Vauxhall to withdraw from Touring Car Championship

Vauxhall is pulling out of the British Touring Car Championship as its parent company General Motors continues to struggle through the global financial crisis.

The Luton-based manufacturer’s VX Racing will not return to the Championship next year although it will continue to campaign three cars this year and says it is not ruling out returning to the sport in the future.

“The decision to withdraw from the BTCC in 2010 was influenced by the absence of other manufacturer-backed teams and financial prudence in the current global economic downturn,” a statement from the team says.

Meanwhile, General Motors is under pressure from the US government to get rid of its GMC brand as the car company works through a major restructuring plan. GMC primarily consists of pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles.

This year, GM took $134bn (£90.4bn) in US loans and is currently seeking additional help to prevent the business from going into bankruptcy. The government has given GM until June 1 to come up with a restructuring strategy.