WestCoast Racing’s Gianni Morbidelli took victory in the first race of the TCR International Series at Estoril, as the Italian drove a masterful race to take his first win of the 2016 campaign.
The ex-Formula 1 and WTCC driver finished ahead of the Leopard Racing pair of Jean-Karl Vernay and defending champion, Stefano Comini. All three drivers were able to pass pole sitter, B3 Racing’s Mat’o Homola in the latter half of the race, as the ETCC graduate struggled on the TCR-specific Michelin tyres.
With a three-car wide battle initially starting the dramas on the run down to turn one, WestCoast Racing’s Aku Pellinen would make his way to third place around the outside, as Morbidelli forced his way past up the inside of Homola.
The Slovakian would be able to fight his way past the Italian veteran, holding the Honda driver off until lap nine, with Homola finishing fourth after the 15-lap affair, Both Vernay and Comini passed him easily on laps 12 and 13 respectively, as Craft-Bamboo’s Sergey Afanasyev was closing fast in the latter stages, but would have to settle for fifth.
James Nash would make it three SEAT Léon TCRs in the top six, having made his way past a struggling Pellinen, as Pepe Oriola could not make any progress forward. The Spaniard would have to settle for eighth place, with Loris Hezemans and Francisco Mora completing the top ten.
Dušan Borković’s progress would be blighted by a final lap clash at turn one with Liquid Moly Team Engstler’s Mikhail Grachev, which could have seen the Serbian score points after his disastrous accident during qualifying. This was even though Borković made his way up to ninth within the first two laps of the race.
Grachev and Borković would finish ahead of Davit Kajaia, whose Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR was involved in numerous on-track battles, with Atilla Tassi and Michela Cerruti being the last of the classified finishers.
Cerruti’s Alfa Romeo Giulietta suffered with a lack of power just three laps in, but gained valuable running time by returning on lap six.
The two retirements were WestCoast Racing’s Kevin Gleason, who had electrical dramas, along with Top Run’s Luca Rangoni, as his Subaru WRX TCR suffered collapsed left front suspension at the chicane on Lap six, after a great battle with Mora.
Race two starts at 17:05 local time (17:05 British Summer Time)
Race result
| POS | NO | DRIVER | NAT | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME/GAP | BEST | GD |
| 1 | 10 | Gianni MORBIDELLI |  |
West Coast Racing | Honda Civic TCR | 15 | 27:53.287 | 1:49.372 | 2 |
| 2 | 2 | Jean-Karl VERNAY |  |
Leopard Racing | Volkswagen Golf Gti TCR | 15 | 1.026 | 1:49.464 | 3 |
| 3 | 1 | Stefano COMINI |  |
Leopard Racing | Volkswagen Golf Gti TCR | 15 | 4.113 | 1:49.300 | 4 |
| 4 | 70 | Mat’o HOMOLA |  |
B3 Racing Team Hungary | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 5.463 | 1:49.276 | 1 |
| 5 | 77 | Sergey AFANASYEV |  |
Team Craft-Bamboo LUKOIL | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 5.841 | 1:49.477 | 5 |
| 6 | 54 | James NASH |  |
Team Craft-Bamboo LUKOIL | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 7.513 | 1:49.489 | 9 |
| 7 | 14 | Aku PELLINEN |  |
West Coast Racing | Honda Civic TCR | 15 | 14.651 | 1:50.716 | 6 |
| 8 | 74 | Pepe ORIOLA |  |
Team Craft-Bamboo LUKOIL | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 20.515 | 1:50.764 | 7 |
| 9 | 50 | Loris HEZEMANS |  |
Baporo Motorsport | SEAT León Cup Racer | 15 | 20.716 | 1:50.802 | 10 |
| 10 | 26 | Francisco MORA |  |
Baporo Motorsport | SEAT León Cup Racer | 15 | 21.078 | 1:50.175 | 14 |
| 11 | 8 | Mikhail GRACHEV | |
Liqui Moly Team Engstler | Volkswagen Golf Gti TCR | 15 | 23.111 | 1:50.240 | 13 |
| 12 | 62 | Dušan BORKOVIĆ |  |
B3 Racing Team Hungary | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 23.273 | 1:50.538 | 17 |
| 13 | 7 | Davit KAJAIA |  |
Liqui Moly Team Engstler | Volkswagen Golf Gti TCR | 15 | 24.555 | 1:50.656 | 12 |
| 14 | 9 | Attila TASSI |  |
B3 Racing Team Hungary | SEAT León TCR | 15 | 29.758 | 1:50.290 | 11 |
| 15 | 88 | Michela CERRUTI | |
Mulsanne Racing | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 12 | 3 Laps | 1:52.656 | 15 |
| R | 31 | Luca RANGONI | |
Top Run Motorsport | Subaru Sti TCR | 4 | 11 Laps | 1:51.558 | 16 |
| R | 24 | Kevin GLEASON |  |
West Coast Racing | Honda Civic TCR | 1 | 14 Laps | 2:31.463 | 8 |