Alain Menu cuts points gap to Yvan Muller

Alain Menu picked up the most points of the three Chevrolet drivers at the Hungaroring, taking two podium finishes to close in on Yvan Muller by five points over the weekend. The Swiss driver also moved back up to second in the standings, seven points ahead of Rob Huff.

The three Chevrolet drivers finished as they qualified in race one, with Yvan Muller taking the five points for pole and going on to take his fifth win in ten races, with Rob Huff finishing second and Alain Menu third. Menu recovering ground quickly after being involved in the melee at the start with Mehdi Bennani, Darryl O’Young and Norbert Michelisz.

“Going into the first corner several cars touched including myself with Michelisz, and I came out in fifth place,” said Menu. “I overtook Tiago (Monteiro) down into Turn 2 and then Mehdi (Benanni) on the exit of Turn 2 and then after that I was in P3, and we were more or less the same pace the three of us (Chevrolets).”

In race two, Menu worked his way up the order to finish second and was the only Chevrolet driver to finish on the podium twice in Hungary, with Rob Huff and Yvan Muller unable to pass the SEATs of Tiago Monteiro and Gabriele Tarquini.

“I drove a very good race, I was patient when I had to be,” said Menu to TouringCarTimes. “I took a bit of a dive on Tiago…I was braking later than him (into turn 12), I thought it was good enough of a gap so I could chance it.”

Later in the race Menu passed the battling duo of Mehdi Bennani in his Proteam BMW and Pepe Oriola’s SUNRED SEAT into Turn 1, and took over second position.

“To be honest they helped me…I think they touched and they both run wide into Turn 1 and I could overtake both of them.”

Menu’s points haul of 36 over the weekend closes him to 23 points from Yvan Muller, with Rob Huff close by, 30 behind the Frenchman with 14 races still to go.

Championship Standings after Hungary