21 cars entered for 2023 TCR South America opener
The third TCR South America season starts this weekend at the Oscar Cabalén racetrack in Córdoba, Argentina, featuring a grid of 21 cars – an increase of three cars compared to 2022.
“We are very happy and have got high expectations for the start of this season,” said Federico Punteri, president of TCR South America.
“We had a first year where we were able establish the TCR concept in the region, a 2022 season of strong growth and 2023 will surely mark the consolidation of the category with more cars and more drivers that generates great expectations for the future.
“This year we are also going to have two TCR World Tour events on our calendar and that makes us very happy and proud.”
Reigning champion Fabricio Pezzini is back to defend his title, racing one of four Lynk & Co 03 TCRs for PMO Motorsport, which is yet to reveal its fourth driver.
Last year’s runner-up Juan Angel Rosso has joined Toyota team Paladini Racing together with experienced touring car racer Fabián Yannantuoni.
Another two Toyotas will be on the grid from Toyota Team Argentina with renowned touring car drivers Bernardo Llaver and Manuel Sapag.
Last year’s teams’ runner-up W2 Pro GP is going to field a pair of CUPRA León Competicións for Raphael Reis and series newcomer Galid Osman.
Honda will again be represented by Squadra Martino, fielding a total of four Civic Type R FK7 TCRs for Fabio Casagrande, Ignacio Montenegro, Enrique Maglione and Juan Manuel Casella.
The season opener starts on Friday with two practice sessions, followed by qualifying on Saturday and two races of 25 and 30 minutes respectively on Sunday.
2023 TCR South America entry list
W2 Pro GP – CUPRA León Competición
#77 – Raphael Reis (Brazil)
#28 – Galid Osman (Brazil)
Cobra Racing Team – Audi RS 3 LMS SEQ/Toyota Corolla GRS TCR
#70 – Diego Nunes (Brazil)
#10 – Adalberto Baptista (Brazil)
Squadra Martino – Honda Civic Type R FK7 TCR
#34 – Fabio Casagrande (Brazil)
#23 – Ignacio Montenegro (Argentina)
#15 – Enrique Maglione (Uruguay)
#60 – Juan Manuel Casella (Uruguay)
PMO Motorsport – Lynk & Co 03 TCR
#27 – Walter Hernández (Argentina)
#1 – Fabricio Pezzini (Argentina)
#24 – Frederick Balbi (Uruguay)
(TBC)
Alfa Racing – Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce TCR
#69 – Gonzalo Alterio (Argentina)
PMO Racing – Peugeot 308TCR
#7 – Juan Pablo Bessone (Argentina)
#55 – Diego Gutierrez (Argentina)
#20 – Pablo Otero (Argentina)
#37 – Guilherme Reischl (Brazil)
Toyota Team Argentina – Toyota Corolla GRS TCR
#17 – Bernardo Llaver (Argentina)
#33 – Manuel Sapag (Argentina)
Scuderia Chiarelli – Hyundai Elantra N TCR
#43 – Pedro Cardoso (Brazil)
Paladini Racing – Toyota Corolla GRS TCR
#2 – Juan Ángel Rosso (Argentina)
#5 – Fabián Yannantuoni (Argentina)
