2010 TM Master Cup season

The 2010 TM Master Cup season was contested over a 19-race schedule, and saw Alexis Rainsford win her second driver's championship, the first owner's title for the renamed Volpi Racing Team.

Team Structures
The team and manufacturer structures of the Master Cup Series were radically overhauled. Thirteen teams were granted a full-time entry, with licenses for three full-time cars and a fourth part-time car.

To give smaller teams an opportunity to participate in the series as well, the Independent's Trophy was introduced. At the regular events, the remaining three spaces on the grid were allocated to part-time teams, each attempting to qualify for six of the sixteen races. The Trophy would be awarded to the driver and team who scored the most points in their best four finishes.

While the remainder of the calendar limited entries to the full-time teams and IT competitors, the Karjala Grand Prix and Round of Decatur remained open to one-off entrants.

Manufacturers
The chassis selected by full-time teams became exclusive to that team, while Independents and one-off entries were given the choice of making their own manufacturer agreements, or utilizing the Omecha spec chassis. Some manufacturers elected to take personal ownership of their factory teams; Volpi officially absorbed JC Racing and rebranded it as Volpi Racing Team, while rival Corsa similarly absorbed Arrowtech, and Nemoto took control of Star Motorsports. National Racing rebranded as Team Saar USA and introduced the new Eagle model; the Tremwell sister brand supplied cars to Camelot Racing.

FLASH Racing unsurprisingly became the official Inglesby team, and Flare Motorsports carried the flag for Lenard. Hodges-Walter Racing and Ocean Motorsports returned with Calton-Morel and STS, respectively. Majestic Motorsports joined as the Gasnier factory team after taking over McCallister Motorsports.

To some controversy, TMMC officials also loosened restrictions on privateer constructors, opening the door to race cars that do not have a street-legal equivalent. They were represented by Power Steering, Inc., which developed the JD Predator in conjunction with James Dalton; Team EFR with the Journey; and Russian newcomers Katzev Engineering.

New engine rules were put into effect, as the series switched from normally-aspirated V8 engines to turbocharged V6 engines. The fuel cells were also smaller than they were in 2009, but this did not have a noticeable effect on the racing.

Schedule
The series also underwent a major schedule realignment. For the first time since 1987, the Round of Daytona was not on the schedule, with the Round of Japan replacing it as the season opener. The calendar then moves across the Pacific to Australia and Brazil, followed by a two-race American stint as Carbondale and Texas. The series then travels to Europe for a continuous tour of the continent, with England and Karjala followed by the remainder of the original European leg of the schedule (with the exception of the Round of Russia, see below). The remainder of the calendar then consisted of the remaining American and Canadian rounds.

Promotional Video
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Schedule
&Dagger; The Round of Russia was originally scheduled to be the 12th round of the championship, but was postponed for safety concerns. Wildfires broke out in western Russia only a week before the race was to be run.


 * The blue boxes represent a road/street course race.

One-off entrants
This list consists of teams that did not contest the full schedule or Independent's Trophy; one-off entrants that attempted to qualify for Karjala or Decatur, and local teams that filled the field for the Round of Russia.

Points System
Some minor changes were made to the points system for this season.


 * 2 points goes to the race's polesitter.
 * 1 point goes to the driver(s) who lead a lap during the race.
 * 5 points goes to the driver who leads the most laps in the race.