WTCC Argentina: Sebastien Loeb fastest in opening test

Sebastien Loeb went quickest of all on 1m54.132s, edging out team-mates Yvan Muller and Jose Maria Lopez.

Tiago Monteiro was the fastest of the non-Citroen runners, hustling his Honda Civic around the 2.86 mile Termas De Rio Hondo circuit in 1m55.913s, 1.781 seconds off the leader's pace but fractionally faster than Citroen's new full-time signing Ma Qing Hua and semi-works driver Mehdi Bennani.

Hugo Valente set the Chevrolet pace for Campos Racing, seventh overall on 1m56.159s, 0.041s ahead of James Thompson in the fastest of the new Lada Vestas.

Although the Citroens were comfortably quicker than their rivals, damp track conditions clouded the competitive picture. This summer has been unusually wet in central Argentina - the nearby Cordoba province has suffered its heaviest flooding in 50 years - and overnight rain left the circuit thoroughly doused.

Conditions remained overcast and humid during the 30-minute session but traces of a dry line emerged in places, and the majority of the field set their fastest times on their final laps.

The notable exception was Monteiro, who clocked his quickest time on the last of a five-lap opening run, completing 10 laps in total.

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