Young Hungarian racer Zsolt Dávid Szabó, who made his World Touring Car Championship début in the last round in Argentina, will complete the season with the Zengő Motorsport squad.
The 21-year-old took over the seat which had been vacated by Frenchman Aurélien Panis in Argentina, finishing both races just behind more experienced team-mate Dániel Nagy in what was then a one-off deal.
Now Szabó will be given the chance to complete the WTCC season with the independent Honda outfit, racing first in China in one month’s time.
“I’m really glad and can’t wait to drive again,” said Szabó. “My aim in Argentina was to learn as much as I could to hopefully get another chance so it’s really worked out for me.”
Szabó thus becomes another graduate of the FIA European Touring Car Cup, where he scored his first podium and then victory earlier this year.
The Hungarian will first take on the brand new Ningbo International Speedpark on October 13 – 15, where he will be on a level playing field with his rivals in terms of prior knowledge of the circuit.
Szabó will then race at the Twin Ring Motegi in Japan later in October, before moving on to the notorious street circuit of the Circuito da Guia in Macau in November and the WTCC night races at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar in early December.
“I will prepare as best as I can and my aim is to be in Qualifying Q2 each time,” added Szabó, who will be preparing using his sim racing background to learn the circuits. “It’s going to be a huge challenge because I am using the 2015-specification engine in my car and I don’t have the experience.
“But I have a great opportunity and maybe if things go my way and I go as fast as possible, I can score some points.”
Zengő Motorsport Team Principal Zoltán Zengő described the addition of Szabó to his line-up for the rest of the year as the ‘perfect’ addition to Nagy.
“I am very happy to give Zsolt this chance,” added Zengő. “He showed he could be very fast and comfortable in the car without the experience and also showed that he could learn the car. He’s a good talent and with Dániel it’s the perfect team.”
The next round of the WTCC takes place in Ningbo, China on October 13 – 15.