WTCC
Monza: Seat Sport qualifying report
SEAT make clean sweep of the two front rows of the grid An extraordinary teamwork allowed the SEAT Sport team making a clean sweep of the two front rows of the starting grid for the first of two World Touring Car Championship races to be staged ...
Published: Oct 5, 2008, 11:40 AM
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SEAT make clean sweep of the two front rows of the grid
An extraordinary teamwork allowed the SEAT Sport team making a clean sweep of the two front rows of the starting grid for the first of two World Touring Car Championship races to be staged tomorrow at the Italian racetrack in Monza. Yvan Muller, leader of the overall standings, clinched the pole position followed by Gabriele Tarquini, Jordi Gene and Rickard Rydell, thus turning the SEAT Leon TDI into the favourites for the victory.
From the first instants of the qualifying session, it was clear that the slipstreaming technique would be the key to clock the fastest times. The SEAT Sport team made an impeccable manoeuvre with three attempts. In the first one, Tarquini set the fastest time ahead of Alain Menu (Chevrolet) and Yvan Muller. Halfway the session, the drivers went onto the track together again and at the end of this attempt the order was Muller, Tarquini, Menu and Monteiro.
With two minutes to go, the SEAT Leon TDI went onto the track again, establishing the definitive starting order for the race, with Rydell and Gene improving their positions. The SEAT Sport drivers did not only make an excellent qualifying but also showed an excellent team spirit and the best mutual understanding, applying the instructions received from the pits to perfection, something fundamental to be able to carry out an essential manoeuvre at a racetrack like Monza.
The first WTCC race will be held tomorrow at noon, and SEAT might be able to make a significant step to strengthen their leadership in both standings of the championship.
Yvan Muller: "I'm happy because the flying start of the first race will allow us to keep the positions. We've been working very good to clinch the pole which some other times we had lost in the last minute. On the other hand, it is too early to think about the title. First we have to score points to secure the manufacturers' championship for SEAT".
Gabriele Tarquini: "It is always better to have the pole, but the front row is very important as well; I'll be surrounded by yellow cars and I like that. Tomorrow we have no other aim than scoring as many points as possible and the only valid strategy is getting the four SEAT over the first chicane cleanly to secure the result of the race".
Jordi Gene: "The teamwork has been really good and although it might seem the contrary, driving side by side with your team-mates is a huge responsibility to be able to make good use of the right moment to let each of the drivers clock their best time. In addition, my personal aim right now is not to set a certain time but to secure the best result for SEAT in the manufacturers' world championship".
-credit: seat
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