​Intense European WTCR season commences in Hungary for leaders Lynk & Co Cyan Racing

2017 World Champion Thed Björk is leading the championship after the Marrakech season opener three weeks ago where he claimed one victory and two podium finishes.

"We had a great season start, well above our expectations. But we are in no way relaxing, I am leading now but this season will no doubt be a very hard fight to the last lap of the last race," said Thed Björk.

Despite arriving to the season opener with four brand new Lynk & Co 03 TCR race cars, Lynk & Co Cyan Racing left Morocco with one victory, three podium finishes and second place in the teams' standings, just 12 points from the lead.

"The result in Marrakech was a strong receipt on the hard work throughout the winter by everyone involved in this project. Our competitors are however not resting but neither are we. Hungaroring will be a challenge and we will have to fight hard there as well throughout the season to remain in the top," said Christian Dahl, founder and owner of Cyan Racing.

22-year-old Yann Ehrlacher was the second best scoring Lynk & Co Cyan Racing driver in Marrakech despite crashing out of the last race.

"Marrakech was both frustrating and rewarding. We had the speed to fight for the top and my podium in the second race was an awesome feeling. But I did not get as many points as I felt we had the potential for. The Hungaroring is obviously completely different to Marrakech, but we will continue keeping our heads down and work hard. This season is a marathon and we need to keep scoring consistently," said Yann Ehrlacher.

Three-time World Champion Andy Priaulx fought for a podium position in the first race of the season and claimed a top five finish despite being hit by a competitor. Priaulx has never before raced at the Hungaroring but is nonetheless eying a podium finish.

“I do know the track very well from testing there over the years and so I know exactly what to expect. It is tight and twisty and challenging, and I have always enjoyed driving there. I am feeling pretty confident ahead of the race, we are well prepared, I feel we can do well, and I have my sights on a podium," said Priaulx.

Yvan Muller, the most successful driver in the WTCR, had a frustrating season opener in Morocco, retiring while leading the final race and is keen for revenge this weekend.

"I'm not thinking about what could have been in Marrakech. We know what caused the retirement and the speed is there to fight for victories. We still have a long way to go in developing our brand new race cars, but I am never racing for anything else than to win," said Yvan Muller.

The FIA World Touring Car Cup weekend in Hungary starts on Friday this week with free practice, then qualifying and the first race on Saturday and the final qualifying session as well as two races on Sunday.

FIA WTCR Race of Hungary

Schedule
Times in CEST

Friday April 26th
17:00-17:45 – Free Practice 1

Saturday April 27th
09:45-10:15 – Free Practice 2
11:45-12:15 – Qualifying
15:15-15:45 – Race 1 (12 laps)

Sunday April 28th
10:00-10:20 – Qualifying Q1
10:25-10:35 – Qualifying Q2
10:40-12:00 – Qualifying Q3
15:30–16:00 – Race 2 (12 laps)
17:00–17:35 – Race 3 (15 laps)

Standings
Points for drivers – Top 5
1 Thed Björk Lynk & Co 03 61 pts
2 Esteban Guerrieri Honda Civic 56 (-5)
3 Gabriele Tarquini Hyundai i30 49 (-12)
4 Néstor Girolami Honda Civic 34 (-27)
5 Frederic Vervisch Audi RS 3 32 (-29)
...
8 Yann Ehrlacher Lynk & Co 03 24 (-37)
10 Andy Priaulx Lynk & Co 03 18 (-43)
11 Yvan Muller Lynk & Co 03 17 (-44)

Points for teams – Top 5
1 Münnich Motorsport 90 pts
2 Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 78 (-12)
3 BRC Hyundai 66 (-24)
4 Cyan Performance Lynk & Co 42 (-48)
5 Leopard Audi Sport 41 (-49)

What is new for this season?
The Lynk & Co 03 TCR race car
Eight world titles among the four drivers of the team
A field of the world's best touring car drivers in the world
A total of 30 races across 10 race weekends on 3 continents and 9 countries

What happened in the last race?
Read all about it right here.

Contact information
Johan Meissner
Press Manager
Cyan Racing
+46(0)70 241 3234
johan.meissner@cyanracing.com

About Cyan Racing
Cyan Racing was founded in 1996 and was formerly named Polestar until Volvo Cars acquired the performance section and trademark in 2015. Cyan Racing is privately owned and operated. The team has claimed multiple titles, most recently the 2018 FIA World Touring Car Cup team title and the double 2017 FIA World Touring Car Championship titles for driver and team – and participated in the development of the Polestar performance models of the Volvo S60 and V60 in the years 2013 to 2015.

About Lynk & Co
Lynk & Co is the new global urban mobility brand addressing the needs and preferences of the connected generation and challenging auto industry conventions. Its products are designed and engineered in Sweden and will be sold globally.