TCR Australia targets WTCR wildcard entry

The series has already outlined a prize pool worth north of $250,000, with the inaugural champion set to pocket $100,000, second and third getting $50,000 and $25,000 each, and another $25,000 for the best privateer.

There is also a pole position award, with $1000 going to the polesitter at each round.

A further $50,000 has been earmarked as an 'emerging talent' award to give a driver the opportunity to compete overseas.

That overseas opportunity may well come at World Cup level, with plans for the money to fund a WTCR wildcard for an Australian driver later this year.

Should it not work with a WTCR round, TCR Europe and TCR Asia are also options.

"That's absolutely our plan," Matt Braid, head of TCR Australia promotional rights holder Australian Racing Group, told Motorsport.com.

"The transferability of the cars and the drivers around the TCR ranks globally is a key attraction of the series. From the outset it's one of the things we wanted to promote.

"So the intention is that we would work with TCR and WSC globally to see what opportunities we have for Australian drivers to do wildcards in WTCR, or Asian series, or other European series.

"That's a key thing that we will absolutely be working very hard towards."

The 2019 WTCR season ends with an Asian swing, which would make geographic sense for an Aussie wildcard entry.

The rounds in China and Japan are before the end of the TCR Australia season, while Macau clashes with the final Aussie round at The Bend.

The WTCR season-ending Malaysian round, however, is well clear of the end of the TCR Australia campaign.

TCR Australia kicks off its inaugural season at Sydney Motorsport Park this Friday.

Motorsport.TV will be live streaming every race of the 2019 TCR Australia season.