Imola hosts TCR Italy curtain raiser with 26 cars on the grid
The 2018 TCR Italy Touring Car Championship will kick off this weekend at Imola. The championship has seen its entry increase dramatically since last year, particularly after a raft of driver announcements in the last couple of days.
Defending champion Nicola Baldan, who has switched from SEAT to Hyundai with Pit Lane Competizioni, and his 2017 title rival Eric Scalvini, who also joined the ranks of the South Korean manufacturer with BRC Racing Team, will be part f a 26 cars field the grid, the most recently announced being Plamen Kralev, returning in his Audi RS 3 LMS after taking part in selected rounds of the championship last year.
Max Mugelli also made the switch from Audi to Honda with MM Motorsport’s new Civic, partnered by Davide Nardilli and single-make-trophy specialist Lorenzo Nicoli. Target Competition will also use JAS-built machinery, in the hands of Marco Pellegrini, Jürgen Schmarl and José Rodrigues, the Austrian and the Portuguese both switching from TCR Germany to the Italian series.
The new Cupra marque will be represented by two well-known names, as former WTCC driver Andrea Larini joins the ranks of the Spanish manufacturer with Pit Lane Competizioni, at the wheel of the very same car in which Nicola Baldan won the crown last year. SEAT Motorsport Italia will also field a car, shared by touring car veteran Salvatore Tavano and 2017 León Cupra Cup champion Matteo Greco.
Opel will be represented by former SEAT driver Andrea Argenti, who will be at the wheel of an Astra TCR prepared by South Italy Racing Team.
TCR Italy also features a National DSG Trophy, in which ten drivers will battle it out at the wheel of DSG-equipped machinery. Eight Cupras will be part of the trophy, although DSG cars are still eligible for outright results. Alessandro Thellung, Matteo Bergonzini and Massimiliano Gagliano are all returning to the series. Former one-make-series specialist, turned Italian hillclimb champion Francesco Savoia will also drive a Cupra for Gretaracing. Austria’s Peter Gross and Günther Benninger will drive for Wimmer Werk Motorsport, whereas Gabriele Volpato and Cosimo Papi will share a BD Racing Cupra.
Two Audi RS 3 LMS prepared by Pit Lane Competizioni will be driven by former Superstars Series driver Ermanno Dionisio and TCS front-runner Giovanni Altoè.
Two free practice sessions, one on Friday at 15:35 CET and one on Saturday at 11:45, will last for 25 minutes. A radical change from last year’s qualifying system has been introduced, as there will be a single 30-minute session to decide the grid for the first race. The starting positions of the second race will be based on the results of the first heat, with the top-eight places reversed.
Qualifying at Imola will start on Saturday at 18:35. The two races will be held on Sunday, the first heat starting at 9:00 and the second scheduled for 16:00, both lasting 25 minutes + 1 lap.
