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TCR Europe champion joins PWR Racing, completes 2019 WTCR grid

The 2019 World Touring Car Cup field has been set after Swedish outfit PWR Racing announced its two-car Cupra line-up, which will include reigning TCR Europe champion Mikel Azcona

TCR Scandinavia frontrunner PWR announced earlier this month that it would step up to WTCR alongside its domestic commitments, having secured the support of existing WTCR squad Comtoyou.

PWR did not announce its line-up at that time but two of its drivers, ex-Volvo World Touring Car Championship and Supercars driver Robert Dahlgren and Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky, were thought unlikely to make the step up as they had already signed up for the 2019 TCR Scandinavia campaign.

New arrival Azcona, pictured below, scored one victory and a further four podiums in his title-winning TCR Europe season.

That campaign with Cupra squad PCR Sport was built on consistency - he finished 13 of the 14 races in the points - which helped him comfortably beat a number of higher-profile names, including Audi WTCR driver Jean-Karl Vernay, to the crown.

"I feel super-happy and proud to join PWR and CUPRA Racing in the WTCR," said Azcona.

"I look forward to the hard work in front of me, to be competitive in this tough field full of world champions.

"Lastly I want to thank PWR and Cupra Racing for believing in me as a driver."

Azcona will race alongside the team's CEO Daniel Haglof, who has driven for PWR for the past six seasons since he founded it alongside Peter Wallenberg in 2012.

"I'm driving against the very best in this category of racing," said Haglof, who finished third in TCR Scandinavia last season.

"To be doing it with the team that me and Poker [Wallenberg] have built together is a huge achievement.

"My team-mate Mikel is a really promising driver who aligns very well with PWR Racing's ambition to aid young talent in their racing careers."

Azcona and Haglof complete a 26-car 2019 WTCR grid, which like the inaugural season will feature seven brands.

The Cyan Racing squad behind Volvo's WTCC success - which also operated Yvan Muller Racing's Hyundai WTCR programme last season - will bring Geely brand Lynk & Co to the series, but the Peugeot 308TCR campaigned in 2018 by DG Sport Competition will not be on the grid.

Complete 2019 WTCR line-up

BRC Racing Hyundai: Gabriele Tarquini, Norbert Michelisz, Augusto Farfus, Nicky Catsburg
Munnich Motorsport Honda: Esteban Guerrieri, Nestor Girolami
KCMG Honda: Tiago Monteiro, Attila Tassi
Sebastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen: Rob Huff, Johan Kristoffersson, Mehdi Bennani, Benjamin Leuchter
WRT Audi: Gordon Shedden, Jean-Karl Vernay
Comtoyou Audi: Frederic Vervisch, Niels Langeveld
Comtoyou Cupra: Aurelien Panis, Tom Coronel
Team Mulsanne Alfa Romeo: Kevin Ceccon, Ma Qing Hua
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co: Thed Bjork, Yvan Muller, Andy Priaulx, Yann Ehrlacher
PWR Racing Cupra: Mikel Azcona, Daniel Haglof

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