WTCR 2018 – CHAMPIONSHIP-WINNING TEAMS SELECT NEW HONDA CIVIC TCR FOR FIA WTCR

ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport and Boutsen Ginion Racing choose Honda for WTCR – FIA World Touring Car Cup
Tiago Monteiro and Esteban Guerrieri to race Civic TCRs
Support package available to customer teams from JAS Motorsport

Multiple examples of the new Honda Civic TCR, built by JAS Motorsport, have been ordered by ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport and Boutsen Ginion Racing to contest the WTCR – FIA World Touring Car Cup this year.

Tiago Monteiro and Esteban Guerrieri, who drove for the Castrol Honda World Touring Car Team in 2017, are the first two drivers confirmed to race the Civic TCR.

ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport have chosen Esteban to lead their line-up while Boutsen Ginion Racing have recruited Tiago for their team.

Tiago, 41, was a standout performer in World Touring Cars last year and was cruelly denied a chance of turning his championship lead into a world title when he sustained injuries in a mid-season testing accident that forced him to sit out the rest of the campaign.

The only Portuguese driver to finish on a Formula 1 podium, Tiago is one of touring-car racing’s global stars with 11 wins and 44 podiums in the WTCC to his name as well as victories in the prestigious Macau Guia Race and TCR Benelux.

Esteban, 33, joined Honda for the final three WTCC events of 2017, substituting for the injured Tiago, and took a dominant victory from pole position at the season-ending race in Qatar on his way to fourth place in the Drivers’ Championship.

He is a multiple race winner in Super TC2000 in his native Argentina and has also claimed victories in the Indy Lights and Formula Renault 3.5 single-seater series to add to championship success in the Formula Renault Eurocup.

All-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport, who have previously run a Honda Civic TCR in the FIA European Touring Car Cup, bring a wealth of racing success to the Honda Racing family.

FIA GT1 World Champions in 2012, the team from Friedersdorf, Germany, have claimed a number of WTCC victories and have twice triumphed at the Macau Guia Race.

Boutsen Ginion Racing have been customers of the Civic TCR programme for the past two seasons and achieved huge success in both.

Stephane Lemeret claimed the TCR Benelux drivers’ crown in 2016 while Benjamin Lessenes did likewise in 2017 as well as adding the junior drivers’ title for the team from Wavre, Belgium.

Technical support will be offered to all customer teams by JAS Motorsport with an on-site supply of spare parts and technical assistance at each event, aimed at helping all Honda drivers with their title challenges.

The new Honda Civic TCR, designed and manufactured by JAS, made its global race debut in January this year at the 24 Hours of Dubai. It is the successor to the Civic TCR which won 12 championship titles last year – seven drivers’ and five teams’ crowns.

The FIA World Touring Car Cup begins at the Circuit Moulay el Hassan in Marrakech, Morocco, on April 7-8 and comprises 10 events in Africa, Europe, South America and Asia; concluding on the iconic Macau street circuit on November 17-18.

Tiago Monteiro, Boutsen Ginion Racing, said: “I’m delighted to remain part of the Honda Racing family for another year. Since I first worked with Honda in 2012, I feel we’ve been getting stronger and stronger by the season and by last year we were in a very good place to win the championship before my accident. The past six months have been incredibly tough, but thanks to some amazing support I’m now well on my way to getting back in a racing car. Boutsen Ginion Racing are a strong team, who I’ve won races with in TCR before, so I can’t wait to drive the car and for the season to start.”

Esteban Guerrieri, ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport, said: “I felt like last year was a real breakthrough year for me in world touring cars, so I’m extremely pleased to be racing a Honda Civic in 2018. TCR is the fastest-growing touring car category in the world and I’m incredibly excited to be a part of this programme. I had some great races against the ALL-INKL.COM Münnich cars in the WTCC last year and it’s clear they can run a very fast machine, so I’m optimistic of putting together a title challenge.”

Masashi Yamamoto, General Manager of Motor Sports Division, Honda Motor Co., said: “We are delighted that ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport and Boutsen Ginion Racing have chosen Honda and the Civic TCR for the World Touring Car Cup. We are also honoured to continue the relationships with two of the world’s best touring car drivers within the Honda Racing family and trust that JAS Motorsport will provide a state-of-the-art racing car that will challenge for victories regularly. With the Civic TCR, we wish for brilliant success from both teams and drivers in the WTCR.”

Alessandro Mariani, JAS Motorsport CEO, said: “We are pleased that the Honda Civic TCR, built at our Milan headquarters, will contest the World Touring Car Cup with teams with such strong records as ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport and Boutsen Ginion Racing. We have good relationships with both teams and a relationship with Honda that dates back to 1998, and we look forward to supporting the teams in WTCR as they hunt for more success. Since it first turned a wheel last October, the Civic has undergone more than 3000km testing, tackled a 24-hour race on its competitive debut and has proven to be an improvement in all areas over the previous model, which delivered 12 championship titles in 2017. We look forward to the challenge ahead.”