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R O A D
T R A C K
R A C E
A N N U A L 2 0 1 6
H
ere at MSD, we’re keen
to break the mould in
order to support Club-
man motorsport and everyone who
participates at this level. So, we
naturally found it refreshing when
we stumbled across the Startat-
theback Facebook group. One of
the key motivations behind the
creation of this group was to help
get racing drivers at all levels and
their sponsors noticed. We caught
up with one of the men behind the
group, Ian Mutch.
MSD:
You run the Startatthe-
back group with Stuart Lan-
caster. How did it all come
about?
IM:
Startattheback was born
in September 2015, following a
conversation with a female BTCC
(British Touring Car Champion-
ship) fan on the subject of ITV
coverage of the championship. She
made a comment along the lines
of “when they do TV interviews, I
wish sometimes they’d start at the
back of the grid”. It kind of stuck.
MSD:
What do you hope this
group can achieve?
IM:
The goals of the group are to
bring together the many support-
ers of every type of motorsport,
#STARTATTHEBACK
IN MOTORSPORT, WE ALL
NEED TO START FROM
SOMEWHERE AND FOR
MOST OF US IT’S FROM
THE BACK OF THE GRID.
UNFORTUNATELY, BEING
AT THE BACK USUALLY
MEANS YOU GET FAR
LESS COVERAGE, BUT
STARTATTHEBACK IS ON A
MISSION TO CHANGE THIS.
along with drivers, sponsors and
team owners, to generally chew
the fat, and exchange views and
ideas (obviously not secrets,
though!). It’s started with main-
ly BTCC supporters, but we are
growing with members from the
VAG Trophy, VW Cup and the on-
line racing fraternity, so things are
looking good.
MSD:
Why do you think it is so
important to promote all levels
of motorsport?
IM:
Recently, within various series
we’ve had drivers that have made
one or two meetings and then had
to drop out due to lack of funding,
which is a great shame. All too of-
ten we find an up-and-coming tal-
ent – an unknown – and ultimately
they fall at the first hurdle due to
lack of sponsorship or funding.
Maybe the motorsport industry
can set up a central fund to assist
a driver until they get established.
MSD:
What background do you
and Stuart have in motorsport?
IM:
Other than a bit of non-com-
petitive kart racing (non com-
petitive, who am I kidding!?) my
interest is purely as a spectator.
I’m blessed living in Grantham
in Lincolnshire to have a num-
ber of circuits within easy reach.
Donington and Rockingham are
both close by, and your kart rac-
ing readers will be familiar with
PFI and Fulbeck, which are both
within eight miles of me. The only
other racing I do is in my day job
as a firefighter at the RAF College
at Cranwell, Lincolnshire – racing
a 26-tonne airfield crash truck at
60mph-plus along the runway can
be somewhat interesting!
Stuart, on the other hand, is the
motorsport expert of the admin
team. Coming from Northampton,
Stu has been a petrol head for
years. He is the son of Ray Lan-
caster, who has been known to
perform mad stunts in the past,
like driving through car pyra-
mids. Stu’s been a mechanic for
his brother-in-law’s banger outfit,
so he knows his way around an
engine. He’s also currently taking
part in the Team HARD scholar-
ship tryouts run by Tony Gilham,
so good luck to Stu on that one.
I’ve already put a bid in to be on
his team should he be successful,
so my CV may be larger next year!
MSD:
What are your plans for
2016?
IM:
To continue what we’ve
started with this group. We’re just
shy of 500 members – not bad for
four months’ work. Then I guess
we hope for Stu to get a drive and
then for Stu to employ me! Also,
to carry on with our Q&A ses-
sions, which appear to be popular,
although I’m yet to hold a session
with a legend of the media world,
like Louise Goodman. Once I’ve
completed that, I’ll be happy!
Ian Mutch started the “Startattheback” Facebook
group with Stuart Lancaster, and the group attracted
almost 500 fans in just the first four months.