TCR adds to thrills in Bahrain Grand Prix support

A leading touring car championship has been added to the support race programme of the 2016 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) announced yesterday that the TCR International Series will be lining up on the grid this Formula 1 weekend from April 1 to 3 in Sakhir.

It will be the Bahrain debut of the globally renowned championship and the second support race along with the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East.

TCR will be holding the first of 11 rounds in its 2016 season at Sakhir with further events in Estoril (Portugal), Spa (Belgium), Monza (Italy), Salzburgring (Austria), Oschersleben (Germany), Sochi (Russia), Buriram (Thailand), Singapore, Sepang (Malaysia), and Macau. The event format features two free practice sessions and one qualifying session split between Q1 (for the whole field) and Q2 (for the fastest 12 drivers). There are two 60km races at each meeting; the grids for both races are based on the qualifying results, with the fastest ten drivers in Q2 reversed on the grid for race two.

TCR International Series was conceived and launched by Marcello Lotti, who revived the FIA World Touring Car Championship back in 2005. He envisioned a new class that could fill a gap at the bottom of the Touring Car pyramid, one that was affordable for car manufacturers and independent teams alike and was capable of offering close and exciting races.

Six car manufacturers will be represented in Bahrain – SEAT, Honda, Volkswagen, Opel, Subaru and Alfa Romeo – with at least two more planning to join the series within the coming months.