Tonight, the Alpha Touring Challenge begins its third competitive season with a visit to Brands Hatch! Here’s a look at some of the storylines heading into this season:

Francois Shink and Logan McKinzie are both hunting their second title this season

Shink v McKinzie
Both drivers finished 1 and 2 in the league’s first two seasons, and there’s no reason to suspect either will have lost any competitive edge heading into this year.

Next In Line?
There are multiple drivers down the order that have a great chance at coming away with their first title. Bajulaz had a fantastic rookie campaign in Season 2, and has shown he can win any given race. Lauzon and Abrams both have good pace but have a habit of dropping a few too many races due to problems. If they stay consistent, they can easily challenge for the title. Oetzell is fast but may not be participating in enough races this season to mount a real run at the title.

Rule Changes
This season the series moves back to rolling starts, eliminating the standing start issues that plagued certain drivers. Expect more competitive starts this season. Also on the docket is a change to the Sprint Challenge format. No longer will the entire field be inverted; instead only the top 5 will invert into the final feature race, possibly aiding drivers with a penchant for getting caught up in incidents while working through the field. One fast repair is also available to all drivers now, making it much easier to finish races and battle for some leftover points after crashes.

Standing starts and spinning tires are a thing of the past

Qualifying for Race 1 starts tonight, 10/25 at 9:50PM EST.