Race preview: WTCC stars to motor on at Motegi

The FIA World Touring Car Championship is back from its summer break and back with a bang as the season-closing tour of Asia and the Middle East kicks off in Japan next week when Twin Ring Motegi hosts the all-action WTCC for the first time from 11-13 September.

With the championship fight still a three-way tussle between Citroën trio José María López, the current WTCC pacesetter, Yvan Muller and Sébastien Loeb, JVC KENWOOD WTCC Race of Japan is set to be another highlight of the 2015 campaign when six different drivers have tasted the victory champagne and 11 have stepped onto the podium.

While the bulk of the grid racing in Japan will be familiar to WTCC fans around the world, Nicolas Lapierre will be starting his WTCC adventure at Twin Ring Motegi, which is located 150 kilometres north of the capital Tokyo. The Frenchman will bring his considerable expertise and pedigree from single-seater and sportscar racing to LADA Sport Rosneft where he will link up with 2012 WTCC champion Rob Huff from the UK and Dutchman Nicky Catsburg.

For Tiago Monteiro, JVC KENWOOD WTCC Race of Japan takes on added significance: not only is it his Castrol Honda World Touring Car Team’s home event at a track owned by the motor giant, race one on Sunday 13 September will mark WTCC start number 200 for the talented Portuguese. Gabriele Tarquini (Italy) and Hungary’s Norbert Michelisz also form part of the Honda attack.

Hugo Valente is racing in memory of his late friend, ex-Formula One driver Jules Bianchi and has vowed to do all he can to land the podium finish that eluded him in the closing stages of race one in Japan in 2014. Like Michelisz, Frenchman Valente is chasing points in the Yokohama Drivers’ Trophy for independent racers, while trying to break into top five overall in his Campos Chevrolet RML Cruze. John Filippi completes the Campos line-up while Stefano D’Aste, once a team-mate of Valentino Rossi in motorbike racing, will welcome some good fortune following a luckless Portugal weekend in his ALL-INKL.com Münnich Chevrolet.

Grégoire Demoustier (Craft Bamboo Chevrolet) and ROAL Motorsport duo Tom Chilton and Tom Coronel will also be in action at Twin Ring Motegi. Briton Chilton will be aiming to maintain his place in the championship top 10, while Dutchman Coronel has more WTCC wins in Japan to his name than any other driver having triumphed on three occasions. Ma Qing Hua, from China, won last time out in Portugal where fellow Citroën driver Mehdi Bennani was also in action.

Following testing on Friday 11 September, the WTCC drivers will take part in two Free Practice sessions and Qualifying on Saturday ahead of a pair of 13-lap races on Sunday from 14h15hrs local time.

COMPENSATION WEIGHT CHECK

While the Citroën C-Elysée WTCCs will continue to run with the full 60 kilograms of success ballast due to their standout success in this year’s championship, the Honda Civics WTCCs and LADA Vestas won’t carry any additional weight at Motegi although the Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1s will carry 10kgs.