MM Motorsport’s Marco Butti topped the times in Friday’s free practice sessions for TCR Europe at the Hockenheimring, posting the fastest lap of the German circuit in the Friday morning session.
Butti lapped the track in 1 minute 48.285 seconds in the opening session of the day, which had started under drizzle but improved thereafter, allowing the young Italian to put in a quick lap in the final minute of the session.
Eric Gené was second quickest in the best Monlau Motorsport CUPRA, albeit over a second off the impressive pace set by Butti’s Honda.
Target Competition’s Max Hart was third quickest in the best Hyundai, a further tenth of a second adrift.
Aikoa Racing’s Nicola Baldan went quickest in the afternoon session, which was good enough for fourth overall out of the day’s running, the Italian having been seventh in the first session and the top Audi driver in the second session.
Jimmy Clairet was fourth in FP1 in his Audi, ahead of the RC2 Racing Honda of Felipe Fernández in fifth and the top Solite Indigo Racing Hyundai of Junui Park in sixth.
Ruben Volt was eighth fastest behind Baldan in FP1, and the ALM Motorsport driver also trailed the Italian in FP2, when he was second overall, a quarter of a second adrift of Baldan.
In first practice the top ten was completed by Monlau’s Jenson Brickley and MA:GP’s Viktor Andersson – neither driver hung on in the top ten in second practice.
The biggest improver in FP2 was championship leader Teddy Clairet – up from 14th in FP1 to third in the afternoon session despite hauling the maximum 40 kg of compensation weight, whilst PMA Motorsport duo Nicolas Taylor and Felice Jelmini also made it into the top ten, in seventh and eighth respectively, in their Audis.
A more competitive second session saw the top eight drivers covered by under a second.
Qualifying gets underway at 09:10 CEST (08:10 BST) on Saturday morning.
First practice result
| POS | NO | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 111 |  |
Marco BUTTI | MM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 1:48.285 | – |
| 2 | 28 |  |
Eric GENÉ Casanovas | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 13 | 1:49.471 | 1.186 |
| 3 | 69 |  |
Max HART | Target Srl | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 14 | 1:49.555 | 1.270 |
| 4 | 21 |  |
Jimmy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 15 | 1:49.592 | 1.307 |
| 5 | 19 | |
Felipe FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 12 | 1:49.643 | 1.358 |
| 6 | 87 |  |
Junui PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 9 | 1:49.752 | 1.467 |
| 7 | 8 | |
Nicola BALDAN | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 14 | 1:49.765 | 1.480 |
| 8 | 27 |  |
Ruben VOLT | ALM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 6 | 1:49.837 | 1.552 |
| 9 | 246 |  |
Jenson BRICKLEY | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 15 | 1:50.058 | 1.773 |
| 10 | 10 |  |
Viktor ANDERSSON | MA:GP | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 12 | 1:50.090 | 1.805 |
| 11 | 97 | |
Junesung PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 10 | 1:50.352 | 2.067 |
| 12 | 33 | |
Santiago CONCEPCIÓN | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 16 | 1:50.517 | 2.232 |
| 13 | 80 | |
Filippo BARBERI | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 15 | 1:50.674 | 2.389 |
| 14 | 20 | |
Teddy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 15 | 1:50.762 | 2.477 |
| 15 | 17 |  |
Nicolas TAYLOR | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 1:50.812 | 2.527 |
| 16 | 48 | |
Mikael KARLSSON | ALM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 15 | 1:50.877 | 2.592 |
| 17 | 44 | |
Felice JELMINI | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 8 | 1:51.576 | 3.291 |
| 18 | 45 | |
Victor FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 16 | 1:52.394 | 4.109 |
| 19 | 98 | |
Pierre-Arnaud NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 15 | 1:52.487 | 4.202 |
| 20 | 6 | |
Jean-Laurent NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 6 | 1:52.577 | 4.292 |
Second practice result
| POS | NO | NAT | DRIVER | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 8 | |
Nicola BALDAN | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 15 | 1:48.570 | – |
| 2 | 27 | |
Ruben VOLT | ALM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 12 | 1:48.822 | 0.252 |
| 3 | 20 | |
Teddy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 14 | 1:48.838 | 0.268 |
| 4 | 111 | |
Marco BUTTI | MM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 1:48.993 | 0.423 |
| 5 | 19 | |
Felipe FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 1:49.093 | 0.523 |
| 6 | 28 | |
Eric GENÉ Casanovas | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 13 | 1:49.121 | 0.551 |
| 7 | 17 | |
Nicolas TAYLOR | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 12 | 1:49.445 | 0.875 |
| 8 | 44 | |
Felice JELMINI | PMA Motorsport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 12 | 1:49.548 | 0.978 |
| 9 | 4 | |
Julien BRICHÉ | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 16 | 1:49.627 | 1.057 |
| 10 | 80 | |
Filippo BARBERI | Aikoa Racing | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 13 | 1:49.659 | 1.089 |
| 11 | 21 | |
Jimmy CLAIRET | Team Clairet Sport | Audi RS3 LMS TCR II | 12 | 1:49.709 | 1.139 |
| 12 | 10 | |
Viktor ANDERSSON | MA:GP | Lynk & Co 03 TCR | 13 | 1:49.802 | 1.232 |
| 13 | 246 | |
Jenson BRICKLEY | Monlau Motorsport | CUPRA Leon VZ TCR | 14 | 1:49.821 | 1.251 |
| 14 | 87 | |
Junui PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 12 | 1:49.967 | 1.397 |
| 15 | 6 | |
Jean-Laurent NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 1:50.242 | 1.672 |
| 16 | 98 | |
Pierre-Arnaud NAVARRO | JSB Compétition | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 16 | 1:50.357 | 1.787 |
| 17 | 45 | |
Victor FERNÁNDEZ Gil | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 1:50.794 | 2.224 |
| 18 | 33 | |
Santiago CONCEPCIÓN | Auto Club RC2 Valles | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 14 | 1:50.937 | 2.367 |
| 19 | 97 | |
Junesung PARK | Solite Indigo Racing | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 13 | 1:52.353 | 3.783 |
| 20 | 48 | |
Mikael KARLSSON | ALM Motorsport | Honda Civic Type-R FL5 TCR | 13 | 1:57.201 | 8.631 |
| 21 | 69 | |
Max HART | Target Srl | Hyundai Elantra N TCR | 11 | 2:04.101 | 15.531 |