After the restart of the 2026 season races on Argentine soil, the TCR South America continues its international route with a big novelty on the calendar: the debut at the Autódromo de Concordia, in the province of Entre Ríos. Valid for the seventh stage of the championship — named Copa Concordia Capital Nacional do Citrus —, the double round scheduled for September 12 and 13 promises to be a milestone in the title fight, imposing an unprecedented challenge to drivers and teams on a circuit completely unknown to the category.
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With 4,700 meters in length and 14 turns, the Argentine layout combines high-speed sections, long straights, and heavy braking points, such as the chicane located after the second corner and the fast opposite straight. In a fast learning environment about the track, the predictability and linear behavior of the Hankook Ventus S55H tire compound will be crucial for teams to find the ideal chassis setup and for drivers to seek the traction limit on corner exits and stability during decelerations.
The stage in Entre Ríos takes place right after the Hankook tire registered important marks at the Alta Gracia track (Córdoba). On the previous visit, the reference time set with Hankook tires was 1min31s986, surpassing the previous historic circuit record (1min33s082, from 2021) by exactly 1s096. In touring car racing, a gain of more than one second per lap represents a huge evolution in performance and grip.
Leandro Figueiredo, Hankook’s Warranty and Quality technician, analyzes the expected dynamics for the new challenge: “Debuting on a track where the category has never raced requires quick construction of technical data, and the consistency of the Hankook Ventus S55H plays a key role in this process. Concordia is a fast, long circuit and very demanding in terms of traction and stability under braking. The more predictable the tire’s response, the faster the driver gains confidence to attack the high-speed sections and explore the cars’ limits. We had significant technical results in Córdoba, where we lowered the record by more than a second, and our expectation for Concordia is to offer the same base of grip and safety for a high-level spectacle.”
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In the championship table, the Argentine double round gains decisive contours. In the last stage, Argentine Néstor Girolami and Brazilian Raphael Reis emerged victorious, while Argentine Leonel Pernía scored crucial points to remain in the overall lead. The stage will also feature novelties on the grid, such as the debut of Scuderia URT with Peugeot 308 GTI models and the fleet renewal of Uruguay Racing Team with the arrival of Cupra León VZ and Audi RS3 LMS Gen 2 models.
After the passage through Concordia, the TCR South America route in Argentine territory will continue through the cities of Posadas on October 4, and Rosario on November 8, before the grand final in Uruguay, in El Pinar, on December 6.
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