Photo: TCR World Tour

Thed Björk upbeat after charging up through the field in Race 1

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Cyan Racing driver Thed Björk recovered from a difficult qualifying session and climbed from tenth on the grid to finish fifth in the first FIA TCR World Tour race of the weekend in Spain.

“I didn’t find my balance with the braking in the qualifying,” Björk explained to TouringCarTimes.

“We didn’t have time to fix it, as we had just two runs, first with the used tyres and then with the new ones, but it was too late.”

The 2017 touring car world champion made up a lot of ground during the first couple of laps and made his way past Hyundai driver Néstor Girolami for sixth place on lap seven.

“It’s very exciting starting from tenth position, because people want to move forward very quickly,” said the Swede.

“It was very tight at the start and then Turns 1, 2 and 3, and with cars hitting each other. It was a bit of drama but, for me, I tried to go soft.

“I had very good pace and balance, so I felt good in the car and with the fight with Néstor (Girolami).”

The Swede remains upbeat for the remaining two races races on Sunday: “The format with the three races is very good because, even if you don’t get points in the qualifying, you still get good results and it looks good for Races 2 and 3.”