After all the fun of the WTCC Racing from the Slovakiaring, the WTCC Circus headed to Hungary and the Hungaroring, home of Norbert Michelisz. Now its a given that while the championship title race is on, 70,000 Hungarians will be cheering for only one car: the Black and Orange Honda Civic of Michelisz...
And Cheer they did...
While Michelisz didn't win a WTCC race this year, it didnt stop him showing an improved performance. He qualified 2nd for race 1 and finished there. However while Muller won the race, Michelisz chased him down to the final lap after preserving his tyres to make sure it wasnt an easy win for the frenchman. During the final laps, Michelisz closed the lead to Muller down from 1.2 seconds to 0.2 seconds but it wasnt enough. However both Norbert and the Crowd were happy with 2nd place on the podium.
The Honda's showed fast pace again, despite having 30kgs added to the Civic. However while Tarquini took 3rd in race 1, Monteiro suffered retirements in both races. His bad luck continues but his pace in the Honda is not to be doubted. Tarquini suffered a big accident in Race 2, spending the night in hospital due to neck pains but he was cleared and will race again at the Salzburgring in Austria in 2 weeks time. However Tarquini's 3rd place in Race 1 showed that with the added weight in the car, it was still competitive. Norbert's Honda also had the extra 30kgs as the weight ballast applies to all cars of the same make and model specified.
The worrying part is that Gabriele Tarquini took a hefty whack as the Civic hit the barrier head on. He is over 50 and while he is very fit for his age, he wont cope with too many more like that. The Civic showed again its impressive safety by protecting Gabriele from the crash, where the Civic hit the wall on the drivers side. It could've been much worse.
However the revelations of the weekend were Tom Coronel and Mehdi Bennani in their BMW's. In Race 1 both of them hassled first Tom Chilton in the Aon Chevrolet Cruze and then Rob Huff for 4th place in his Munnich Motorsport SEAT Leon. The addition of the carbon fibre doors to the BMW to lower their weight is helping to allow them to be more competitive and to fight with the others and not just be also rans on the track.
Please BMW, can we have a works team back in WTCC??? What was evident during both races is the speed disadvantage that the BMW suffers against the Honda, Chevrolet and the SEAT. While it was brilliant in the tight and twisty sections of the track, all of Coronel's work was undone down the start finish straight. Its well known there have been few updates to the WTCC BMW 320TC, however if the engine had more grunt, Coronel and Bennani could have done more damage...
For Bennani it turned out to be his best weekend to date, taking 2 independent victories and also starting Race 2 on pole due to the reverse 10 grid setup. He didnt get the best start and Rob Huff stormed past to take the lead. However he couldn't break away from the Morrocan and Huff's victory was hard earned but well deserved.
There will be more to come from Huffy and the Munnich Motorsport squad...
For Muller and Chilton, it was a weekend of differing fortunes. Muller took Pole for Race 1 and won it after closing pressure from Michelisz. However Chilton lost out during Race 1 to the flying BMW's of Coronel and Bennani. He stayed with them after that, but in Race 2 Chilton had a worse time.
On the first lap, prior to Tarquini's crash, Muller started behind Chilton and manage to muscle his way past him. At the restart Chilton was hassled by Michelisz as Muller progressed forward. But due to the close tight and twisty nature of the track, Chilton couldn't repass the Honda. Muller, however, found his Race 2 progress hampered by the "Customer" Chevrolet drivers from Bamboo of James Nash and Alex MacDowall.
A little while back I mentioned how Yvan Muller's status as the Big Scary Driver in WTCC was diminishing and we saw another glimpse of this on Sunday.
Try as he might, Muller couldnt get past the Bamboo Chevrolets and they were fair and clean in their defense on track. It showed Muller that while he maybe a 3 World Champion, the other drivers are not willing to let him idly by in race conditions. In the past Independent drivers would jump off track when they saw the Blue Works Chevy's coming, The same way drivers in the 1990's would jump off the track when they saw a certain yellow helmeted driver in a Mclaren coming in a Formula 1 race...
But Muller had to settle for 5th in the end. Not a big dent in his title hopes, but with Tarquini scoring less he has extended that championship lead... Hopefully Gabriele can make inroads in 2 weeks time at the Salzburgring and try to close that points gap.
In regards to the Lada's, it was a nightmare and their run of bad luck continued. Thompson started 17th for both races after suffering issues in Qualifying While his team mate staryed from the back. In Race 1 he was thumped off track and in Race 2 finished outside the points. But the Lada Granta has pace and it has showed this in every WTCC weekend so far. Thommo finished 4th in Sunday Morning WarmUp after testing new parts. They just need some good luck to come their way and the Thommo will be hasseling the front runners.
My fear is that if the team cant get into the top 10 for Qualifying soon, then this could end up being a 1 season wonder return for Lada before leaving again. But I hope not. I know that Lukoil and Thompson signed a 3 year deal for WTCC but stranger things have happened. Big James Thompson fan here and I love the fact that Lada, the laughing stock of the car industry, is going up against the best in the world championship of Touring Cars. Their time will come.
I have another fear...and it regards Tom Chilton. Now don't get me wrong, Tom is a top class driver and capable of both taking wins and racing door to door with the best. But it seems that when Muller arrives behind him, Tom doesn't seem to defend against him. Now while Lukoil is Muller's primary sponsor, Aon is Tom's and their name is on both cars. And I want to see the car with just Aon sponsored on the bonnet ahead of the car with Lukoil and Aon written on its bonnet...
Now I would expect Chilton to fall in line behind Muller if RML request it if they were running 1st and 2nd on track before the race finishes but we've just had our 4th WTCC Weekend. Surely its too early for team orders? Isnt it...?
Lets hope so.
What I hope is that Tom learns the ways of the Chevrolet Cruze soon so that we can see him on an equal footing with Yvan and it would be great to see them going door handle to door handle with each other. Yvan isn't easy to pass but Tom isnt a pushover either...
I'm overjoyed at the race win Rob Huff took in Race 2. It shows the progress that the Munnich Motorsport team have made with their SEAT Leon's. Rob signed late with the team, who last year won the FIA World GT1 in sportscars. The team knows how to win and it was a matter of time before they learnt the ways of how to race, compete and win in FIA WTCC races. Although Rob didn't have it easy in the race being hunted by the fast BMW of Race 2 Poleman Bennani, he knows how to win and control the race to make sure he stays in front fairly.
The Leon isnt a new car either. It was introduced in 2005 and has been a mainstay of the championship since then both in works teams and in customer teams. This Its taken 2 wins with Oriola winning Race 2 at Marrakech. There is life in the old dog yet...
So, there is a 2 week gap to the next round at the Salzburgring in Austria. Its a long fast circuit that should suit the Chevrolet's as did Monza and Marrakech due to its long straights and long fast 180 degree turns.
But in 2012 it also showed another issue. Tyres. In Race 1 there was a safety car period as Darryl O'Young had pulled off the circuit after hitting a barrier. But in Race 2 both heat and camber on the tyres caused punctures for MacDowall and Menu, who both retired at the same spot, Muller who finished 8th after suffering a puncture 3 corners from home and Huff, who suffered a puncture 2 corners from home and finished 2nd behind D'Aste and ahead of Coronel.
Hopefully Yokohama, Tyre supplier of the WTCC will have a stronger tyre this time and the teams will head their warnings...
Anyway, got out and enjoy the sun!
Cheers
Phil.
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