Thed Björk tops twice red-flagged first practice session at Ningbo
There was no stopping YMR driver Thed Björk who topped the first free practice session of the FIA WTCR weekend at Ningbo, beating Hyundai colleague Norbert Michelisz by close to a second in a session that was red-flagged twice.
“We didn’t do any laps in the dry here last year, so it’s like the first time,” said Björk. “It’s a technical circuit and it’s difficult to find a flow, but I have a good feeling. It’s really hard on the front of the car and if you attack at one corner you might lose out at the next. We should have a lot of good racing this weekend.”
The first red flag came when Münnich Motorsport driver Esteban Guerrieri, who finished the session third fastest, went off and stopped in the gravel.
And it wasn’t long until the next red flag came as Audi driver Jean-Karl Vernay, who finished the session fifth fastest, stopped on track due to a technical issue.
All cars lined up in the pits to get a final attempt, but the session was red-flagged again for the final time after another car drove on track.
Comtoyou Racing driver Frédéric Vervisch finished the session fourth fastest in his Audi RS 3 LMS, while Ma Qing Hua, who replaces Benjamin Lessennes at Boutsen Ginion Racing, was sixth fastest in his Honda behind Vernay.
The fastest Volkswagen driver came in seventh position in the form of Mehdi Bennani, 1.3 seconds from the fastest time, with championship leader Gabriele Tarquini in eighth.
Honda driver and former DTM champion Timo Scheider claimed ninth ahead of 2012 WTCC champion Rob Huff in his Sébastien Loeb Racing Volkswagen, who rounded off the top ten 1.7 seconds from Björk’s fastest time.
Tarquini’s nearest rival in the championship, Yvan Muller, had a tough session as he only managed three laps before he had to pit with a suspected engine issue.
The second free practice session starts at 09:20 CEST/15:20 local time.
