Jorg Muller takes Brno race 1
Jorg Muller won today's World Touring Car Championship race 1 in the Czech Republic thanks to a faultless drive by resisting a race-long challenge from fellow BMW 320si driver Alex Zanardi
Muller, starting from second spot on the grid, got off well from the line and by the first corner was ahead of pole sitter Gabriele Tarquini's SEAT Leon, as was Zanardi who qualified in third. There was some confusion at the start as Rickard Rydell was signalling a problem with his SEAT. Luckily no collision ensued and he was pushed to the pits after the field left the grid.
Having been demoted to third place by the BMWs, Tarquini also had to fend off the attacks of another BMW, that of Brit Andy Priaulx. Midway through the first lap, the latter hit Tarquini's right rear wheel and sent him in a spin on the gravel. The Italian wasn't able to rejoin the race while Priaulx's did not seem to suffer any problem from the shunt.
Meanwhile Zanardi, whose car looked very quick, was all over the back of Muller's car, but it was to no avail. The pair soon opened a small gap to Yvan Muller, who was followed by Jordi Gene and Priaulx in fifth place. A larger gap of about four seconds soon opened to Alain Menu in sixth place.
The battle for fourth place between Gene and Priaulx was the highlight of the second half of the race, and even though the pair often went wheel to wheel down the Brno main straight, the Spaniard managed to defend his position until the end.
Lap 7 saw Luca Rangoni spinning his BMW off into the gravel, while on the following lap Robert Huff overtook Dirk Muller to claim eighth position.
Tom Coronel, sixth overall at the end, won the independents' race with his SEAT Leon.
CLASSIFIED:
Pos Driver Make Time
1. Jorg Muller BMW 320si 22:39.066
2. Alessandro Zanardi BMW 320si + 1.729
3. Yvan Muller SEAT Leon + 2.765
4. Jordi Gene SEAT Leon + 6.340
5. Andy Priaulx BMW 320si + 6.788
6. Tom Coronel SEAT Leon + 11.371
7. Alain Menu Chevrolet Lacetti + 11.788
8. Robert Huff Chevrolet Lacetti + 13.026
9. Dirk Muller BMW 320si + 15.776
10. Peter Terting SEAT Leon + 16.718
11. Nicola Larini Chevrolet Lacetti + 18.830
12. Ryan Sharp Honda Accord Euro R + 20.930
13. Stefano d'Aste BMW 320i + 22.925
14. James Thompson SEAT Leon + 26.041
15. Salvatore Tavano Alfa Romeo 156 + 26.928
16. Pierre-Yves Corthals Honda Accord Euro R + 27.136
17. Gianni Morbidelli Alfa Romeo 156 + 27.791
18. Duncan Huisman BMW 320si + 27.925
19. Vincent Radermecker Chevrolet Lacetti + 28.632
20. Maurizio Ceresoli SEAT Leon + 29.676
21. Philip Geipel Toyota Corolla T-Sport + 34.238
22. Rainer Bastuck Chevrolet Lacetti + 40.883
23. Diego Romanini BMW 320i + 1 lap
NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS:
Driver Make On Lap
Luca Rangoni BMW 320si 6
Augusto Farfus Alfa Romeo 156 6
Jan Vonka BMW 320i 5
Gabriele Tarquini SEAT Leon 1
Rickard Rydell SEAT Leon 0
Fastest Lap: Yvan Muller, 2:14.183 on lap 2
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