The TCR Europe Touring Car Series returns to Hungary after a three-year absence this weekend, for what will be a crucial race weekend as the series then heads into a two-month summer break.

The two PMA Motorsport Audis of Nicolas Taylor and Nicola Baldan are leading the championship after an incredible performance last time out at Circuit Paul Ricard, but will they still be on top by Sunday night?
    
Taylor took his second race victory of the season in France, and now has an 18-point lead over his team-mate, and now closest title rival Baldan - renewing the battle they've fought over the last two years in TCR Italy.

Just three drivers on the grid have previous experience of the Hungarian circuit. Viktor Andersson, then in his rookie year, took pole position at the track back in 2023, where a then 17-year-old Ruben Volt also made his international TCR debut with ALM Motorsport.

The other driver with local knowledge is Baldan, who was a wild card entrant in the 2021 WTCR - FIA World Touring Car Cup race in Hungary, but it'll be his first time racing in an Audi this weekend.

Looking to catch back up in the points will be Mike Halder, who's still chasing his first victory since returning to the fold this year. The German led the standings after Spa-Francorchamps, but after a difficult weekend in France he had a low-scoring weekend, but that also means he carries no compensation weight in Hungary.

Another driver with no ballast is BRC Racing Team's Alex Ley. After a strong season opener at Mugello, a crash in qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps ruled the Hyundai frontrunner out of the whole weekend. After only salvaging a few points following a difficult qualifying session at Paul Ricard, Ley is also ballast-free and looking to put his title challenge back on track, as will Hyundai stablemate Junesung Park, who is tied with him in fifth in the standings.

Monlau Motorsport looking to bounce back

Reigning drivers, teams, and young drivers' champions Monlau Motorsport are yet to win a race this season, as has any CUPRA, and so the Spanish team will be looking to address that this weekend after coming ever so close at Paul Ricard.

Viktor Andersson took pole position in France and has shown he has pace at Hungary before. The Swedish star lost out on the victory at Paul Ricard to Baldan, but has now pulled out a small points gap to team-mate Marco Butti to be the best-placed driver from the Barcelona-based team.

Butti is incredibly still looking for his second victory in the series, while Andersson is still chasing his first in what's now his fourth season in the category, though he's now a three-time winner in this year's TCR Spain championship.

A few changes on the grid this weekend

There a couple of changes to the entry this weekend. AIKOA Racing will run a single Audi RS 3 LMS for Giacomo Prandelli, while his former team-mate Santiago Concepción moves across to drive a second Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR for Squadra Martino, pairing up with Argentinian star Tiago Pernía. This marks Concepción's return to Honda machinery, which he is familiar with from his time with RC2 Racing Team in 2024-2025.

A new name on the grid who will know the track, but not so much the car, is Hungarian wild card János Czik. Csik has experience in the Hungarian Suzuki Swift Cup and has local knowledge, but both he and his Speed Technika team will be making their TCR debuts this weekend. The team will also run the venerable Hyundai i30 N TCR, which is back on the TCR Europe grid for the first time in four years.

SP Compétition will slim down to one car for Sandro Pelatti, as the team focuses on its programme in the Kumho FIA TCR World Tour this weekend which is racing at Paul Ricard. Three of the TCR Europe series full-time drivers have also opted to take part in another home race at Paul Ricard and are skipping the trip to Hungary, but will be back in September for Monza.

When and how to watch

The drivers get two practice sessions on Friday, before qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday, followed by the reversed-grid Race 2 on Sunday morning.

The races will be streamed live on digital sports channel DAZN. Furthermore, through The Racing Line app, the series can be found easily as a promoted partner; the app is available on the Apple and Google Play stores.

Timetable

Friday 3rd July
09:54 - Free Practice 1
16:04 - Free Practice 2

Saturday 4th July
10:50 - Qualifying (20 + 10 minutes)
17:25 - Race 1 (25 minutes + 1 lap) 

Sunday 5th July
13:00 - Race 2 (25 minutes + 1 lap)

All times are Central European Summer Time (CEST).

Entry list

7 - Mike Halder - ALM Motorsport - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
8 - Nicola Baldan - PMA Motorsport - Audi RS 3 LMS
10 - Viktor Andersson - Monlau Motorsport - CUPRA Leon VZ TCR
12 - Gabriele Covini - BRC Racing Team - Hyundai Elantra N TCR
17 - Nicolas Taylor - PMA Motorsport - Audi RS 3 LMS
19 - Felipe Fernández - RC2 Racing Team - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
22 - Giacomo Prandelli - AIKOA Racing - Audi RS 3 LMS
27 - Ruben Volt - ALM Motorsport - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
33 - Santiago Concepción - Squadra Martino - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
37 - Victor Chan - RC2 Racing Team - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
46 - János Czik - Speed Technika - Hyundai i30 N TCR 
69 - Max Hart - ALM Motorsport - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
72 - Sandro Pelatti - SP Compétition - CUPRA Leon VZ TCR
73 - Victor Fernández - RC2 Racing Team - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
76 - Alex Ley - BRC Racing Team - Hyundai Elantra N TCR
85 - Tiago Pernía - Squadra Martino - Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR
87 - Junui Park - Solite Indigo Racing - Hyundai Elantra N TCR
97 - Junesung Park - Solite Indigo Racing - Hyundai Elantra N TCR
111 - Marco Butti - Monlau Motorsport - CUPRA Leon VZ TCR
117 - Adam Shepherd - Monlau Motorsport - CUPRA Leon VZ TCR