Photo: Jacques Letihon Photographe

Tom Coronel wins the first sprint race of the day at Zolder

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Boutsen Ginion Racing’s Tom Coronel won the first sprint race at Circuit Zolder, holding off WRT’s Maxime Potty despite losing the lead at the start to take his second win in two days at the wheel of the team’s Honda Civic TCR.

Just eight cars took the start of the race in the TCR class, with the Delahaye Volkswagen of Giacomo Altoè withdrawn after suffering technical issues in yesterday’s qualifying long race.

Kevin Abbring launched into the lead in the DG Sport Peugeot 308 at the start ahead of Coronel and Potty, and managed to hold off his Dutch rival for two laps, before Coronel managed to get ahead at the Villeneuve chicane on lap three, with the WRT Volkswagen of Maxime Potty also making his way past at the same time into second.

The Peugeot then dropped one more spot a lap later, as the WRT SEAT of Sam Dejonghe overtook him at Jochen Rindt.

Coronel didn’t have the pace over the WRT Volkswagen of Potty as he did yesterday, with the Honda driver hounded by Potty throughout the race, but Coronel was able to pull a slight gap in the closing minutes.

Abbring continued to hold off championship leader Guillaume Mondron’s Delahaye SEAT, despite several track limits violations. Mondron was closely followed by the Comtoyou Audi RS3 of Stefano Comini, who had passed the two Bas Koeten Audis at the start and settled into a rhythm on his way to a safe sixth position.

Coronel’s win closes co-driver Benjamin Lessennes to just 19 points of the championship lead.

The second race takes place imminently, with the grid as per Race 1.