BTCC to introduce mandatory alcohol testing

The British Touring Car Championship is to introduce mandatory breath-testing on every day of every race event, to ensure all drivers and senior officials are free from the effects of alcohol.

The BTCC is the first UK championship to impose such a test, which will come into effect at the next meeting at Oulton Park.

A strict ‘zero tolerance’ limit will now be imposed by series organisers TOCA, to ensure the maximum levels of safety are maintained at all times. Any drivers or officials who fail will not be allowed to participate until they pass the test.

TOCA also believes the tests will raise public awareness of the dangers of ‘morning after’ drink driving, which is often committed unintentionally after an evening of moderate drinking.

In the last ten years, accidents attributed to ‘morning after’ drink driving have risen from 13 per cent to 21 per cent of all drink drive accidents.

The tests will be performed on the Saturday and Sunday mornings of every event using calibrated AlcoSense breathalysers. The equipment is provided by BTCC driver Hunter Abbott, who is the founder and CEO of AlcoSense.

BTCC series director Alan Gow said: “As the UK’s premier motor racing series the BTCC should continue to set benchmarks and this is another important step we can take.

“While random breath-testing does happen on occasion at various motor sport events, the BTCC is the first championship to mandate the zero-tolerance limit and back this up with compulsory testing each day at each event.

“All our drivers and officials have endorsed this zero-limit initiative as it delivers such an important road-safety message to the public in a high-profile way.

“This was a bit of a personal crusade for me, as I have long thought that the sport does not carry out enough alcohol testing. When I happened to mention this to Hunter Abbott, he immediately agreed to provide TOCA with the specialist equipment and training for us to make it happen.

“It’s difficult to calculate when alcohol has cleared your system as everyone is different. Education is key and by pioneering this mandatory testing we believe the BTCC will raise more awareness of the dangers and help keep its drivers, officials and fans safe, not only at the circuit but on the road.”