FIA WTCC Slovakia, Rounds 5 and 6, WIN for Tom Coronel BMW ROAL Motorsport at the Slovakiaring highlights 2013
A commanding victory for Tom Coronel in WTCC race Slovakia
Bratislava, April 28th, 2013 -- The Dutch national anthem was played for Tom Coronel after the second FIA WTCC race at the Slovakia Ring in Bratislava. After a strong fifth-place finish in the first race at the almost six kilometres long circuit in Slovakia, the 41-year old Dutch driver started the second race from pole position. After a great start, he built up a comfortable margin and went on to win. For Coronel, this was his first-ever world touring car race win outside of Japan. ROAL Motorsport, the team that had again prepared his BMW 320 TC, also joined in the celebrations. For the team members, this hard-fought victory also was the reward for hard work in the past months. Of course, this race win brings Tom Coronel plenty of world championship points. He is currently ranked seventh in the drivers' standings with a total of 47 points. He is also the best-placed BMW driver in the 2013 FIA World Touring Car Championship.
After the race, Tom Coronel said: "We did it again! Indeed, this was my first WTCC race win outside of Japan. And when things go on like this, I certainly see some opportunities for further podium finishes. Let's put Japan on top of the list, but when the car is as good as it was now, I think that we can be contenders for good results in the next four race weekends, too. A lot depends on qualifying. I always have to be in the top twelve in order to get an eighth, ninth or tenth place in the second heat. With the reversed grid, that means a starting grid position on the first or second row, and that gives you a chance. But how do you end up there? To be totally honest, I have done everything I could and that was all there was. For us, the key to success was that the car was very consistent for both races. It really handled well and did what I wanted it to do, under braking, while cornerning and while accelerating out of the corners. That boosts your confidence. And don't forget that we were allowed to use three carbonfibre doors and Perspex windows fir the first time this weekend. That means an advantage of 20 kilograms and brings the car quite close to its ideal weight. Once again, we certainly weren't the fastest, but we were most consistent. Here, the front-wheel driven cars are fast on one lap, but then their tyres start to degrade. I did the second race with used tyres and even that went very well. Of course, this victory is also great for the team. They really had a hard time after my team-mate had heavily damaged the car in qualifying on Saturday. As a team, we took on that job and got the car on the starting grid. For me, it really was a fully trouble-free weekend with a great ending. In the first race, I had a good start and I was sixth right away. After that, I had a long battle with James Nash and forced him into a mistake. He locked up under braking and I was fifth. At the start of the second race, I tried to get away as quickly as possible, but Oriola slotted in behind me and it took me a while to pull clear. After that, I was able to extend my lead to some four seconds. At the end, the others came closer, but I knew that it was enough. My first WTCC race win outside of Japan, just great," says Tom Coronel.
Result race 1: 1.Gabriele Tarquini 10 laps in 22:18.761; 2.Tiago Monteiro +1.202; 3. Norbert Michelisz +1.616 (all Honda Civic WTCC); 4. Yvan Muller +5.091 (Chevrolet Cruze); 5. Tom Coronel +5.975 (ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC) +28,837.
Result race 2:1. Tom Coronel 10 laps in 22:26.224 (ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC); 2. Yvan Muller +2.990; 3. Gabriele Tarquini +3.345; 4. Rob Huff +4.954 (SEAT Leon WTCC) and 5. Tiago Monteiro +5.222.
2013 FIA WTCC 2013 Calendar*
Hungary May 04-05
Austria May 18-19
Russia June 08-09
Portugal June 29-30
Brazil July 27-28
USA September 07-08
Japan September 21-22
China November 02-03
Macau November 15-17
(*subject to change)
In the 2013 FIA WTCC, Tom Coronel is supported by: McGregor, TW Steel -big in oversized watches-, Valvoline, DHL, AkzoNobel stickerfixtm , Equinix, Boretti, De Wild Multi Print Solutions, Intrax, Playseat, Super-B and Freem.
For further information, please contact:
Tom Coronel
Tel: +31 (0) 653140989
E-mail: tom@tomcoronel.nl
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