In their first official outing in TCR European Endurance, BRC Racing Team topped the standings in the opening free practice session in Vallelunga: in fact, Davidovski/Girolami (Hyundai Elantra N) were the fastest pair throughout FP1 around the Roman circuit, setting the quickest lap with a 1:41.457. A perfect start for both the Italian team and the Elantra, which was able to go fastest in its first ever race weekend in the series promoted by Mauricio Slaviero.
The session was halted by a lengthy red flag period after only 10 minutes, as both TEXACO Team AMS cars stopped on the racetrack. Gen-1 championship leaders Çiftçi/Okyay (Audi RS3 Gen-1) suffered an engine problem, while Kalpaklıoğlu/Göktaş (Audi RS3 DSG) went off into the gravel trap; both cars had to be brought back to the pit lane by the recovery vehicle. With less than 10 minutes left on the clock, the session resumed, with BRC Racing Team holding the lead they had secured in the opening minutes of FP1. Behind them, BF Motorsport took home second with Brigliadori/Alcidi (Audi RS3 LMS), narrowly edging out Scalvini/Tavano (Cupra Leon Competicion), as the Wimmer Werk Motorsport duo had to settle for third.
Fourth place in the overall standings belonged to Damante/Maccari (Audi RS3 DSG), who also took home the DSG lead in the opening session of the weekend. Tuder Motorsport was therefore able to take home a DSG 1-2 in FP1, with Rosini/Giovannoni (VW Golf DSG) taking second place in their class and fifth overall. Despite their issues, TEXACO Team AMS was still able to put some competitive laps on the board in the first few minutes: in the end Kalpaklıoğlu/Göktaş were sixth, while teammates Çiftçi/Okyay finished seventh. Fresh of its stunning overall victory at the Slovakiaring, the Wimmer Werk Motorsport’s DSG entry driven by Summerbell/Issa (Cupra Leon DSG) went eighth fastest in FP1.
The on-track action for Friday 19th September is not over yet, as the second 40-minute free practice session is scheduled at 16:30 local time. Qualifying will take place on Saturday 20th September, with the two 15-minute sessions happening at 9:00 and 9:50 local time; later the same day, Stage-1 is set to begin at 18:35 local time. Sunday 21st September will instead see the green flag for Stage-2 be waived at 14:15 local time. Both stages will last 55 minutes, and they will be broadcast live on TCR TV’s official YouTube channel, with commentary provided by Daniele Spadi.
