Giovanardi: Hunting the hat-trick

Mon 23rd March 2009 VX Racing’s Fabrizio Giovanardi enters the 2009 BTCC season with a chance of becoming the first driver in over 20 years to win the championship in three consecutive years.

According to online bookmaker bet365.com, Giovanardi is 2-1 favourite, with his closest rival being teammate Matt Neal (4-1 if you fancy a flutter). It was Giovanardi’s first BTCC title in 2007 that prevented Neal from achieving his own title treble.

With no works opposition outside his own team, you might think Giovanardi would be confident of making it three in a row this year, especially now he’s become the established star at Vauxhall. However, the Italian is anything but complacent. “It’s quite early to say”, was his opening response when questioned on his chances of winning. “I’d like to think yes, but the other drivers also want the same. I think it will be not easy.”

Giovanardi’s record in 2008 was superb – until it came to the all-important decider at Thruxton, when he scored just a single point. Fortunately for him, the advantage he took into the meeting as enough to see him crowned champion.

“I wouldn’t say we were lucky to win the championship, because we did a great job during the season. We understood that the strategy to beat the SEAT was completely different compared to 2007. We had to be clever and try to get as many points as possible and that paid, because in the last race we had big trouble, but we won anyway.”

It’s interesting to note that with five wins to Jason Plato’s seven in 2008, Giovanardi is unlikely to be in favour of an F1-style ‘wins are king’ system to be introduced into the BTCC.

Giovanardi is now in his fourth season in the BTCC and now seems like part of the furniture. Hailing from Sassuolo, to the south-east of Milan, he brings a touch of glamour to these shores, but just what does he think to spending so much time in the UK?

“I was struggling in the beginning in 2006 because I had to move from Europe and the language, and I didn’t know the circuits. Now I rejoin the team and it’s like a big family. I’ve won two championships in three seasons, which I think is a great result, so I have just to be happy.”

Over the winter, he has been able to enjoy life back home, safe in the knowledge that he was coming back to another season in the BTCC. And another season driving the Vectra that has been his weapon for the past two years.

“I had a great winter. I wasn’t too worried about the car because we have a great team working on it, so they developed the car. They’ve been trying to find something more to be competitive. Because we don’t know the level of the other drivers and the other cars. Now the season will start and we have to come into the season and be concentrated to find the best.”

With neither of Giovanardi’s two closest rivals from last year on the grid in 2009 (for the moment at least), who does the reigning champion see as his toughest competition this year?

“I really don’t know. I think BMW have a good potential. We don’t know about the Ford, it’s a brand new car. We have to be careful, because when we switched from the Astra to the Vectra, it was a brand new car and we won the championship. We have to really be careful of everyone. The level is quite close. I’m really hoping to see everyone fighting for the championship.”

If Giovanardi is successful in retaining his crown again this year, it will mark an amazing tenth touring car title. Now, that’s some record!