Geely Preface

Cyan Racing's relationship with the Geely holding group dates to 2010, when Geely acquired Volvo. The team, then competing under the Polestar Racing name in Scandinavian touring car events, subsequently transitioned through the Volvo banner and then ran as Lynk & Co's factory squad in the WTCR and the FIA TCR World Tour. By the time the Preface TCR was introduced for 2026, the team's co-operation with Geely had accumulated eleven world titles across two regulatory eras and three brands. Christian Dahl, owner of Cyan Racing, described the Preface TCR as "the most ambitious car we have developed together."

The Preface TCR is built on the CMA (Compact Modular Architecture) platform and developed jointly by Geely China Star Team and Cyan Racing. The road car on which it is based — known in Western markets as the Geely Preface and in China as the Geely Xingrui (星瑞) — is a mid-size sedan that entered production in 2020. Victor Yang, Senior Vice President of Brand Communication at Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, stated that bringing the Preface model into international touring car racing reflected the company's "confidence in the product and our long-term commitment to motorsport and the Kumho FIA TCR World Tour as a platform to strengthen our brand among global consumers."

Alexander Murdzevski Schedvin, Head of Geely Group Motorsport, described the programme as "a natural evolution of our collaboration with Cyan Racing," and Marcello Lotti, President of WSC, said the arrival confirmed the strength and global appeal of the TCR concept.

For the 2026 FIA TCR World Tour, Geely Cyan Racing retained the same four-car driver line-up that had represented Lynk & Co through the previous seasons: Thed Björk, Yann Ehrlacher, Santiago Urrutia, and Ma Qing Hua. The same quartet had occupied four of the five top positions in the 2025 final drivers' standings, with Ehrlacher winning his third World Touring Car title — and his first of the TCR World Tour era — ahead of Björk.

A test day at Misano Circuit was held in the weeks before the car's competitive debut, used to finalise setup and validate the performance of the Preface TCR for circuit racing conditions.

The car made its competitive debut at the Misano round of the 2026 FIA TCR World Tour. Ma Qing Hua drove the Preface TCR to victory in the race, giving the new car a championship win on its first competitive outing. Geely described it as a historic result for Chinese motorsport. Ma Qing Hua commented: "To represent Geely with a car derived from the Preface is a proud moment."

The transition from Lynk & Co to Geely branding for Cyan Racing's campaign is the third manufacturer change in the team's history, following its progression from Volvo to Lynk & Co. Cyan Racing's drivers' championship results under the Geely-affiliated programme include a Volvo drivers' title in 2017 and Lynk & Co titles in 2020, 2021, and 2025. Yann Ehrlacher took the 2025 title, with Björk finishing second. All four drivers for 2026 expressed motivation for the new chapter. Ehrlacher said of the Preface TCR that it "looks very promising," while Björk described the new car as "incredibly motivating."