Mehdi Bennani hoping good performances will earn him factory seat
Sébastien Loeb Racing’s Mehdi Bennani made full use of the reversed grid in Slovakia, ending up as the top-scoring Citroën in the opening race by claiming second. The Moroccan led the race until Honda Racing’s Tiago Monteiro overtook him and went on to win.
“I always had to be defensive,” admitted Bennani to TouringCarTimes. “I tried my best, but when you push from the start and you have an 80 kilos ballast it’s always going to be difficult. I did what I could do, but on the last three laps I had absolutely no grip. I thought one of the two Hondas could pass me, but I would not allow the second through.”
The Moroccan chose to leave Monteiro enough room to pass in order to avoid losing time – and his second place: “I decided to leave him (Monteiro) space in a place where I wouldn’t lose too much time, and the hairpin was good. Of course I can’t say I am completely happy because I was so close to victory, but in the end I am a privateer and it’s good to send a message to the paddock that I am capable of taking on the challenge of a factory drive.”
During the race Bennani seriously believed he had a chance to win, but when his tyres faded he knew the Honda would have been able to pass him: “After six or seven laps I thought I would keep the lead, but you never know when you will lose your tyres and when it happens you know you are in trouble. Tiago (Monteiro) drove very cleanly and he knew I was heavier, so he was waiting for my tyres to go off and he was very smart because he did not push me around.”
The Moroccan was happy to finish second and score valuable points for Citroën in the manufacturers’ championship: “When I realised I struggled to even keep my car on track I thought I’d lose more than one place, so after all it’s a good result, because I also scored good points for Citroën in the manufacturers’ championship as well, we did well in MAC3, so I leave with a smile, although I would have loved to win. I was also very close to destroying the tyres and lose the race.”
Speaking of his stunning WTCC Trophy record, as he won all four races in the privateers’ championship so far, Bennani believes his Sébastien Loeb Racing team-mates will bounce back once they have more experience behind the wheel of the Citroën C-Elysée: “I have a lot of respect for Tom (Chilton) and Grégoire (Demoustier), they are fast drivers and we had a lot of testing. We are more prepared than last year and it’s a big help for everyone. We work together on the setup and we share data, so you learn from your team-mates. We have a good level and we will allow Sébastien Loeb Racing to go up in the standings.”
With the WTCC Race of Morocco coming close, Bennani admits he will feel more pressure to deliver at his home track, but it will stimulate him to do even better: “I can’t imagine the WTCC without a race in Marrakech, so for me it’s positive to have a home race. Of course I will feel stressed to do well in front of my fans, but it’s positive, it will push me. We don’t know the weights and it is a new track for everyone, so I hope to perform well and fight against the factory drivers, because that’s what everyone looks at from the outside, and hopefully I will keep this level for the rest of the season, which will be tough.”
The Moroccan has a 16-points advantage over team-mate Tom Chilton in the WTCC Trophy, and is the second best placed Citroën driver in the overall championship in fifth, 29 points behind leader Tiago Monteiro and just one shy of Honda’s Rob Huff.
