Championship on the Menu
5 March 2010
It's hard to believe that 10 years have passed since Alain Menu took the chequered flag at Silverstone to claim the British Touring Car Championship in 2000 from under the noses of his Ford team-mates Rickard Rydell and Anthony Reid.
It's even harder to fathom that the 46-year-old Swiss driver, a mainstay of Chevrolet's World Touring Car Championship line-up since its inception, has failed to claim an overall crown since.
It's not for the want of trying though. An instant choice by Chevrolet to head up its debut season in the World Touring Car Championship in 2005, Menu has been at the forefront of everything achieved by the RML-run squad ever since.
He took Chevy's first podium finish at Monza in 2006, its first victory at Brands Hatch four races later, and its first pole position at Zandvoort the following season. Eleven wins have followed - a total only beaten by BMW drivers Andy Priaulx and Augusto Farfus - but there has been plenty of disappointment on the way too.
Last year in particular, was tough. From 24 starts, Menu failed to score 16 times. While he called himself the innocent victim of rival drivers' over-aggressive tactics, the fact remained that he only just cracked the top 10 in the standings.
His aim for 2010 is to become the marque's first world champion. This though, will be tougher than ever thanks to Chevrolet's acquisition of 2008 title-winner Yvan Muller and the growing stature within the team of last year's surprise package Rob Huff.
Should he make a decent fist of it - starting at Curitiba this weekend - Menu will significantly advance his standing in the Castrol Rankings. A year ago he lay 116th, but has now slipped to 165th. Not only does that put him a long way behind Muller (81st) and Huff (104th), but it means he's only eighth among the WTCC contingent.
Despite this, last year's pointless trip to Brazil means that a pair of top-10 finishes will virtually guarantee he elevates himself from his current position.
Whether he can slay all before him and become champion will depend not on his speed - that's not in doubt - but on consistency above all else. He won't need telling that this means keeping himself clear of the inevitable bumping and bashing that comes with tin-top racing.
If it is Alain's name on the champions' trophy, don't expect the party in the Chevrolet motorhome to be a small one. He has been waiting 10 years, don't forget.
The Castrol Rankings is based on drivers' measurable performance over the last 12 months, including everything from their grid position to fastest laps. For further information on how the Castrol Rankings scores are calculated, click here.
