WTCR: Life goes on

The small world of the World Touring Car Cup shook yesterday following the announcement by Cyan - Lynk & Co to withdraw from the 2022 championship with immediate effect. This Friday, activity has resumed, two races must be contested on Sunday on the Anneau du Rhin circuit. The whole paddock tries to concentrate on their workload, but a strange feeling reigns. This race will definitely not have the taste it should have had.

Published on 05/08/2022 à 17:01

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The first thing you notice when you arrive in the small paddock of the Ring of the Rhine is the absence of the Sino-Swedish team's semi-trailers. The hole left by the trucks of the Lynk & Co team was filled by the other teams who spread out a little in order to somewhat soften the absence of the blue and white trucks. When you reach out to everyone to hear what they think about a situation that concerns them all, different bells ring out.

Tom Coronel is quite virulent and recognizes that Lynk & Co “ reaps what it sows, when your pilots are the first to complain about something and a situation, it is obvious that at some point it reaches the ears of your boss who may not have all the cards in hand to understand everything clearly. If they have the feeling that they are not being listened to, then they make the decision to leave, it's unfortunate but that's how it is. I have my own problems to solve and I stick to them and I work to find a solution.»

Tiago Monteiro has known touring races for many years, he has a fairly accurate vision of this situation and according to him “ When we discover a problem like the one we have with the tires, the best solution is to sit down together and work to solve this problem. For this to happen, the parties must come to an agreement and recognize that there is a problem. It saddens me for Yann and Yvan but the situation may have gone further than it should have. »

Muller and Ehrlacher present despite everything

Yann Ehrlacher and Yvan Muller are present in the paddock, not under a Lynk & Co structure, but under the M-Racing awning present to welcome the numerous guests and partners of the two local champions. If they do not intend to comment on the decision taken by their employer, the two Alsatians cannot hide their sadness and their disappointment at not taking part in a race in which they wanted more than anything. But they made the decision to be present all weekend out of respect for their many fans. On the program, autograph sessions, VIP tours on the circuit, meetings and moments of exchange with all the Alsatians who had decided to support their local heroes.

Yvan Muller and Yann Ehrlacher will be present this weekend ©fabgerard

WTCR and FIA failed to convince Lynk & Co

A test session did take place this morning in addition to the one held yesterday evening, the WTCR and the FIA had tried by several means to convince Lynk & Co that they were ready to find solutions to improve a situation which still seems very complicated. 20 kilograms less for all cars, additional tires and two test sessions of one hour each. Nestor Girolami (Honda) and Esteban Guerrieri (Honda) dominated this session.

The teams were not necessarily focused on setting the lap record but more on long-term work to see if the tires can withstand the high heat and the length of a race. Nothing to report on this point, Mikel Azcona is in fourth position in this session, the World Cup leader admits: “We will have to work hard to play at the forefront on a circuit where overtaking will be complicated.”

The rest of the events on the Anneau du Rhin circuit will be followed this Saturday with the free practice sessions from 9:30 a.m. (for 45') in the morning then the second from 12:30 p.m. (30'). Qualifying (Q1, Q2, Q3) will be contested from 15:00 p.m. All WTCR results can be followed on AUTOhebdo.fr.