Photo: Björn Tarrach

Huff tops Oschersleben test day one

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TouringCarTimes were present during the first day of two of testing at Oschersleben. Rob Huff topped the first day with his Chevrolet Lacetti.
“We have had a really nice day with good weather here in Germany. We are working on the suspension and testing some other parts,” said Huff to TouringCarTimes.com.

Gabriele Tarquini was second fastest in his diesel-powered SEAT Léon ahead of James Thompson who is getting close to his WTCC-debut with N-Technology.

“We really need every kilometre! The car is brand new but we ran without problems today. We made a lot of work on the setup and the team is working really well. I am looking forward to Valencia,” said Thompson.

Jörg Müller was fourth fastest with Schnitzer team boss Charly Lamm watching over his driver.
“We are mainly doing some work on setups for the coming races. Jörg drove some long runs today and we have to wait and see where we stand in Valencia,” said Lamm.

Jörg Müller was followed by his team mates Augusto Farfus Jr. and the reigning champion Andy Priaulx. The session was halted twice during the day, once for Priaulx and once for Huff. The cars were towed back in to the pits without problems.

Yvan Muller was seventh fastest ahead of his team mate and SEAT-returnee Rickard Rydell who made his first run ever with the diesel-SEAT at Oschersleben.
“This was my first run with the diesel here and I enjoyed it. We ran the test today without any problems and were mainly working on the setup for the race here in August,” said Rydell.

The Russian Bears-prepared Lada 110 made its first ever official run with the WTCC. Both drivers, Viktor Shapovalov and Jaap van Lagen, were present but Shapovalov drove the car today.

The team only managed to run 15 laps before they ran in to engine trouble. Shapovalov’s best time was 1:40.319, around five seconds slower than Huff’s best time.
“We only got a couple of laps. Something in the engine broke and currently we have only got one car to run. This is our last test before the race at Valencia and we really need the track time,” said Shapovalov.

The test continues tomorrow, stay tuned for more reports and exclusive information!

Combined times from PM and AM-test: