C1 Slovakia Ring: First success for Oriola and Cupra this season

The first race of the World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) at the Slovakia Ring (Slovakia) produced a tenth winner this season. Pepe Oriola (Cupra) won the event in style; the Spaniard started from third place on the starting grid, and jumped Gabriele tarquini (Hyundai), then Aurélien Comte (Peugeot ) to take the lead on the second lap.

#WTCR | Yes, we did it! @pepeoriola74 grabbed a fantastic victory in this Race 1!
Good recovery for @j_filippi placed 18th aswell.
Great job of whole team @cupra_official @teamoscaro and from now with the mind in the 2nd Quali!#RaceOfSlovakia #TouringCars pic.twitter.com/dHMvtlMOS8

- Campos Racing (@CamposRacing) July 14, 2018

“I had a very good start, and I thought Comte was going to be difficult to overtake, indicated the 24-year-old pilot, whose real name is Josep Oriola Vila. Or, he made a small mistake, that made it easier for me to pass him at the start of the race. » Pepe Oriola was able to put his knowledge of the Cupra (ex-Seat Leon TCR) to good use, a model that allowed him to win eight victories in the TCR International Series between 2015 and 2017.

Starting from fifth place, Jean Karl Vernay (Audi) performed well by finishing second thanks to a trouble-free start. “We must take advantage of opponents’ mistakes in the championship”, was satisfied with the Frenchman, who took big points from the Hyundai drivers.

Ready to race! Race 1 of @FIA_WTCR at #SlovakiaRing to start at noon. Best Audi Sport driver on the grid is @JKVernay in P5. Good luck to him and all the others. #TCR #WTCR #LeagueofPerformance pic.twitter.com/z3xTO1Y3P8

- Audi Sport (@audisport) July 14, 2018

Pole sitter Gabriele Tarquini completes the podium as best he can. “My engine almost stopped when the lights went out! Frankly, I did well by only giving up five places in the first corners. » The BRC Racing Team driver took back some valuable points from the overall leader Yvan muller (Hyundai), moved up to 12th place after an exclusion from qualifying.

Despite a good start, Aurélien Comte finishes fourth, just in front of Fabrizio Giovanardi (Alfa Romeo). The Mulsanne team was ecstatic, as the former European champion allowed the Italian structure to open its account after 16 races!

Yann Erlacher (Honda) collects the points from the sixth lace. Denis Dupont (Audi) scored his first points of the season (8th), and finished ahead of his Comtoyou Racing teammates Aurelien Panis et Nathanaël Berthon. John Filippi (Cupra) could not do better than 18th after going off the track the day before.

The second practice session will take place from 15:10 p.m.

WTCR Race 1 Slovakia Ring 2018 standings: