Photo: TCR South America

Nelson Piquet Jr. claims close pole position at Autódromo Velocitta

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Former F1 driver Nelson Piquet Jr. claimed the TCR South America pole position at Autódromo Velocitta in Brazil, beating Raphael Reis by a slim margin.

The Honda Racing driver lapped the circuit in 1:33.058, beating Cupra driver Reis, who is placed second overall, by just 0.064 seconds.

The session began with a wet track which dried up, with all drivers opting for slicks during the final Q2 session.

The Honda Racing duo of Tiago and Leonel Pernia, with the latter heading the standings currently, claimed positions three and four, 0.353 and 0.579 seconds from pole respectively.

Pedro Cardoso took his G Racing Motorsport-prepared Cupra to fifth place, with rival Cupra driver Erick Schotten of W2 Pro GP setting an identical lap time in sixth place.

Lynk & Co driver Juan Angel Rosso headed his Paladini Racing team-mate Fabricio Pezzini to seventh and eighth place.

Former FIA TCR World Tour driver Néstor Girolami could only manage eleventh place for Hyundai MSA, 0.981 seconds from pole.

The first race of the weekend starts at 16:40 local time/22:40 CEST today.