Photo: Tamara Aller

Mike Halder leads Friday test session in Valencia

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Mike Halder was the fastest driver in Friday’s test session at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia ahead of the second round of the 2026 TCR World Tour, which runs alongside the TCR Spain grid.

The German driver scored a lap time of 1:18.823 early in the session in his Honda Civic and remained on top, despite completing significant less laps than his rivals.

Viktor Andersson’s Cupra Leon VZ TCR was second with the same lap time as Halder. Geely Cyan Racing’s Yann Ehrlacher, aboard the new Geely Preface TCR, was third and the fastest among the World Tour drivers, followed by his team-mates Santiago Urrutia and Thed Björk.

Norbert Michelisz was sixth, six-tenths behind Halder, followed by newcomer Enzo Gianfratti.

Mikel Azcona was eighth with the second of the Hyundais, seven-tenths off the pace, with Cupra’s Jenson Brickley right behind, just six-hundredths of a second.

Samuel Chaligne, from the TCR Spain field, completed the top ten in a session marked by the hot temperatures.

The TCR World Tour and Spain fields return to the track on Friday afternoon for the first free practice session at 15:00 CEST.