Zandvoort WTCR: Bjork wins after Cyan Lynk & Co team orders
Thed Bjork claimed his second win of the Zandvoort World Touring Car Cup weekend after his Cyan Racing team twice intervened to swap his and Yann Ehrlacher's positions
Bjork had led the opening laps of the race but was asked to move aside to allow polesitter Ehrlacher back into the lead, only for the team to direct the drivers to change positions again.
The two were involved in a clash at the start, as Ehrlacher moved over to his right in an attempt to block off the faster-starting Bjork on the run to the first corner.
Bjork had enough of his car up the inside by that point, but Ehrlacher continued to move across and collided with Bjork's Lynk & Co 03, although both were able to continue.
But Bjork was soon asked to make way for Ehrlacher, who was allowed into the lead at Tarzan at the start of the third lap of 15.
Ehrlacher had a longer stint in the lead and held a steady gap at the head of the order until he was told to let Bjork back past.
The 22-year-old complained to Cyan over the radio and spent a further lap in the lead after being asked to move aside, but obliged at the start of lap nine.
There were no further changes to the order as Bjork clinched his third victory of the season, a result that moved him into second in the drivers' standings, while second still represented Ehrlacher's best finish of 2019.
The destiny of the final podium position was also resolved by a change of order between two team-mates, with Augusto Farfus making way for fellow BRC Racing Hyundai driver Norbert Michelisz at the final corner.
Farfus had made a better start than Michelisz and held third throughout the race, before allowing Michelisz - BRC's lead representative in the drivers' standings - past.
Yvan Muller could not recover any of the positions he lost to his exclusion from the final part of Sunday qualifying but still came home fifth in his Lynk & Co, ahead of the PWR Cupra of Mikel Azcona.
Johan Kristoffersson (Sebastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen Golf GTI) was seventh ahead of championship leader Esteban Guerrieri, who made the most of an excellent start to limit the damage done by Bjork's win.
Gabriele Tarquini made up five places to finish ninth in his BRC Hyundai, with Rob Huff (SLR VW) between Tarquini and the fourth i30 N of his team-mate Nicky Catsburg.
The Comtoyou Cupra of Aurelien Panis, Mehdi Bennani (SLR VW), erstwhile points leader Nestor Girolami and Andy Priaulx in the fourth Cyan Lynk & Co completed the points.
Race three results
Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Laps | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Thed Bjork | Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co | 15 | 27m12.801s |
2 | Yann Ehrlacher | Cyan Performance | Lynk & Co | 15 | 0.830s |
3 | Norbert Michelisz | BRC Squadra Corse | Hyundai | 15 | 2.377s |
4 | Augusto Farfus | BRC Racing Team | Hyundai | 15 | 2.995s |
5 | Yvan Muller | Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co | 15 | 3.658s |
6 | Mikel Azcona | PWR Racing | Cupra | 15 | 4.120s |
7 | Johan Kristoffersson | SLR Volkswagen | Volkswagen | 15 | 4.432s |
8 | Esteban Guerrieri | Munnich Motorsport | Honda | 15 | 6.696s |
9 | Gabriele Tarquini | BRC Squadra Corse | Hyundai | 15 | 7.543s |
10 | Rob Huff | SLR VW Motorsport | Volkswagen | 15 | 9.840s |
11 | Nicky Catsburg | BRC Racing Team | Hyundai | 15 | 11.093s |
12 | Aurelien Panis | Comtoyou Cupra | Cupra | 15 | 13.094s |
13 | Mehdi Bennani | SLR VW Motorsport | Volkswagen | 15 | 13.328s |
14 | Nestor Girolami | Munnich Motorsport | Honda | 15 | 13.558s |
15 | Andy Priaulx | Cyan Performance | Lynk & Co | 15 | 15.591s |
16 | Frederic Vervisch | Comtoyou Audi | Audi | 15 | 15.956s |
17 | Niels Langeveld | Comtoyou Audi | Audi | 15 | 16.121s |
18 | Kevin Ceccon | Team Mulsanne | Alfa Romeo | 15 | 16.847s |
19 | Tiago Monteiro | KCMG | Honda | 15 | 17.537s |
20 | Tom Coronel | Comtoyou Cupra | Cupra | 15 | 18.475s |
21 | Ma Qinghua | Team Mulsanne | Alfa Romeo | 15 | 19.009s |
22 | Attila Tassi | KCMG | Honda | 15 | 22.779s |
23 | Daniel Haglof | PWR Racing | Cupra | 15 | 22.849s |
24 | Gordon Shedden | WRT | Audi | 15 | 23.677s |
25 | Jean-Karl Vernay | WRT | Audi | 15 | 29.621s |
- | Benjamin Leuchter | SLR Volkswagen | Volkswagen | 10 | Retirement |
Drivers' standings
Pos | Driver | Points |
---|---|---|
1 | Esteban Guerrieri | 161 |
2 | Thed Bjork | 150 |
3 | Nestor Girolami | 135 |
4 | Norbert Michelisz | 130 |
5 | Mikel Azcona | 120 |
6 | Yvan Muller | 107 |
7 | Gabriele Tarquini | 106 |
8 | Yann Ehrlacher | 88 |
9 | Jean-Karl Vernay | 86 |
10 | Nicky Catsburg | 80 |
11 | Frederic Vervisch | 79 |
12 | Augusto Farfus | 75 |
13 | Ma Qinghua | 70 |
14 | Rob Huff | 55 |
15 | Johan Kristoffersson | 47 |
16 | Kevin Ceccon | 39 |
17 | Aurelien Panis | 38 |
18 | Andy Priaulx | 37 |
19 | Benjamin Leuchter | 36 |
20 | Daniel Haglof | 35 |
21 | Tom Coronel | 24 |
22 | Niels Langeveld | 23 |
23 | Gordon Shedden | 22 |
24 | Tiago Monteiro | 20 |
25 | Mehdi Bennani | 20 |
26 | Attila Tassi | 16 |
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