Dave Pinkney says he is massively excited by the deal that will see him and Richard Marsh join forces to enter a new team into the 2007 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

The pair have pooled their resources to form A-Tech, with the team running a pair of Alfa Romeo 156s during the coming season. The cars, one of which has already arrived in the country from Italy, are built to the same 2007 specification as those raced by N.technology in the World Touring Car Championship, something which Pinkney said was of vital importance for the season ahead.

“They are fabulous plans,” he told Crash.net Radio. “What got me back into touring cars last year was the Integra, which was a competitive car – albeit a year old and a year old in its specification. But we had a blinding year and were offered the Alfa deal last September. The 156 was leading the WTCC going into the last round in Macau so it's all very exciting.

“Having new cars is huge. We have got two new cars with new chassis and new engines, it's all brand new. It's hugely important as anything that was learned on the WTCC circus last year will be on these two cars that are coming.”

Pinkney added that he was looking for podiums from his new mount once both he and the team get used to the new car, although he admitted that being the only factory sanctioned Alfa Romeo team in the series brought added pressure.

“[Alfa Romeo] will be watching us to consider possibly coming in as a works team in 2008 so the pressure is huge,” he said. “The problem we have is that we haven't got the cars yet [this interview was recorded prior to the pictured car arriving in the country] and we don't know what testing we will get done before Brands Hatch so we don't expect to do particularly well in the opening rounds. But they know that is how it is.

“[However] this car, compared to the Honda, will be the latest spec and we expect to be fighting for podiums [in due course].”

Source crash.net