The 2021 WTCR - FIA World Touring Car Cup season begins this weekend, and Goodyear is gearing up for its second season as the world's top level of petrol-powered touring car racing's official tyre supplier. To add to the excitement, the season kicks out at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, one of the most difficult tracks in motorsport.
Last year, Goodyear joined WTCR, equipping each team and driver with one dry and one wet specification of the Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport race tyre, which is created exclusively for 360 horsepower touring cars. Goodyear's entry in the championship was also recognised with the #FollowTheLeader campaign, which was renewed for the 2021 season, building on its connection with series organiser Eurosport Events.
The Goodyear 2021 WTCR field includes 22 full-season drivers representing 12 different nationalities. During the course of the season, WTCR will visit eight circuits, each with their own set of challenges.
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Sebastian Trinks, Goodyear’s Event Leader for WTCR and PURE ETCR, is looking forward to another exciting season. “With two new models from Audi and Hyundai joining the proven machines from Lynk & Co, CUPRA and Honda, we expect WTCR to be more competitive than ever. There are some really experienced drivers joining the grid, too, including six FIA world title winners. That means the fight for the championship should be even closer than it was last year.”
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The 25 km Nürburgring Nordschleife race this weekend will be followed by rounds at premium autodromes such as Estoril, Portugal; Aragón, Spain; and Hungaroring, Hungary. Adria Raceway in Italy will also debut on the WTCR programme this summer.
The season comes to a close with races at Inje Speedium, South Korea; Ningbo, China; and Macau's exhilarating Guia street track. Goodyear was charged with designing a very adaptable specification that succeeds in a wide range of weather conditions and on dramatically varied circuits with only one slick tyre compound for the entire season.
“We agreed with the teams and Eurosport Events to keep the same tyre specification as last year,” Trinks adds. “This supports teams with cost savings because they can use their data from last year for tyre testing and don’t need to learn a new tyre again. We received very positive feedback from teams and drivers about the tyre performance in 2020 so we’re confident that we’re providing them with the right product for a challenging and competitive season ahead. We’re particularly excited for the renewal of Goodyear #FollowTheLeader, which recognises the driver in the lead of the standings with a windshield strip and jacket.”
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The unpredictability of weather conditions at the Nürburgring will be the main challenge this weekend, according to Trinks. “The weather at the Nürburgring can change very quickly during the course of a single lap, so you can start the race in dry conditions and end up in the rain on the other side of the track. The forecast looks quite dry with ambient temperatures around 20-22°C, so weather conditions should be quite stable this time, but it’s always unpredictable. This will be the biggest challenge for teams this weekend.”
The Nürburgring's on-track action begins on Thursday, with two races anticipated for Saturday morning, each lasting three laps (76 km). The weekend is shared with the ADAC TOTAL 24h Compete, in which every TCR car will race on Goodyear tyres with dozens of other cars.
Goodyear is one of the largest pneumatic tyre manufacturing firms in the world. It employs about 62,000 people in 46 facilities in 21 countries around the world. They manufacture their products in Akron, Ohio and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg. Their two Innovation Centers aim to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the standards of technology and performance for the sector.
