If you are a fan of auto racing, take note, as the first date of the Costa Rica Touring Car Championship CTCC 2017 is taking place this coming weekend, February 4 and 5 with the Pennzoil Cup at Parque Viva.

14 cars and two new categories are part of this year’s edition of the CTCC in which the pilots will have to use all their skill and push their cars to the limit through three heats of 20 minutes each.

The Yaris Cup is one of the new categories included in the CTCC for this season and it has a total of 15 drivers already registered, “For the CTCC the category Yaris Cup concludes the formation process of new pilots that are coming out of karting and other categories”, explained Pablo Otero, Manager of CTCC

The Costa Rica Touring Car Championship is a competition that demands a lot of physical and emotional preparation from the drivers in order for them to withstand the heat and the fatigue experienced in the car cabin, especially in the category Endurance in two of the dates.

From gym work, to bike riding, to yoga and running in the beach, each pilot has a different way of preparing for the challenge ahead. “In the last days, I was able to do a special training in the sauna, since the heat is suffocating inside the vehicle’s cabin, the idea is to try to get used to it to do well in the competition”, said Danny Formal who runs for Hyundai this season.

Current champion Juan Carlos Alvarado, will have plenty of competition, Bernal Valverde, Danny Formal, Andrés Saravia, Amadeo Quirós, Jose Motalto, Gustavo Ortega, Erick Xiriniach, are just some of the pilots that will be part of the CTCC in the different participating teams, Suzuki, MG, Hyundai, Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, among others.

The official practice was programmed for this Tuesday and Wednesday, while the classification session will take place Saturday and the competition will be on Sunday, February 5, starting at 9 a.m., tickets for the event can be purchased in Boleteria.cr or at Walmart stores and Servimas in the metropolitan area and the prices range from ¢6.000 (aprox. $11 USD) to ¢11.000 (aprox.$20 USD), or ¢50.000 (aprox.$90 USD) for a Season Pass that will grant access to all six dates of the CTCC.

The remaining dates of the CTCC are:

April 1-2 Hankook Cup 2 heats of 30 minutes
May 13 Endurance 150km Shell Cup
July 8-9 Public decides
August 18-20 Public Decides
Sept. 23-24 Hankook Cup 150km