The World Touring Car Championship looks set to visit the United States in 2012 after 'tentatively' reaching an agreement with the Infineon Raceway management to hold a race at the Sonoma venue in September of next year.
WTCC promoter Marcello Lotti met with Infineon Raceway president and general manager Steve Page earlier this week. Lotti has been working on getting the series into the United States for some time.
“Bringing the championship to the USA was the next item in our agenda and the last one to fulfil our aim for a really global calendar,” said Lotti. “So far we had worked to establish our European and South American events, reinforce our presence in Asia and return to Morocco. Now we feel that the time has come to expand to the US market that is a priority for our manufacturers and stakeholders.
“Infineon Raceway is a modern racetrack with impressive facilities, and I believe it is the ideal location to host a WTCC event. I am very satisfied of the meeting we had with Steve Page that enabled us to find an agreement for submitting to the FIA the proposal to enter the WTCC Race of US in the 2012 calendar.”
Page said: “The WTCC offers the kind of door-to-door hard-fought competition that American racing fans really respond to and we're very excited about the opportunity to introduce this series to the North American continent. The Infineon Raceway road course is an ideal circuit for these cars and we look forward to introducing Sonoma-style racing to a world-wide audience.”
