2023 La Pedrera TCR World Tour round explained

The 2023 La Pedrera TCR World Tour round was the sixth round of 2023 TCR World Tour. It was held on 25–27 August 2023 at the Autódromo José Carlos Bassi in Villa Mercedes, Argentina. The event was also the seventh round of 2023 TCR South America Touring Car Championship. Mikel Azcona won the dramatic race on Saturday, with his teammate Norbert Michelisz completing a 1-2 for BRC Hyundai; and Néstor Girolami won the race on Sunday.

Entry list

A total of 25 cars have been entered, including entries from TCR World Tour and TCR South America.

Team	Car		Drivers
Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	2	Juan Ángel Rosso
Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	5	Fabián Yannantuoni
Cobra Racing Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	10	Adalberto Baptista
Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	15	Enrique Maglione
Toyota Team Argentina	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	17	Bernardo Llaver
PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	22	Matias Milla
Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	23	Ignacio Montenegro
PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	24	Frederick Balbi
W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	28	Galid Osman
Toyota Team Argentina	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	33	José Manuel Sapag
Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	34	Fabio Casagrande
Scuderia Chiarelli	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	43	Pedro Cardoso
Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	60	Juan Manuel Casella
Cobra Racing Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	70	Diego Nunes
W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	77	Raphael Reis
Bratton Tito Bessone Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	86	Esteban Guerrieri
BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	105	Norbert Michelisz
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	111	Thed Björk
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	112	Santiago Urrutia
Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	122	Frédéric Vervisch
Squadra Martino Racing	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FL5)	129	Néstor Girolami
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	155	Ma Qing Hua
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	168	Yann Ehrlacher
Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	179	Robert Huff
BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	196	Mikel Azcona
Source:^[1]

Results

Qualifying

		Name	Team	Car	Q1 Time	Q2 Time	Points
1	168	Yann Ehrlacher	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	1:47.878	1:53.871	15
2	105	Norbert Michelisz	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	1:49.012	1:54.104	10
3	196	Mikel Azcona	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	1:46.574	1:54.246	8
4	179	Robert Huff	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	1:48.973	1:54.817	6
5	112	Santiago Urrutia	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	1:48.082	1:54.870	4
6	155	Ma Qing Hua		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	1:47.078	1:55.458	2
7	111	Thed Björk		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	1:47.983	1:55.934
8	122	Frédéric Vervisch	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	1:48.584	1:56.574
9	43	Pedro Cardoso	Scuderia Chiarelli	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	1:48.299	1:58.557
10	129	Néstor Girolami	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FL5)	1:47.524	2:02.352
11	5	Fabián Yannantuoni	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:49.049	2:02.576
12	17	Bernardo Llaver	Toyota Team Argentina	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:49.419	-
13	22	Matías Milla	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	1:49.517	-
14	2	Juan Ángel Rosso	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:49.564	-
15	70	Diego Nunes	Cobra Racing Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:49.964	-
16	23	Ignacio Montenegro	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	1:50.906	-
17	28	Galid Osman	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	1:50.938	-
18	33	José Manuel Sapag	Toyota Team Argentina		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:52.288	-
19	86	Esteban Guerrieri	Bratton Tito Bessone Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:53.186	-
20	24	Frederick Balbi	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	1:53.384	-
21	60	Juan Manuel Casella	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	1:53.437	-
22	15	Enrique Maglione	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	1:54.010	-
23	34	Fabio Casagrande	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	1:55.950	-
24	10	Adalberto Baptista	Cobra Racing Team		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1:56.127	-
25	77	Raphael Reis	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	1:49.108	No time
Source:^[2] ^[3]

– Santiago Urrutia originally qualified 6th, but was relegated to the back of the grid after qualifying.
– Raphael Reis originally qualified 10th, but he was excluded from qualifying due to a technical infringement and therefore relegated to the back of the grid for both races.

Race 1

Norbert Michelisz took the lead from Ehrlacher on the start, with Huff soon making his way past the Frenchman as well. Robert Huff took the lead from Michelisz, with the Hungarian driver dropping to 5th, right before the Safety Car deployment, due to the stranded car Lynk & Co of Matías Milla. Raphael Reis, who was relegated to the back of the grid due to technical infringement in qualifying, retired due to steering damage before the race even started. Enrique Maglione retired in pit lane with damage to the front of his car, with Santiago Urrutia also stopping on track. Pedro Cardoso dropped to the back of the grid for unknown reasons. After 10 minutes, Azcona closed on Huff, while Michelisz and Girolami both overtook Ehrlacher, with the Lynk & Co driver struggling with tyre choice. Girolami soon stopped his car on track due to a mechanical failure, triggering another Safety Car. Huff's teammate Frederic Vervisch pulled into the pit lane under the SC conditions with visible damage to his Audi, after colliding with Juan Ángel Rosso. The race was restarted for one lap, with Huff making a mistake and going wide in one corner and dropping to 3rd, behind both BRC Hyundai cars. Azcona managed to keep his lead after Huff's mistake and took his first win of the season, with Michelisz coming in 2nd place and getting BRC Hyundai their third 1-2 of the season. Fabián Yannantuoni took the win in TCR South America, finishing 5th overall.

		Name	Team	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Grid	Points
1	196	Mikel Azcona	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	12	Winner	3	30
2	105	Norbert Michelisz	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	12	+1.131	2	25
3	179	Robert Huff	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	12	+1.638	4	22
4	155	Ma Qing Hua		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	12	+2.128	6	20
5	5	Fabián Yannantuoni	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+3.102	11	18
6	168	Yann Ehrlacher	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	12	+3.904	1	16
7	2	Juan Ángel Rosso	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+4.725	13	14
8	17	Bernardo Llaver	Toyota Team Argentina	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+6.170	11	12
9	23	Ignacio Montenegro	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	12	+6.888		10
10	43	Pedro Cardoso	Scuderia Chiarelli	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	12	+7.395	8	8
11	86	Esteban Guerrieri	Bratton Tito Bessone Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+7.895	18	6
12	24	Frederick Balbi	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	12	+10.155	19	4
13	28	Galid Osman	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	12	+10.249	16	3
14	70	Diego Nunes	Cobra Racing Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+13.160	14	2
15	33	José Manuel Sapag	Toyota Team Argentina		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+13.266	17	1
16	60	Juan Manuel Casella	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	12	+16.948	20
17	10	Adalberto Baptista	Cobra Racing Team		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	12	+22.550	23
18	34	Fabio Casagrande	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	12	+1:13.682	22
19	122	Frédéric Vervisch	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	10	+2 laps	7
20	129	Néstor Girolami	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FL5)	8	Engine	9
21	111	Thed Björk		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	6	Retired	6
22	112	Santiago Urrutia	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	2	Overhating	24
23	15	Enrique Maglione	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	2	Accident damage	21
24	22	Matías Milla	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	1	Accident	12
25	77	Raphael Reis	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	0	Mechanical	25
Fastest lap: Mikel Azcona, 1:51.284 / Source:^[4]

Race 2

		Name	Team	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Grid	Points
1	129	Néstor Girolami	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FL5)	17	Winner	1	30
2	155	Ma Qing Hua		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	17	+0.758	5	25
3	179	Robert Huff	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	17	+5.290	7	22
4	105	Norbert Michelisz	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	17	+7.866	9	20
5	122	Frédéric Vervisch	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	Audi RS 3 LMS TCR (2021)	17	+23.276	3	18
6	111	Thed Björk		Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	17	+23.575	4	16
7	17	Bernardo Llaver	Toyota Team Argentina	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	17	+24.746	12	14
8	77	Raphael Reis	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	17	+32.097	25	12
9	28	Galid Osman	W2 ProGP	CUPRA Leon Competicion TCR	17	+34.265	17	10
10	86	Esteban Guerrieri	Bratton Tito Bessone Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	17	+39.833	19	8
11	112	Santiago Urrutia	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	17	+42.905	6	6
12	33	José Manuel Sapag	Toyota Team Argentina		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	17	+52.821	18	4
13	60	Juan Manuel Casella	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	17	+58.282	21	3
14	23	Ignacio Montenegro	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	17	+1:49.596	16	2
15	10	Adalberto Baptista	Cobra Racing Team		Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	17	+2:12.682	24	1
16	168	Yann Ehrlacher	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	Lynk & Co 03 FL TCR	16	+1 lap	10
17	2	Juan Ángel Rosso	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	10	Retired	14
18	70	Diego Nunes	Cobra Racing Team	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	7	Retired	15
19	34	Fabio Casagrande	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	5	Retired	23
20	196	Mikel Azcona	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	5	Accident damage	8
21	22	Matías Milla	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	2	Retired	13
22	15	Enrique Maglione	Squadra Martino	Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8)	1	Retired	22
23	5	Fabián Yannantuoni	Paladini Racing	Toyota GR Corolla Sport TCR	1	Accident damage	11
24	24	Frederick Balbi	PMO Motorsport	Lynk & Co 03 TCR	1	Accident	20
25	43	Pedro Cardoso	Scuderia Chiarelli	Hyundai Elantra N TCR	17	Excluded	2
Fastest lap: Yann Ehrlacher, 1:47.331 / Source:^[5]

– Santiago Urrutia originally finished 5th, but received a 30-second time penalty post-race for the collision with Mikel Azcona.
– Yann Ehrlacher was involved in a crash with Norbert Michelisz on the final lap, but was classified as he completed most of the race.
– Pedro Cardoso originally finished 8th, but was disqualified post-race due to his car failing a minimum ride height test.

Standings after the round

Drivers' championship standings

Pos	Driver	Points	Change
1	Norbert Michelisz	270	1
2	Yann Ehrlacher	266	1
3	Robert Huff	247	1
4	Mikel Azcona	243	1
5	Néstor Girolami	220	1

Teams' championship standings

Pos	Driver	Points
1	Cyan Racing Lynk & Co	642
2	BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse	523
3	Audi Sport Team Comtoyou	471
4	ALM Motorsport	182
5	Comtoyou Racing	148

Notes and References

Web site: 2023 FIA TCR WORLD TOUR LA PEDRERA ENTRY LIST – V3. tcr-worldranking.com/tcr-world-tour. TCR World Ranking.
Web site: 2023 FIA TCR WORLD TOUR LA PEDRERA ROUND Q1 SESSION – V3. tcr-worldranking.com/tcr-world-tour. TCR World Ranking.
Web site: 2023 FIA TCR WORLD TOUR LA PEDRERA ROUND Q2 SESSION – V3. tcr-worldranking.com/tcr-world-tour. TCR World Ranking.
Web site: 2023 FIA TCR WORLD TOUR LA PEDRERA RACE 1 RESULTS – V3. tcr-worldranking.com/tcr-world-tour. TCR World Ranking.
Web site: 2023 FIA TCR WORLD TOUR LA PEDRERA RACE 2 RESULTS – V3. tcr-worldranking.com/tcr-world-tour. TCR World Ranking.