Comini, Gene become first TCR winners in Malaysia

A 17-car field comprising SEAT, Hondas, Audi, Opel and Ford machinery was assembled for the debut of TCR, which is run by former World Touring Car Championship chief Marcello Lotti.

The Sepang weekend featured multiple adjustments of TCR's Balance of Performance, starting with weight breaks for rivals after the SEATs' strong practice pace.

Bu Honda team West Coast was then frustrated that it had to put weight back on after its driver Kevin Gleason took pole as organisers put everyone back to the minimum base weight for the race.

Both race wins went to teams running the SEAT Leon, which is a modified version of the car already used in the firm's Eurocup.

Target driver Comini - a SEAT Eurocup frontrunner last year - escaped from an eventful first lap to take a clear win in race one on Saturday.

He led an all-SEAT podium ahead of Craft-Bamboo drivers Pepe Oriola and Sergei Afanasiev.

Ex-F1 racer Gianni Morbidelli was the lead runner among West Coast's JAS-built Hondas as he chased Afanasiev to the flag in fourth, while Gleason tumbled to sixth behind Comini's team-mate, ex-Rebellion LMP1 driver Andrea Belicchi.

Long-time SEAT WTCC man Gene led a one-two for Craft-Bamboo from his reversed-grid pole in race two, fending off Afanasiev, Morbidelli and Comini.

Eleven cars made it to the finish in each race.

TCR remains on the F1 bill for its second round in China in a fortnight and will also feature on the support package for the Singapore GP in September.