After having set the pole position, Azcona led the first race from the lights to the flag, keeping at bay Yann Ehrlacher whose Geely Preface remained glued to the Hyundai Elantra's rear bumper for the whole of the 18 laps. Norbert Michelisz overtook Thed Björk to secure the third position, while the Swedish driver was forced to make a late pit stop by a flat front tyre.

The second race was even more thrilling, with Clairet jumping into the lead at the start from P3 on the grid. He drove flat out for most of the race, building a small gap over Ma Qing Hua but his pace faded and he found himself under pressure during the three final laps. However he didn't give up and crossed the finish line 0.153 ahead of Ma. Santiago Urrutia completed the podium ahead of Azcona.

The third place in Race 2 helped Urrutia to retain the leadership in the standings, although his advantage has shrank to just six points over Azcona; Michelisz has moved up to third, 32 points adrift and three ahead of Björk.

Mikel Azcona beats Yann Ehrlacher to victory in Race 1

Mikel Azcona lined up on pole position and was able to beat fellow front-row starter Yann Ehrlacher to T1. Further back, a collision between Damiano Reduzzi, Manuel Fernandes and Raphaël Fournier left Fournier’s Hyundai needing retrieval, prompting a brief period under the safety car, while Fernandes retired a few laps later.

Once the race resumed, Ehrlacher never relented in his pressure of Azcona, but the leader built a small gap and made no mistakes on his way to victory. Azcona’s teammate Norbert Michelisz emerged in third place from a frantic battle over the opening half a lap with Thed Björk and Jenson Brickley. Michelisz, carrying extra Compensation Weight in comparison with Azcona and Ehrlacher, managed his race well to take third.

Björk and Brickley lay fourth and fifth until two laps from the end when both pitted with flat front tyres. This promoted the battle between Aurélien Comte and Teddy Clairet as they finished fourth and fifth, while Brickley and Björk rejoined and were classified 11th and 13th.

Another fight further back ended with Santiago Urrutia beating Geely Cyan teammate Ma Qing Hua for P6; both had started from the back of the grid due to penalties. They struggled to get past Julien Briché who held on to the sixth position until the final stages of the races. Eventually, the Frenchman finished eighth and won the ETS Guest Star Trophy for his efforts in his JSB Compétition Hyundai Elantra N. Completing the top 10 were Damiano Reduzzi and Tom Pussier.

Race 1

1. Mikel Azcona (BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse, Hyundai Elantra N EV), 18 laps
2. Yann Ehrlacher (Geely Cyan Racing, Geely Preface), 2.949
3. Norbert Michelisz (BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse, Hyundai Elantra N EV), 4.865 ...

Quotes from the podium - Race 1

Mikel Azcona, 1st: “The start was the key. My main goal was to keep the first position on the first corner, and from this point it was not easy because Yann was pushing. His pace was brilliant, especially in the last sector, where he was way faster than me. But in the first sector I was faster, so I was trying to maintain the distance. I was afraid of the front-left tyre because there were some punctures behind me and I was jumping over the kerb because Yann was pushing.”

Yann Ehrlacher, 2nd: “It was a good race. We knew that starting from P2, expecting a win was only possible if something happened to Mikel. He did a very good job. We know that we have a speed deficit in the straights compared to the Hyundai, so we are happy to finish this race and score big points again.”

Norbert Michelisz, 3rd: “A difficult first lap and a very difficult race, because of the heat and because of the extra weight. I know that from the outside it looks like a steady pace, but we had to do our best to save the front-left tyre through the race distance. The target was to maximise qualifying in terms of points in race one. I think we managed to do that.”

Teddy Clairet fends off Ma Qing Hua for maiden race 2 victory

Teddy Clairet started from third on the reversed grid. Him and Ma Qing Hua went either side of polesitter Manuel Fernandes on the run to T1, then Clairet swept around the outside of Ma and emerged in the lead. Contact between Ma and his teammate Santiago Urrutia at the chicane resulted in the Uruguayan moving up into second place, before Ma got back in front on lap 2.

Clairet was setting a blistering pace in the lead, but it was to the cost of his tyres in the high temperatures. Ma was able to come back at him over the final few laps, but Clairet positioned his CUPRA perfectly to hold on for victory by less than two tenths.

Urrutia came under attack from race one winner Mikel Azcona, who tried an outside move at T1 with five laps remaining. Azcona was forced wide and Urrutia held on for P3. Just behind Azcona were Yann Ehrlacher and Thed Björk; the rear of Björk’s car had been hit by Aurélien Comte on the first lap, costing him some time, but the Swede moved ahead of Ehrlacher just before the finish line for fifth.

Norbert Michelisz was seventh, while Jenson Brickley made his way from the back of the grid, due to a penalty for three reprimands this season, to eighth. The retirement of Julien Briché with a puncture meant that Fernandes claimed ETS Guest Star Trophy honours in ninth, while Damiano Reduzzi was 10th.

Race 2

1. Teddy Clairet (Team Clairet Sport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 16 laps
2. Ma Qing Hua (Geely Cyan Racing, Geely Preface), 0.153
3. Santiago Urrutia (Geely Cyan Racing, Geely Preface), 5.374 ...

Quotes from the podium - Race 2

Teddy Clairet, 1st: “The launch was good, and it’s the key in TCR to make a good start, because a lot of things can happen. I could overtake Fernandes before the first turn, and I could go side by side with Ma on the outside. It’s a tricky manoeuvre, but I knew that with this kind of driver we can do it because he fights with respect. It was fair, and we gave each other the necessary space. After that maybe I pushed a bit too hard on the first laps, because I was suffering in the final five laps. Ma was quicker and joined me for the last two laps. In the end I could get it, but it was good for me that it was the end of the race...”

Ma Qing Hua, 2nd: “Teddy’s pace was really good. He did a good job to manage a gap to me. I was trying to catch, but he was very fast. I don’t know what he did after race one! I think I did a better tyre management so in the end I had a bit more potential to push, so I put the pressure, but he did a really good defending, and my tyres were also gone. I tried to survive and at the same time gain a position, not easy.”

Santiago Urrutia, 3rd: “It was a good weekend. I’m very happy with my team, as they gave me a very good car and we handled the heat well. After the FIA gave me the penalty I had to start last for race one, I ended up P6, and now P3, so I am very happy. I really enjoyed race two. It was difficult to fight with Mikel [Azcona] because he was quicker than me, but once we got to T5, the quick one, he was losing a bit of downforce so I could build it back up.”

The world series resumes next week at Vila Real for rounds 8 and 9.

Championship points

1. S. Urrutia, 182 pts.; 2. M. Azcona, 176; 3. N. Michelisz, 150 ...