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The fourth round of TCR Eastern Europe was marked by the success of the Hyundai Janík Motorsport team. Maťo Homola continued his tradition of Saturday victories, while on Sunday, Adam Kout celebrated his first win of the season at the Autodrom Most.
It seemed like the established pattern of this season would continue. In the previous three rounds at Balaton Park, Red Bull Ring, and Slovakia Ring, Maťo Homola with his Hyundai Elantra won every Saturday, and Attila Bucsi with his Hyundai i30 N TCR from the M1RA Motorsport team took the top spot every Sunday.
Homola absolutely dominated the Saturday race in Most. He secured pole position in the wet qualifying session and maintained his lead despite a slight nudge from Giacomo Ghermandi at the first chicane right after the start. Homola held onto first place with Adam Kout closely following him throughout the race. There was no battle between them, and instead, they pulled away from their pursuers, building a comfortable lead at the front.
However, the opening laps behind them were intense, and it took a few minutes for the order to settle. The race finished at a steady pace, which is typical for the first race of the weekend, where the starting grid is determined by qualifying. René Kircher with his Honda Civic from the Mertel Motorsport team secured third place ahead of Attila Bucsi, while Petr Čížek managed to keep Žarko Knego behind him in fifth.
The Sunday race was more exciting. Maťo Homola drew the highest possible number, 10, which meant the top ten drivers were reversed for the second race. Homola and Kout started from the fifth row. After a string of four second-place finishes, Kout was determined not to settle for another silver but aimed to win on his home track. In the first lap, he moved from ninth on the grid to take the lead and never looked back. His race seemed smooth, but two yellow phases and red flags made his path to his first win of the season more complicated. Nevertheless, he managed every restart safely, preventing second-place Petr Čížek with his Cupra from making an attack. Čížek, from the Expres Auto Racing team, achieved his first podium of the year, making it even sweeter as it was on his home track. The podium, filled with smiles, was completed by Croatian Žarko Knego with his Hyundai Elantra, who also celebrated his first top-three finish of the year.
For the first time this season, Attila Bucsi didn’t reach the podium. The young Hungarian had been contending with Homola for the title, but his fourth and sixth places in Most complicated his situation, allowing Adam Kout to close the gap to just six points.
There are still two rounds left in the season, which means the standings, with Homola, Bucsi, and Kout in the top three positions, can still change.
TCR Eastern Europe – Qualifying
