Gianni Morbidelli: “I knew it would not be easy”

Gianni Morbidelli won the first race in Monza, Italy, but not in the dominant fashion many expected.

The WestCoast Racing driver dropped down to fourth at the start and had to make up for the lost ground.

“I think I proved it’s not just the straight line speed that made me strong here,” said the Honda driver to TouringCarTimes. “The real points where I made up ground compared to the others was the Variante Ascari and the Parabolica.”

Morbidelli was satisfied with the outcome of the race: “We wanted to win and we did it, but it was not easy. I know a lot of people thought I would have had an easy time today, but I had anticipated I would have had to fight hard to win, and that was the case. I just cross my fingers for the second race, where I will try my utmost to score as many points as possible.”

Gianni Morbidelli is now up to second in the championship, four points shy of new leader Pepe Oriola.