Toyota’s Jorge Barrio and Squadra Martino’s Juan Ángel Rosso secured victories in the TCR South America races in San Juan in Argentina, but it was PMO Motorsport’s Fabricio Pezzini who scooped the drivers’ championship in race one.
Race one
Pezzini had qualified his Lynk & Co 03 on pole position in Saturday’s two-part qualifying session, giving him the best possible chance of securing the title on Sunday after edging out Raphael Reis by just 0.040 seconds.
That result already meant that W2 Racing’s Reis was out of contention before race day, leaving Juan Ángel Rosso as the only other driver who could deny PMO Motorsport’s Pezzini.
However, Rosso was then thrown out of fourth from qualifying after his Squadra Martino Honda failed the post-qualifying weight checks, leaving the Argentine to start both races from the back of the grid.
At the start of the race, Pezzini pulled into the lead as Reis lost out to the Toyota Corolla of Jorge Barrio for second, with Reis also dropping behind team-mate Bernardo Llaver at the next corner.
The safety car made a very late appearance at the end of the opening lap to allow marshals to clear away the stricken Peugeot of Franco Farina, who had been hit by the Honda of Fabio Casagrande near the end of the lap, resulting in broken suspension on the 308.
Racing resumed on lap three, with the top four all bunching close together for the next few laps. On lap seven Pezzini tried to defend his lead from Barrio along the long back straight, even squeezing the Corolla racer onto the grass, but Barrio held his line and took the lead into the next corner.
Pezzini then drifted wide and allowed the CUPRAs of Llaver and Reis through into second and third, perhaps mindful that he did not need to take any unnecessary risks to secure the title.
Barrio was thereafter able to ease into a comfortable lead, ultimately winning by 1.438 seconds to record the second-ever victory for the new Toyota in TCR competition.
Reis was second, having squeezed by team-mate Llaver for the place on the eighth lap, with Llaver completing the podium in just his second TCR race.
Pezzini took the chequered flag in fourth and with it secured the drivers’ championship.
Rosso had recovered to fifth, but could do little to close in on and pass Pezzini in the latter stages of the race, which concluded with little further action.
Matías Cravero brought his Honda home in sixth, ahead of Matías Milla’s Alfa Romeo in seventh and the leading PMO Peugeot of Juan Manuel Casella in eighth.
Casella had earlier been involved in some mid-race drama. First, he hit Cravero at the first corner on lap five when battling for fifth, before there was contact with Javier Scuncier’s Hyundai a few corners later, resulting in the latter spinning through the gravel and out of the race with a damaged left-rear tyre.
The top ten was completed by PMO’s Figgo Bessone and Cobra Racing’s Gabriel Lusquiños, both benefitting when the Alfa Romeo of Frederick Balbi dropped out of the top ten in the closing laps.
Race one result
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 32 |  |
Jorge BARRIO | Toyota Gazoo Racing Latin America | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 13 | 25:19.156 | 1:48.051 | 3 | |
| 2 | 77 |  |
Raphael REIS | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | 13 | 1.438 | 1:48.179 | 2 | |
| 3 | 71 | |
Bernardo LLAVER | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | 13 | 2.472 | 1:48.490 | 4 | |
| 4 | 7 | |
Fabricio PEZZINI | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 13 | 5.195 | 1:48.578 | 1 | |
| 5 | 26 | |
Juan Ángel ROSSO | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 13 | 5.873 | 1:47.772 | 17 | |
| 6 | 14 | |
Matías CRAVERO | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 13 | 15.984 | 1:49.217 | 8 | |
| 7 | 8 | |
Matías MILLA | Squadra Martino Uruguay | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 13 | 20.505 | 1:49.582 | 12 | |
| 8 | 4 | |
Figgo BESSONE | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 13 | 24.720 | 1:49.410 | 10 | |
| 9 | 22 | |
Gabriel LUSQUIÑOS | Cobra Racing Team | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 13 | 31.282 | 1:49.854 | 13 | |
| 10 | 5 | |
Marcio BASSO | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 13 | 31.955 | 1:49.958 | 9 | |
| 11 | 34 | |
Fabio CASAGRANDE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 13 | 33.259 | 1:50.006 | 14 | |
| 12 | 85 | |
Walter HERNÁNDEZ | Scuderia Chiarelli | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 33.477 | 1:49.528 | 15 | |
| 13 | 60 |  |
Juan Manuel CASELLA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 13 | 34.253 | 1:49.498 | 7 | |
| 14 | 15 | |
Enrique MAGLIONE | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 13 | 39.262 | 1:50.640 | 16 | |
| 15 | 24 | |
Federick BALBI | Squadra Martino Uruguay | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 13 | 47.502 | 1:49.524 | 11 | |
| 16 | 18 | |
Javier SCUNCIO MORO | FDC Motor Sports | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 5 | DNF | 1:50.150 | 5 | |
| R | 87 | |
Franco FARINA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 0 | DNF | N/A | 6 | |
| NS | 33 | |
José Manuel SAPAG | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | – | DNS | N/A | – |
Race two
If race one was entertaining, then there was even more action in race two. The partially reversed grid saw Bessone line-up on pole position, with Basso alongside.
At the rolling start, Basso tried to pass Bessone into the first corner but out-braked himself and the Peugeot retained the lead.
On the second lap, Llaver fought his way into third with a forceful move on Casella, but it was Scuncio who benefitted the most as he slipped past both drivers.
The first incident of the race came when Farina hit Balbi into a spin on lap two, requiring a first safety car period.
At the restart on lap five, Scuncio took second from Basso, who began to lose places hand-over-fist as the order quickly changed.
Llaver was quick to get his CUPRA ahead of Scuncio’s Hyundai a few corners later, setting about closing the gap to leader Bessone.
In the mid-pack the battles were raging, with Rosso now up to ninth as ahead of him Barrio barged his Toyota into Reis’ CUPRA.
By lap seven Llaver was all over Bessone for the lead, passing around the outside into Turn 1. New champion Pezzini also got by a lap later, but as Bessone then had to defend from Reis into the first corner on lap nine, he made a mistake.
Losing control of his Peugeot under braking whilst defensively changing his line, Bessone slammed into the side of Pezzini and took both drivers out of the race.
Another safety car period was needed, and when the action resumed on lap 12 Llaver was leading Barrio and Rosso.
Three laps from the finish Barrio went side-by-side with Llaver for the lead, the two making several contacts, but things came to a head when contact in the final sector sent Llaver into a slide, allowing Rosso into second.
A lap later Barrio made a mistake and Rosso, from the very back of the grid, was in the lead – ultimately holding on for one more lap to win from Barrio.
After the race, the Toyota driver was penalised for the move on Llaver and dropped to third.
Reis finished in fourth, even though he had to take to the gravel in avoidance of the Bessone – Pezzini crash near the end of the race.
Casella was fifth after passing Milla’s Alfa Romeo on the final lap, whilst Walter Hernández passed both Peugeots of Enrique Maglione and team-mate Farina late in the race for eighth.
Race two result
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 26 | |
Juan Ángel ROSSO | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 16 | 36:32.997 | 1:48.840 | 17 | |
| 2 | 71 | |
Bernardo LLAVER | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | 16 | 0.885 | 1:48.555 | 7 | |
| 3 | 32 | |
Jorge BARRIO | Toyota Gazoo Racing Latin America | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 16 | 1.273 | 1:48.464 | 8 | |
| 4 | 77 | |
Raphael REIS | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | 16 | 4.609 | 1:49.254 | 9 | |
| 5 | 60 | |
Juan Manuel CASELLA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 7.551 | 1:50.109 | 4 | |
| 6 | 18 | |
Javier SCUNCIO MORO | FDC Motor Sports | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 16 | 8.916 | 1:49.921 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | |
Matías MILLA | Squadra Martino Uruguay | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 16 | 11.021 | 1:49.949 | 12 | |
| 8 | 85 | |
Walter HERNÁNDEZ | Scuderia Chiarelli | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 16 | 14.015 | 1:50.558 | 15 | |
| 9 | 15 | |
Enrique MAGLIONE | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 16.071 | 1:51.095 | 16 | |
| 10 | 87 | |
Franco FARINA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 16 | 16.946 | 1:50.725 | 5 | |
| 11 | 22 | |
Gabriel LUSQUIÑOS | Cobra Racing Team | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 16 | 37.720 | 1:51.202 | 13 | |
| 12 | 34 | |
Fabio CASAGRANDE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 16 | 38.599 | 1:51.059 | 14 | |
| R | 7 | |
Fabricio PEZZINI | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 8 | DNF | 1:50.310 | 10 | |
| R | 4 | |
Figgo BESSONE | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 8 | DNF | 1:50.558 | 1 | |
| R | 5 | |
Marcio BASSO | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 6 | DNF | 1:50.339 | 2 | |
| R | 24 | |
Federick BALBI | Squadra Martino Uruguay | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 1 | DNF | N/A | 11 | |
| R | 14 | |
Matías CRAVERO | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 1 | DNF | N/A | 3 | |
| NS | 33 | |
José Manuel SAPAG | PMO Motorsport | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | – | DNS | N/A | – |