TCR: Five Swiss in the winners' list 🎥
SEASON BALANCE A list of all TCR races in 2020 and all drivers reveals interesting figures. The most successful Swiss drivers were 24H Series champion Miklas Born and his mentor Yannick Mettler. In his film posted online on December 29, 24H Series champion Miklas Born looks back on his 2020 TCR season. Due to the forced worldwide break from mid-March to mid-June, there was indeed [...]
In his film posted online on December 29, 24H Series champion Miklas Born looks back on his 2020 TCR season.
Due to the worldwide mandatory break from mid-March to mid-June, there were fewer events in 2020 than in normal years. With 224 races sanctioned by TCR rights holder WSC or race series with TCR classes in 25 countries, there were nevertheless sufficient starting opportunities for touring car drivers and their teams.
Series winner at 16
Numerous Swiss drivers also took advantage of this opportunity, five of whom were able to add their names to the 142-strong list of all TCR class winners in 2020. This is not a matter of course, as a total of 545 drivers from 45 nations were striving for success.
The best were Mikel Azcona and Tyler Maxson with eleven class wins each. The Spanish Cupra factory driver, with 32 starts in WTCR, TCR Europe, TCR Italia and the Campeonato de España Resistencia (endurance championship in Spain), was also the busiest, while the American, who started in TC America on a Hyundai Veloster, was the youngest champion of all at 16.
A kind of TCR national team
All Swiss victories went to the account of Autorama Motorsport by Wolf-Power Racing in the 24H Series. Multiple champion Miklas Bornwho, at 18, is also one of the youngest, scored his first triumph in motor racing with the Zurich team at the 24 Hours of Portimão, which was followed by victories at the half-marathons in Enna-Pergusa and Mugello.
In Portugal and Tuscany, the previous year's champion Yannick Mettler to his teammates, with whom he took turns at the wheel of a VW Golf GTI TCR. In Sicily, last year's European champion lived Fabian Danzwho started only sporadically in 2020, joined the winning team.
Yannick Mettler sat in the faster of the two cars from Wetzikon at the 16 Hours of Hockenheim, which was also Jasmin Preisig and Christoph Lenz took turns at the wheel. For Lenz, who otherwise drives GT3 sports cars, it was the first TCR success ever.
Jasmin's unlisted Nordschleife victories
Jasmin Preisig also won with German teammates in Max Kruse Racing's VW Golf GTI TCR in the Nürburgring Endurance Series (formerly VLN). There, however, for practical reasons, this touring car was assigned to the SP3T class for two-liter turbos, which is more heavily populated in 2020. So the Appenzeller can actually claim three direct hits as well.
Heavily staffed 24 hours Dubai
The first by Swiss drivers could soon follow in the new year. At the Dubai 24 Hours (January 15-16, 2021), Autorama will field three Volkswagens, with at least one compatriot in each of the three cars (Miklas Born, Yannick Mettler, returnee Jérôme Ogay) or in a Jasmin Preisig is to be used. The 2017 Young Driver finalist will be taking part for the first time. Gustavo Xavier be
TOPCAR sport is also already starting the 2021 racing season in the Arab Emirates. The Bernese team is manning its Cupra TCR with Fabian Danz, team coowner Ronny Jost, Adrian Spescha and the German Patrick Sing.
With 14 touring cars, the TCR class in Dubai will, according to the provisional starting list, be as strong as one would actually like for the complete 2021 racing season in all championships, despite the ongoing Corona crisis.
