Inside line: Mike Wrigley

The new 2003 TGP champion reflects on his title and the historic season ahead

What’s it meant to you to win the TGP title?
Well, it hasn’t changed my lifestyle! I sent a keg of beer down to the boys at James Watt Automotive, who prepare my Tyrrell 012, but that’s about it because of the delay in finding out after the race as the stewards’ made their decision. I’ve never done a full season in anything before. We’ve done it now and won a championship, which is very satisfying.

As a young man you raced Formula Three in the 1970s — why did you stop?
I just didn’t have the money to do it properly, and realised I was wasting my time. I came back in the early 1990s in URS Formula Ford 2000 before getting into Supersports with a Chevron B19. In ’97 I drove a Shadow in TGP before acquiring the ex-Brundle 012 I have now.

What are your TGP plans for next year?
The target this year was to get a flat-bottomed car into the first three or four overall. We managed that on occasion, but now I am looking at selling the 012 and joining the Class C boys by getting a ground-effect car for 2004.

What other cars will you be racing?
I’ve got a Tyrrell 020 which I may enter in EuroBOSS. I also bought a Lotus Cortina this year for FIA Historic Touring Cars. It needed a lot of work and we’ve struggled to get on the pace. At Estoril we were only 0.5sec off the fastest lap, but having just got out of the Tyrrell, I spun! I’m also building an A35 for Goodwood, while I’ll carry on racing my Formula 5000 Lola. I like the look of the GpC series, too.