All-new LADA Vesta WTCC challenger starts testing

LADA SPORT ROSNEFT’s FIA World Touring Championship challenge is firmly on track after the all-new LADA Vesta TC1 began testing in France last week.

Team drivers Rob Huff, Mikhail Kozlovskiy and James Thompson were all present at the Magny-Cours race circuit to help get the Vesta racer up to speed ahead of the 2015 WTCC season beginning in Argentina next month (6-8 March).

Victor Shapovalov, the LADA SPORT ROSNEFT Team Principal, said: “The new car fully meets our expectations for the fact that it boasts higher straight-line speeds, greater cornering stability and much-improved aerodynamics. Of course, the team has a lot of work ahead of it – this is a totally new model, which was built from scratch, and it requires much more testing.

“Unfortunately, due to the early season start this year we are time-restricted, and it’s obvious that tests will continue during the first WTCC rounds. The team has completed a huge bulk of the work over these two months and we are still working 24 hours a day to be prepared for the first race in Argentina. We are all highly motivated and, though the team started tests with a delay, we are ready to get into the fight on the track from the start of the season.”