Tiago Monteiro 2009 season preview

Tiago Monteiro and SEAT sharpen strategy to defend title

This week Tiago Monteiro was in Valencia with the SEAT Sport team for a two day test where they worked intensely on the preparation of the new FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). Tiago covered a total of 70 laps each day, which enabled him to gather some important data ahead of the opening round of the championship which will take place on March 6 in Curitiba. The team prefers not to reveal the solutions they discovered, but the Portuguese driver has guaranteed a positive outcome:

"We drove many kilometres in order to improve the car and we found some interesting solutions. We know it will be hard to defend our title because of the new rules which are not really in our favour. Therefore we will need to take the three first rounds to integrate the rules and we will see how to do that in the best possible way for our project. It will be hard but I am optimistic. SEAT is a professional and extremely motivated team. In 2008, among other things, we always coped with having a heavier car. This year, I think we will be able to fight with the front runners even though it might not be the case in Brazil."

The SEAT Sport team took a step forward thanks to the tests carried out on the circuit Ricardo Tormo of Valencia and the countdown to the opening of the FIA World Touring Car Championship has now started. The first races will take place between the 6th and 8th of March 8, in the town of Curitiba, Brazil.

-credit: tiagomonteiro.com