GOAT Racing’s Esteban Guerrieri and BRC Racing’s Norbert Michelisz were victorious in Sunday’s FIA TCR World Tour races at Interlagos in Brazil, with the latter extending his championship advantage.
On Saturday, Cyan Racing’s Santiago Urrutia had claimed pole position, with Guerrieri also demonstrating very strong pace at the Sao Paolo circuit as he secured a front-row grid position alongside his fellow South American rival.
Race one
Guerrieri made a better launch from the line to beat pole-sitter Urrutia to the first corner, with the Cyan Racing driver having to defend second by moving across to block the advances of the fast-starting Honda of Marco Butti in third.
Urruti tried to re-pass Guerrieri for the lead around Turn 5, looking to the outside line and rubbing the leading GOAT Racing Honda, but the Lynk & Co driver couldn’t complete the pass.
Volcano Motorsport’s John Filippi had the shortest race of all, stalling his Audi on the line and never getting away, resulting in the safety car being called at the end of the lap to recover the Corsican’s car.
When the race resumed on lap five, Guerrieri began to pull clear from Uruguayan Urrutia, and ultimately was unchallenged on his way to a first victory of the season which hauls him back into outright title contention.
Urrutia was a distant second, ten seconds adrift, with Butti completing the podium less than a second further back, as the leading cars failed to challenge each other after the race settled down.
Having slipped back at the start, Cyan Racing’s Yann Ehrlacher was fourth, ahead of team-mate Thed Björk in fifth, who overtook BRC Racing’s Néstor Girolami for the place on lap five with a confident move at Turn 8.
Girolami was one of the main movers in the race, albeit in the wrong direction. The Hyundai driver found himself defending from a five-car train on lap seven, after team-mate Norbert Michelisz took sixth a lap prior, and Ma Qing Hua got by for seventh at Turn 8.
GOAT Racing’s Dušan Borković tried to follow at the exit, but the two made contact and Borković was sent sideways across the infield, rejoining at Turn 10. That dropped the Serbian driver to 13th, whilst Girolami fell to eighth.
As Borković staged a recovery, passing Nelson Piquet Jr for 12th on lap eight and then Matías Rossi and Rafael Suzuki for 11th and tenth in succession on lap ten and eleven, Girolami fell back.
Borković finally got Girolami for ninth immediately after he passed Suzuki on lap 11, and Girolami found himself defending heavily again, this time from the Peugeot.
On the penultimate lap, Girolami went deep in Turn 8, allowing Suzuki through for tenth. Two corners later, Rossi tried to follow, but in turn left the door open to Piquet Jr, who hit the Toyota and Rossi was sent into the barriers on the exit heavily.
The dramas meant Michelisz had an untroubled run to sixth thereafter, ahead of Ma, Mikel Azcona, Borković and Suzuki completing the top ten, the latter winning the TCR South America classification.
Piquet Jr was 11th, despite receiving a five-second penalty for the contact with Rossi, the reprimand having no effect on his classification.
Race one result
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 186 | WT |  |
Esteban GUERRIERI | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 26:50.568 | 1:42.950 | 2 |
| 2 | 112 | WT |  |
Santiago URRUTIA | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 14 | 10.040 | 1:43.112 | 1 |
| 3 | 199 | WT |  |
Marco BUTTI | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 10.860 | 1:43.589 | 4 |
| 4 | 168 | WT |  |
Yann EHRLACHER | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 14 | 11.594 | 1:43.848 | 3 |
| 5 | 111 | WT |  |
Thed BJÖRK | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 14 | 12.605 | 1:44.372 | 6 |
| 6 | 105 | WT |  |
Norbert MICHELISZ | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 14 | 13.198 | 1:44.378 | 10 |
| 7 | 155 | WT |  |
MA Qing Hua | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 14 | 14.662 | 1:43.851 | 9 |
| 8 | 196 | WT |  |
Mikel AZCONA | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 14 | 14.842 | 1:44.714 | 13 |
| 9 | 62 | WT |  |
Dušan BORKOVIĆ | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 16.783 | 1:44.495 | 11 |
| 10 | 8 | SA |  |
Rafael SUZUKI | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 14 | 21.677 | 1:44.850 | 8 |
| 11 | 9 | SA | |
Nelson PIQUET JR | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 14 | 30.640 | 1:45.030 | 14 |
| 12 | 16 | SA | |
Juan Ángel ROSSO | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 14 | 38.954 | 1:44.900 | 12 |
| 13 | 129 | WT | |
Néstor GIROLAMI | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 14 | 41.211 | 1:45.572 | 5 |
| 14 | 5 | SA | |
Fabián YANNANTUONI | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 14 | 43.896 | 1:45.420 | 21 |
| 15 | 43 | SA | |
Pedro CARDOSO | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 14 | 44.732 | 1:45.270 | 16 |
| 16 | 60 | SA | |
Juan Manuel CASELLA | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 45.274 | 1:44.955 | 18 |
| 17 | 77 | SA | |
Raphael REIS | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 14 | 46.070 | 1:45.140 | 7 |
| 18 | 7 | SA | |
Thiago VIVACQUA | Cobra Racing Team | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 14 | 46.372 | 1:45.768 | 22 |
| 19 | 47 | SA | |
Norberto FONTANA | Cobra Racing Team | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 14 | 47.382 | 1:46.457 | 26 |
| 20 | 37 | SA | |
Guilherme REISCHL | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | 14 | 48.680 | 1:46.022 | 27 |
| 21 | 73 | SA | |
Diego GUTIERREZ | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 14 | 49.808 | 1:46.356 | 28 |
| 22 | 44 | SA | |
Leonel PERNÍA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 13 | + 1 LAP | 1:45.757 | 20 |
| 23 | 17 | SA | |
Matías ROSSI | Toyota Team Argentina | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 12 | + 2 LAPS | 1:45.013 | 19 |
| R | 28 | SA | |
Galid OSMAN | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 9 | DNF | 1:44.948 | 17 |
| R | 27 | SA | |
Marcos REGADAS | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 9 | DNF | 1:45.590 | 24 |
| R | 15 | SA | |
Enrique MAGLIONE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 1 | DNF | N/A | 23 |
| R | 127 | WT | |
John FILIPPI | Volcano Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 1 | DNF | 3:28.591 | 15 |
| R | 34 | SA | |
Fabio CASAGRANDE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 0 | DNF | N/A | 25 |
Race two
The reverse-grid race saw BRC’s Michelisz start from pole position, alongside Cyan Racing’s Ma, with the leading TCR South America starter being the PMO Racing-run Peugeot of Suzuki in third.
At the start, Michelisz made a good launch to lead, as Suzuki quickly dropped behind Cyan Racing’s Björk away from the line.
The biggest drama came into Turn 4, as Girolami went wide and allowed both Ehrlacher and Raphael Reis inside his Hyundai.
Three-into-one didn’t go, and Ehrlacher came off worst following contact, dropping to the back of the pack and then pitting at the end of the lap along with Girolami.
The close-quarters racing continued into the second lap, when Galid Osman spun at Turn 2 as Piquet went wide with damage to his Honda.
Further around the lap, contact between Cobra Racing’s Thiago Vivacqua and Squadra Martino’s Juan Manuel Casella pitched the latter off into the barriers heavily, and out of the race, his stricken Honda also requiring a single-lap safety car pause.
As racing resumed on lap four, Ma sought to apply heavy pressure to Michelisz, but the Hungarian stood firm, and as the race went on Ma just couldn’t find a way through.
Five laps from the finish, Ma ceded ground to both team-mates Björk and Urrutia who had caught up to him, but the positions at the front went unchanged, giving Michelisz a second win of the season.
Björk took second, over two-and-a-half seconds back, with Ma completing the podium after Urrutia was given a five-second time penalty for exceeding track limits during an earlier overtake.
That penalty for Urrutia also saw him lose out to his race one rival Guerrieri, who had gone from ninth to fifth on the opening lap. Guerrieri was ultimately fourth as the leading GOAT Racing Honda in the field.
Urrutia was thus classified in fifth, ahead of the second Honda of Marco Butti in sixth. It could have been Borković in sixth, but the Serbian driver retired to the pits after ten laps with a front-right wheel issue.
After failing to start race one, Volcano Motorsport’s Filippi was seventh, ahead of the leading TCR South America driver for the second race in a row, Suzuki in eighth.
The top ten was completed by BRC’s Mikel Azcona and W2 Pro GP’s Reis, whilst Girolami was 11th in another challenging race for the Hyundai driver.
Michelisz has now extended his points tally to 196 points, ahead of Guerrieri (181), Ehrlacher (164), Björk (159) and Azcona (150).
The next TCR World Tour event is at El Pinar in Uruguay on 6 – 8 August.
Race two result
| POS | NO | CL | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 105 | WT | |
Norbert MICHELISZ | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 18 | 32:24.174 | 1:43.952 | 1 |
| 2 | 111 | WT | |
Thed BJÖRK | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 18 | 2.618 | 1:43.969 | 5 |
| 3 | 155 | WT | |
MA Qing Hua | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 18 | 8.698 | 1:43.905 | 2 |
| 4 | 186 | WT | |
Esteban GUERRIERI | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 18 | 8.950 | 1:43.865 | 9 |
| 5 | 112 | WT | |
Santiago URRUTIA | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 18 | 10.224 | 1:43.680 | 10 |
| 6 | 199 | WT | |
Marco BUTTI | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 18 | 14.210 | 1:44.555 | 7 |
| 7 | 127 | WT | |
John FILIPPI | Volcano Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 18 | 15.006 | 1:44.500 | 15 |
| 8 | 8 | SA | |
Rafael SUZUKI | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 18 | 19.601 | 1:45.171 | 3 |
| 9 | 196 | WT | |
Mikel AZCONA | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 18 | 22.168 | 1:44.753 | 13 |
| 10 | 77 | SA | |
Raphael REIS | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 18 | 28.569 | 1:45.407 | 4 |
| 11 | 129 | WT | |
Néstor GIROLAMI | BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 18 | 33.056 | 1:45.359 | 6 |
| 12 | 5 | SA | |
Fabián YANNANTUONI | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 18 | 44.405 | 1:45.848 | 21 |
| 13 | 15 | SA | |
Enrique MAGLIONE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 18 | 55.539 | 1:46.430 | 23 |
| 14 | 73 | SA | |
Diego GUTIERREZ | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 18 | 56.053 | 1:46.354 | 27 |
| 15 | 34 | SA | |
Fabio CASAGRANDE | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 18 | 57.366 | 1:46.780 | 24 |
| 16 | 47 | SA | |
Norberto FONTANA | Cobra Racing Team | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 18 | 1:00.219 | 1:46.941 | 25 |
| 17 | 16 | SA | |
Juan Ángel ROSSO | Paladini Racing | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 18 | 1:15.002 | 1:47.179 | 12 |
| 18 | 43 | SA | |
Pedro CARDOSO | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | 18 | 1:38.972 | 1:45.382 | 16 |
| 19 | 9 | SA | |
Nelson PIQUET JR | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FK7 TCR | 16 | + 2 LAPS | 1:45.078 | 14 |
| 20 | 168 | WT | |
Yann EHRLACHER | Lynk & Co Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR | 15 | + 3 LAPS | 1:43.248 | 8 |
| R | 28 | SA | |
Galid OSMAN | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 11 | DNF | 1:44.871 | 17 |
| R | 62 | WT | |
Dušan BORKOVIĆ | GOAT Racing | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 9 | DNF | 1:44.270 | 11 |
| R | 7 | SA | |
Thiago VIVACQUA | Cobra Racing Team | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | 2 | DNF | 1:55.142 | 22 |
| R | 60 | SA | |
Juan Manuel CASELLA | Squadra Martino | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 1 | DNF | 1:55.419 | 18 |
| NS | 37 | SA | |
Guilherme REISCHL | W2 Pro GP | CUPRA Leon Competición TCR | – | DNS | N/A | 26 |
| NS | 17 | SA | |
Matías ROSSI | Toyota Team Argentina | Toyota Corolla GRS TCR | – | DNS | N/A | 19 |
| NS | 44 | SA | |
Leonel PERNÍA | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | – | DNS | N/A | 20 |
| NS | 27 | SA | |
Marcos REGADAS | PMO Racing | Peugeot 308 TCR | – | DNS | N/A | 28 |