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How WTCR teams have employed new two-car limit for 2019 season

New rules stipulate only two-car teams can compete in the World Touring Car Cup from 2019, in conjunction with a wider limit of four cars per brand being entered

Those changes ratified at last December's World Motor Sport Council meeting were part of a handful of sporting adjustments aimed at balancing participation among brands, as well as preventing an escalation of costs.

While the four-car limit has ensured an even spread of seven manufacturers has been retained, a number of those brands' representatives are effectively running four cars - meaning those squads have been required to split their entries into two separate entities.

The BRC Racing squad that originally assisted Hyundai with the development of its i30 N has now assumed full responsibility for the brand's WTCR activities, as the Cyan Racing squad that helped Yvan Muller Racing run a pair of i30 Ns to the 2018 teams' title will become the first team to run Geely brand Lynk & Co's cars.

BRC will field two cars under the BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse banner for reigning champion Gabriele Tarquini and Norbert Michelisz, who will both race as Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing drivers in 2019, and two more for BMW factory drivers Nicky Catsburg and Augusto Farfus - who are entered with the BRC Hyundai N Lukoil Racing Team.

Cyan will once again run cars from the Geely family in 2019 after what it described as a "really awkward" season running Hyundais, but has kept '18 drivers Thed Bjork and Yvan Muller together for its first assault with the Lynk & Co 03.

World Touring Car champions Bjork and Muller will race for Cyan Racing Lynk & Co, while the team's new arrivals - Muller's nephew Yann Ehrlacher and three-time WTCC champion Andy Priaulx - will be paired under the Cyan Performance Lynk & Co banner.

Volkswagen is the final manufacturer represented by four cars from the same operation.

Sebastien Loeb Racing has opted for the same strategy as Cyan with its team split; it has kept 2018 drivers Rob Huff and Mehdi Bennani together at SLR VW Motorsport, while double Johan Kristoffersson and Benjamin Leuchter will drive for SLR Volkswagen.

In each instance, all separate entities have been required to run different liveries.

Comtoyou will also run two teams - in addition to assisting new arrival PWR Racing - but these will be split between Audi and Cupra set-ups.

The squad, which ran four Audis last year, will run a pair of RS3s for WTCR race winner Frederic Vervisch and series Niels Langeveld as Comtoyou Team Audi Sport plus cars for Tom Coronel and Aurelien Panis at Comtoyou DHL Team Cupra Racing.

Audi's second representative is long-standing partner WRT and PWR will run a pair of Cupras alongside its TCR Scandinavia commitment.

Munnich Motorsport and KCMG will run Honda Civics and Alfa Romeo builder Romeo Ferraris will run two Giulietta Veloces as Team Mulsanne.

Full-season entry list

BRC Squadra Corse Hyundai: Gabriele Tarquini, Norbert Michelisz
BRC Racing Team Hyundai: Augusto Farfus, Nicky Catsburg
KCMG Honda: Attila Tassi, Tiago Monteiro
Comtoyou Audi: Niels Langeveld, Frederic Vervisch
Cyan Racing Lynk & Co: Thed Bjork, Yvan Muller
SLR VW Motorsport Volkswagen: Rob Huff, Mehdi Bennani
SLR Volkswagen: Johan Kristoffersson, Benjamin Leuchter
Munnich Motorsport Honda: Nestor Girolami, Esteban Guerrieri
Team Mulsanne Alfa Romeo: Kevin Ceccon, Ma Qing Hua
PWR Racing Cupra: Daniel Haglof, Mikel Azcona
Comtoyou Cupra: Tom Coronel, Aurelien Panis
WRT Audi: Gordon Shedden, Jean-Karl Vernay
Cyan Performance Lynk & Co: Yann Ehrlacher, Andy Priaulx

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