INGALL JOINS TCR AT THE BEND

Russell Ingall joins TCR field for The Bend – Photo: InSyde Media

Australian touring car legend Russell Ingall will get his maiden chance in the carsales TCR Australia at The Bend Motorsport Park this weekend.

The former Supercars champion and two-time Bathurst 1000 winner will drive an Audi RS 3 TCR at the new South Australian circuit.

It will mark the veteran 55 year-old’s first-ever race in a TCR car, his debut at The Bend circuit and, his first competitive outing in an Audi race car.

The car that Ingall will drive is the #22 Audi that was raced by Dutchman Rik Breukers in Sydney and rising star Hamish Ribarits at Phillip Island.

“I’ve spoken about TCR a lot, so it’s great to finally get to a chance to see exactly what all the hype is about,” said Russell Ingall.

“Paul Morris and I have been discussing TCR for quite some time on our online show. ‘The Dude’ (Morris) was at the last round at Phillip Island, and he was very complimentary. He believed that it was more exciting live than on TV.

“His recommendation really gave me the drive to get into a car and see what it’s really about.

“I thought my first experience would be on the sidelines, but I’m throwing myself into the deep end a bit. I’ve never sat in one of the cars, and I’ve never raced at The Bend, but I guess its no different to other new categories our tracks that that I’ve been doing all through my career.

“For me, it’s a new track and I need to learn the car – you don’t get much more challenging circumstances, but sometimes having no pre conceived ideas that can be better.”

“I haven’t raced competitively since the end of last year, but it’s funny how quickly you get back into race mode. I’ve been watching videos of TCR from here and overseas, and it is really some of the best racing. It’s phenomenal how good the racing looks and how close the competition is, so it’s great to be part of it.”

Ingall grew up in South Australia where he started his path to racing success in the 1980s in karts. An illustrious career in motorsport followed, including winning the Formula Ford Championships both home and abroad, as well as other international open-wheel competition.

Ingall returned to Australia in the mid-1990s, racing in the Supercars Championship and winning just about every major race worth mentioning.

To kick start the weekend, Ingall will get an early taste of his Audi TCR machine, sampling the car at Mallala Motorsport Park tomorrow (Thursday).

Track action kicks off on Friday with two practice sessions ahead of qualifying and Race 1 on Saturday and two more races on Sunday.

Catch all of the racing live, free and in HD on SBS, or watch the live stream.

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