The reigning TCR Europe series champion Jenson Brickley will be on the grid for the first round of the new TCR Europe Cup later this month at Spa-Francorchamps, where he'll sample his new Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR for the first time in a racing situation.

Brickley is the first name confirmed for the new category, with a large grid to be revealed in the next two weeks ahead of the first TCR Europe Touring Car Cup event at Circuit Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium on April 17-19.

The 21-year-old won the TCR Europe series title last year with two wins in one of the most competitive seasons for the series, and has progressed on to join the field of the Kumho FIA TCR World Tour, where he'll make his international-level debut in a Honda Civic Type R FL5 TCR.

With the switch in manufacturer, after competing with a CUPRA for the past three years, the TCR Europe Cup event at Spa-Francorchamps presents for the British driver to race the Honda for the first time, which will be run by Spanish outfit RC2 Racing Team.

The series allows drivers to share the car across the weekend's two races, and so Brickley will compete in one of the races as a Professional-rated driver, with his Amateur-class co-driver to be revealed at a later date.
Jenson Brickley:

"I'm excited to be taking part in the first TCR Europe Cup event this month. It gives me a great opportunity to drive the car in a racing competition for the first time. I'll get my first test of the car with ALM Motorsport next week, and then I'll join RC2 Racing Team for Spa-Francorchamps, and I can't wait to try it out.

"Thanks to the TCR Europe promoter Rubén Fernández for the opportunity. Our expectations are high, we're in it to win it, and hopefully it'll be great if we can win our first race with a Honda.

"I've been racing against the Honda for many years, it's a strong car overall and I'm excited to get into it and see what the differences are, we know the traction of the car is very good, so it'll be great to see how strong it is from behind the wheel."