The 2020 WTCR − FIA World Touring Car Cup enters a decisive phase at MotorLand Aragón in Spain from October 30-November 1.
EVENT ESSENTIALS
What? 2020 WTCR − FIA World Touring Car Cup, Rounds 11, 12 and 13 of 16
When? October 30-November 1, 2020
Where? MotorLand Aragón, Alcañiz (Teruel)
Track length: 5.345 kilometres
Race 1 distance: 10 laps (53.306 kilometres)
Race 2 distance: 10 laps (53.306 kilometres)
Race 3 distance: 12 laps (63.996 kilometres)
WTCR qualifying lap record:
To be established
WTCR race lap record:
To be established
EVENT OVERVIEW
The 2020 WTCR − FIA World Touring Car Cup enters a decisive phase at MotorLand Aragón in Spain from October 30-November 1.
With two weekends and six races remaining of WTCR season three, it’s now or never for the title contenders to stake their respective claims for ultimate glory.
After an action-packed WTCR Race of Hungary recently, MotorLand Aragón is gearing up to host the penultimate event of a title chase shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic but packed full of high drama and sheer excitement.
Six drivers representing four customer racing brands have triumphed so far in 2020, with Cyan Racing Lynk & Co’s Yann Ehrlacherwinning three times in his Goodyear-equipped Lynk & Co 03 TCR from China-based Geely Group Motorsport.
The 24-year-old from France also wears the yellow jacket as the Goodyear #FollowTheLeader with a 22-point advantage over ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport’s Esteban Guerrieri.
Argentine Guerrieri, last year’s WTCR runner-up, shot back into title contention with a win double at WTCR Race of Hungary in his Honda Civic Type R TCR, becoming the event’s TAG Heuer Most Valuable Driver in the process. He’s now won nine WTCR races, which is more than any of his rivals and travels to MotorLand Aragón from his Barcelona home boosted by the fact he’s raced and tested at the venue in the past.
FIA World Touring Car legend Yvan Muller, Ehrlacher’s uncle and his Cyan Racing Lynk & Co team-mate, is third in the standings but seemingly intent on supporting his nephew’s title ambitions rather than pursuing his own.
Néstor Girolami, who partners Guerrieri at ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport and won the opening race of the season at Circuit Zolder, holds fourth spot after 10 races, equal on points with Team Mulsanne’s Jean-Karl Vernay.
Frenchman Vernay is the WTCR Trophy leader following a hat-trick of category wins in Hungary at the wheel of an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce TCR by Romeo Ferraris. He deposed Tom Coronel for the WTCR Trophy lead after the Comtoyou DHL Team Audi Sport driver, who is set to hit 500 touring car starts at WTCR Race of Spain, endured a troubled weekend in Hungary.
Coronel’s Comtoyou team-mates Nathanaël Berthon and Gilles Magnus were also unable to replicate their Slovakia Ring speed at the Hungaroring, although RACB National Team-supported Magnus was at least able to strengthen his grip on the WTCR Rookie Driver classification. Berthon and Magnus are seventh and eighth in the overall rankings respectively.
Home hero Mikel Azcona was on form in Hungary and will be a contender for his first WTCR win of 2020 at MotorLand Aragón, where he made his touring car debut as a teenager in 2011. The Spaniard is armed with the all-new CUPRA Leon Competición run by Zengő Motorsport, which also includes Bence Boldizs and Gábor Kismarty-Lechner in its line-up.
Thed Björk, who became Sweden’s first motor racing world champion when he won the FIA World Touring Car Championship in 2017, is 10th on the overall leaderboard following podiums at Circuit Zolder and the Nürburgring Nordschleife for Cyan Peformance Lynk & Co.
Like Björk, ALL-INKL.DE Münnich Motorsport’s Hungarian young gun Attila Tassi was also on the podium in Belgium and Germany and is P11 in the table followed by Björk’s fellow Cyan Performance Lynk & Co driver Santiago Urrutia, from Uruguay, and his own team-mate, Portugal’s Tiago Monteiro, who returned to the WTCR podium in Hungary with a strong drive in Race 3.
King of WTCR Norbert Michelisz will look to a change of fortune in Spain as he bids to win for the first time in 2020 for BRC Hyundai N LUKOIL Squadra Corse. Nicky Catsburg, who won for Hyundai in Slovakia, is back for Engstler Hyundai N Liqui Moly Racing Team in Spain after an existing commitment meant he wasn’t in action in Hungary.
Inaugural WTCR title winner Gabriele Tarquini will also fly the Hyundai flag in Spain, as will WTCR Rookie Driver Luca Engstler. Aurélien Comte is entered in Swiss team Vuković Motorsport’s Renault Mégane RS TCR.
WTCR Race of Spain will take place behind closed doors but fans can count on extensive live broadcasting as well fresh and fun content across the WTCR’s social channels. The live broadcasting package covers six continents as part of the WTCR’s biggest broadcast distribution ever.
WTCR 2020 ALL-SEASON ENTRIES
1 Norbert Michelisz (HUN) BRC Hyundai N LUKOIL Squadra Corse, Hyundai i30 N TCR
8 R Luca Engstler (DEU) Engstler Hyundai N Liqui Moly Racing Team, Hyundai i30 N TCR
9 Attila Tassi (HUN) ALL-INKL.DE Münnich Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R TCR
11 Thed Björk (SWE) Cyan Performance Lynk & Co 03 TCR, Lynk & Co 03 TCR
12 Santiago Urrutia (URY) Cyan Performance Lynk & Co, Lynk & Co 03 TCR
16 R T Gilles Magnus (BEL) Comtoyou Racing, Audi RS 3 LMS
17 T Nathanaël Berthon (FRA) Comtoyou DHL Team Audi Sport, Audi RS 3 LMS
18 Tiago Monteiro (PRT) ALL-INKL.DE Münnich Motorsport Honda Civic Type R TCR
29 Néstor Girolami (ARG) ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport Honda Civic Type R TCR
30 Gabriele Tarquini (ITA) BRC Hyundai N LUKOIL Squadra Corse Hyundai i30 N TCR
31 T Tom Coronel (NED) Comtoyou DHL Team Audi Sport, Audi RS 3 LMS
34 T Aurélien Comte (FRA) Vuković Motorsport, Renault Mégane RS TCR
55 R T Bence Boldizs (HUN) Zengő Motorsport, CUPRA Leon Competición TCR
68 Yann Ehrlacher (FRA) Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 03 TCR, Lynk & Co 03 TCR
69 T Jean-Karl Vernay (FRA) Team Mulsanne, Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce TCR by Romeo Ferraris
86 Esteban Guerrieri (ARG) ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R TCR
88 Nicky Catsburg (NLD) Engstler Hyundai N Liqui Moly Racing Team, Hyundai i30 N TCR
96 Mikel Azcona (ESP) Zengő Motorsport, CUPRA Leon Competición TCR
99 T Gábor Kismarty-Lechner (HUN) Zengő Motorsport, CUPRA Leon Competición TCR
100 Yvan Muller (FRA) Cyan Racing Lynk & Co, Lynk & Co 03 TCR
R = Rookie Award contender; T = WTCR Trophy contender
HOW THEY STAND
Yann Ehrlacher continues to wear the yellow jacket as the Goodyear #FollowTheLeader and will carry the yellow windscreen strip at the start of the WTCR Race of Spain weekend in his Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 03 TCR. Here’s a reminder of how he and the chasing pack stand following WTCR Race of Hungary last weekend:
1 Yann Ehrlacher (FRA) 169 points
2 Esteban Guerrieri (ARG) 147
3 Yvan Muller (FRA) 114
4 Néstor Girolami (ARG) 106
5 Jean-Karl Vernay (FRA) 106
6 Tom Coronel (NLD) 101
7 Nathanaël Berthon (FRA) 92
8 Gilles Magnus (BEL) 92
9 Mikel Azcona (ESP) 79
10 Thed Björk (SWE) 78
