Race 2: Oriola the youngest winner

07.04.13

Pepe Oriola who will turn 19 in three months became the youngest ever winner of a WTCC race putting in a masterpiece performance and inflicting the first defeat to the Chevrolet cars since Suzuka last year.

The young Spaniard took the maximum out of his front row position on the reverse grid and led the race for the whole distance resisting a huge pressure from the RML duo of Yvan Muller and Tom Chilton. Oriola did not crack under pressure even when the race resumed after a safety car period for a last frantic lap, and did not offer Muller the lesser opportunity to try an overtaking manouevre.

James Nash finished fourth and winner of the Yokohama Trophy, while Gabriele Tarquini and Rob Huff threw away possible good results in two different incidents.

Key moments

Start – Monje takes the lead, but Oriola overtakes him at the first braking

Lap 1 – Huff dives inside Monje at Turn 4, they make contact and Huff retires

Lap 2 – Basseng overtakes Nash for fourth

Lap 2 – Monje crashes into the back of Thompson’s LADA at Turn 10; they both retire

Lap 3 – Muller and Chilton fight for second

Lap 4 – Oriola is closely chased by Muller and Chilton

Lap 5 – Nykjær overtakes O’Young for ninth

Lap 6 – Chilton and Muller are side-to-side at Turn 9

Lap 7 – Nash overtakes Basseng for fourth

Lap 8 – Tarquini crashes at Turn 10 and collects MacDowall; they both retire

Lap 9 – the safety car is deployed

Lap 12 – the race resumes

Lap 13 – Oriola manages to keep the lead and wins from Muller and Chilton

Lap 13 – Engstler overtakes O’Young for eighth; Ng overtakes Bennani for tenth

Race 2: Oriola the youngest winner

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