TCR competition to land in South America in 2021

The latest frontier for TCR competition is South America, where the global Touring Car category will land in 2021. 
Recently, CODASUR, the Confederación Deportiva de Automovilismo Sudamericana, has approved the plan to set up a TCR South America series from next year.
The inaugural season will be run in 2021 on eight events over four countries – Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay – with two races per event.

Marcello Lotti, the president of WSC Group the owner of the TCR concept and technical regulations, commented: “This is a great achievement for us, as it crowns the efforts of our South American partners. We really wanted to export TCR to South America, a region where Touring Car competition is hugely popular. This will please some of the manufacturers that have committed to TCR, and I’m especially thinking to Honda, Peugeot, Renault and Volkswagen that have always been very active in the local Touring Car championships.”

WTCR drivers Esteban Guerrieri and Néstor Girolami from Argentina and Augusto Farfus from Brazil greeted the news with enthusiasm.

“The concept of TCR has been really revolutionary, reshaping Touring Car racing on a global basis in the latest five years. To bring it to South America is a stepping stone in extending further the TCR footprint. In Argentina and Brazil motorsport is very popular, while other countries have not been able so far to reach the same level; the TCR South America series will give teams and drivers the opportunity to race at affordable costs and compete using the same machines with the performance balanced by the BoP,” Guerrieri explained.

And Girolami echoed: “I think it’s the right time for South America to have a TCR series. It is a perfect opportunity when we consider how many brands have already built racing cars for these regulations. Different teams and drivers can fight each other on equal terms, and the most important in my view is that young drivers may join with the aim of climbing the hierarchy and, eventually, arriving on top to the WTCR. As a Honda driver I would be delighted to represent the brand in this new series to showcase their product in South America.”

“TCR has become the most successful motorsport category in the latest years and opened the doors everywhere in the planet. To have a TCR championship in South America is very important, because it will open a new market for the car manufacturers. Is also a great opportunity for teams and drivers to return racing at affordable costs in a category that provides lively races that are loved by the fans and the media,” Farfus concluded.