Yesterday’s race winner, Felix Porteiro, put his victory down to the perfect performance of hisYokohama ADVAN tyres for round nine of the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) inBrno.
The Spanish BMW driver drove a perfect race, fending off attacks from fellow WTCC competitorsthroughout the 10-lap race, and attributed his win to the consistency of the ADVANs.“The tyres were great during the race,” said Porteiro. “We tried different pressure set-ups duringwarm-up this morning and from this we knew what to choose for the race. The time we set on thesecond lap was the same we set on the last lap which shows how consistent the tyres are.“Zanardi’s car was even lighter than mine, so I am very happy with the result. I was one secondahead of Jorg Muller, but I took it easy I didn’t want to push much more, although I could havedone. The performance of the tyres was still there.”
In Sunday’s International Formula Master (IFM) race, Cram Competition’s Jerome D’Ambrosiovisited the podium for a second time this weekend along with J.D. Motorsport’s Chris van der Driftwho finished third once again.
Both drivers overtook several cars on their way to the top, once again showing the ADVANsability to overcome difficult track conditions. Dutch driver van der Drift further reinforced theimportance of the Yokohama tyres mentioned by D’Ambrosio, accrediting theJapanese product for his strong performance this weekend.
“The tyres were good. There are no big differences when running either new or used tyres andthat is so important in a closely fought race like this. We had grip all weekend, even when Istarted on used tyres yesterday which I didn’t expect.
“Track temperatures were a lot higher today as well but I didn’t feel any difference in the tyreperformance!”
Following three action-packed races in Brno, Yokohama Europe Marketing Manager KazuyoshiSekiguchi said of today’s racing: “Touring car and single-seater racing differ greatly in terms ofcar performance, speed, weight and regulations but our job as a tyre supplier is to provide thesame service to all, regardless of where we race and the conditions present at the time. It givesme great pleasure to receive such positive feedback from both groups of drivers.”
FIA WTCC Brno race one/FIA WTCC Brno race two
1. Félix Porteiro (SPA), BMW 320si /1. Joerg Mueller (GER), BMW 320si2. Joerg Mueller (GER), BMW 320si /2. Augusto Farfus (BRA), BMW 320si3. Alessandro Zanardi (ITA) BMW 320si /3. Félix Porteiro (SPA), BMW 320si4. Augusto Farfus (BRA), BMW 320si /4. Gabriele Tarquini (ITA), SEAT Leόn5. Nicola Larini (ITA), Chevrolet Lacetti/ 5. James Thompson (GBR), Alfa Romeo 1566. Yvan Muller (FRA), SEAT Leόn /6. Nicola Larini (ITA), Chevrolet Lacetti7. Gabriele Tarquini (ITA), SEAT Leόn /7. Andy Priaulx (GBR), BMW 320si8. Alain Menu (CH), Chevrolet Lacetti /8. Jordi Gené (SPA), SEAT Leόn
International Formula Master Brno Race Two1. Jerome D'Ambrosio (BEL), Cram Competition2. Giuseppe Terranova (ITA), Alan Racing3. Chris van der Drift (NED), J.D. Motorsport4. Pablo Sanchez Lopez (MEX), Alan Racing5. Salvatore Gatto (ITA), Alan Racing6. Kasper Andersen (DEN), J.D. Motorsport7. Ignazio Belluardo (ITA), Promotorsport8. Marcello Puglisi (ITA), Promotorsport
