RML
Team News
Accidents Blight Oschersleben WTCC. (Rounds 15 & 16),
25th/26th August 2007.
Issued August 26th 2007
Huff
Scores in Accident Marred WTCC Weekend at Oschersleben
A
superior drive by Rob Huff in the second race of the Oschersleben
round of the World Touring Car Championship turned out to
be the highlight of an accident-marred weekend. The most
important – and innocent – victims of the incidents
at the start of both races were Alain Menu and Nicola Larini,
Chevrolet’s best-placed drivers in the Drivers' Championship
standings. The positive outcome of this weekend is that
both Menu and Larini will lose ballast weight for the next
round at Brands Hatch.
At the same time, but on the Nürburgring, Spanish Chevrolet
Lacetti driver, Maria De Villota, scored her first win of
the season in the German Touring Car Championship, having
already finished second in the first of the weekend’s
two races.
Quotes
Rob Huff: “In the first race I had
to come to an almost complete stop for that first corner
incident. I could barely see where I was going because of
all the smoke so in proper “Days Of Thunder”
style I just went for the middle which turned out to be
the right thing to do. I then lost a few places when I locked
up in the chicane. Other than
that there was some oversteer at the beginning of the race
and then understeer near the end, plus the battery started
playing up a bit. In the second race the car was much smoother
and I could play with the oversteer much more, making it
more enjoyable in the slower corners. Over a lap, I’m
sure I was quicker than Yvan [Muller] but it was just impossible
to pass him coming out of a corner. These diesels have so
much torque and power you won’t believe it. ”
Alain Menu: “Well, it wasn’t
the greatest of weekends. I got caught up the firstcorner
accident at the start of race 1, which damaged the car enough
to lose ten laps in repairs. In race two I drove as fast
as I could, knowing well that it would be next to impossible
to score points from 17th on the grid. Still, finishing
tenth isn’t too bad, all things considered, but from
tonight onwards I start looking forward to Brands Hatch.”
Nicola Larini: “I had a good start in the
first race, but Zanardi turned in on me on the straight
and damaged the car beyond immediate repair. Same story
in race two, when someone hit me from behind in the first
corner mêlée, which resulted in a puncture
and a lap lost coming into the pits.”
Eric
Nève: “Rob showed what we could have
achieved without those start incidents. He drove a stellar
race and used a superior car to the best of his advantage
and scored some useful points for the championship. Still,
that’s touring car racing and I’m sure we would
have been surprised if nothing had happened in that tight
first
corner. The good thing is that both Alain and Nicola now
lose ten kilos for the next round at Brands Hatch, which
still is one of Chevrolet’s favourite tracks.”
Chevrolet
Racing Insight on the Web
Throughout
the 2007 WTCC season, Chevrolet Insight will
give you a behind-the-scenes look at the Chevrolet WTCC
racing team. On Saturday and Sunday, media and fans alike
will get the latest information and can ask their questions
via the web in Chevrolet's own web cast. Visit www.chevrolet-insight.com.
There are regular airings during the race weekend, and then
a full 15-minute review programme can be viewed at any time
after the event.
OSCHERSLEBEN
Race 1 Result
1.
Y Muller SEAT Leon TDI 16 laps in 27m57s209 (Ave: 126.58kph)
2. G Tarquini SEAT Leon + 0s446
3. J Thompson Alfa Romeo 156 + 0s793
4. J Müller BMW 320si + 1s256
5. A Priaulx BMW 320si + 1s480
11. R Huff Chevrolet Lacetti + 13s373
DNC A Menu Chevrolet Lacetti + 10 laps
DNF N Larini Chevrolet Lacetti Accident (1 lap)
OSCHERSLEBEN Race 2 Result
1. A Farfus BMW 320si 14 laps in 22m55s632 (Ave:
134.99kph)
2. A Priaulx BMW 320si + 0s564
3. J Gené SEAT Leon TDI + 2s504
4. J Thompson Alfa Romeo 156 + 2s862
5. Y Muller SEAT Leon TDI + 3s695
6. R Huff Chevrolet Lacetti + 4s072
10. A Menu Chevrolet Lacetti + 10s760
21. N Larini Chevrolet Lacetti + 1 lap
Drivers'
Points Standings after Race 16 of 22
1. A Farfus (BMW), 69pts; 2. A Priaulx (BMW), 68; 3. J Müller
(BMW) 63; 4. Y Muller (SEAT) 56; 6.
N Larini (Chevrolet), 48;… 8.
A Menu (Chevrolet) 45; 9. R
Huff (Chevrolet) 35;…
Manufacturer's Points
Standings after Race 16 OF 22
1. BMW, 204pts; 2. SEAT, 175; 3. Chevrolet,
150; 4. Alfa Romeo, 85.
The
next race of the 2007 World Touring Car Championship takes
place at Brands Hatch in the UNited Kingdom on 23rd September.
The full calendar for the year is:
2007
FIA World Touring Car Championship
11
March - Curitiba, Brazil - raced
6 May - Zandvoort, Netherlands - raced
20 May - Valencia, Spain
3 June - Pau, France
17
June - Brno, Czech Republic
8 July - Porto, Portugal
29 July - Anderstorp, Sweden
26 August - Oschersleben, Germany
23 September -Brands Hatch, Great Britain
7 October - Monza, Italy
18 November - Macau, China
