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MUNDIAL - HYUNDAI MOTORSPORT É NOTICIA

Quarta, 31 Outubro 2018 13:39 | Actualizado em Segunda, 08 Abril 2024 13:01

Hyundai Motorsport customer results round-up bulletin

Victory in Race 3 of the WTCR Race of Japan put i30 N TCR driver Gabriele Tarquini into a 39 point lead in the championship ahead of season finale
i20 R5 crew Luca Rossetti and Eleonara Mori stunned the championship contenders to score overall victory at the Rally Due Valli – the final round of the Italian rally championship
Spaniard Iván Ares kept up his impressive podium record by finishing second at the Rallye Santander Cantabria.

The i30 N TCR took a potentially important step towards the FIA WTCR title at the penultimate round of the championship in Japan, while teams and drivers collected silverware at the final event of TCR Europe. i20 R5 customers used the car’s peak performance to record superb overall victories on two events, while the reliability of the machine continued to keep Spanish driver Iván Ares in the fight for his national crown.

Race of Japan victory puts i30 N TCR in position for FIA WTCR glory

BRC Racing Team driver Gabriele Tarquini took a potentially crucial win in the final encounter of the weekend at the WTCR Race of Japan in Suzuka (October 26-28). With victory in Race 3 at the venue the Italian was able to build a 39 point lead over his closest rival, and fellow i30 N TCR pilot, Yvan Muller going into the final round of the championship next month. Muller’s MRacing teammate, Thed Bjork, remains third in the standings.

Tarquini’s fifth victory of the year completed a strong weekend for the i30 N TCR drivers, despite the car again running as the heaviest on the grid with 60kg of compensation weight. The Hyundai remains the only model this year to win a race in the series carrying the full complement of additional ballast, having previously done so at the Nürburgring, and in Ningbo.

The weekend started strongly for Muller, as he finished third in Race 1 to draw level at the top of the standings with Tarquini who began the Japanese contests with an eighth place finish. However, a strong Sunday for Tarquini – started by a fifth in the reverse-grid Race 2 – allowed him to build a margin at the top of the championship. Furthermore, the victory, coupled with the points won by Norbert Michelisz’s podium finish in Race 2 lifted the BRC Racing Team back into the lead of the teams’ standings with only the three races in Macau remaining on the calendar.

Podium finishes to complete TCR Europe campaign

i30 N TCR customers signed off the 2018 TCR Europe campaign with a trio of podiums at the season finale at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (October 20-21). One of six men who started the weekend with hopes of lifting the championship Target Competition driver Dušan Borković was the best placed of the Hyundai runners in Race 1. The Serbian, who qualified fourth, made his way up to second position – the best of the title contenders. He was followed up the order by Norbert Michelisz. Driving an i30 N TCR entered by the M1RA team the Hungarian was one of several drivers carrying an additional 20kg as one-off entrants for the weekend.

However, he showed little sign of the extra weight as finished third in Race 1, and then fourth in Race 2. Ahead of him was his teammate for the weekend, Dániel Nagy, who closed out his season with second place to claim a sixth podium of the season – the most of any driver in series.

By finishing fifth in Race 2 in another of the Target Competition run i30 N TCR Peter Terting not only claimed his best finish of his TCR Europe season, but also helped the squad take second place in the teams’ championship. The Italy-based outfit was also boosted by a pair of points finishes by Irish driver Reece Barr, completing his first season of international Touring Car racing.

i30 N TCR takes on American endurance challenge

Following their successful season in the Pirelli World Challenge Bryan Herta Autosport took advantage of an invitation to the California 8 Hours (October 26-28) at the Laguna Seca circuit in California. Running their pair of i30 N TCR in the race was an important opportunity to show the performance of the car to a wider audience at an event that brought together teams who normally compete in different series.

The team took full advantage of the chance. While one car, that driven by team regulars Mark Wilkins and Michael Lewis sharing with Mason Filippi, was forced out after an accident the second entry completed the race in 21^st position overall. Driven by team owner Bryan Herta, his son Colton and George Kurtz the i30 N TCR – sporting a black livery for the weekend – outpaced many of the GT4 cars on the grid to prove itself at the longer race distance.

Hyundai customer beats title contender to Italian victory

Luca Rossetti scored a sensational overall win at the Rally Due Valli (October 12-13), the final round of the Italian national championship. Driving a Friulmotor run i20 R5 running with all the latest developments for the car he led from the very start of the rally, topping seven of the event’s eleven stages.

In taking victory by nearly 30 seconds Rossetti and co-driver Eleonara Mori showed off the raw performance of the car to better all of the championship’s regular crews, including those involved in the close battle for the championship crown.

Astonishing pace gives i20 R5 overall victory in Slovenia

The i20 R5 completed the Slovenian championship in fine style, with Tomaž Kaučič taking overall victory on Rally Idrija (October 27-28). The former national champion, who was making his debut in the Hyundai Slovenia supported car, was a constant at the top of the overall standings, never falling out of the top four places.

However, it was with back-to-back stage victories to complete the event – including a final run where he was more than a second per kilometre quicker than anyone else – that he sprung into the overall lead to win by nearly half a minute overall.

In a second Hyundai Slovenia supported i20 R5 Italian crew Claudio de Cecco and Jean Campeis completed their season in the country, confirming themselves as second in the championship standings. The pair finished fourth overall – third quickest of those crews registered for national championship points.

Crews keep up consistency in Spanish tarmac championship

Iván Ares kept up his chase for a second consecutive Spanish tarmac championship crown. The Hyundai España supported driver finished second at the Rallye Santander Cantabria (October 19-20). Ares and co-driver José Pintor won five stages on the event to continue their impressive record in the 2018 championship. With nine of the season’s 11 rounds completed the duo has finished every rally, and only failed to take a podium finish on a single occasion.

The pace of the i20 R5 on the Spanish stages was further backed up by Surhayen Pernía and Rogelio Peñate, who finished fourth overall on the event in their Hyundai Canaries supported car.

Pace goes unrewarded on latest WRC2 round

Two Hyundai Motorsport customers were in action when the WRC2 Championship visited Spain for Rally de España. Running with BRC Racing Team Pierre-Louis Loubet continued his season in the championship, finishing seventh in class in the event that combines gravel and tarmac roads across its three days.

He was joined on the stages by the Spanish crew of José Antonio Suárez and Cándido Carrera. The duo are regulars on Spanish national rallies, but joined the international field for their home round of the series. Sadly, a minor mechanical problem forced them out of contention.

Podium result from latest French tarmac showing

The Sarrazin Motorsport crew of Quentin Giordano and Yannick Roche equaled their best result of the year in the French tarmac championship at the Critérium des Cévennes (October 26-27). The pair finished second overall at the Montpellier-based event, following a consistent run that included the fastest time on the penultimate stage.

The podium placed them as the best of the four i20 R5 crews on the rally. Bryan Bouffier and Cathy Derousseaux finished fourth overall. They set a total of three fastest times but were slowed a puncture on the longest stage of the event that cost them over two minutes in their CPI Enjolras entered car. The combination of Laurent Brunel and Gilbert Dini took the team’s second entry to ninth overall, while Jean-Nicolas Hot took his i20 R5 to 16^th overall after trouble free run on the two days of running.

Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing Deputy General Manager Andrea Adamo said: “The latest results for both our i30 N TCR and i20 R5 customers show the pace and consistency of both packages. In FIA WTCR i30 N TCR drivers are first, second and third in points with only one weekend to go in an extremely grueling season. They have shown the car is capable of winning under any conditions, including when carrying the maximum ballast. The consistency of the machine was also critical in the results achieved during the TCR Europe season. Meanwhile the i20 R5 continues to run at the front of national rally series, with Ares in Spain displaying the reliability of the car, while crews in Italy and Slovenia showed the performance in their superb overall victories.”

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