News
International star joins TCR Australia field with Audi
Melbourne Performance Centre has recruited International Audi TC R star Jean-Karl Vernay to compete in Round 4 of the carsales TCR Australia Series at Queensland Raceway this weekend.
Vernay will be one of the most accomplished drivers on the grid this weekend, having won a raft of motorsport titles across the world in a variety of different race categories, including international TCR competition.
The 31-year-old Frenchman won the Indy Lights title (2010), the French Carrera Cup Championship (2012), a class winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (2013) and the TCR International Series (2017).
His racing career has been varied, with his recent history dedicated to TCR competition – all driving Audi RS 3s.
He won the 2017 TCR International Series, as well as the 2018 TCR BeNeLux title and is a winner in the WTCR Championship.
Vernay will line-up in the #4 MPC Audi RS 3 LMS, the car that Garth Tander raced in the past two TCR Australia events at Phillip Island and The Bend. Tander won Race 1 at The Bend, and also picked up two second place finishes en route to scoring the most points for the weekend.
Vernay flies into Brisbane on Thursday where he will have the opportunity to see the Queensland Raceway circuit before jumping on board the Audi for the opening practice session on Friday.
Saturday will see qualifying and Race 1, while Sunday’s program features two 30 minute races.
CLICK HERE to secure tickets to TCR Australia’s maiden race meeting in Queensland.
If you can not make it to Ipswich, you can watch live, free and in HD on SBS, or watch the live stream, available at TCRAustralia.com.
QUOTES
Jean Karl Vernay
Driver, #4 Melbourne Performance Centre Audi
“I’m really looking forward to coming to Australia and racing in the new TCR Series down under,” said Jean Karl Vernay.
“I’ve seen some of the racing and the amount of cars that they have and it looks very competitive. For a TCR series that has only just started, it is a very good series so far.
“I have raced lots of Audi TCR cars around the world, so it should be no problem for me to get accustomed to the car.
“The circuit looks interesting – only six corners, but the guys at MPC have said that it is quite technical too, so I’m really excited to get to Australia and experience the racing.”