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The Swiss-based team Vuković Motorsport returned to TCR Eastern Europe after three years, and team chief Milenko Vuković managed to bring a Renault Mégane RS TCR, developed by his team, to third place in both races at Hungaroring.
The last time that Vuković Motorsport started in TCR Eastern Europe was in a one-off race weekend at the Red Bull Ring in 2019. Its driver Tomáš Pekař won the race and it was a huge success for the team. Now, in 2022, team owner Vuković is behind the wheel of their first car, a Mégane. Their second car is driven by gentleman driver Franjo Kovač.
“It was the first race weekend for me in six years, so I needed a bit of time to get used to it again,” said Vuković during the opening round of the championship at Hungaroring. The results were really important to him because his team has been developing the car, so better results mean better business.
“People who know me are aware that I worked very hard to achieve these results. These cars are my products, my development. Other cars are produced and developed by large factories, but I have a very small company of 12 employees, with whom I’ve produced ten Méganes and managed to homologate them for WTCR and FIA. I’ve invested my life into it and we work hard on it every day,” explained Vuković.
The results were really great for Vuković and his Mégane TCR. He had a great first start and moved from tenth position to third, which he was able to hold from the attacking Petr Semerád. In the second race, Vuković took the lead and had been reaching for the win until Maťo Homola hit him and forced him to run off the track. In the end, Vuković finished third and had mixed feelings about the whole thing. His teammate, gentleman driver Franjo Kovač, finished 12th and 15th, so the two drivers saw the chequered flag in both races, which is also important for further development and success in TCR Eastern Europe.
“I like all the people behind the championship. Mr. Josef Křenek is a great person and so are all the guys around him. The series and the whole weekend were very relaxed, with friendly people all over. Now we need to analyse all of the data, learn from it, and come back better and stronger for the next race weekend,” said Vuković, who is looking forward to the next round at the Red Bull Ring.
