Teddy Clairet wins in Misano and jumps on top of TCR Europe

TCR Europe has a new points leader, as Teddy Clairet won the second race in Misano, ousting his brother Jimmy from the top of the standings.

From the pole of the reversed grid, Teddy Clairet didn’t crack under huge pressure from his three followers and became the first driver capable to score a second win in the current season. Saturday evening, Ruben Volt had won the first race, making seven different winners in seven races.

In the Drivers’ championship, Teddy has built a 14-point lead over Jimmy who was sidelined by technical issues in both races. The third-placed Eric Gené has closed in, only four points behind Jimmy and four ahead of his own teammate Jenson Brickley. Marco Butti and Felipe Fernández remain at striking distance with gaps of 28 and 42 points respectively, while Volt has moved up to seventh, 45 points behind just like Junesung Park.

Race 1 – Volt had secured his first pole since 2023, beating series newcomer Jacopo Cimenes by 64 thousandths. Several title pretenders had failed the cut for Q2, including Jimmy Clairet, Nicola Baldan, Nicolas Taylor and Max Hart. As the sun was setting, Volt led at the start followed by Brickley, Santiago Concepción, Cimenes and Gené. The leading pair ran away while there was a fierce battle for third, with Concepción being chased by a train of seven cars. Cimenes began to attempt overtaking the Spaniard and eventually succeeded in lap 5; Concepción lost concentration and was also passed by Gené.

The race became processional, and the top positions did not change until lap 14, when Gené retired from fourth with a flat front tyre. Up front, Volt kept Brickely at safe distance and took his first win of the season, while Cimenes finished on the podium on his maiden appearance in the series.

The points leader Jimmy Clairet had retired in lap 3 with fuel feeding problems.

Race 2 – Teddy Clairet and Felipe Fernández filled the front row of the reversed grid; Clairet sprinted to the lead, while Gené passed Fernández for second. In lap 2, Butti too overtook Fernández moving up to third. The safety car was called in lap 3 to recover Filippo Barberi’s Audi from the gravel and when racing resumed, Clairet was under pressure from Gené. Further back, Baldan retired after an incident with Taylor.

The battle for the lead became a four-car affair, as Butti and Fernández joined the leading pair, them running all within 1.5 seconds. Despite the pressure, Clairet didn’t offer his competitors any opportunities and claimed his second win of the season, while his brother Jimmy had retired once again with the same issue.

The series will resume after the summer break at the Red Bull Ring, September 5/7.

Race 1

1. Ruben Volt (ALM Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 16 laps
2. Jenson Brickley (Monlau Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 0.747
3. Jacopo Cimenes (MM Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 2.117

Race 2

1. Teddy Clairet (Team Clairet Sport, Audi RS 3 LMS), 15 laps
2. Eric Gené (Monlau Motorsport, CUPRA Leon VZ), 0.751
3. Marco Butti (MM Motorsport, Honda Civic Type R FL5), 1.483

Championship points

1. T. Clairet, 145 pts; 2. J. Clairet, 131; 3. E. Gené, 127

Picture: TCR Europe