Eric Nève sure the field will expand in 2015

Former Chevrolet Motorsport Europe Director Eric Nève is now the General Consultant of the FIA World Touring Car Championship, and in an interview with TouringCarTimes he touched on several subjects, such as the success of the current TC1 rules as well as the possibility to implement hybrid technology in the WTCC, as FIA President Jean Todt hinted earlier this year at Marrakech.

Nève is happy with the outcome of the changes made over the winter to the technical rules of the sport. “When you look at the older cars compared to the TC1 machines you can definitely see it is a step in the good direction. The cars are a lot more attractive, still touring cars but the performance is a lot more appealing to the spectators.”

Nève is also confident that the field will further expand in the near future. “By nature all the teams will be quick to build new cars and either release the current works cars as they build new ones for the factory teams or cars can be ordered, so the grid can only grow. We know a Honda Civic has been ordered by a private team and we also know that the other works teams will make cars available for the future, and that includes Citroën.”

As for the hybrid technology, while not ruling out the possibility completely, it is clear that the implementation of the energy recovery technology is not going to be done in the near future:”If the market requires it that is certainly a point we can discuss, but at the moment it is not on the agenda. It is a technology that is not visible to the fans, so it doesn’t make a difference for the spectators, and what we want is spectacular racing with affordable technology. We want to keep the soul of touring cars in the championship, so it is not on our to do list at the moment.”

When asked about the possibility of new manufacturers joining the championship, Nève replied:”When we think about the future of the championship we see it as very bright. We have been in talks with manufacturers, not only because we ask them, but also because interested constructors come to us, but in the near future there is nothing I can announce. I can only say that there is a lot of interest, that is for sure.”

Nève does not believe that the dominant position Citroën have achieved this year will make it harder for new manufacturers to join the championship:”I think it will actually be an extra motivation. For sure they have set the bar very high, also because they could prepare for the new regulations without having to compete with the older ones, while other teams were committed to both sides. What they have shown is proof of what can be done with touring cars, so it will be an extra motivation for new manufacturers.”