TCR / 10 July 2023

Young heads one-two finish for Civic Type R TCR FL5 in China

Jack Young led a one-two finish for the new Honda Civic Type R TCR FL5 as he scored a breakthrough success in TCR China last weekend, while there were three further wins and a handful of pole positions for the JAS Motorsport-built car in Europe.

 

TCR China

Jack Young, a graduate of the JAS Motorsport Driver Development Programme, scored his maiden series win at Zhuzhou, coming through from eighth on Race Two's partially-reversed grid to triumph for the MacPro Racing Team-run Dongfeng Honda Racing Team.

Martin Xie, who had qualified on pole position, completed a memorable one-two result for the team, having earlier finished second in the opening race with Young sixth. Young is now second in the Drivers' Championship with three rounds completed.

Andre Couto, driving the third DHRT entry, had a tough weekend, having been eliminated in a multi-car pile-up in Race One. The top Honda driver in the Am class was Jia Xin Hu of Norris Racing; 10th in Race One.

 

TCR Denmark

Kasper H Jensen qualified on pole position as the series visited Falkenberg, Sweden, and converted it into a a commanding second victory of 2023, but a non-finish in race three means the triple champion fell from first to sixth in the Drivers' Championship.

His GMB Motorsport team-mate Gustav Birch extended his lead in the Under-25s points with two class podiums, while TPR Motorsport drivers Michelle Halder and Kevin Brandsborg also finished in the top three in the category.

JAS Development Driver Philip Lindberg scored a best finish of fourth in class in Race One and was leading Race Two after starting from pole position, only for a technical issue to send him into the pits after two laps.

 

TCR Italy

Ruben Volt claimed a superb double win in the Under-25s division as the Estonian teenager - a JAS Driver Development Programme graduate - enjoyed his best weekend of the season at Mugello.

The ALM Motorsport driver was in the thick of the action throughout as he finished fifth overall on Saturday and fourth on Sunday for his biggest points haul of 2023.

Niels Langeveld qualified MM Motorsport's FL5 third and finished second on Saturday. Last-lap contact in Race Two led to him being classified 25th. Team-mate Paolo Rocca maintained his Under-25s points lead with third in class in Race One.

 

IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge

LA Honda World Racing's Mike Lamarra and William Tally remain in the hunt for the TCR title after a battling fourth-place finish in their FL5. The duo started ninth, but stayed clear of incident in a dramatic race to climb five spots during the two-hour race at Mosport.

Team-mates Mat Pombo and Ryan Eversley started second and took the race lead after 15 minutes, only for persistent brake issues - likely a legacy of their crash at the previous round at Watkins Glen - to force repeated trips to the pits that put them out of contention.

VGRT missed qualifying due to a data-logger issue, but Victor Gonzalez Jr and Karl Wittmer - the practice pace-setter - starred in the race as they climbed from last to fourth before a steering issue put the pair out with 40 minutes left.