Rob Huff has called for TCR to re-think the current Balance of Performance (BoP) regulations after a disappointing weekend in the FIA World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) at the Slovakia Ring.
Both Sebastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR cars struggled for pace at the tail end of the 26-car field, just three weeks after being front-runners at Vila Real in Portugal.
BoP proved a hot topic over the weekend, with six cars (three Hyundais, three Hondas) excluded from sessions for technical infringements.
“It’s been a terrible weekend, and not for the right reasons,” said Huff.
“The guys have done a fantastic job getting the new cars ready for this weekend after the trouble we had in Portugal, and it’s a shame to be repaying their efforts with a zero score weekend from both myself and my team-mate Mehdi (Bennani).
“Unfortunately, it’s fairly clear where the problem is, and there’s something the championship needs to sort out.
“In Qualifying 2, we found more pace but were still 1.8 seconds from the Hyundais. We know because of the pace we had at Vila Real in Portugal we’re a little heavier this weekend, but we’re only 10kg heavier than them, and they have a power reduction and are 20mm higher than us, so with that they should be the same as us, not nearly two seconds faster.
“We had no performance this weekend, and no chance to fight. We had a local driver in a Golf at the race this weekend, and we were also 1.7 seconds faster than him, and he’s been around this track 40 times and holds the lap record in a Ferrari around here.
“It’s been a frustrating weekend for all of us, and with BoP the talking point of the weekend, with Hyundais and Hondas being excluded left, right and centre, clearly something needs to be done, and I hope they use the two months break until the next round to find a solution, as this isn’t what we’re here for.”
The championship heads next to Ningbo in China for the first of four flyaway races to conclude the inaugural season on the final weekend of September.