He was quite happy to fight me, but with Steve in the mix it was clearly going to queer the pitch.

"While he was gesticulating and waving his arms at Steve, he missed a gear and I got a nice run on him up through Abbey - that was completely his fault. Then Steve left the door open so I slipped by and at that point the championship was won."

Harvey took the 1992 BTCC title at the death © LAT

So what does Harvey think of the controversy that then unfolded behind him?

"John lunged up the inside of Steve on two wheels. John did a very good job at trying to lay all the blame on team driving, but he blew it.

"I think John's move was outrageous and Steve's was outrageous. It was tit for tat."

Nevertheless, Harvey has mixed feelings about the way the 1992 title was settled.

"Any time you become British Touring Car champion it's the highlight of your career," he says. "Winning it defines my career.

"We had fully-funded manufacturer teams with professional drivers. The scale of it then was quite something and there was a lot at stake.

"It's a bit of a double-edged sword. It was soured a little bit by the controversy with John and Steve, but if the clash hadn't happened we wouldn't be talking about it."

JOHN CLELAND - THE INJURED PARTY

Arguably Cleland's biggest drama of 1992 actually came before Silverstone. Prior to the penultimate round at Donington, the Scot broke his back and sternum in a testing crash there.

"We were in among Formula Fords and because the BMWs had ABS we were trying to test and develop ABS," remembers Cleland.

"A Formula Ford pulled across in front of me as I went down through the Craners, I dragged it one way, got on the grass, hit the brakes, but because the ABS was on I couldn't lock the brakes up - I was trying to spin it.

"I went down the Craners on the grass at unabated speed across the track and into the wall on the far side and stopped quite abruptly.

"It was the most painful thing I'd had happen to me. If I'd not been leading the championship I'd have told Vauxhall to find someone else."

Harvey briefly battled Tiff Needell's Nissan early on © LAT

Before practice and race sessions at Donington and Silverstone, Cleland had painkillers injected into his chest, and foam padding under his overalls.

"The only thing that drove me on was the adrenalin and the fact that the championship, as far as I was concerned, was mine," says Cleland, who valiantly took third in the damp Donington race to hold on to his title lead.

Silverstone then went to plan for much of the 15-lap distance.

"It didn't occur to me we couldn't do well there," he says. "Jeff and David Leslie in two Cavaliers were up at the sharp end, but the BMWs had ABS so you couldn't get near them under braking.

"When Tim slipped Will off, that was him out, and I passed Tim after that," says Cleland. "Everything was fine until Steve arrived."

Cleland is pretty clear on who he feels was at fault in the Luffield clash: "The reason I was up on two wheels [at Brooklands] was to give Steve room.

"After the crash I tried to pull the door open and rip his Adam's apple out!"

Nevertheless, some good did come out of the incident.

"The Touring Car Drivers' Association came about after that," continues Cleland. "The RAC wanted Steve's balls. We both employed solicitors and were going to court with footage, static shots and witnesses.

"The night before the case I said to Vauxhall that I didn't see the point in it - I wasn't going to get my championship back and Steve was going to lose his licence for the following year.

"I phoned Steve and we agreed to tell the court it was a racing incident. But I said we needed to learn from it and apply some driving standards and morals, so off the back of that we created the TCDA.

Soper's priority in 1992 was in the DTM, but he partnered Harvey in the BTCC © LAT

"I think Steve would agree that was the best solution to an unhealthy problem.

"He was a pretty mean pedaller and, a bit like me, he never gave up. I trusted him and he still commands my respect because of his ability in any car.

"Other than that incident I've never had an issue with Steve or his driving."

STEVE SOPER - THE VILLAIN?

Soper's main commitment in 1992 was to the DTM, but he still managed to squeeze in 12 of the 15 BTCC rounds.

Although he scored no wins, he was usually a factor and fought Harvey hard until it became clear which BMW driver had the best chance of the crown.

"In the beginning we were allowed to race each other and slog it out, and to be fair to Tim, more than once he beat me fair and square," says Soper. "As the BTCC progressed and Tim became more of a factor in the championship, I then helped - if you're employed by a manufacturer you support your team-mate."

Soper was also key in helping bring the E36 up to scratch after several successful seasons with the E30 M3.

"The car had a complex rear-end and at the beginning of the year we hadn't done a lot of testing, but after a few races we found an optimum set-up," he recalls. "There was help from Germany too - we were allowed to have the new car before anyone, including in Germany."

At the start at Silverstone, Soper was up ahead of the title fight, and looking to move forward. Then came the incident with Leslie's Cavalier.

"I clashed with David and I felt he was harder with me being in a BMW and him being in a Vauxhall than he would have been if we'd just been racing," he says. "I spun and then along came Gravett and hit me hard."

Point of impact: Soper noses into the side of Cleland's Cavalier © LAT

Soper is also keen to point out how clean his recovery drive, largely unseen by the TV cameras, was.

"However many cars I passed there was no contact," he says. "I overtook Tim and then John, with no contact.

"I then blocked John in and allowed Tim to pass both of us so he could be in a championship-winning position."

He feels Cleland upped the stakes with his move at Brooklands: "John leaned very heavily on me.

"After that move I believe he thought I'd gone and was having a small moment. He turned in [to Luffield] with no compromise.

"Maybe my move was optimistic or ambitious, but if he'd realised I was there we both could have carried on. If you ever saw any of the in-car cameras with John, he'd got quite worked up. He didn't give me room and I didn't back off."

While Soper doesn't seem too fussed about whether he or Cleland should take the blame for the crash, he is adamant about one thing.

"For people to say I eliminated John on purpose is wrong," he asserts firmly. "And I wasn't ordered to do it - if I'd wanted to I could have tipped him off much less obviously and not ended my race as well.

"I rate John - he's still a great friend and a great driver."

Soper's account of post-race events also tally with his rival's.

"John rang me the day before the RAC tribunal," he adds. "There were all sorts of things behind the scenes and I'd heard whispers they wanted to take my licence away. I was the bad guy and I was trying to defend myself.

A youthful-looking Neal in 1992 © LAT

"The RAC and [series boss Alan] Gow wanted to make an example of me, I think. And if not me, of John. I can see why, but they could only get one of us if we went in fighting. If we both said it was a racing incident they couldn't do anything so that's what we did.

"Then we decided we would do the Touring Car Drivers' Association. We trusted each other, but there were a lot of people in the BTCC we didn't trust.

"We wanted to set standards, but it was difficult for us to do it at first because we'd just had all that press from Silverstone!"

MATT NEAL - PRIVATEER DENIED

Cleland wasn't the only man at Silverstone to lose a title thanks to contact. Future BTCC champion Matt Neal, in his first full season in the series, could have won the TOCA Cup for privateers.

Having fought James Kaye's Toyota Carina all year with his BMW E30 M3, Neal switched to an E36 318is for Silverstone.

Although he arrived tied on points with Kaye, Neal's weekend did not start brilliantly. He qualified 18th, 10 places behind his rival.

"I'd had a big shunt at Donington and although we got it fixed, we got a deal for an ex-Prodrive E36 for the following year and we hoped it was better," he recalls.

"The E30 was a really lovely car - it was Will Hoy's from the year before - and the E36 was similar. The limiting factor was the tyres really."

As would become a familiar theme in the 1990s, Neal found himself trying to balance scoring points in the privateers contest, while battling the works cars for overall positions. It was something he didn't always manage.

"Everyone in the team wanted to do as well as we could overall, which meant getting beaten up by the factory cars a bit," he says now. "It probably cost me the independents' title."

Neal had a good run through the opening laps at Silverstone and got ahead of Kaye. He was on course to win the TOCA Cup until Gravett's works Peugeot tried a move.

Neal had the new-shape 3 Series for the Silverstone finale

"It was just a straight hit in the back going into Luffield," said Neal of the incident that dropped him back behind Kaye and lost him the crown.

"James and I were pretty evenly matched so I couldn't catch up. It's what could have been."

Nevertheless, it was an important year for the man who, so far, has gone on to take three outright BTCC championships.

"I was stoked to get into touring cars," he adds. "It was quite a thing.

"We did a pre-season test for 1992 and the E30 was really fast, but then the engine went off to be rebuilt and when it came back it wasn't as good. The privateers weren't allowed the same tyres and engines as the factory cars.

"It was hard work in those early years but it gave me experience I can call on today. After the BMWs I got to drive some terrible cars and you learn more in those than in good ones.

"I already thought the BTCC was massive - when you're doing it you're in a little world of your own. But the Cleland-Soper clash is still one of the iconic pieces of footage from the past 30 years of touring cars."