Lopez obviously chosen by media as best driver

Not only did José María López score more points than his FIA World Touring Car Championship rivals in 2016, he also pooled more votes from an expert panel of WTCC journalists and commentators called on to nominate their driver of the year.

In a new series to mark the end of another action-packed WTCC campaign, media representatives from Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden and UK were asked to put forward their driver, race, overtake, rookie and unsung hero of 2016. Here’s a selection of some of their comments on the three-time world champion.

Tamara Aller (Motor y Racing): “His gesture to Yvan Muller at Motegi was the stuff you can expect from a true champion”

Michael Bräutigam (Motorsport Aktuell): “His sheer speed and that Shanghai Main Race was just mega. A walk in the park”

Martin Haven (Eurosport commentator): “Best car, yes, but simply in another class on most occasions”

Tom Coronel, Rob Huff and Tiago Monteiro also earned votes.