Mikel Azcona scores victory number four in TCR Europe

Mikel Azcona took a huge step towards winning the 2021 TCR Europe title by taking his fourth victory of the season in Race 1 at the Nürburgring. A disappointed Franco Girolami finished second after he had led the race until the final lap, with Niels Langeveld completing the podium.
Pole-sitter Isidro Callejas was beaten to Turn 1 by Girolami, who’d started from second on the grid, with Langeveld also moving up alongside Callejas. Azcona started from P5 but quickly moved past Callejas and Langeveld to lie in second place behind Girolami, beginning an epic battle between the pair that would rage throughout the remainder of the eleven-lap race. Teddy Clairet also passed Callejas on the opening lap, with the French driver destined to spend the rest of the race in fourth place.
There were a number of battles going on further down the order, with Sami Taoufik passing Nicolas Baert for tenth place on Lap 2 and Mat’o Homola then also passing Baert for eleventh. Taoufik then passed Jáchym Galáš for ninth on the following lap, while Homola also found his way past his teammate to move up to tenth on Lap 4.
There were further changes just outside the top ten, with Mehdi Bennani and Felice Jelmini passing Baert for twelfth and thirteenth places at the start of Lap 5. On the same lap, Azcona began attacking Girolami for the lead in a thrilling battle that would continue until the chequered flag. 
On Lap 8, Azcona just nosed ahead of Girolami going into Turn 1, but the Honda driver kept his nerve and held onto the lead. Azcona tried the same move at the same place one lap later, but despite a slight contact Girolami was ready for him and again kept the lead. Going across the start/finish line at the start of Lap 10, there was another slight contact between the pair, but Azcona wisely backed off, aware that Langeveld had closed right up on the scrap and stood to benefit from any issues affecting the leading duo.
Then, on the final lap, Azcona changed his tactic. He attacked Girolami around the outside of the complex at Turn 3 and grabbed the lead going up the inside of the Argentine driver into the right-hander at Turn 4. There was barely a gap, but it was all Azcona needed, and the Spaniard then held Girolami at bay to record his fourth win of the season – his third successive race victory after the pair of wins at Spa five weeks ago. Langeveld finished third, ahead of Teddy Clairet and Tom Coronel, with Callejas eventually finishing seventh.
The result means Azcona has extended his lead over Girolami in the standings to 32 points, with Langeveld now in third place, 9 points ahead of Bennani but 43 behind Girolami. 
Race 2 will start tomorrow at 12:45 (CEST), with Jack Young and Viktor Davidoski sharing the front row of the top-ten reversed grid; live streaming at www.tcr-series.com.

Nürburgring – Race 1
1. Mikel Azcona (Volcano Motorsport, CUPRA Leon Competición), 11 laps
2. Franco Girolami (PSS Racing Team, Honda Civic Type R Fk7), 1.460
3. Niels Langeveld (Sébastien Loeb Racing, Hyundai Elantra N), 1.967
4. Teddy Clairet (Team Clairet Sport, Peugeot 308), 10.351
5. Tom Coronel (Comtoyou Racing, Audi RS 3 LMS), 12.039

Championship points
1. M. Azcona 276 pts; 2. F. Girolami 244; 3. N. Langeveld 201

Picture: TCR Europe