Um olhar sobre as corridas

Circuit Paul Ricard WTCC 2016 

 Rain session today here in Paul Ricard. Car is working ok so let's push tomorrow and see what we can do in qualy 👊🏻💪🏻👊🏻 #tiagosworld18 #honda#thepowerofdreams #paulricard

Sessão de testes à chuva hoje aqui em Paul Ricard. Tudo ok com o carro por isso amanhã na qualificação é atacar e ver onde estamos! — em Circuit Paul Ricard OFFICIEL.

Sábado

P1 this morning in free practice. So far so good but it's this afternoon that counts with qualy. Let's push 💪🏻👊🏻💪🏻 p.s: by the way, Kubica is not here, remember that yesterday was April Fool's Day 😂

Fui o mais rápido esta manhã no treino livre. Por agora tudo ok mas o que conta é agora à tarde na qualificação. Vamos com tudo! P.S: já agora o Kubica não se mudou para o WTCC, pelo menos por agora. Foi a minha piada do dia das mentiras 😂#tiagosworld18 #workhardplayhard#workhardplayhardtm18 #castrol #honda#hondaracing #brose #fludoswisswatch#monroesafetyambassador #10thseason — em Circuit Paul Ricard OFFICIEL.

Boa qualificação! Amanhã arranco de 2º para a primeira corrida aqui de Paul Ricard. Sinto-me muito confiante com o carro e toda a equipa Honda fez um excelente trabalho, agora amanhã é atacar e tentar trazer a vitória para Portugal! Corrida 1 em direto no Eurosport as 11:00 e depois a segunda as 16:00. Conto com o vosso apoio!!!

Good qualy!. Will start P2 tomorrow for race 1. I am felling really confortable with the car and all theHonda Racing WTCC boys did a very good job today. Let's see if tomorrow we can bring gold home!! Races live on Eurosport
#tiagosworld18 #workhardplayhard#workhardplayhardtm18 #castrol #honda#hondaracing #brose #fludoswisswatch#monroesafetyambassador #10thseason — a sentir-se motivado em Circuit Paul Ricard OFFICIEL.

Some action from today. Tomorrow the magic word is: ATTACK 👊🏻💪🏻👊🏻

Um bocadinho do dia de hoje. Amanhã a palavra mágica é só uma: ATAQUE 👊🏻💪🏻👊🏻 ‪#‎tiagosworld18‬ ‪#‎workhardplayhard‬‪#‎workhardplayhardtm18‬ ‪#‎castrol‬ ‪#‎honda‬ ‪#‎hondaracing‬ ‪#‎brose‬‪#‎fludoswisswatch‬ ‪#‎monroesafetyambassador‬ ‪#‎10thseason‬

Tiago Monteiro  vai sair da segunda linha  no circuito de Paul Ricard para a prova inaugural do Campeonato do Mundo de Carros de Turismo (WTCC),

 Real racing, WTCC France race 1, with epic battles for Tom Coronel 2016

Classificação corrida 1:

1. Rob Huff Castrol Honda Civic
2. Mehdi Bennani Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen C-Elysee +2.184s
3. Norbert Michelisz JAS Honda Civic +6.737s
4. Tiago Monteiro Castrol Honda Civic +7.911s
5. Hugo Valente LADA Sport Vesta +12.554s
6. Jose Maria Lopez Citroen Racing C-Elysee +12.955s
7. Thed Bjork Polestar Cyan Volvo S60 +22.162s
8. Nick Catsburg LADA Sport Vesta +23.708s
9. Tom Coronel ROAL Chevrolet Cruze +24.892
10. Gregoire Demoustier Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen C-Elysee +25.738s
11. Tom Chilton  Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen C-Elysee +26.429s
12. John Filippi Campos Chevrolet Cruze +26.908s
13. Yvan Muller Citroen Racing C-Elysee +40.095s
14. Rene Munnich Munnich Chevrolet Cruze +42.417s

Não terminaram 

15. Gabriele Tarquini LADA Sport Vesta
16. Fredrik Ekblom Polestar Cyan Volvo S60

"Guess who’s back! Career victory number 28 is a pretty special one, not only because I’ve had to wait quite a while to make a return to the top step of the podium, but because it was achieved in my first ever FIA WTCC outing with the Castrol Honda Racing WTCC team at Circuit Paul Ricard OFFICIEL (1-3 April) - http://tinyurl.com/zueakyw"

 Rob Huff Castrol Honda Civic

Première course WTCC de la saison, premier podium général pour Mehdi Bennani Officiel et première victoire dans le WTCC Trophy, grâce notamment à un super départ smile emoticon Après de belles batailles, Greg Demoustier prend le point de la 10e place et monte sur la 3e marche du podium du WTCC Trophy. Tom Chilton termine aux portes du Top 10. Course 2 à 17h15!

The first FIA WTCC race of 2016 starts in 15 min!

Live timing: bit.ly/1pTfdUy
Live TV: bit.ly/238rovn

Thed Björk climbs 9 positions in FIA WTCC Race 1 at Paul Ricard to finish P7 from P16 on the grid!

Team mate Fredrik Ekblom had to retire due to rear-suspension damage sustained at the chaotic start of the race. The team has managed to repair the car and he will be ready for the second race.

The team has repaired Fredrik Ekblom’s car and he will be on the grid forFIA WTCC Race 2, starting at 17:15 CET.

We are 15 min from FIA WTCC Race 2!
Live timing: bit.ly/1pTfdUy
Live TV: bit.ly/238rovn

 Início da prova

Fredrik Ekblom finished P10 in the second FIA WTCC race at Paul Ricard while Thed Björk had to retire with an electrical issue.

The results mean that ‪#‎Polestar‬ ‪#‎CyanRacing‬ has scored world championship points in both races of the season start

2ª Corrida Paul Ricard Circuit

Classificação corrida 2:

1. Jose Maria Lopez Citroën Racing C-Elysee
2. Tiago Monteiro Castrol Honda Civic +0.284 s
3. Norbert Michelisz JAS Honda Civic +3.111s
4. Yvan Muller Citroën Racing C-Elysee +8.562s
5. Nick Catsburg LADA Sport Vesta +9.814s
6. Rob Huff Castrol Honda Civic +19.934
7. Mehdi Bennani Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroën C-Elysee+21.792s
8. Hugo Valente LADA Sport Vesta +22.130s
9. Tom Chilton Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroën C-Elysee +22.389s
10. Fredrik Ekblom Polestar Cyan Volvo S60 +27.554s
11. Tom Coronel Chevrolet Cruze +32.142s
12. John Filippi Campos Chevrolet Cruze +32.166s
13. Gregoire Demoustier Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroën C-Elysee +35.629s

Não terminaram

14. Thed Bjork Polestar Cyan Volvo S60
15. Rene Munnich Munnich Chevrolet Cruze
16. Gabriele Tarquini ITA LADA Sport Vesta

 STORY OF THE DAY - THIS IS WTCC 2016

WTCC France, Race 2 highlights Tom Coronel from P4, 2016

A pair of TOP-5 finishes for LADA SPORT ROSNEFT in 2016 WTCC opener

Spirits are high at LADA SPORT ROSNEFT at the conclusion of the opening round of the 2016 FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) at Circuit Paul Ricard, as the Russian team was able to demonstrate that it is now more than a match for its rivals with solid points finishes for Nick Catsburg and Hugo Valente (Sunday 3 April).  

In the Opening Race, Valente found himself third on the initial run to Turn 1, while Catsburg and Gabriele Tarquini emerged from a frenetic opening-lap tussle in sixth and tenth respectively. 

Valente latched to the rear of Mehdi Bennani’s Citroen C-Elysee during the first half of the 16-lapper and he did a valiant job of attacking while playing a rear-guard action against the advancing Hondas of Norbert Michelisz and Tiago Monteiro. Sadly, the young Frenchman’s pace started to drop off as tyre wear became an issue and an opportunistic lunge by Michelisz was enough to relieve the LADA driver of third position and also allow Monteiro through. 

Thereafter, Valente turned his attention to the fast-approaching Citroen of Jose-Maria Lopez; the reigning World Champion did his best to force a mistake with some bold moves, but Valente kept a cool head under pressure and fended off the Argentinian brilliantly to collect ten well-deserved championship points for fifth position.  

Catsburg, who previously claimed to need training from teammate and touring car veteran, Tarquini, when it comes to door handle-to-door handle racing, showed great skill and judgement while embroiled in several high-intensity tussles on Sunday morning. 

The Dutch racer traded places with Tom Coronel on lap one and, after locking horns with Monteiro, spent most of the race in pursuit of the Chevrolet driver. Catsburg clearly had more pace, but bided his time. A fair, yet robust passing manoeuvre on the final approach to Turn 1 opened the door to Volvo’s Thed Bjork, but the dispute for eighth place went right down to the flag, with Catsburg coming out on top. 

Tarquini, meanwhile, was doing his utmost to hold back the Citroen of Gregoire Demoustier and the Volvo of Bjork while carefully managing tyre wear by keeping his distance to those ahead of him. However, on his eighth tour of the Southern French circuit, the Italian received a huge, race-ending biff from the wayward Demoustier that destroyed his right-rear suspension, and the Italian’s misfortune would continue on Sunday afternoon, as a collision resulted front-end damage and another retirement. 

His teammates fared a little better on the French Riviera, as a delighted Catsburg kept the top four honest while driving to a solid fifth place and Valente finished seventh following an incredibly busy race against the Citroens of Bennani and Tom Chilton. 

Catsburg said: “I am really happy, because last year the Race of France for us wasn’t very good and now we have come away with some fantastic results and a good haul of points. We couldn’t have dreamt of keeping up with the Citroens in 2015 and today we were right there with them. I still need to work on my starts and my racecraft – in race one I lost some positions while fighting, while in race two was much cleaner and I was able to get into a rhythm – but we can all be very thankful to the LADA team for what they have done over the winter. The drivers all share ideas openly and I think that is helping us move forward. I’m really excited about the next round!”

Valente said: “I’m very happy with how the opening round has panned out. I was disappointed with the outcome of race one; I can’t pretend to be happy with fifth after starting from the front, but I can’t complain too much because we weren’t originally on the reversed grid pole and we came away with solid points. I never got to drive last year’s Vesta, but it’s clear that the team has taken a big step over the winter. I have to step up my game because Nicky (Catsburg) was very fast today, but that’s a good challenge. I have been able to adapt my driving to the LADA Vesta as the weekend has progressed and that has helped in a lot of ways, so I’m encouraged for the rest of the season.”

Tarquini said: “It hasn’t been a good day in terms of the results for me personally, but it has been incredibly positive for LADA SPORT ROSNEFT as a whole. The car was very good and I was very happy with the balance. Nicky (Catsburg) is able to judge the improvements over the winter, because he drove the LADA Vesta at Circuit Paul Ricard last year. We really aren’t very far away from the Hondas and the Citroens and two or three tenths will make a big difference.”

Sébastien Loeb Racing Team

Un podium et un Top 10 au classement général, deux victoires dans le WTCC Trophy dont un doublé, et la première place de ce trophée réservé aux pilotes et teams indépendants. Tel est le bilan du team après la première manche du FIA WTCC.

Le résumé et les réactions de Mehdi Bennani Officiel, Tom Chilton et Grégoire Demoustier : http://goo.gl/LS83Hc

 AUTO - WTCC PAUL RICARD 2016

MULLER Yvan (fra) Citroen C Elysee team Citroen TOTAL WTCC portrait ambiance during the 2016 FIA WTCC World Touring Car Championship race of Paul Ricard, Le Castellet, France from April 1 to 3 - Photo Vincent Curutchet / DPPI.

World championship points for Polestar Cyan Racing in WTCC debut

2016-04-03

Thed Björk and Fredrik Ekblom scored world championship points in the first ever FIA World Touring Car Championship race weekend of the all-new programme of Polestar Cyan Racing.

Thed Björk provided the best show of the weekend in the first race where he climbed from last position on the grid to finish seventh, passing nine cars.

”I am really pleased with the weekend. We have got a receipt that we are on pace. We had some issues but that is to be expected and the team has done an amazing work with the car. I can’t wait to get to the next race in Slovakia,” said Björk.

Team mate Fredrik Ekblom was next to score world championship points in the second race, crossing the line in tenth position after a tough fight with, among others, former world champion Rob Huff.

”We have had a good first race and I am delighted leave Paul Ricard with points. The car is fast and I am longing for us to sink our teeth in all the data we have gathered in order to sharpen our knives even further ahead of the rest of the season,” said Ekblom.

Some technical issued came with the debut weekend, with a broken rear suspension for Ekblom in race one after an incident and an electrical issue for Björk in race two.

The total results of the season start are above expectation for the team, most importantly showing competitive pace with an all new car and programme of Polestar Cyan Racing.

”We can conclude that our setup with a Swedish car, Swedish drivers and an all-Swedish crew is working. Our mission for the first race was to gather data. We have done more than that with Thed giving us a great show in the first race and both drivers scoring world championship points,” said Alexander Murdzevski Schedvin, Head of Motorsport at Polestar.

The next WTCC race will be held in two weeks at the Slovakiaring, April 16-17th.

20160402_Polestar_0027

WTCC Race of France

Circuit: Paul Ricard

Length: 3481 m

Lap record (WTCC): 1:31.148, López

Results

Race 1 – Top 5

1 Rob Huff Honda Civic 16 laps

2 Mehdi Bennani Citroën C-Elysée +2.184

3 Norbert Michelisz Honda Civic +6.737

4 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +7.911

5 Hugo Valente Lada Vesta +12.554

…

7 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +22.162

NC Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60

Race 2 – Top 5

1 José-María López Citroën C-Elysée 17 laps

2 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.284

3 Norbert Michelisz Honda Civic +3.111

4 Yvan Muller Citroën C-Elysée +8.652

5 Nicky Catsburg Lada Vesta +9.814

…

10 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +27.554

DNF Thed Björk Volvo S60

Q3 – Top 5

1 José María López Citroën C-Elysée 1:28.950

2 Yvan Muller Citroën C-Elysée

3 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic

4 Tom Coronel Chevrolet Cruze

Q2 – Top 5

1 Yvan Muller Citroën C-Elysée 1:29.263

2 José María López Citroën C-Elysée +0.171

3 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.287

4 Tom Coronel Chevrolet Cruze +0.362

5 Nicky Catsburg Lada Vesta +0.406

…

6 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +0.470

9 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +0.958

Q1 – Top 5

1 José María López Citroën C-Elysée 1:29.345

2 Nicky Catsburg Lada Vesta +0.112

3 Yvan Muller Citroën C-Elysée +0.420

4 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.421

5 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +0.444

…

10 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +0.764

Free Practice 2 – Top 5

1 Thed Björk Volvo S60 1:30.039

2 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.348

3 Nicky Catsburg Lada Vesta +0.351

4 Gabriele Tarquini Lada Vesta +0.446

5 Yvan Muller Citroën C-Elysée +0.462

…

7 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +0.876

Free Practice 1 – Top 5

1 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic 1:42.565

2 José María López Citroën C-Elysée +0.133

3 Grégorie Demoustier Citroën C-Elysée +0.134

4 Norbert Michelisz Honda Civic +0.234

5 Gabriele Tarquini Lada Vesta +0.259

…

10 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +1.030

13 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +1.652

Championship standings

Drivers

1 José María López Citroën C-Elysée 38 pts

2 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic 34 (-4)

3 Rob Huff Honda Civic 33 (-5)

4 Norbert Michelisz Honda Civic 30 (-8)

5 Mehdi Bennani Citroën C-Elysée 22 (-16)

…

9 Thed Björk Volvo S60 6 (-32)

13 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 1 (-37)

Manufacturers

1 Citroën 84 pts

2 Honda 83 (-1)

3 Lada 46 (-38)

4 Polestar 14 (-70)

TV Schedule

International: https://www.fiawtcc.com/watch-it-on-tv/

Online: http://www.eurosportplayer.com/