The Kumho FIA TCR World Tour is back in action this weekend at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, one week after a hot trio of races at Valencia reshaped the championship, with two-time race winner Yann Ehrlacher assuming the points lead from Argentina’s Esteban Guerrieri.
It will be the first time the famous Formula 1 venue has hosted the TCR World Tour, and the first time an FIA touring car category has been to the track since 2017, when Thed Björk was one of the race winners on his way to his first world championship title.

After two wins in Spain, Ehrlacher has momentum behind him, but he’ll also carry the related compensation weight for his success, and his Lynk & Co will be weighed down with 40kg of ballast this weekend.
Guerrieri meanwhile, just seven points behind in the standings, will be ballast-free, and the circuit is known to suit the Honda Civic Type R, which will give the GOAT Racing driver an opportunity to strike back.
Hyundai enjoyed a resurgent weekend in Valencia too and will be hoping to have a strong weekend, with Valencia Race 2 winner Néstor Girolami now their leading charge in the standings, albeit someway behind after the tough season opener in Mexico.

The grid will be bolstered by some of the same guest stars from TCR Europe who took part last weekend – Ruben Volt who was an impressive runner-up in Valencia’s Race 2, Marco Butti, Viktor Andersson, Julien Briché, Felipe Fernández – plus some new faces: TCR South America points leader Leonel Pernía and TCR Italy regulars Jacopo Cimenes and Damiano Reduzzi.

The schedule returns to the more traditional two-race format for this weekend, with the second race featuring the reversed grid based on qualifying, rather than Race 1 result.

The TCR World Tour race is part of this weekend’s ACI Racing Weekend, which will feature around 200 cars on track competing in the Italian GT Endurance Championship, Italian Formula 4 Championship, TCR Italy and DSG, and the Italian Sport Prototype Championship. Admission is free; only parking is charged (15 euros for cars).

SCHEDULE Friday – Practice 1, 13:45;  Practice 2, 17; Saturday Qualifying, 09:40; Saturday – Race 1, 15:10 (11 laps); Sunday – Race 2, 11:40 (11 laps).

(FROM WSC WEEKLEY NEWS)