News

March 8, 2023 | General

Double world champion set to race on Australian shores

Lynk & Co’s Kumho TCR World Tour representative team Cyan Racing has confirmed the final two drivers for its globe trotting campaign, with one a multiple World Touring Car Cup champion.

Following the confirmation of previous World Touring Car Championship winning driver Thed Bjork and former TCR World Ranked number one Ma Qing Hua, Cyan Racing has revealed double WTCR champion Yann Ehrlacher will join the duo alongside Santiago Urrutia.

Frenchman Ehrlacher is the nephew of touring car legend Yvan Muller, who has acted as his teammate in the WTCR since 2019. At 26-years-old, Ehrlacher has achieved considerable success by winning the WTCR title in 2020 and 2021, in addition o helping Lynk & Co take the Teams’ Championship three times.

“I am very happy to start my fifth year with the Lynk & Co Cyan Racing, the team that I have become world champion twice with and done the most races for in my life,” said Ehrlacher.

“The TCR World Tour will be intense and challenging with a lot of new competitors and circuits, but that’s what we are here for. I feel confident ahead of the season and the target is to bring home a new world title.”

Urrutia from Uruguay has four victories to his name in WTCR and has raced sporadically in his home TCR South America Championship for two further wins as he finished a best of sixth in the global title in 2021.

“It is a privilege and honour to be back with Lynk & Co Cyan Racing,” Urrutia revealed. “We have a new challenge this year with a global schedule. I am especially looking forward to race in South America and my home country Uruguay.

“Racing at the top level of world touring cars is always tough and we really need to deliver this year. I think our performance will be strong and we are aiming for the very top.”

All four drivers will contest the Kumho TCR World Tour in the updated Lynk & Co 03 revealed last week.

“Yann and Santiago are no doubt two of the best touring car drivers in the world and we look forward to continuing our close and successful co-operation with them,” team manager Fredrik Wahlén said.

“We have a strong line-up for the first TCR World Tour season, a prerequisite for what will be one of the toughest championships we have ever taken on. We are proud to embark on this journey with the new Lynk & Co 03 TCR, marking the fifth year of our successful Lynk & Co Cyan Racing programme.”

All four drivers will race on Australian shores later this year when the Kumho TCR World Tour arrives down under for two rounds including at the fabled Mount Panorama circuit as part of the Supercheap Auto Bathurst International.

The next round of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series is at Phillip Island on May 12-14 as part of the Shannons SpeedSeries.