Beijing, Race 1: Chilton from lights to flag

Chilton wins ahead of Muller and López

By Franck Drui

5 October 2014 - 10:10
Beijing, Race 1: Chilton from lights (…)

“Absolutely fabulous!” Tom Chilton had the right words to describe his sensational win in Race 1 at Beijing.

The Brit had surprised everybody taking the pole in the morning and was simply unapproachable during the race. A long safety-car period as from lap 3, caused by an accident between Borković and Münnich, which provisionally cancelled Chilton’s 4-second advantage, didn’t impact at all on the his composure.

Yvan Muller and championship leader José María López completed the podium for Citroën, with the Frenchman securing second as from the start when he passed Tarquini. The Italian lost third in the closing laps, falling as an indirect victim of Ma’s off-track. The race of the local Chinese star ended when he went wide and hit the tire wall. Franz Engstler won once again among TC2 contenders.

Key moments
 Start – Chilton takes perfect start, while Muller passes Tarquini for second; Ma passes various cars on the outside
 Lap 1 – Chilton leads by 2 seconds ahead of Muller, Tarquini, López, Loeb and Michelisz
 Lap 3 – There is contact between Münnich and Borković in the back straight, with both cars hitting the wall. The safety-car is deployed
 Lap 11 – At the restart, Chilton pulls away ahead an orderly group
 Lap 12 – Morbidelli and Michelisz pass Loeb for fifth and sixth; Ma is 9th after overtaking Huff
 Lap 14 – Monteiro (11th) stops in the pits, after being hit by another car
 Lap 16 – Chilton leads with 4.7 seconds ahead of Muller, Tarquini, López, Morbidelli, Michelisz and Loeb
 Lap 17 – Ma passes Thompson for 8th
 Lap 23 – Ma goes wide off-track between turns 10 and 11 and loses three positions; the Citroën hits a stack of tyres that bounces back on the track and is collected by Coronel.
 Lap 24 – Also Tarquini stops in the pits, after running on some debris
 Lap 28 – Chilton wins ahead of Muller and López, while Valente drops out of the points with a flat front right tyre

Pos. Driver Car Time
1 Tom CHILTON Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 28 laps - 35m44.890
2 Yvan MULLER Citroen C-Elysee WTCC +2.493
3 José Maria LOPEZ Citroen C-Elysee WTCC +5.132
4 Gianni MORBIDELLI Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 +10.473
5 Sébastien LOEB Citroen C-Elysee WTCC +14.456
6 Norbert MICHELISZ Honda Civic WTCC +17.238
7 James THOMPSON LADA Granta 1.6T +18.338
8 Rob HUFF LADA Granta 1.6T +19.104
9 Mehdi BENNANI Honda Civic WTCC +37.966
10 Franz ENGSTLER BMW E90 320 TC +54.871
11 Mikhail KOZLOVSKIY LADA Granta 1.6T +1 lap
12 Hugo VALENTE Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 +1 lap
13 John FILIPPI Seat Leon WTCC +2 laps
14 Filipe DE SOUZA BMW E90 320 TC +3 laps
15 Qing Hua MA Citroen C-Elysee WTCC +4 laps
16 Gabriele TARQUINI Honda Civic WTCC +4 laps
17 Tom CORONEL Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 +6 laps
18 Tiago MONTEIRO Honda Civic WTCC DNF
19 Dusan BORKOVIC Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 DNF
20 René MUNNICH Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 DNF

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