After a one-month break, the WTCR – FIA Touring Car World Cup resumes this weekend in Portugal on street circuit of Vila Real. The event marks the end of the first half of the season.
Münnich Motorsport’s Yann Ehrlacher will try to defend his lead in the Drivers’ standings at the wheel of his Honda Civic. The young Frenchman has a margin of nine points ahead of his uncle Yvan Muller who drives a Hyundai i30 N run by his own team, while Rob Huff lies third in the classification a further seven points adrift in a SLR Volkswagen Golf GTI.
The fourth place is occupied by the 2017 TCR International Series champion Jean-Karl Vernay who has a gap of 25 points from the leader in his Leopard Lukoil WRT Audi RS3 LMS. This makes three French drivers and four different brands in the top four positions.
None of the first four drivers classified has won a race in Vila Real, with Vernay facing his maiden appearance on the Portuguese street circuit. Previous winners in the WTCC years amongst the current WTCR competitors were Tom Coronel (2016), Mehdi Bennani and Norbert Michelisz (2017).
Two local drivers will make a one-off appearance in the series: Edgar Florindo in a Veloso Motorsport Cupra and José Rodrigues in a Target Competition Honda Civic FK2.
Source: Automobilsport including images