WTCC representatives present:

Tom Coronel, ROAL Motorsport
Rob Huff, LADA Sport Vesta
Ma Qing Hua, Citroën Total WTCC
François Ribeiro, WTCC General Manager

Q:
What are your feelings ahead of ROSNEFT WTCC Race of Russia?

FR:
It’s always a pleasure to come to Moscow at this time of the year. The sun is shining, the ladies are beautiful and most importantly we always have a good quality of organisation at the circuit. This is something I need to say. I know the hard job they put in behind the scenes to deliver a world championship event. The other important factor is that over the last two years we have been racing in Moscow we always, always, always have a good quality of touring car races. It’s a circuit that’s working good for WTCC. There is always plenty of overtaking, plenty of action, some crashes also, three or four cars going for the same line into the last corner. There are two or three points on the circuit where you can overtake and this delivers to the fans, the viewers and to media a good show and this is the most important thing. I am happy and confident.

Q:
How important is the support of ROSNEFT?

FR:
We all knew we had to get a new title sponsor but not a small one. This is the first time ROSNEFT is investing in motorsport at a global level. Not only Russia, but they will also be our partner in Shanghai. We help ROSNEFT to build up their brand profile outside of Russia as a leading name in the oil industry. We know the efforts they have put behind LADA to help them raise their game, to get a better car and to perform at a better level. This is the story we have initiated with Bo Andersson exactly one year ago and I am very, very happy and very, very proud to have ROSNEFT involved in the championship.

Q:
You won here in Moscow last year so this must be a special race for you?

MQH:
I’m very happy to be here in Moscow again for the WTCC race – it’s going to be a very exciting weekend. Last year was amazing for me, my first race in WTCC and I won the race so I was so happy. Even when I went back to china it was really big news and one of the most important moments in my race career and I really appreciated it. For this weekend we will do the best job with Citroën to fight for the title again. I hope I will do well because in this place it was always something amazing what happened so let’s see.

Q:
So you won here last year but can you win again?

MQH:
Everything is possible but of course it’s going to be difficult. This championship is getting stronger and stronger and everything is getting more and more close. With three champion team-mates it’s hard to beat the people in my team. I also have much less mileage in the car and have to work much harder to fight much harder than everyone else to get the victory. But of course I will do my best to make it happen.

Q:
How important is this weekend for you and your team?

RH:
It’s a huge event for us. To have the support of the home crowd, the wonderful support from ROSNEFT obviously and LADA is obviously very special. We’ve got a lot of guests coming this weekend and a lot of support so of course we want to perform well. We’ve got a brand new car this year. As with every new car there’s some problems but we’ve got some updates for this weekend and a good result will be very special for us.

Q:
You won two races last season – is it possible to repeat that success with the new car?

RH:
The WTCC is an immensely difficult championship and it’s immensely difficult to shine as a driver or a manufacturer. It’s taking a little bit of time with the Vesta but as we saw last year with the Granta we started slowly, we worked very hard with the car and we had three very good results in the end, especially with winning Macau, the last round of the year. In the WTCC anything can happen and normally it does. We’ve discussed already two years ago, myself and Tom, five cars side-by-side on the start/finish straight in what was the best race we’ve ever seen in the WTCC and it was here in Moscow. If we can repeat that and come out on top, that would be very special.

Q:
What’s the target this weekend?

RH:
To win obviously! It’s the target every time out, that’s what we’re fighting for, that’s what we’re pushing for. It’s as simple as a win. Points would be great. The best result we had this season was last time out in Germany with P7 so anything better than that would be great. It would make a tremendous story and it would be very special to get on the podium here in Russia.

Q:
And to you Tom, what do you think of Moscow Raceway?

TC:
It’s a pleasure to be here and especially thanks for organising this press event because finally I’ve had a reason to come into town. The first race I did here was with a different series just to see the circuit. Directly I said it’s a very technical circuit but a good circuit for overtaking. We are touring cars so we like to touch a little bit and make manoeuvres like you have seen when we were five cars side-by-side. I was guilty for that one because I created a situation when I gave Gabriele Tarquini a little touch before the long straight and we all came along together. We are here for the show but I did not do it on purpose. Moscow is something special. The country itself always has the interest because of how big it is and it’s good for the WTCC to come here. I can see on my social media that the crowd is really building up. I can see motorsport is coming bigger and bigger in Russia. As a world championship driver being here on such a cool circuit is a real privilege.

Q:
What about your season so far – it’s not been so good for you?

TC:
It seems to be popular for me to start the season very bad. Like last year I had a big crash. We’re building up but we know the situation we’re in with my car and my team that there are some opportunities. With the Chevrolet and ROAL Motorsport we’re not capable of winning races in the normal way right now but the good thing about the WTCC is that they have the top-10 swapped grid for the second race. At a track like Moscow you can make yourself very wide so overtaking can become difficult but it’s good for the show and probably good for bringing a trophy home. To be honest I feel very confident that I can bring one trophy home on Sunday.

Q:
LADA has no Russian driver for it’s home event. What do you say about this situation?

FR:
Really it’s very simple. LADA has invested a lot to design, develop and test a new car to be closer to the rest of the field. When you see so much effort and resource has gone into this car for three factory drivers you must have three top drivers. You cannot win the championship with one top driver and two others who are two or three seconds off the pace. It’s a world championship and you have to earn your seat. This is the top level of touring car racing. Yes James Thompson has been amazing for touring cars and the WTCC but it came to a point where LADA had to change and they are looking for the best possible options. They replaced James and Mikhail with two Dutch drivers and I guarantee that if they are not on the pace they will not stay for very long because they have to look for the best possible drivers to perform at the top level. This is a world championship and it’s a tough world. Being Russian or having 20 years of experience in motorsport is just not enough.

Q:
Is it not a conflict that Formula E and WTCC are taking place in Moscow on the same weekend?

FR:
Maybe you don’t know that Formula E and WTCC are actually the same company. The main shareholder of both is Discovery and Liberty Media so this is a decision we took together, not against each other. I see more international media coming to WTCC events from Europe and here, for the cost of one ticket they can see two events. The president of the FIA, Jean Todt, is also coming on Sunday – Saturday he will be with Formula E but Sunday he will be with us. I am not sure he would have come if it was WTCC only. He has a very busy schedule and it was very good for him to do two events in the same weekend. I don’t see how Formula E would prevent spectators from coming on Sunday. The other thing I want to say is Formula E attracts a completely different audience than WTCC. I have been to Berlin two weeks ago for Formula E to start having a look. You see a lot of families with very young kids, not necessarily motorsport fans. You have to see Formula E as an entertainment championship, not necessarily attracting motorsport fans. I don’t see a major conflict of having both races in the same weekend.

Q:
A question to all the drivers: who will win the races on Sunday?

TC:
I am very clear – I don’t care! I care about myself. Motorsport is a very selfish sport and you have to work really hard for yourself. I try to get as many points as possible for myself. Qualifying would be great if I was eight, nine or 10 and then I can concentrate on race two. To be honest that’s my main goal. Of course for the crowd I would say Rob because I know how it is. He’s the favourite at the moment because when you come to the circuit you need to have a favourite and he is the most favourite here driving for LADA. I hope he can win the race. There has been a situation, which he knows, we were fighting and if I need a case to help somebody then I will help Rob.

RH:
I fully agree with Tom! I agree with Tom, it will be me!

MH:
I think I would be risking my life if I didn’t say it would be a Citroën that will win the race.

Q:
What about the future of the WTCC at this track – will you come back next year?

FR:
It’s three years that we do a good job, it’s three years we have a good relationship and three years we deliver a good event. The circuit, as I said, it fits very well touring car races. If Moscow Raceway wants to continue with us we will stay at Moscow Raceway. We always have a one-year contract. There is a second circuit that could host the WTCC potentially in Russia and that’s Sochi. But do we think Sochi would be a better place than Moscow? I don’t think so. I think the racing would be more difficult. It’s a circuit made for Formula One and I prefer to race close to the capital. There have been improvements on the highway to access the circuit and that’s been something very important for the fans to get them in and out of the circuit more quickly. It takes two to tango and if Ekaterina [Beltsevich, Moscow Raceway Director] wants to tango in the future we will continue to dance with them.

Q:
What are the chances of more manufacturers joining the WTCC?

A:
More manufacturers will come but you are asking the wrong person if you want to know who will come because I will never say who they will be. It’s very difficult to attract new manufacturers to the championship. It takes some years. I am spending 30 per cent of my time visiting new manufacturers and now I see three working seriously on WTCC. They are good brands, global brands, mass-market brands but I will leave it to them to make the announcement. But the success of the TC1 technical regulations is making more manufacturers look at the WTCC more seriously because the cars are more powerful and more attractive. And what we have done with the calendar and two weeks ago on the Nürburgring Nordschleife is something unique for the WTCC and the car manufacturers. We had huge media coverage and huge movement on social media and this is how we develop the championship and attract more brands.

Q:
How difficult is it to secure title sponsors for events?

FR:
Rosneft made a good deal to sign with us because for every one euro invested the WTCC gives back six to eight euros in international media exposure so it’s an opportunity to get media exposure not only in Russia but in nearly 200 countries in Europe, South America, Middle East and South East Asia. It’s not easy to bring a company like Rosneft into motorsport but you explain to them the benefits and how to activate their involvement. The negotiations started last year and we came to an agreement at the end of last year. They will be very pleased with the level of branding at Moscow Raceway. We will monitor all the international TV exposure and prepare a report. When they get this report they will be pleased to carry on with us in the future.