Aku Pellinen joins five-car Rikli assault at Imola

TCR International Series race winner Aku Pellinen will join Rikli Motorsport this weekend as the Swiss team chases its first European Touring Car Cup drivers’ title, with Kris Richard in the joint-lead of the standings ahead of the season finale.

Pellinen, who was leading the ETCC’s Single-Make Trophy standings in 2014 before he was forced to miss the season finale, will be back on track for the first time in a Honda Civic TCR since Spa-Francorchamps back in May this year, where he was a race winner in his final outing in the TCR International Series before budget issues curtailed his season.

The Rikli team will also add two further cars for Claudio Truffer and Adrian Spescha, with Truffer in a Honda and Spescha in a SEAT León Cup Racer. The two newcomers will join regulars Richard and team principal Erwin’s brother Peter, with the team on the all-out offensive to help the young Swiss driver Richard to secure the Super 2000 Trophy title.

“I am definitely a little bit excited but also a little bit nervous, but I have some very good people behind me,” said Richard. “I can prepare myself mentally very good. For me it’s very important to win this title. I am totally a newcomer in this sport and it will help a lot for me to go forward in this sport, to find the sponsors again for next year and to go further in touring cars.”