Monza welcomes the Cruze

The European season of the World touring Car Championship (WTCC) is starting next week-end with a stop in one of the most legendary tracks in motorsport, the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. Italy’s F1 track will host the third round of the season and needless to say, going back to one of the cradles of touring car racing and being in front of one of the warmest crowds of connoisseur fans is a prospect that delights everyone at Chevrolet Racing.

This will be a challenging event for the Cruze, which has never raced in Monza before, as the long straights of Lombardy’s track are more suitable to competitors, but the team is determined to do well and go back home with more heavy points. To that end, strategy will be as important as pure performance.

There will be a fourth Chevrolet Cruze entered in Italy, as Argentinean touring car specialist Leonel Pernía, a regular front-runner in the TC2000, will be making a one-off appearance in the WTCC, determined to do his utmost to contribute to the team’s success.

Yvan Muller (Car # 6): It is always very exciting to race on a mythical track such as Monza and I am looking forward to it, although I expect we will have to fight hard against the competition on such a fast track. Still, we are all motivated to improve Chevrolet’s record in this circuit and to score some good points for the championship, knowing that after Monza, the calendar will bring us to tracks that are much more favorable to the Cruze.

Rob Huff (Car # 7): Monza is always special to me, as it is where I made my debut at the highest level in touring car racing. Actually, that Monza event in 2005 also happened to be the first WTCC event ever, so I’m sure it is a special memory for all who were present that day. While it is certainly nice to be back in Italy and on a F1 track, this will be one of the most difficult races of the for us, but I hope we can qualify well and come away with some good points.

Alain Menu (# 8): It’s nice to be back at Monza after two years and I am heading there with the objective of making some nice points. After my very disappointing week-end in Marrakech, I really look forward to some good results. Of course, we can expect the turbo-powered cars to be in front, and also the BMWs, as they will have less weight following the coming into force of the new compensation grid, but we will try our best to challenge all of them. Much will depend on how well we can help each other with slip-streaming, especially in qualifying.

Leonel Pernía (Car #34): I am thrilled at the prospect of making my WTCC debut in Monza and I hope I can help the Chevrolet team to achieve its goals. I am also proud of being a sort of ambassador of the WTCC to Argentina, where the series is enjoying a growing success and I hope this will lead to always closer ties between both sides of the Atlantic.

Ron Hartvelt: The team had some hard work back at RML since Marrakech, as Alain’s car was seriously damaged in the various incidents, especially in race two We are now building a completely new car, which will be ready soon, while Alain will race in Italy with the test car. Although Monza seems to have little in common with Marrakech, it actually presents some of the challenges we had to face in Morocco: long straights and very high top speeds, where we can expect both our main competitors to be very competitive. A good strategy of towing and slip-streaming in qualifying will definitely be the crucial element for this event.

Eric Nève: No doubt we are all excited to be back in Italy, a country where Chevrolet has always been warmly welcomed. The good news this time is that we are entering a fourth Cruze, and we may try to repeat the experience in other selected events later in the season. I am delighted we can have Leonel Pernía with us in Monza, as he is a big name in touring car racing in South America and I am sure that his presence will help the team and will be a further boost for the WTCC’s popularity in Argentina.