BTCC legend Matt Neal life of cars // The Jonny Smith Late Brake Show
Автокөліктер мен көлік құралдары
In this episode of The Late Brake Show Jonny chats to BTCC legend Matt Neal about his life in cars; his road cars, Max Power, crashes, motocross, superstitious pants and how his race driving career kicked off. He also gives Jonny a tour of his British Touring Car Championship Team Dynamics workshop.
Matt Neal is a three time BTCC champion and is celebrating his 30th year in British Touring Cars. Since his debut in 1991 driving an E30 M3 BMW Matt has driven over 700 BTCC races. He drove in the famous Super Touring era and was the first independent team to win a race (1999 behind the wheel of a Nissan Primera) and be gifted £250,000 for the accolade.
Matt Neal and Jason Plato have collectively spent over 50 years racing in BTCC. They are veterans, legends and notorious rivals. Over the years much paint has been swapped between the two of them on track, and off-track things have almost come to blows. Even if you don't follow the British Touring Car Championship closely, there is no denying the high octane closeness and unpredictability of this series.
Matt Neal Stats:
BTCC driver 1991-present
Car #25
Races: 719
Wins: 63
Championship wins: 2005, 06 and 2011
Poles: 17
Podiums: 160
Fastest Laps: 52
Current team: Halfords Yuasa Racing
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Filmed and edited by: Mark Hankins - @Inksharkman - InkShark Studio
Thumbnail by: Matt Tarrant Design matttarrantdesign.com
Archive 9.5sec of BTCC footage credited to Duke Video ( www.dukevideo.com/ ):
• British Touring Cars h...
• Touring Car
We have contacted Duke video and have used the Duke video clip(s) after careful research into the legalities surrounding 'Fair Use', knowing that we have used the clip(s) in a factual, reportage way to validate the discussion point made by the person(s) involved in the original footage. We have used a short a clip as possible to validate said point. We have also used the clip in the confidence that it will act in a positive transformative way to the original clips; with that in mind, please check out the original 'Duke' KZread links above and please support them as you are supporting us. Many thanks to Duke and to you, our viewers.
To purchase Duke downloads and dvds: www.dukevideo.com/Touring-Car...
Huge thanks to Matt Neal and the teamdynamicsracing.co.uk/ crew. You didn't have to say yes, but you did. This video goes out on Matt's birthday, so happy bday.
Thank you for watching The Late Brake Show. Don't forget to watch the other Idol Chats in this series, and others... they're good. Real good.
If you haven't already, please hit SUBSCRIBE for a broad-church of automotive appreciation spanning EV, classic, modified and future vehicles.
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Jonny Smith
Creative content maker, car presenter & car pervert for hire since '98
Website: www.carpervert.com
Instagram: / jonnycarpervert
Twitter: / carpervert
CHAPTERS
0:00 Intro
0:48 Race stats
1:35 Matt's Dad racing
2:39 Cowboy hat and kart
4:00 Renault 5 Turbo racing
4:23 6 wheeled Jaguar!
4:45 Matt's first car
5:11 Mk1 XR2
5:25 Modified Golf GTi
5:52 Matt's BMW E30 M3
6:46 Matt likes hearses
7:22 Motocross riding
8:08 Starting Rimstock business
8:32 Matt's first race car - Fiesta mk2
10:10 Steve Neal - Matt's Dad
10:35 First Touring cars - E30 M3
10:45 Skyline race car
11:49 BMW M3 E30 for 1992 season
12:10 30 years in BTCC
12:20 Tyre wars
12:42 Winning £250k as an independent race team
13:20 Mental strength & motivation in competing
14:50 Massively superstitious Matt
15:35 Mazda crash story
16:07 LUCKY PANTS
17:00 Huge crash 1994
17:50 Max Power Primera days
18:17 Max Power arsing about
18:55 The winning 1999 Nissan Primera
19:12 BTCC 1995 Mondeo & his baby sons
19:32 Worst race car of his life
20:05 Nascar with Plato!
20:20 Workshop walkabout
20:30 2020 Civic race car
20:59 2021 hybrid race car build
21:44 Henry Neal's Civic race car
23:12 Porsche race car and old piano
24:44 V10 BMW M6
24:18 Not Matt's favourite Type R
24:43 FK8 Civic Type R bare shell
24:57 Lotus Cortina shell
25:12 Matt's Honda NSX
25:58 Honda's biggest problem?
26:18 Outro
26:49 Neal Vs Plato!
#btcc #mattneal #britishtouringcar #nealandplato
Пікірлер: 501
How an interview can change an opinion, guess he's in race mode at weekends but here, just chilled and chatting, a totally different guy. He's not up himself, real fun, like these interviews.
@jackchallis9456
3 жыл бұрын
I think people forget that these are sportsmen, and all we see of them is when they're at work and full of adrenaline. It's really tough to judge someone based on that...
@TheGra325
3 жыл бұрын
Totally changed my opinion of him
@stugill4513
3 жыл бұрын
totaly agree jo
@MrSharpe95
3 жыл бұрын
Completely agree. Wasn't a Neal fan st all but after listening to him here and with JP I'm warming up to him lol
@markthompson9914
Жыл бұрын
I know I’m late too the party guys but yeah 💯%. This and the chat Jonny done with Plato and Neal has flipped my script 👍✌️
That period of Matt constantly on the verge of being the first privateer race winner was a golden age of BTCC, great times.
So wanted it to be longer!!!!! More details, more dirt, more inside knowledge and then the penny drops........ Plato next 😁. Great stuff keep it up.
@danrolph1666
3 жыл бұрын
DEFINITELY
@mbfcamanslife
3 жыл бұрын
I would have loved to know how it went being a team mate with Plato
Jonny, you have smashed 2020 and are now pretty much the best car-related KZreadr. If I handed out KZread awards, I would present you with the golden exhaust pipe.
@TheLateBrakeShow
3 жыл бұрын
Ha! Thank you Dan.
Great interview. I remember a poster Matt’s pit was giving out in the 90s; Matt with a cheeky smile on his face, polishing the PVC shorts of a Max Power girl with a cloth. Different times indeed.
Matt Neal is a Proper Character .... His Tiffs with JP = 'Legendary' !! :-)
Another excellent video, loved the JP solo, it's just two mates chewing the fat, no egos, excellent! John Cleland for a future episode please?
Matt Neal... the most successful privateer in btcc history. Legend and a truley decent chap.
Couldn't think of s nicer way to round out the year, well done Johnny for lining this up 👍
Loved the Max Power photos. Olivia on the roof with a bucket of water. Neither of them wanting to admit that they knew much about it at all. Great interview.
Jonno! Pulled it out of the bag again! I knew nothing of Matt Neal but I avidly watched him and Plato fight it out over the years (Yes, I was a 'Potato' fan). Mesmerized for the whole video and disappointed when it ended.
@skkh5108
3 жыл бұрын
kzread.info/dash/bejne/mmFmys2bgrSaqZc.html
Jonny keep doing idol chats with car folks from the world over. You are moving in exactly the right direction. 🏴
I've only just started watching this Matt has always been one of my all time favourites
Loved this. Love BTCC. More please. Collard. Sheddon. Sutton. They would be good interviews. Thanks Jonny.
Loving this channel more and more every video. Jonny's amazing access to the most interesting people in the car world along with his skill in interviewing make this the best car channel on KZread.
Just watched both chats with Matt and Jason + the two together. Please do more of these Jonny.
Didn't know his back story, interesting person and humble as well.
Have always been a Plato fan..... but big respect for Mat after this and the one with Plato. Excellent Johnny
Was always Team Plato but a really nice snapshot of Matt away from racing. Top bloke, great series Jonny 👍🏻
Hi Jonny, I loved this video with Matt, It was brilliant and could listen to this type of chat for hours. More please. 👍 Big Thumbs up Thanks
More interviews please. You are very, very good at it. By the way did I say, your are a very, very good interviewer
@TheLateBrakeShow
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you very much Paul. Am really glad you are enjoying the vid. 3 more to come in the next 24hrs.
@paulboyd6820
3 жыл бұрын
Just watching Jason and can’t stop laughing. Brilliant stuff
@Wez007
3 жыл бұрын
Yes please!!! A lot more interviews with touring car legends. They are fascinating. Thank you!!!
Excellent. What an insight into a modern legend of a driver. Thank you!
Thank you for this. Matt Neal is one of my heroes and I have followed his career from the first race of his BTCC chapter. Of course everyone of my age will always remember his first win as an independent, but he has had many more great moments over the years. I am proud to say that I have every BTCC race from 1988-2019 on either tape or DVD so I can honestly say I have been a big fan for years.Thanks again & have a great christmas.
Enjoying Jonny 'Parkinson of motoring' Smith sitting opposite unique people of the car world. Fascinating to watch, every one of them 👌
@TheLateBrakeShow
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you Simon. Am trying to channel my inner automotive Louis Theroux.
He's always had my support since the Max Power Primera days. I still lust after that shape Primera GT because of that car. I didn't realise he was into MX too. Top guy.
Yes, more of this. Just watched this and Jason Platos one back to back! Brilliant!!
Loved this series, great to see the personalities come through. More please Jonny!
I remember meeting Matt and the guys from Rimstock at The Ford Fair at Blenheim palace in the mid 90s. Such a nice guy. I went to a lot of the Touring car meets and was at Silverstone sat at the end of the start finish straight and saw the barrel roll from behind. My favourite era of racing.
Another great video Jonny, what a lovely guy Matt Neal is, real gent. Keep'um coming....!!
What a great guy, completely chilled and a great story teller
Keep it up.... It is so good to watch and hear the BTCC legends... I'am a big fan of the Touring Car racing and I think that you also have to do some garage/workshop tours... But keep up the good work
I watched this and the Plato chat back to back. Superb insights into their experience of life and career. I remember the early 90’s all too well! Thanks Jonny, more idol chats please :)
Love this type of interviews. It’s great to see legendary drivers talking honestly and truthfully about their rise to excellence. Keep them coming. Cough Seb Loeb cough!
I'm a bit of an anorak not tin tops but but now the F1 has become boring I've actually started to watch touring cars and I've been invited to start moshling at touring car meetings it's refreshing it's like I've come back to real racing your channel will be passed on to many of my friends
Yes Jonny! Great content! I grew up watching the Touring Cars in the 90’s and the Max Power era. Great times remembered with this and the Plato content. Great stuff 👍👍👍 Thank you and Merry Christmas.
Love all the pics Matt pulled out. A man like myself; notes and pics documenting a lifes history 👍 great interview again 👏
Brilliant. Just Brilliant. Both Matt and Jason, what lovely guys. Top of the class for you Jonny.
This is absolutely top notch interviewing. Relaxed style, great connection with interviewee, excellent background knowledge, balance of light and serious ... more of this please!
Please more!!!!!! Seriously, awesome video!!!Thank you very much Sir!!!
Really enjoyed this Matt neal is great and please do something with him and Jason love those guys
@TheLateBrakeShow
3 жыл бұрын
Watch the channel tomorrow...
Finally uploaded past 98%! Great chat, really enjoyed it. Thanks both.
Another fab interview, many thanks!
Fantastic chat, loved the photos! Didn't feel like 30 minutes at all, flew by. Great episode, keep up the good work!
Loved this mini-series with Matt and Jason. These chats with significant figures in Motorsport and the motor industry are great. Looking forward to who else you get to interview in future.
This is a great mini series of interviews, and something different. Jason and Matt, two of the greats of the last 20 or so years.
Brilliant....just watched all your latest vids! Really enjoyable, funny and spot on! More of these please..great stuff!
Really enjoy this one. Please do more of this type of interviews. They are amazing!
Great insight into Matt Neal's world. So very humble and understated.
Brilliant interview. I was lucky to have met / interviewed Matt a few times around the first championship win years and it's no surprise to see how well he comes across here. A genuinely nice bloke who makes time for motorsport fans. He's a big fan of other drivers too!
All of the Idol Chat's have been exceptional. There is something about the informality of a KZread video and the lack of the usual media full stops and pauses like adverts that let the interview evolve which helps them be so engaging. They are so good to watch, but also Jonny, your interview style, letting people talk without interruption, the pre-interview research which is evident from the incisive and explorative questions all mean you put people at ease and tease out fantastic nuggets of information. That's some skillset!
Loved both interviews with Matt Neal and Jason Plato. Took me right back to my early twenties where in post Apartheid SA, we could view the BTCC on our pay TV channel. Our own SATouring Car series eventually used those same Primeras in BP green, yellow and white colours. Before that they used a Nissan Sentra (Sunny/Pulsar in the UK) with the Primera engine. They were amazing to watch going around Kyalami. I still watch watch some of the old races from the late 90s to 2000s. Thanks so much for the great interview.
So many memories for me in this video.. and I'm sure many others growing up as a petrol head through the 90's/Early 00's! Top Work Jonny ;)
Loved this, Jonny. I didn't realise Matt and I would have been in the same year at school. It's fantastic that he and Jason still compete in BTCC - long may the continue.
Brilliant interview. Love the fact that his first car was a Fiesta 950 Popular Plus as I had the same in the same colour lol. The BTCC is a fantastic championship. Hadn't realised he had done it for so long. Brilliant Jonny really enjoying your new channel ☺️
Johnny Smith, great show! These guys really got my eyes open to cars! BTTC in the 90s so great. Fantastic interview and great show
Brilliant inter yet again Mr Smith….Neal v Plato or Plato v Neal(let’s not be bias here) Loved & still ❤ British Touring Cars…& these 2 legENDS 🎊..⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✌🏻
I'm just catching up on your channel Jonny & this vid was brilliant !!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS from Mark in Ohio !!!
Excellent episode, thanks Jonny & Matt
Thank you jonny for bringing such great content .
So good to watch this. I was lucky enough to know Matt and his father Steve back in the early 90’s. Matt is such a good guy. Its exciting to see his sons starting their own races careers. Matt’s enthusiasm for bikes got me started! One day all the lads attended a 4 hour kart racing event at Rye house in Hertfordshire. Matt singlehandedly led our chaotic team to a win, despite the fact it was pissing with rain and we were the only team on slicks !
I don't normally enjoy interview videos but this was really good, I feel like you probably get more out of people because of your light hearted, relaxed style. I can't wait for the next video.
Great stuff Jonny. As someone approaching 50 I remember the glory days of BTCC and Max Power. Love the trip down memory lane. Love your content and channel. More please guvnor!
Another superb interview. Thanks 👍🏼
That was a fantastic little chat with Matt Neal more please
Brilliant - could listen to Matt all day - proper proper racer - hard as nails 👍🏻 amazing again Jonny
Just brilliant Jonny. You need to get Tim Harvey and John Cleland on.
What a nice guy, Matt Neal that is.
Brilliant. Thanks Jonny & Merry Christmas. Love the channel.
Hi Johnny I enjoyed watching the interviews with matt and also the two with JP as well. I had fond memories as my gaffer in the late 80's early 90's was best friends with matt and he raced the fiesta xr2i challenge car. Cadwell Park I was mechanic for my gaffer and matt was the with his R32 skyline. We all went into Skegness on the piss what a laugh matt is a great bloke and it was a pleasure to get pissed with him. Happy days.
Another legend of the BTCC great watch hope there is a full video coming of him and Jason together 🙏
This channel keeps getting better. Keep up the good work
These episodes are amazing. Just wish they where longer hahaha! If you make them 3 hours long id watch them. Amazing!
Who can seriously dislike this or any video like this!? Again, Jonny you've done an awesome job of putting these videos together, I've watched this one after the Plato interview and after the 2 part Plato and Neal interview and just can't get enough of it! If I can add a few more names to the comment I left on the part 2 Plato and Neal interview video they would be, Rickard Rydell, Frank Biela, Jo Winkelhock and possibly Derek Warwick.. I'm sure there's more great names I've temporarily forgotten to mention but you should get where I'm coming from! 😁
Jonny this interview and the one with Plato are bloody excellent wish they both could of been longer more chat about their old cars and more chat about the late 90s era of Btcc please keep more like this coming.👍
Loving this format, more please
I loved the bit where Mr Neal was talking about collecting autographs of F1 drivers. I’ve almost certainly got an autograph book kicking about somewhere with both his and Jason Plato’s signatures in from BTCC weekends at Thruxton in the 90s/00s.
Finally watched them all now a fantastic 2 hours well done Guys :)
Another awesome vid,I love these interviews. Your research is brilliant and shows you want to be knowledgeable about your guest. Keep them coming buddy...
Really good video and insight. I've only recently subscribed to the channel but I have thoroughly enjoyed the interviews with Matt and Jason Plato. Keep 'em coming!
Great guy, met him at Auto Sport when I was 14 and led me to want to go into Motorsport and Automotive industry
matt was the driver who got me interested in btcc
Been waiting to watch these since they came out at Christmas! Changed my opinion of Matt - can’t wait for Plato’s now!
The Parkinson of Petrol Power, awesome firewall-side chats Johnny. Well done and make us more like these 👍🏻
Funnily enough my father had a huge accident in the late 1950s . He was taken home from hospital and I was taken into the bedroom to see him. I was only four. It was pretty shocking and I can remember it like yesterday . Matt talks about his dads accident and it brings it all back.
Yes ofcourse,we want more episodes like this. Thanks Jonny.
Your interview and subject selection skills are excellent, and the production values are the icing on the cake. Prior to this I had no clue who Matt Neal even was and had only the barest notion of BTCC but watched the entire 27 minutes with gusto and was left wanting more.
Loving this. Please more.
I first found out about Matt Neal through reading Max Power in the 90s. Then I remember watching that race when he got his first independent win. To this day it's the greatest most exciting motorsport race that I've seen. Glad that he's still going.
These interviews always seem effortless and are a real pleasure to watch. I am going to assume its a combination of good editing and Jonny's interviewing skill and passion for the subject.
More episodes like this please, awesome job and lovely to hear more about Matt.
Excellent format and would love to see more!
I am full of admiration towards Matt. I think he would have succeeded in anything where he would have put his heart. Talent is nothing without hard work IMO.
Johnny, this is very good, loving the channel! Just great 👍🏻
Talking about Renault 5 turbos. I bought one many years ago from a pal who couldn't get insured. Had it for 3 years then sold it back to him. He still couldn't get insured so parked it behind his father's shed. A few years later we went to his sisters 21st and ended up back at their house. I asked what he done with the r5. He still had it. My heart broke when I went around the back of the shed to see a tree growing up through it. Only positive was I sold it back to him for more than I paid originally. Small money back then but if I had it today I'd be a happy man
More interviews like this please! Excellent!
Fantastic Jonny...that was brilliant.
06:40 - I always loved the mk1 Espace when it was new and I was a kid. Looked like a space ship to me.
Loved this episode , would to see more like this Johnny. First time I remember seeing Matt Neal was in the pits at brands hatch when we was carrying the spare parts for Martin Bell's touring car BMW 3 series
I don’t know how I missed this, but Matt was always my favourite driver, purely biased by living near to Team Dynamics and Matt living round the corner from me 😂
Gotta say, seeing Matt like this is so good. I've met him a number of times at BTCC and he's always been lovely to chat to. Silly story, but attaches itself to Matt talking about being superstitious. In Oct 2011 at Silverstone we were there for the weekend and walking through the pits we saw a chap washing Matts wheels before quali, and he invited my 5 year old son to wash them with him (which he loved doing). Matt got pole for the Sunday. On Sunday we were walking by the pits again, and the lovely chap saw my boy and asked him to wait for him, and he ran off into the garage. He came back out and asked my son if he'd like to sit in Matt's car to bring him luck for the race. Matt was there to take pics of with my boy as well. I guess him washing his wheels was seen as a good luck charm :) Such a great memory for us both :)