Zolder: BMW qualifying report

After rain in qualifying: BMW Team RBM starts from the fifth row of the grid.

Zolder, 19th June 2010. Pouring rain in the second part of qualifying hampered the BMW Team RBM drivers securing top grid positions for the seventh round of the FIA World Touring Car Championship in Zolder (BE). Andy Priaulx (GB) came ninth at the 4.006-kilometre "Circuit Zolder" while his team-mate, Augusto Farfus (BR), had to make do with tenth.

The team had to carry out important set-up changes and checks on both BMW 320si WTCC cars at the beginning of "Q2", in order to be as competitive as possible in the fight for the grid positions. However, the two BMW works drivers ran out of time to put in a quick lap in dry conditions, as it started raining heavily shortly afterwards. SEAT's Gabriele Tarquini (IT) took pole position with a time of 1:38.265 minutes.

In the first part of qualifying Priaulx and Farfus finished fourth and eighth respectively, with a second covering the times of the top 14 cars. Therefore Sunday's races promise to be exciting affairs.

Bart Mampaey (Team Principal):
"After the first phase of qualifying we knew SEAT and Chevrolet would be very strong in Q2. Unfortunately we had two situations that meant we could not send the cars out immediately at the start of Q2. Augusto had gone over a kerb in Q1 and we had to check his car over before we let him go out again for a shakedown lap. Meanwhile Andy was among the last cars to take the chequered flag in Q1, so was back to his garage late. We needed to do a spring change to give him some more speed, and so this cost us vital moments. If the weather had stayed dry we were sure we would benefit from the grip laid down by the other eight cars that had already gone out, but the weather conditions meant that this didn't happen. Sadly in the end neither driver was able to complete a flying lap in the dry. Now we need to make sure we finish in the top eight in the first race tomorrow, and then push hard in race two."

Andy Priaulx (Car Number 11):
Qualifying 1: 4th, 1:39.030 min -- Qualifying 2: 9th, 1:42.856 min
"Of course I'm disappointed with this qualifying result. We had hoped to be strong at this track. But as it turned out it would also have been difficult to challenge for pole under normal circumstances. It's a pity we then missed the right window to set a lap time in dry conditions only by a few seconds. Now we need to catch up on Sunday."

Augusto Farfus (Car Number 10):
Qualifying 1: 8th, 1:39.112 min -- Qualifying 2: 10th, 1:52.493 min
"I'm sure we could have been quite competitive in the second qualifying session, but the weather conditions spoiled our strategy. The rain came quickly and was heavier than could have been predicted. That and the work that needed to be done on the cars was why our plans didn't work out today. But it's a new day tomorrow, and we will do our best to score some points."

-source: bmw