Photo: Citroën Racing

Citroën set to rotate SLR drivers for the WTCC’s new MAC3 concept

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Citroën Racing have said they will likely rotate which driver from Sébastien Loeb Racing’s line-up of Mehdi Bennani, Tom Chilton and Grégoire Demoustier, will join their factory cars in the new MAC3 concept during the 2016 season.

The World Touring Car Championship introduces its track cycling team pursuit based MAC3 (Manufacturers Against the Clock) for 2016, and Citroën have an additional strategic element to consider, after slimming down to just two factory cars this season for José María López and Yvan Muller. As MAC3 requires three cars to take part, Citroën will have to call upon one of the three independent entries, while Polestar Cyan Racing will be unable to participate as there are just two cars in total on the grid.

MAC3 takes place after qualifying and involves three cars of each manufacturer, Citroën, Honda and Lada, competing in a two-lap sprint in formation, with the quickest manufacturer squad netting ten points towards the manufacturers’ championship.

With Lada running three cars this year, it’s clear who will always take part for the Russian marque, while Honda’s expanded three-car factory squad means it will be Norbert Michelisz, Rob Huff and Tiago Monteiro competing for them, while Citroën will have to decide ahead of the race weekend which driver will join Muller and López for the new event.

“We’ve not finalised the strategy we’ll have, but it will not always be the same three drivers, that’s for sure,” said team principal Yves Matton to TouringCarTimes.

“Normally it’ll always be Yvan and Pechito and one of the privateers, we’ll have to see event by event what will be the strategy for the third driver, but we have to finalise it and then after that speak with the drivers and manage that together.”

On what he sees what the key factors are in selecting which driver takes part from SLR, Matton explained:

“It’s two very important things. First, the driver has to not disturb the others during this MAC3 and that they can easily drive together and really close; and after that we also have to decide in which order they are, which is the first, middle and last. We have to choose which strategy for the first event in Le Castellet and see how it works.”