Portimao: Chevrolet Friday report

The Cruze Comfortable In First Outing On Portugal's New Top Circuit

Huff 2nd-fastest in testing session notable for hot and windy weather

PORTIMAO, 2nd July 2010 The Cruze made an excellent debut in the Autodromo do Algarve, as the three cars finished in the top seven in today's testing session which marked the first official outing of the WTCC on the hilly and beautiful circuit in the South of Portugal. Rob Huff clinched the second-fastest time of the day, with Muller sixth and Menu seventh.

Warm weather, with temperatures over 35o. Celsius, and a strong headwind characterised the session, which was used to start working on set-ups and balance. The Chevrolet team, which had tested here last January, in completely different weather and track conditions, is confident about its chances on this very demanding track.

* QUOTES

Rob Huff (2nd): "It was a very positive working session, on a track which has still very low grip. I made some small changes and could make a very good lap towards the end of the session. This is a fantastic track, with very nice facilities and I am sure we are going to have one of closest fights of the year, as the competitors also look very strong".

Yvan Muller (6th): "Not a bad session at all. This is the first time this year that we race with high temperatures and on a circuit like this, with a lot of fast corners, this is going to be very challenging for the tires. I am sure it will be the decisive factor this week-end".

Alain Menu (7th): "The car feels good, but I am sure we can improve the overall balance. There is quite a strong wind, and it seems it will stay for the week-end, which means that slipstreaming could play a role in tomorrow's qualifying."

-source: chevrolet