PARIS—Kumho Tire Co. Inc.'s backing of the TCR World Tour concept kicked up a notch recently as the championship—a collective of 20 national/regional touring-car racing series—gained recognition as an international championship, to be known henceforth as the Kumho FIA TCR World Tour.
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the Paris-based motorsports sanctioning body, disclosed recently that it had elevated the TCR World Tour to an FIA-designated international competition ahead of its second season.
As such, the TCR World Tour—which uses Touring Car Championship (TCR) regulations to determine vehicle eligibility—becomes the recognized international touring-car championship, replacing the World Touring Car Cup (which used Goodyear tires) that suspended operations in early 2022.
Kumho Tire Co. Inc.'s involvement dates to January 2022, when it struck a race-tire supply deal with TCR series' organizer World Sporting Consulting (WSC) Ltd. That led to the South Korean tire maker securing the designated tire supply contracts with nine TCR championship series operating around the world: Australia, Brazil, Denmark, Eastern Europe, Europe, Finland, Middle East, South America and Spain.
The inaugural Kumho FIA TCR World Tour will feature nine events, with the geographical reach of the series increasing to six continents from four with the addition of qualifying races in Africa and North America. The North American race—part of the Michelin Pilot Challenge—will be held June 7-8 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Lexington, Ohio.