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WORLD AND LIFE
TCR CHAMPIONS 2016
NEWS
HOME
DRIVERS TEAM
by Mark James
Stefano Comini became the 2016 TCR
International Series champion in
Macau after a hard-fought battle
with his Leopard Racing teammate
Jean-Karl Vernay and the two Craft-
Bamboo Lukoil drivers James Nash
and Pepe Oriola. It was a familiar
situation for Comini – he won the
2015 title in much the same way –
but he admits that he hadn’t been
expecting the additional pressure of
defending his crown.
“I felt quite emotional when I won
the title as I felt more pressure than
last time. I wasn’t so positive at the
start of the weekend, as it has been
really difficult all year between Craft-
Bamboo Lukoil and Leopard Racing
but I have to say that I think we are
the best team with the best cars and,
of course, the best drivers!
”
Comini is one of the biggest
characters in the TCR paddock, a
larger-than-life figure who always
seems to have a twinkle in his eye.
He is the first to admit that his
sometimes unpredictable behavior
can cause issues, but is equally
quick to heap praise on those who
support him.
“The title isn’t only my victory – it’s
for everybody; for me, Jean-Karl, all
the Leopard team and Volkswagen
Motorsport. At the start of the year,
we had quite a difficult car. We
began slowly and we had a lot of
problems, but the work everyone did
was really amazing. I want to thank
my wife Roberta who has supported
me every step of the way, but to be
honest, I have so many people to
thank it’s like a book. My engineer
Charles Hodge, who did the same
kind of psychological support work
that my wife was doing; you know
that it’s sometimes quite hard to
work with me because I can be a bit
special, but Charles did a great job.
Huge thanks to René Verbist, to
Claudio Berro and to Vincent Vosse
from Leopard Racing; they chose me
for this season and I think they
Stefano Comini