Pepe Oriola will remain with SUNRED Engineering as the young Spaniard prepares to begin his second season in the World Touring Car Championship in 2012.
Oriola, whose best results in his maiden season in the WTCC were two eighth placed finishes in Germany and Spain, will continue to drive a SEAT León for the Spanish team. SEAT Sport will provide engine support to the team during the coming season, with the manufacturer having developed and homologated a new 1.6 litre turbo engine for its customers this year.
Explaining his reasons for staying with SUNRED, 17-year-old Oriola said: “I have received offers from other teams, but in the end I decided to stay with a Spanish team. First because they will use SEAT’s new engine, and secondly in view of a possible return of the SEAT Sport works team in 2013.
“My goal in 2012 is to fight for the Yokohama Trophy, and I can count on the precious advises of my manager Sérgio Hernández, who won the trophy twice.”
SUNRED Team Principal Joan Orús is confident that Oriola will build upon his experiences in 2011 and deliver strong results.
“We will do our best to put Pepe in the conditions of being competitive,” said Orús. “He has improved a lot in his first season and has the potential to be on the Yokohama Trophy podium in each race.”
Orús also confirmed that the team planned to enter another strong team in 2012 – the independent outfit entered six cars full-time in 2011. “We are close to [finalizing] deals with other drivers, as we aim for a lineup of three or four cars in the 2012 WTCC.”
Oriola will be testing at the Ctalunya circuit near Barcelona today and will follow this up with another test at Valencia on the 12th and 13th February.