Photo: WTCC Media

José María López takes eighth win of the season in Shanghai main race

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Citroën’s José María López put on a showcase performance in the second race of the weekend in China, winning the race from pole by over 11 seconds ahead of team-mate Yvan Muller, while third for the privateer Citroën of Mehdi Bennani was enough for the Moroccan to seal the independents’ trophy.

López’s main challenge was expected to come from the ballast-free Lada Vesta of Nicky Catsburg, which started alongside him on the front row. The Dutchman’s car was hastily repaired after damage in the first race from debris after the Volvo of Thed Björk and Honda of Norbert Michelisz collided in front of him , but a sluggish start saw him drop behind the two Citroëns of Yvan Muller and Mehdi Bennani.

The main mover in the race was Honda’s Tiago Monteiro, who made a great start from 13th on the grid and was up to ninth by the end of the first lap. The Portuguese driver, who lost ground to Muller this weekend in his fight for second in the drivers’ championship, was able to make one more pass in the race, grabbing eighth from Tom Chilton’s Citroën on lap three, but was unable to close in on the lighter Ladas and Volvos ahead of him.

Race one winner Thed Björk swapped positions with team-mate Fredrik Ekblom for sixth on lap five, but with Björk unable to take the fight to the two Ladas which were running on equal weight to his S60, swapped the position back at the end of the race.

Unlike the action-packed first race, that was the extent of the shuffling around in race two as López built a comfortable lead over Muller and Bennani, with the Ladas of Catsburg and Gabriele Tarquini keeping a watching brief behind them.

López won the race by 11.037 seconds ahead of Muller, with Bennani two seconds adrift and taking the win in the independents’ category. With Bennani outscoring team-mate and title rival Tom Chilton in the race, the Moroccan seals the final title up for grabs this season, the independents’ trophy, with all titles now decided ahead of the season finale.

Catsburg and Valente finished behind the three Citroëns, with the two Polestar Cyan Racing Volvos in tow. Tiago Monteiro was the only Honda to score in the main race in a circuit which didn’t suit the Japanese cars, with the two privateer Toms, Chilton and Coronel completing the top ten.

The season finale of the 2016 WTCC takes place at the Losail circuit in Qatar in two months’ time.