Muller, Huff and Menu sign off a superb 1-2-3, Cacá Bueno 17th in his WTCC debut
Qualifying for the Race of UK, the home event of RML,ended with a dream-like result for Chevrolet: the Cruzes of Yvan Muller, Rob Huff and AlainMenu were the three fastest cars on the track and will start Race 1 tomorrow from the three top positions on the grid, in front of a crowd of colleagues, friends and fans.
This is the second pole position for Chevrolet and Yvan Muller this year, after the one achieved in the opening race in Curitiba. The Cruzes proved extremely competitive at the legendary British track and had already dominated Q1.
Brazilian driver Carlos ‘Cacá’ Bueno, who is making his WTCC debut at the wheel of the fourth Cruze, qualified 17th, despite discovering both the car and the track in racing conditions only in the morning.
• QUOTES
Yvan Muller (1st): “I am very happy, this is really a great result, especially after a qualifyingsession quite intense for me. I did a correct first fast lap in Q1, then managed to finish thesession on top of the time sheet. In Q2, at my first attempt to make a time, I went wide in acorner, ending in the gravel. I managed to restart, bring the car back into the track, put on newtires and make the pole position. It’s almost unbelievable, and the 1-2-3 is just great for the team.Tomorrow, we will have to be cautious not to damage the tires, this will be the key factor duringthe races, especially if dry and warm conditions continue”.
Rob Huff (2nd): “It’s a fantastic team effort and a fantastic result: 1-2-3 on our home track and infront of so many friends and colleagues. This is really a nice gift for all the RML people presenthere. The car went extremely well during the morning sessions and we were able to confirm itscompetitiveness in the afternoon. Most importantly, we have Tarquini a couple of rows behind usand tomorrow we will do everything we can to grab the points we need to stay ahead”.
Alain Menu (3rd) : It was a good qualifying session. I had a clear lap, made no mistakes and gotthird-fastest time. Maybe I could have been higher in the ranking if I would have attacked a littlebit more, but I wasn’t entirely confident with the car. I got the right feeling only when I put on newtires. Anyway, what matters is tomorrow and I believe we can aim at a good result for the team”.
Carlos ‘Cacá’ Bueno (17th) : “Given that this was my first day of racing with the Cruze and atBrands Hatch, I am not unhappy, although there was a moment in Q1 when we felt we could havebeen fighting for a place in Q2. Unfortunately, my car is a little bit slow in fast corners, especiallythe one before the straight, and that is where we left some precious time”.
Eric Nève : “We couldn’t be happier after such a result today! The Cruze was extremelycompetitive throughout the day and in Q2 we were able to materialize this with a superb 1-2-3.Also, the fourth car was not far from making it into the top ten. Tomorrow, we will have to becareful with the tires and capitalize on the excellent work done so far”.
BRANDS HATCH QUALIFYING RESULTS1. Y Muller Chevrolet Cruze 1m32s4812. R Huff Chevrolet Cruze + 0s1973. A Menu Chevrolet Cruze + 0s3474. C Turkington BMW 320si + 0s3615. G Tarquini SEAT León TDI + 0s39217. C Bueno Chevrolet Cruze 1m34s122 (Q1)
