Shanghai, Race 1: López wins action-packed WTCC opener in China

Citroën has secured the WTCC Manufacturers’ title

By Paul Gombeaud

27 September 2015 - 09:57
Shanghai, Race 1: López wins action-pack

José María López has claimed his eighth victory in this year’s FIA World Touring Car Championship with a lights-to-flag win in the opening ROSNEFT WTCC Race of China at Shanghai International Circuit.

Local hero Ma Qing Hua had been expected to take the fight to the reigning world champion but a slow getaway dropped him out of contention as an incident-packed opening lap resulted in the safety car being deployed while Tom Coronel’s damaged Chevrolet was recovered.

While López was able to edge ahead out front, fellow Citroën drivers Yvan Muller and Sébastien Loeb became embroiled in a close fight for second with Muller prevailing in a podium lockout for the French firm, which has all but secured the WTCC Manufacturers’ title for the second time in a row.

Nicky Catsburg finished fourth for LADA Sport Rosneft having pressured Loeb for third after the restart. Mehdi Bennani took the Yokohama Drivers’ Trophy honours in fifth with Norbert Michelisz, who started P15 on the grid in his Honda, grabbing sixth from Nicolas Lapierre on the final lap.

Ma Qing Hua was a dejected eighth until an attempted passing move on Michelisz ended with an off-track moment after which his Citroën faltered, forcing Ma out. The Chinese driver’s misfortune let in Hugo Valente (Chevrolet Cruze) for eighth after the Frenchman overtook Honda driver Tiago Monteiro and Grégoire Demoustier. However, Monteiro fought back to snatch the place with three laps remaining, while Demoustier pitted. Stefano D’Aste rounded out the top 10.

Rob Huff was eliminated in an opening-lap collision with Gabriele Tarquini. Tom Chilton also retired with damage to the front of his Chevrolet after contact with Monteiro. John Filippi’s career-best seventh on the grid ended in disappointment after he was punted into a spin on lap one and retired soon after.

Pos. Driver Team Car Time
1 Jose Maria Lopez Citroen Total WTCC Citroen 16 laps
2 Yvan Muller Citroen Total WTCC Citroen +2.428
3 Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WTCC Citroen +3.379
4 Nicky Catsburg LADA Sport Rosneft Lada +8.905
5 Mehdi Bennani Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen +13.912
6 Norbert Michelisz Zengo Motorsport Honda +16.774
7 Nicolas Lapierre LADA Sport Rosneft Lada +17.394
8 Tiago Monteiro Honda Racing Team JAS Honda +20.662
9 Hugo Valente Campos Racing Chevrolet +22.575
10 Stefano D’Aste Munnich Motorsport Chevrolet +26.361
11 Grégoire Demoustier Craft-Bamboo Racing Chevrolet DNF
12 Ma Qing Hua Citroen Total WTCC Citroen DNF
13 Gabriele Tarquini Honda Racing Team JAS Honda DNF
14 Robert Huff LADA Sport Rosneft Lada DNF
15 John Filippi Campos Racing Chevrolet DNF
16 Tom Chilton ROAL Motorsport Chevrolet DNF
17 Tom Coronel ROAL Motorsport Chevrolet DNF

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