2016 FIA European Touring Car Cup Champion Kris Richard will take the second and final wildcard entry for the next round of the FIA World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) at the Nurburgring Nordschleife.
Richard joins fellow guest entry Rene Rast, who will be at the wheel of an Audi RS 3 LMS, as he makes his debut in the series, though he has raced TCR machinery in the past.
The 23-year old is working towards securing a full-time WTCR drive for 2019.
“This opportunity is absolutely great, especially on this extraordinary track,” said Richard.
“This is absolutely my favourite race track. I already won there in the ETCC in a TCR car so it’s the perfect opportunity to show my skills to the public and my sponsors and prove I can manage to be in such a highly competitive field of drivers.
“My goal is absolutely to be in the WTCR full time in 2019 so it could be the most important race of the year for me if I can prove what I can do.”
“It’s my favourite race track because it’s not like any other track, it’s very long, you have a lot of corners, you have uphill sections and downhill sections, so many different challenges.
““It’s a really good track to show your strengths and how you can perform. I consider it to be my home track and Michael Schumacher was absolutely my favourite race driver. I always
looked up to him and I really liked his driving style and what he did in the past.”
“We have followed Kris’s career since he won the ETCC title in 2016,” said Eurosport’s Head of Events, Francois Ribeiro.
“He did two WTCC races last season, one as his prize drive for winning the ETCC and one because he managed to get the opportunity by finding some sponsorship.
“Kris won the ETCC round on the Nordscheife and is a very familiar face in VLN events. He came close to a full-season drive in the WTCR this season.
“The time was too short but we have no doubt what his aim is for next year so we hope that his wildcard entry at the Nürburgring, where he has good knowledge, will help his objective.”