Hyundai Motor has secured the driver championship title at the global top-tier touring car competition ‘2023 TCR World Tour’!
Hyundai’s ‘Elantra N TCR’ achieved first place at the final round of the TCR World Tour held from November 17 (Friday) to 19 (Sunday, local time) at the Kia Circuit in Macau, confirming the overall championship in the driver category.
Norbert Michelisz, a driver from the ‘BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse’ team competing in the Elantra N TCR race car, crossed the finish line first in the first final race of the Macau event, giving the team a precious victory.
Norbert Michelisz secured a total of 440 points, having won multiple times from the opening round in Portugal, through the third round in Italy, to the eighth round in Australia and the ninth round in Macau, earning him the title of this season’s driver champion.
Co-driver Mikel Azcona finished fourth in the first final race and concluded the season in fifth place overall in the driver standings.
The BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse team achieved third place overall in the team category with a total of 805 points.
The newly launched TCR World Tour began this year following the conclusion of the ‘WTCR (World Touring Car Cup)’ last year, selecting major nine races from over 200 TCR events held worldwide and ranking based on points earned from the race results.
At the same time as the TCR World Tour, Hyundai’s Elantra N TCR also claimed victory at the final round of the ‘2023 TCR China Championship’ held in Macau.
Martin Cao from the ‘Hyundai N’ team won the first final race, showcasing the powerful performance of the Elantra N TCR to motorsport fans in China.
Continuing the good results from the opening round of the TCR China Championship in May at the Shanghai International Circuit, Martin Cao finished the season in first place overall in the driver standings, while the Elantra N TCR also achieved first place in the model category. The Hyundai N team secured second place in the team category.
Hyundai, which officially announced its entry into the Chinese market for the high-performance N brand last April, plans to solidify its N brand fandom in China based on this TCR China Championship victory and broadly promote the excellence of high-performance race cars.
Til Vattenberg, Executive Director of the N Brand and Motorsport Division, expressed, “I’m incredibly proud that we won both the TCR World Tour and TCR China Championship with the Elantra N TCR in Macau this year, which was only possible due to the continuous efforts of our drivers and team members. We will continue to enhance the competitiveness of the N brand through motorsport activities and prepare thoroughly for next year’s competitions to consistently show our customers great results.”
Meanwhile, the Elantra N TCR has not only claimed victories at the TCR World Tour and TCR China Championship but also secured the TCR class victory for three consecutive years at the Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race held last May, proving the excellent performance and technology of the N brand in various TCR competitions across countries like the USA and Australia.
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr