Nicky Catsburg would have loved to have scored Lada’s first non-reversed grid win

Nicky Catsburg was very close to victory in the main race in Slovakia on Sunday, but lost out to Citroën’s José María López on the final lap. The Lada Sport driver was disappointed after having lost the victory, but was still glad to take third, which he regards as a very good result, his best to-date in the WTCC.

“I struggled with my tyres and when I saw Pechito closing in I hoped he would leave me in the lead because he has won enough!”, joked the Dutchman. “I am still very happy with the podium, I would have loved to win but third was not bad for us today.”

Looking ahead to Hungary, the Lada driver feels he can’t tell where the Russian cars will be until the compensation weight system fully comes into play: “It’s difficult to say because the weight will play a role, but I think it’s clear we made a good step and everyone can see that. We probably should have scored more points in the first two races, but let’s see where we are in Budapest. Hopefully we will be able to do well.”

Catsburg is seventh in the championship on 35 points and is currently the best-placed of the Lada drivers.