A trio of local racers will join the FIA TCR World Tour grid for this weekend’s races on the streets of Vila Real, bolstering the grid to 17 cars.
38-year-old Daniel Teixeira will race a Hyundai Elantra N for the JT59 Racing Team, in the same setup that he has used recently to compete in the Campeonato de Portugal de Velocidade.
Teixeira also made occasional appearances in TCR Spain and TCR Europe last year, including a best finish of fourth at Estoril in TCR Spain in a competitive field.
Michel Fernandes, 42, will race in a Peugeot 308 run by the Luxembourg-based outfit J. Santos Competicão. Fernandes has mainly experience in hillclimbing events, but will tackle the tricky street circuit on his maiden appearance in TCR circuit racing.
Manuel Fernandes Jr, 31, will race a CUPRA Leon VZ run by SP Compétition, alongside team-mates Aurélien Comte and John Filippi.
Fernandes Jr is from Vila Real and has previously competed on the circuit in national and historical events.