Dutch agency Creventic, the organising body behind the 24H Series powered by Hankook, has announced it has submitted an application for approval to the FIA for the new Touring Car Endurance Series powered by Hankook (TCES).
The inaugural season will be formed of three events: the Hankook 24H Silverstone (April 1-3), the Hankook 24H Slovakia Ring (June 14-16) and the Hankook 12H Meppen (September 23-24). Creventic states that the series is only eligible to touring cars, with regulations identical to those of the 24H Series powered by Hankook.
“Touring cars have always been an important factor in our races and the initiative for the inaugural 24H Dubai, which eventually led to what is now known as the 24H Series powered by Hankook, came from some touring car enthusiasts,” explained Creventic’s Helen Roukens. “The very positive feedback we received after the announcement of the Hankook 24H Silverstone as a race only for touring cars inspired us to look for other opportunities, which we found at the Slovakia Ring and in Meppen. Many teams asked us whether it would be possible to establish a separate series for touring car endurance races, which is what we did.”
At Silverstone, drivers are eligible to score points for both the TCES and the 24H Series powered by Hankook, as an extra motivation for drivers who normally race GT cars to take part in this touring car race as well. In the British round, they can score points for the overall standings. The events at Slovakia Ring and Meppen only count towards the TCES standings. “It is our aim to keep these events simple and affordable, to allow as many teams as possible to take part. As long as they don’t bring a GT car,” continued Roukens. “Of course, our 24H Series powered by Hankook remains unaffected by this, touring cars are more than welcome for these races, too, and here, our focus remains on the amateur drivers.”
