Photo: WTCC Media

Tom Coronel to compete in the 200km of Buenos Aires

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Vila Real and Marrakech race winner Tom Coronel will try his hand in the Argentinian Super TC 2000 Championship a week before the next round of the World Touring Car Championship in Argentina, driving for Escuderia FE, sharing one of the team’s Peugeot 408s with Luciano Farroni in the championship’s endurance event.

The Dutch driver will make his Super TC 2000 debut behind the wheel of the front-wheel drive, Radical V8-powered Peugeot in the 200km event on July 31st.

“I met the team boss at the VLN race before the Nürburgring 24 Hour race, he came to me and asked if I was interested, and then we started to WhatsApp,” said Coronel to TouringCarTimes.

“I saw it was one week before our race in Argentina, so I thought it was a good opportunity. I already spoke a few times with my friend (Norberto) Fontana to see what possibilities there are, but he says he has to drive with the Brazilian factory drivers of Chevrolet, but I thought this also was a good chance,” added Coronel.

It won’t be Coronel’s first trip to Argentina of the year either, with the Chevrolet driver having taken part in the Dakar Rally at the start of the year.

“I like the Argentinian race fans, they’re quite fanatic as I’ve seen in the Dakar,” he added. “I’ve also seen the (Super TC 2000) cars a few times, they’re very nice cars, 400bhp, in the races there the guys are all aggressive. The boss was really encouraging me, so I thought why not…It will be fun if I have some good battles and we can be clever and have a little bit of luck.”

So far Coronel is the only WTCC driver confirmed to take part in the event. Other WTCC drivers who’ve taken part previous include the former Chevrolet trio of Alain Menu, Yvan Muller and Rob Huff, while Gabriele Tarquini also shared driving duties in a Honda Civic with José María López on occassion in the years before the Argentinian’s move to the WTCC.

“I don’t understand why the other WTCC guys aren’t doing it now,” added Coronel. “It’s nice racing, it’s a good atmosphere, and it’s only a few days before, I’m meeting them all just two days after the race.”