Mikhail Grachev:”We need time to make the Audi quicker”

Liqui Moly Team Engstler decided to use the Audi TT, directly deriving from the one-make series, for the TCR. The cars are new and need developement, but Mikhail Grachev is happy with the progress made so far.

“When we first got the cars they were sent to Malaysia directly, so we had no time to test, just jump in the car and try to race it,” said the Russian. “We have a better understanding of it now, but we still have some points to improve.

In Free Practice 1 we changed the setup again, but I felt it wasn’t quite in the right direction, so we will change it again. It’s good because that means we learned something new about the car, but on the other hand it shows how ‘young’ our car is and how much room we have for improvement.”

Grachev has no doubts has to what the goals are for the project:”Obviously we want to win, everyone wants to. Our short-term goal is to develop the car and finally reach a podium place, or even a top five.”

The Russian driver admits the choice to take on the Audi challenge was not the easy route to be competitive, but he understands the reasons behind it and is ready to take the risk:”I haven’t made the decision, but it made sense because we are a German team with a German sponsor, so it was bound for a German manufacturer. Of course the SEAT León Racer has raced last year in the Eurocup, and the Honda Civic TCR was built especially for this championship, whereas we have a car which was designed for a one-make series, the Audi TT Cup.”

Grachev conceded it is not only the car that needs improvement, but also the team and the driver:”It’s not just about the car, we as a team and myself as a driver need to improve, get to grips with the championship and find a good way to make the Audi work. We need to work hard and I’m sure the results will come.”

Grachev is currently eleventh in the championship, with 6 points to his name.