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Zandvoort WTCR: Esteban Guerrieri boosts points lead with win

Munnich Motorsport Honda driver Esteban Guerrieri scored a crucial second victory of the World Touring Car Cup season in the second race at Zandvoort to extend his points lead

Thed Bjork's victory in Saturday's first race elevated the Cyan Racing driver to third in the drivers' standings and, given Bjork will start the final race second, Guerrieri was likely to need to finish on the podium if he is to maintain his points lead come the end of the weekend.

Guerrieri launched his Honda Civic Type R well from pole, and moved to the middle of the track on the approach to the first corner to prevent an attack from Benjamin Leuchter's Sebastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen Golf GTI.

Leuchter applied pressure after the intervention of an early safety car and appeared to have more speed that Guerrieri in the final sector, but the superior grunt of the Honda on the main straight meant Guerrieri was safe from attack into Tarzan.

The Argentinian's victory was his first since the season-opening race in Marrakech, and preserved the Munnich team's record of winning at least one race at each round so far in 2019.

Leuchter was just 0.263 seconds shy across the line, and headed an SLR two-three as double World Rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson scored his first podium since switching to WTCR for 2019.

Dutch driver Nicky Catsburg was fourth in his BRC Racing Hyundai i30 N, ahead of Mikel Azcona. The Cupra rookie had been passed at the first corner by Yvan Muller, but regained the place when Muller ran wide through the final corners on lap four of 14.

Muller, who had originally qualified on pole for the final race but was stripped of his Q3 time for an overboost issue on his shootout lap, dipped his Lynk & Co 03's left-front wheel beyond the runoff exiting the penultimate corner and skated through the gravel at Arie Luyendijk before rejoining the track.

He ultimately finished ninth, with Augusto Farfus and Norbert Michelisz (both in BRC Hyundais) plus Muller's nephew Yann Ehrlacher all profiting from that error.

Guerrieri had pipped team-mate Nestor Girolami to 10th - and the reversed-grid pole - in the second part of Sunday qualifying, which consigned his compatriot to 11th on the grid for both Sunday races.

While overtaking opportunities were at a premium, Girolami was able to pass Bjork's Lynk & Co to claim 10th.

Rob Huff (SLR VW) also made it past Bjork, who finished 12th - ahead of reigning champion Gabriele Tarquini, the Comtoyou Cupra of Aurelien Panis and lead Audi representative Jean-Karl Vernay.

Race two result

Pos Driver Team Car Laps Gap
1 Esteban Guerrieri Munnich Motorsport Honda 14 26m38.390s
2 Benjamin Leuchter SLR Volkswagen Volkswagen 14 0.263s
3 Johan Kristoffersson SLR Volkswagen Volkswagen 14 0.711s
4 Nicky Catsburg BRC Racing Team Hyundai 14 1.659s
5 Mikel Azcona PWR Racing Cupra 14 2.035s
6 Augusto Farfus BRC Racing Team Hyundai 14 2.433s
7 Norbert Michelisz BRC Squadra Corse Hyundai 14 5.379s
8 Yann Ehrlacher Cyan Performance Lynk & Co 14 6.128s
9 Yvan Muller Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 14 7.428s
10 Nestor Girolami Munnich Motorsport Honda 14 7.781s
11 Rob Huff SLR VW Motorsport Volkswagen 14 8.094s
12 Thed Bjork Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 14 8.656s
13 Gabriele Tarquini BRC Squadra Corse Hyundai 14 9.247s
14 Aurelien Panis Comtoyou Cupra Cupra 14 9.884s
15 Jean-Karl Vernay WRT Audi 14 11.118s
16 Mehdi Bennani SLR VW Motorsport Volkswagen 14 11.464s
17 Niels Langeveld Comtoyou Audi Audi 14 12.626s
18 Andy Priaulx Cyan Performance Lynk & Co 14 13.267s
19 Daniel Haglof PWR Racing Cupra 14 13.734s
20 Kevin Ceccon Team Mulsanne Alfa Romeo 14 14.327s
21 Frederic Vervisch Comtoyou Audi Audi 14 14.631s
22 Gordon Shedden WRT Audi 14 17.185s
23 Tiago Monteiro KCMG Honda 14 17.534s
24 Tom Coronel Comtoyou Cupra Cupra 14 17.978s
25 Ma Qinghua Team Mulsanne Alfa Romeo 14 18.526s
- Attila Tassi KCMG Honda 0 Retirement


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