#15 – Franz Engstler #16 – Andrei Romanov
Romanov and Engstler are reunited at the Liqui Moly Team Engstler for the first time since 2008 when the team debuted in the WTCC.
While Romanov was in Germany, racing a Chevrolet Lacetti in the ADAC series, taking 3 victories throughout the season, Engstler was racing towards third in the Yokohama Independents Trophy with 2 Independent wins and 3 overall top 8 finishes. Engster also led 3 races during the 2009 season.
Engstler and Romanov took second in the team's championship when partnered together, they work well as a team and should be aiming to better their 2008 partnership.
The cars are proven, the drivers know they can compete at WTCC level, so 2010 should see the drivers knocking on the door of top 8 finishes, getting themselves in perfect position for the grid reversal.
Season Prediction: Should be at the sharp end of the Independents field; an overall podium can't be out of the question for Engstler. Romanov will back up Engstler during the season. All will depend on how well Engstler has recovered from his Macau accident.
TCF Driver Predictions:
- Engstler – bottom of points, top 3 in Independents. Outright podium could push towards middle of the pack.
- Romanov – Championship point possible with points now for top 10 drivers, Independent podiums probable.
