How a former King of WTCR is helping Goodyear #FollowTheLeader Azcona 19.07.2022: FIA World Touring Car Cup resumes at Vallelunga in Italy later this week (July 22-24) with the title race finely balanced following the recent visit to Portugal for some classic round-the-houses racing Vila Real style.

FIA World Touring Car Cup resumes at Vallelunga in Italy later this week (July 22-24) with the title race finely balanced following the recent visit to Portugal for some classic round-the-houses racing Vila Real style.




Having won three times this season, Spain’s Mikel Azcona is the Goodyear #FollowTheLeader with a 16-point title advantage. Driving a Hyundai Elantra TCR for Italian outfit BRC Racing Team, the 26-year-old has previous Autodromo Vallelunga Piero Taruffi knowledge to count on − and a vastly experienced colleague to look to for support.



“In Vallelunga I have driven only once, last year with ETCR, so I have very good memories, I like the track and for the TCR car it matches very well,” said Azcona.



“When you are leading [the standings] it is always good. For Vallelunga it gives us a small advantage but everything can happen in one weekend. We just need to keep following on this line with good results, a good feeling with the car, a good atmosphere working with the team and everybody.”



Azcona replaced Gabriele Tarquini alongside Norbert Michelisz in the BRC line-up for 2022 after the Italian legend retired from full-time driving at the end of last season following a glittering career that included winning the first WTCR title in 2018. He’s now Team Manager at Cherasco-based BRC.



“Mikel is very fast and has probably made the best start to a season there has been,” Tarquini said. “I was pushing Hyundai to Mikel because I trust on him, I was racing with him and I know he is one of the best drivers so I push very hard to have Mikel in the team, even if I didn’t know I would be working with the team because this was before.


For sure if I can tell him something from my experience I will do so but, to honest, he don’t need a lot of support from me because he’s great.”



Tarquini’s view of Azcona hasn’t always been so positive, however, with the duo both known for their pace but combative driving style.



“The first impact with Mikel was not very good because we crashed together in Hungary [in 2019] although this is part of the game and in this category in the beginning it’s very easy to have contact. But I remember my last win [in WTCR] last year in Aragón. He was following me for the full race, drove very well and was a very tough opponent for me.”



Having turned 60 in March, Tarquini could have settled for a more relaxed retirement following a racing career that began back in 1974 but found the chance to move into team management too tempting to turn down.



“To be honest nothing is more exciting than driving but this new job, to be part of the team, to try to transfer my long experience… except for the driver the second-best place in the team is the job I am doing now.”



Azcona is one of five drivers to have won WTCR races in 2022 and heads Santiago Urrutia (Cyan Performance Lynk & Co) and King of WTCR Yann Ehrlacher (Cyan Racing Lynk & Co) in the provisional standings. Urrutia, ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport’s Néstor Girolami, Zengő Motorsport’s Rob Huff and Comtoyou Team Audi Sport’s Gilles Magnus have also triumphed outright in 2022.



Of the role Tarquini is performing, Azcona said: “I am really thankful to Gabriele for being on the team. As we all know he’s very experienced in motorsport for all his career and basically he’s trying to super-guess, to help Norbi [Michelisz] and me about everything when driving the car, the start procedure etc.


Some things you think before the race the things you want to do, like which position I will give at the first corner, something like this.



He is trying to advise the drivers because he knows these things and he's trying to give all his experience to the team in terms of tyre management, set-up knowledge when setting up the car but also every aspect of motorsport. It’s very good to have him, he’s a very good tool for all the team and we use him a lot and I’m happy to work with him.”



Richard Rodgers, photos WTCR