View source for World Touring Car Championship

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{| border=1 align="right" cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 width=250  style="margin-left:3em; margin-bottom: 2em;"
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|colspan=2|[[Image:WTCC.jpg|center]]
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!colspan=2 style="color: white; background: darkred;"|'''WCCR"""
|-
|Category        || [[Touring car racing|Touring cars]]
|-
|Inaugural       || 1987
|-
|Drivers         || 50 (2006)
|-
|Teams           || 21 (2006)
|-
|Constructors    || 7 (2006)
|-
|Engines         || 
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|Country/region  || [[International]]
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|Folded          || 
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|Champion driver || {{flagiconUK}} [[Andy Priaulx]]
|-
|Champion team   || N/A
|-
|Manufacturer || [[BMW]]
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|Website         || [http://www.fiawtcc.com/ fiawtcc.com]
|}

The '''World Touring Car Championship''' ('''WTCC''') is an international [[touring car racing|Touring Car]] championship organized by the [[Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile|FIA]].

The first WTCC, which was open to [[Group A]] Touring Cars, was held in 1987 concurrent to the long-running [[European Touring Car Championship]] (ETCC). Additional rounds were held outside Europe at [[Bathurst 1000|Bathurst]] in Australia, [[Calder Park Raceway]] in Australia(using both the road course and the then newly constructed Thunderdome), Wellington in New Zealand and [[Fuji Speedway|Mount Fuji]] in Japan. The Drivers Championship was won by [[Roberto Ravaglia]] in a [[BMW M3]] and the Entrants Championship was won by the Eggenberger Texaco Ford No 7 entry, which was a Ford Sierra. The WTCC lasted only one year and was a victim of its own success - the FIA feared it would take money away from Formula 1 and stopped sanctioning the Championship.

In 1993, with the high popularity of the [[Supertouring]] category, the FIA hosted the Touring Car World Cup - an annual event for touring car drivers hailing from national championships all over the world. The 1993 race at [[Autodromo Nazionale Monza|Monza]] was won by [[Paul Radisich]]. The race was run for two more years, (won by Radisich again in 1994 at [[Donington Park]], and [[Frank Biela]] in 1995 at [[Paul Ricard]]) before disappearing into obscurity. 

In 2001, the ETCC was resumed with support from the FIA. At the request of interested manufacturers, it was changed to the current WTCC beginning with the 2005 season, and is now considered the third most important FIA championship after [[Formula One]] and the [[World Rally Championship]]. 

With rounds at major prestigious circuits, the series is heavily supported by car manufacturers [[BMW]], [[Alfa Romeo]], [[Chevrolet]] and [[SEAT]]. [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]], [[Peugeot]] and [[Honda]] are also involved. It features compact and midsize cars based on [[Group N]] rules, yet modified to [[Super 2000]] regulations, an intermediate level between the slightly modified Superproduction cars and the extinct Supertouring class.

Following the trend of recent FIA rules, cost control is a major theme in the technical regulation. Engines are limited to 2000 [[cubic centimetre|cc]]. Many technologies that have featured in production cars are not allowed, including [[variable valve timing]], [[Variable Length Intake Manifold|variable intake geometry]], [[Anti-lock braking system|ABS brakes]] and [[traction control]].
[[Guernsey|Guernseyman]] [[Andy Priaulx]] won the 2005 championship for [[BMW]], ahead of [[Dirk Müller]] and [[Fabrizio Giovanardi]].

==Previous champions==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
!colspan="6" align="center"|WTCC Drivers' Champions
|-
!Year
!colspan="2"|Driver
!Team
!Car
|-
|&nbsp;[[2007 World Touring Car Championship season|2007]]&nbsp;
|
|''TBC''
|
|
|-
|-
|&nbsp;[[2006 World Touring Car Championship season|2006]]
|&nbsp;{{flagiconUK}}&nbsp;
|&nbsp;[[Andy Priaulx]]
|&nbsp;BMW Team UK/Racing Bart Mampaey&nbsp;
|&nbsp;[[BMW]] [[BMW E90|320si]]&nbsp;
|-
|&nbsp;[[2005 World Touring Car Championship season|2005]]
|&nbsp;{{flagiconUK}}
|&nbsp;Andy Priaulx
|&nbsp;BMW Team UK/Racing Bart Mampaey
|&nbsp;BMW [[BMW E46|320i]]
|-
|&nbsp;[[1987 World Touring Car Championship season|1987]]
|&nbsp;{{flagiconItaly}}
|&nbsp;[[Roberto Ravaglia]]&nbsp;
|&nbsp;[[Schnitzer Motorsport]]
|&nbsp;[[BMW M3]]
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
!colspan="4" align="center"|&nbsp;WTCC Manufacturers' Champions&nbsp;
|-
!&nbsp;Year&nbsp;
!colspan="2"|&nbsp;Manufacturer&nbsp;
|-
|&nbsp;[[2007 World Touring Car Championship season|2007]]
|&nbsp;''TBC''
|-
|&nbsp;[[2006 World Touring Car Championship season|2006]]
|&nbsp;BMW
|-
|&nbsp;[[2005 World Touring Car Championship season|2005]]
|&nbsp;BMW
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
!colspan="6" align="center"|WTCC Entrants' Champions (1987)
|-
!Year
!colspan="2"|Entrant
!Car
|-
|&nbsp;[[1987 World Touring Car Championship season|1987]]
|&nbsp;{{flagiconSwitzerland}}
|&nbsp;Eggenberger Texaco Ford No 7
|[[Ford Sierra|Ford Sierra RS Cosworth]]<br/>[[Ford Sierra|Ford Sierra RS 500]]
|}


==References==

Autosport, January 14, 1988

==External links==
{{commons|World Touring Car Championship}}
* [http://www.fiawtcc.com/ WTCC Official website]
* [http://www.touringcartimes.com/index.php Touring Car Times]
* [http://www.f1automotori.com/category/wtcc/ F1automotori.com]
* [http://www.wtcc-racing.com/ WTCC-Racing.com]
* [http://www.use-photos.com/Cars-WTCC/ WTCC Photos (Creative Commons Licenses)]
* [http://www.mstworld.com/ MST Systems - WTCC Official Timekeepers]

{{World Touring Car Championship results}}

{{touringcar-stub}}
[[Category:FIA]]
[[Category:World Touring Car Championship]]
[[Category:Auto racing series]]
[[Category:Touring car racing]]