TCR / 18 June 2018

Honda Civic Type R TCR wins in TCR Italy

Honda Civic Type R TCRs have won in eight major championships in 2018 following a maiden TCR Italy success for Target Competition's Jurgen Schmarl at Misano.

From third on the partially-reversed Race Two grid, the Austrian was part of a race-long multi-car battle for the lead throughout and drove superbly. His victory was the first for the JAS Motorsport-built Civic Type R TCR in TCR Italy this year.

He was backed-up on the podium by MM Motorsport’s Max Mugelli, who took his best finish of 2018 in third place. Team-mate Lorenzo Nicoli was one place further back.

Target's Marco Pellegrini had been battling for the lead, but mid-race contact put him out. Team-mate Jose Rodrigues retired on the first lap, as did MM's Davide Nardilli, whose roll caused the race to be red-flagged. Thankfully, he was not injured.

Mugelli had been best-placed of the Honda drivers in Race One with fifth; one place ahead of Schmarl. Pellegrini was seventh, Nicoli ninth, Rodrigues 15th after a drive-through penalty and Nannini Racing's Walter Margelli 24th and improving to 13th in Race Two.

Schmarl is fourth in the Drivers’ Championship with Rodrigues and Mugelli ninth and 10th.

Mattias Andersson was cruelly denied a first Scandinavian Touring Car Championship win of the season as he suffered a puncture while leading at Anderstorp.

The Honda Racing Sweden driver had climbed superbly to fourth spot from 10th on the grid in Race One and was out-front having inherited the reversed-grid pole position in the later encounter.

Having kept the chasing pack at bay, the Swede was aiming to break away, but instead has to be content with sitting ninth in the Drivers' points table.

Mads Fischer, JAS Motorsport TCR Project Leader, said: "It's fantastic to see Jurgen Schmarl, who has raced JAS Honda Civic Type R TCRs since 2016, take his first victory and to see Target Competition add another win to their growing list of successes. Target's victory and Mattias Andersson's near miss shows that the 2017-specification Honda Civic Type R remains a potent racing car. We continue to support our customers with these cars just as much as those running the 2018-specification machine and these results show that this support is totally justified."