Argentine López rocketed off the line and was never headed, beating Citroën team-mate Sébastien Loeb to extend his title advantage.

Norbert Michelisz benefited from Hugo Valente’s slow start to snatch third with fellow Honda drivers Gabriele Tarquini and home hero Tiago Montiero fourth and fifth respectively.

Ma Qing Hua, Yvan Muller, Jaap van Lagen, Nicky Catsburg and Rob Huff completed the top 10.

Valente pitted at the end of the first turn after an incident-filled first lap, while Néstor Girolami stopped with a suspected mechanical fault before rejoining. The second 13-lap race is due to begin at 17h15 local time.