Lopez says he had to prove himself to land Citroen WTCC drive

The 30-year-old Argentinian was invited to test for Citroen after winning at his home Termas de Rio Hondo track on a one-off WTCC appearance with the Wiechers BMW team.

"I think that winning that race was instrumental for being invited to test the Citroen at Valencia and Monza," said Lopez.

"Then other factors contributed to their decision of hiring me, like my professionalism and working method. It's not only a matter of driving fast.

"I hope I will be able to help the team in developing and setting up the car so that we do a good job on the track."

Lopez said he was overwhelmed to be sharing a team with four-time WTCC champion Yvan Muller and nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb.

"It's a privilege and an honour to be part of such an impressive team, alongside two monsters like Yvan and Sebastien," said Lopez.

"I come from Cordoba, a region that is crazy about rallying, and to find myself as Loeb's team-mate is just a dream."

Lopez is a double TC2000 champion, but was a Formula 1 aspirant before switching to South American touring cars.

He tested for Renault and Minardi during his Formula 3000 and GP2 career, and signed to race for the US F1 operation before its efforts to join the grand prix grid in 2010 fell through.