Podium joy in Spa | Hyundai N

Norbert enjoys a P2 finish

Our Elantra N TCR customer team claimed a podium finish with Norbert at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps this weekend at the second round of the TCR World Tour.

BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse driver Norbert secured a third-place start for the partially reversed-grid Race 2 and managed to overtake the car ahead after a side-by-side battle through Eau Rouge. The Hungarian driver was then able to focus on keeping his competitors behind and bringing home a podium finish.

“If someone told me before the weekend that I would have finished on the podium, I would not have believed them,” explained Norbert. “I think we managed to put the Elantra N TCR in the right window for qualifying and the races.”

His team-mate Mikel started the race in 11th, getting involved in the mid-field battles around him to progress up the order. This continued for the entirety of the race, and he was able to secure an eighth-place finish to gain some valuable points for the standings.

“We had a fantastic result in Race 2,” said Mikel. “I was able to battle with the cars around me and it was the maximum I could have achieved.”

Tricky Saturday

After a successful start of the season at Portimão, the two Elantra N TCR cars were carrying maximum compensation weight. This contributed to a tricky qualifying session where Norbert secured eighth and Mikel 11th.

In Race 1, Norbert was able to capitalize on a stalled car on the grid, moving into seventh, however later dropped back into eighth after a safety car restart. He defended well for the remainder of the race and crossed the line where he began.

“We knew we were going to struggle with the compensation weight,” mentioned Norbert. “But I was maximising the set-up and being clever to use the tow in qualifying and the races.”

Mikel had a tough first race, starting 14th after a grid penalty post-qualifying. The Spaniard wanted a clean race but was a victim in two separate incidents in the early laps which dropped him to 21st. He was able to recover and finished in 16th.

“Spa has not been easy,” added Mikel. “The luck wasn’t with me in qualifying and Race 1, but we have learned a lot this weekend overall.”

As a result, BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse drop to second in the Kumho TCR World Tour for Teams whilst Norbert retains his lead at the top of the drivers’ standings with Mikel in sixth.

The next round of the TCR World Tour season, takes place at Vallelunga on 9-11 June.