WTCC – José-Maria Lopez, the Argentine sensation

It was a weekend dedicated to “firsts”. For the first time in its history, the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) met in Argentina, on the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit. And for his first participation in this discipline, José-Maria Lopez won a victory, becoming at the same time a true local hero.

If the first race was won, once again, by Yvan Muller (Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T from the RML team), the Argentinian, who started from 10th position, had already distinguished himself by finishing in a promising 5th place . “I saw that I had a good pace and I said to myself that maybe I could win race 2,” recalled the 30-year-old pilot. Especially since his place in qualifying would give him first place at the start of the second round. “I was happy, but nervous, to start from pole position. I knew it was going to be difficult. I was going to do my best, but when I saw the time achieved in warm-up, I understood that I had a good car (a BMW 320 TC, Editor’s note) to fight. »

Despite the pressure, “Pechito” made a good start. “The best thing at the wheel of the BMW is the start, and I widened the gap during the first laps with new tires,” commented the driver who normally takes part in the 2000 Argentinian Super TC Championship events. “But then I saw Muller coming and I thought I was in trouble now! Then I didn't see him anymore and that's when I thought it was possible. » Gabriele Tarquini, second, and Pepe Oriola, third, then could do nothing to prevent the local hero from winning. “I'm so happy, I really didn't expect this because I'm competing with some great riders. It’s a dream come true,” he added.