Macau WTCR: Andy Priaulx takes first WTCR win of 2019 in finale
Three-time World Touring Car champion Andy Priaulx claimed his first WTCR victory by holding off Rob Huff in a tense Macau Guia Race finale
Priaulx, who has two previous Guia Race wins from his World Touring Car Championship spell, set up victory by passing polesitter Huff before the approach to the Reservoir kink at the start of the race.
While Huff's Sebastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen Golf GTI was able to close up in the second and third sectors on the mountain, Priaulx had superior drive off the Melco hairpin each time and was able to gap his compatriot through the final sector in preparation for the long run to Lisboa.
Huff set the fastest lap on the antepenultimate tour in one final bid to close in on Priaulx, but the Cyan Racing Lynk & Co 03 driver went faster still on the following lap, taking a big step towards winning the race in doing so.
Huff closed up once more in the third and fourth sectors, but Priaulx held tight to clinch his first World Touring Car win in nine years - which also denied Huff a record 10th win in Macau.
Jean-Karl Vernay jostled with Huff and his team-mate Johan Kristoffersson at the start, settling into third place at Lisboa in his WRT Audi RS3 LMS.
Both he and Kristoffersson kept a watching brief behind the two leaders, as the leading quartet finished well clear of the rest of the pack.
Thed Bjork had occupied fifth, but dropped two positions on the final lap to boost Cyan team-mate Yvan Muller's points haul.
BRC Racing Hyundai driver Nicky Catsburg instead claimed the place, having kept Muller behind him as the leading pack escaped.
The fourth Lynk & Co 03 of Yann Ehrlacher came home in eighth, behind Muller and Bjork, while Kevin Ceccon (Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce) and title hopeful Esteban Guerrieri completed the top 10.
Points leader Norbert Michelisz was 12th in his BRC Racing Hyundai. He now has nine points in hand over Munnich Motorsport Honda driver Guerrieri, while Muller is two further back in third after winning the first two races of the weekend.
Result - 11 laps
Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Andy Priaulx | Cyan Performance | Lynk & Co | 27m58.428s |
2 | Rob Huff | SLR VW Motorsport | Volkswagen | 0.352s |
3 | Jean-Karl Vernay | WRT | Audi | 1.193s |
4 | Johan Kristoffersson | SLR Volkswagen | Volkswagen | 1.855s |
5 | Nicky Catsburg | BRC Racing Team | Hyundai | 20.030s |
6 | Yvan Muller | Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co | 21.096s |
7 | Thed Bjork | Cyan Racing | Lynk & Co | 21.552s |
8 | Yann Ehrlacher | Cyan Performance | Lynk & Co | 22.194s |
9 | Kevin Ceccon | Team Mulsanne | Alfa Romeo | 22.565s |
10 | Esteban Guerrieri | Munnich Motorsport | Honda | 23.506s |
11 | Tom Coronel | Comtoyou Cupra | Cupra | 23.884s |
12 | Norbert Michelisz | BRC Squadra Corse | Hyundai | 24.597s |
13 | Niels Langeveld | Comtoyou Audi | Audi | 25.054s |
14 | Luca Engstler | BRC Racing Team | Hyundai | 27.552s |
15 | Frederic Vervisch | Comtoyou Audi | Audi | 27.925s |
16 | Attila Tassi | KCMG | Honda | 29.259s |
17 | Nestor Girolami | Munnich Motorsport | Honda | 30.140s |
18 | Mehdi Bennani | SLR VW Motorsport | Volkswagen | 30.527s |
19 | Tiago Monteiro | KCMG | Honda | 31.317s |
20 | Mikel Azcona | PWR Racing | Cupra | 31.500s |
21 | Benjamin Leuchter | SLR Volkswagen | Volkswagen | 32.319s |
22 | Ma Qinghua | Team Mulsanne | Alfa Romeo | 34.602s |
23 | Aurelien Panis | Comtoyou Cupra | Cupra | 37.051s |
24 | Robert Dahlgren | PWR Racing | Cupra | 39.756s |
25 | Billy Lo | Tian Shi Zuver Team | Audi | 51.272s |
- | Gabriele Tarquini | BRC Squadra Corse | Hyundai | Retirement |
- | Gordon Shedden | WRT | Audi | Withdrawn |
- | Jim Ka To | KC Motorgroup | Honda | Withdrawn |
Drivers' championship
Pos | Driver | Points |
---|---|---|
1 | Norbert Michelisz | 316 |
2 | Esteban Guerrieri | 307 |
3 | Yvan Muller | 305 |
4 | Thed Bjork | 288 |
5 | Yann Ehrlacher | 209 |
6 | Gabriele Tarquini | 205 |
7 | Mikel Azcona | 199 |
8 | Nestor Girolami | 198 |
9 | Rob Huff | 197 |
10 | Jean-Karl Vernay | 196 |
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