Russia, Qual.: LADA takes an incredible WTCC 1-2-3

Nicky Catsburg claimed an emphatic first pole position for himself and LADA as the Russian marque dominated a wet qualifying session for FIA WTCC ROSNEFT Race of Russia.

Catsburg was the class of the field throughout qualifying in the difficult conditions, leading both Q1 and Q2 before claiming the DHL pole position by 1.438 seconds in the Q3 shoot-out.

The Dutch driver’s closest rivals were his team-mates Gabriele Tarquini and Hugo Valente, who completed a memorable 1-2-3 for LADA at Moscow Raceway.

The biggest challenge to LADA came from James Thompson, who secured fourth on the grid on his third appearance of the season in the ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport Chevrolet Cruze and was the leading WTCC Trophy driver.

Norbert Michelisz rounded out the top five that made it though to Q3, as championship leader José María López was made to settle for sixth. Tom Coronel was seventh ahead of Yvan Muller, Mehdi Bennani and Tiago Monteiro.