Race 1: Tarquini sails to victory

Gabriele Tarquini eased to victory in Race 1 on the streets on Marrakech this afternoon, ahead of Rob Huff and Tiago Monteiro, as the first race of the day ended under safety car conditions.

After three formation laps as the drivers got into position, Tarquini controlled the rolling start to lead the pack through the first chicane. SR-Sport team mates Tiago Monteiro and Jordi Gené battled for third running alongside each other through the first chicane and forcing each other wide; Monteiro salvaged fourth while Gené dropped to 19th.

Rookie driver Fredy Barth made the best start moving up from eighth to third on lap one.
The order at the end of first racing lap was Tarquini from, Huff, Barth, Monteiro, Coronel, Muller, Michelisz, Menu, Priaulx and Farfus.

After his great start Barth was pushing Huff hard for second, making a move causing the Chevrolet to go into a massive slide. Huff did a brilliant job to control the car, not only avoiding a huge accident but also holding on to his second position. In the drama, Monteiro found a way past demoting the rookie to fourth.

Further back the battle was on for eighth and Race 2 pole position, between Alain Menu and Andy Priaulx. Priaulx was all over the Chevrolet finally finding a way through with a great move on the inside of the final chicane. The two cars jostled for position on the exit with Priaulx making his move stick.

Huff was driving a very defensive race to keep Monteiro at bay as Tarquini eased away up in front. The action was however cut short as Andrei Romanov crashed his BMW 320si at T15 bringing out the saftey car until the chequered flag.

Despite losing positions to the BMW Team RBM’s Priaulx and Farfus, Franz Engstler remained the best Independent in 12th.

With a great result of fourth overall Barth was the top rookie in Race 1, while Morocco’s Mehdi Bennani finished 15th.

Withdrawals: S. D’Aste, driveshaft; A. Romanov, racing incident; I. Sbaï, spin.