TCR World and life

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TCR cars find their place
in long-distance races
In 2016, Creventic, the Dutch
company promoting the 24H Series
and the newly-created TCES (Touring
Car Endurance Series), established a
class for TCR cars in its
championships. Only a handful of
teams, all with SEAT cars, took up
the challenge but they soon proved
that their vehicles were not only
reliable, but could also compete with
more powerful and expensive
machines over 12 or 24 hours.
The Memac Ogilvy Duel Racing team
won the TCR class within the 24H
Series in dominant fashion, claiming
victories at Dubai, Le Castellet and
Barcelona and amassing more than
double the points of its closest rivals.
The winning quartet was formed by
three Lebanese brothers based in
Dubai – Sami, Ramzi and Nabil
Moutran – who were joined by Phil
Quaife from England.
In 2015 the team had won the 24H
Series overall title in a SEAT León
Supercópa and swapped their
previous car for a new León TCR for
the current season. “This seemed the
most logical next step for us. The car
proved to be a great package and the
best value for money with regards to
running costs ,” Samy Moutran said,
adding: “ We have now won the
Championship two years in a row, so
absolutely it has gone better than we
expected. We have claimed nine
podiums from the last nine endurance
races over two seasons. I think people
would struggle to find a more
successful endurance record across
any period in any category.”
The TCR title for the TCES went to
Ivo and Rik Breukers, father and son,
in a SEAT run by the Red Camel-
team.
“It was great, but what I really
enjoyed most is that we had a lot of
fun!” said 49-year-old Ivo who
shared the car with his 18-year-old
son, Rik. “Racing with your son is of
course great… until you see the kid is
much faster than you, which in our
case happened two years ago! Then,
you start seeing yourself as a driver
and your past achievements in a
slightly different way… but I guess
that’s life…”
The results achieved by the winning
teams in the 24H Series and TCES
have proved that TCR cars are
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WORLD AND LIFE
TCR CHAMPIONS 2016 NEWS HOME DRIVERS TEAM