Goodyear BTCC season preview: New tyres, tweaked regulations and power boost set the scene in 2024

Goodyear is ready to kick start the 2024 British Touring Car Championship at the opening rounds at Donington Park this weekend, where it will debut its new tyre specification for the thrilling championship. 

The 30-round season takes place over ten weekends and sees the championship visit eight of the most iconic venues in British motorsport. After the first three rounds at Donington, the championship will visit the likes of Knockhill, with its undulating layout that demands driver focus and commitment, and later to Thruxton, with its high-speed and relentless layout that poses perhaps the ultimate BTCC challenge.

Goodyear has been the exclusive supplier to the championship since 2020. Before that, Dunlop, belonging to the Goodyear group, was the sole tyre supplier to the championship between 2003 and 2019. Both brands have histories in the series going back to its inception in 1958.

New tyre spec to play a major role this season

All but two weekends this season will feature a mix of tyre compounds to spice up the action. Tweaked tyre regulations mean the driver who wins the first race must choose the hardest compound available for the following race. This will force teams to play the weekends strategically on tyre usage, and opens the door for a wide variety of race results. 

Rounds 4, 5 and 6 at Brands Hatch Indy will feature a single set of softs for drivers to use in one of the races, which will inject another layer of strategy that teams must use wisely.  

Only the season opener at Donington (medium) and June date at Thruxton (hard) will use a single specification of Goodyear’s slick tyre.

Michael Butler, Goodyear’s BTCC Event Leader, explains the changes to the Goodyear tyre construction: “We’ve worked together with a number of teams to develop the latest Goodyear tyre specification. This season, the new tyres have increased lateral performance using slightly different materials to meet the demands of the more powerful hybrid powertrains. 

“Following driver feedback, we’re very confident these will give the grid greater confidence to push, particularly with changes to the hybrid boost that will have a major impact on races.

“The step in performance between the hard and soft tyre construction will be greater this season, up to 1.2 seconds per lap, so we’re excited to see how that mixes up races and how teams approach the weekends. It’ll emphasise strategy and also allow drivers to give 100% when it matters.”

Images: BTCC