2015 FIA World Touring Car Championship rounds 15 and 16 of 24
Circuito Internacional de Vila Real (Portugal), 10-12 JulyÂ
*Iconic street track marks a step into the unknown for all WTCC drivers
*Portuguese hero Monteiro aims for home WTCC success at the âNĂźrburgring of the Southâ
*LĂłpez heads the WTCC title chase as fellow Argentine Girolami returns to action
*Former champion Huff is the WTCC street race ace with 10 wins
The challenge never stops in the FIA World Touring Car Championship. Having mastered three purpose-built tracks in quick succession in Russia, Slovakia and France, the WTCC drivers will take on the iconic Vila Real street circuit in Portugal next week for an historical step into the unknown.
Despite hosting its inaugural car race in 1931, OSCARO.com WTCC Race of Portugal will be the first FIA world championship event to take place in Vila Real, a picturesque city in northern Portugal 100 kilometres east of Porto. And it will be a street race with a difference with the 4.775-kilometre layout featuring an exciting blend of twists, turns, climbs and descents. While a handful of chicanes have been installed for safety reasons, the spectacle remains with top speeds of 240kph expected on the final downhill section.
One driver in particular aiming to go as fast as possible in Vila Real will be Tiago Monteiro. The Porto resident is a WTCC race winner and Formula One podium finisher and heads the Honda challenge alongside Gabriele Tarquini from Italy. Monteiro has a strong record on street circuits and came within a handful of laps of winning in the former Portuguese enclave of Macau last November only for a mechanical failure to lead to heartbreak. After a collision dropped him out of the podium battle in France, Monteiro will be anxious for a change of fortune on home soil. Although the 38-year-old watched racing in Vila Real as a child, like his WTCC rivals, he has no experience of the demanding street circuit, known as the âNĂźrburgring of the Southâ due to its similarities to the famous Nordschleife in Germany.
With 14 rounds run in 2015, the chase for WTCC success remains tightly poised. JosĂŠ MarĂa LĂłpez might top the standings by an increased margin of 39 points following his fifth victory of 2015 in France last weekend, but French CitroĂŤn team-mates SĂŠbastien Loeb and Yvan Muller have done plenty of winning this season and will again provide formidable opposition to Argentinaâs reigning world champion. Muller was one of two winners when Portugal last hosted the WTCC in 2013 at the Boavista street circuit in Porto.
Ma Qing Hua from China completes the factory CitroĂŤn line-up while Mehdi Bennani will pilot a privateer C-EylsĂŠe WTCC and will be eager to make up for his mistake at Circuit Paul Ricard. Lining up in pole position for race two, the Moroccan accidentally jumped the start and received a drive-through penalty for his troubles.
Briton Rob Huff, the 2012 WTCC champion, has forged a reputation as the ultimate street racer with 10 round-the-houses victories to his name. After a tough outing in France, the LADA driver will be hoping for a return to form in Portugal where he enjoyed WTCC success in 2011. Dutch pair Nicky Catsburg and Jaap van Lagen complete the LADA attack. Hungarian Norbert Michelisz will be a contender in his Zengo Motorsport Honda, while Argentinaâs NĂŠstor Girolami is back on WTCC duty having scored on his debut in Slovakia for Honda Racing team Sweden.
ROAL Motorsport drivers Tom Chilton and Tom Coronel arrive in Portugal on the back of an in-season test at Paul Ricard in their Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1s. GrĂŠgoire Demoustier, Stefano DâAste, John Filippi and Hugo Valente also rely on Chevrolet power and will target Yokohama Driversâ Trophy success.
Q&A: TIAGO MONTEIRO
Heâs the home hero all Portuguese fans will be cheering and, like all of his FIA World Touring Car Championship rivals, the challenging Vila Real circuit will be a step into the unknown for Tiago Monteiro. Well sort of in any case as the Castrol Honda driver reveals ahead of OSCARO.com WTCC Race of PortugalâŚ
Do you have any experience of driving at Vila Real?
âIâve never driven there but funnily enough I remember my first images of race cars live was in Vila Real when I was eight or nine. We have some family from around there who had a house where you could see the track from the garden. The whole family would go there for a big nice weekend event. It was fun and itâs funny that almost 30 years later I go there as a racer in a world championship. Itâs fantastic and Iâm very excited about it.â
But a home race brings its fair share of demands, right?
âFor me itâs a highlight of the season. Itâs an important one but a busy one and a bit of a love/hate situation. Itâs great and Iâm blessed and very lucky to be racing in my country. There are a lot of international drivers in the WTCC and many of them donât have a home race so Iâm very lucky to have it for some time now. But at the same time itâs very busy, very demanding psychologically, even physically because you travel a lot for it. And the last week will be a crescendo of activities but I guess itâs a good thing.â
Did those early visits to Vila Real fire your interest in motor racing?
âIt would be nice to say yes but not really! I always liked motorsports but I was a lot more into motorbikes to be honest. Although I liked cars and to watch the racing was quite exciting, I was more into motorbikes until I was 16. I donât think going to Vila Real had a direct interference in my life but for sure it sparked some interest.â
What knowledge do you have of the actual track and the layout?
âI started to look already at some YouTube videos to understand it a little bit but it seems very fast. It seems like a mix of Pau, but much faster, like Macau a little bit and with a bit of a NĂźrburgring Nordschleife feeling with ups and downs and blind corners. Everything seems very fast so I am expecting a big challenge.â
You spent some time going to the NĂźrburgring to prepare for the WTCC races there in May. Do you have a similar plan for Vila Real, even though itâs obviously a street circuit?
âIn this case itâs probably better to watch videos and do a track walk with the engineers, maybe some laps on a bicycle. Itâs the same for everybody, everybody is new there and itâs up to us to get up to speed quickly.â
Whatâs the secret to learning a new track?
âI have a secret but I canât tell you because it wonât be a secret any more! The only thing I can say is walking the track helps a lot. Looking at every detail, the grip level, the bumps, itâs very important. If you have a good simulator you can also learn a bit from there. Videos also help but there are also some other tricks.â
What kind of welcome are you expecting from the Portuguese fans?
âTo be honest Porto was always a huge success in terms of attendances and you feel that support everywhere, itâs crazy! I must say gearing up to the race in Vila Real Iâve felt a lot more demand from the people, more enthusiasm, more motivation around Vila Real so I think there could be more people. There is a lot more curiosity about it, even more than Porto.â
TRACK FACTS
Name: Circuito Internacional de Vila Real
Location: Av. Carvalho AraĂşjo 7, 5000-651 Vila Real
Website: www.civr.pt Â
Length: 4.775 kilometres
Race distance: 2 x 13 laps
Lap record (qualifying): To be established
Lap record (race): To be established
WTCC appearances: None but Portugal has hosted the WTCC on seven previous occasions
Time zone: GMT +1 hours
Sunrise/sunset: 06h01/21h07 (Sunday 12 July)
Average temperature: 15°C-24°C (for June)
DID YOU KNOW?
Motor racing legend Sir Stirling Moss was a regular visitor to Vila Real in the 1960s. He once said of the track: âIâve always had fond memories of Vila Real. The crowds, the beautiful scenery, and the great enthusiasm that the Portuguese have for racing.â Go to www.fiawtcc.com for more Vila Real facts.
