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6
WORLD AND LIFE
TCR 2016
NEWS
HOME
DRIVERS TEAM
Pepe Oriola
in search
of revenge
Pepe Oriola is, without any doubt, the
man that has made the best start to the
championship. With his two wins in
Bahrain, the young Spaniard has clearly
stated his ambitions for this year. The
Barcelona-born driver almost seems in a
quest for revenge. Last year, he lost the
title to Stefano Comini in the very last
event of the season, at Macau, where he
had arrived as the great favourite. That
defeat left him bitter, but Pepe has
worked intensively during the winter,
supported by a ‘mental coach’ specializing
in sports. From what we have seen in the
first two races, that work has already
produced great results. Nonetheless, the
road to Macau is still very long and Oriola
will have to fight hard to keep his
opponents at bay. First among those is his
own team-mate, James Nash, who showed
terrific determination in his return to
Touring Cars. Not forgetting the Honda
boys, in particular Gianni Morbidelli, who
are always extremely effective and clever
strategists, or reigning champion Stefano
Comini and newcomer Jean-Karl Vernay,
the two recruits to the most ambitious of
the new entries, Leopard Racing.
The Craft-Bamboo Lukoil trio
in a close battle during the night race
Stefano Comini and Mat’o Homola
at speed on the main straight