Eric Gené: “We had to be patient with the tyres”

Monlau Motorsport driver Eric Gené (Cupra) finished third in the second TCR Spain race of the weekend at Valencia, climbing from sixth on the grid.

“The race was a bit complicated,” Gené told TouringCarTimes.

“We knew that the Hondas and the Hyundais are very fast on the main straight, so it was a big handicap for us.

“But, bit by bit, with the pace we had, we were faster than them in the second and last sectors, so we were patient and reached the end of the race with the tyres in better shape than them.”

Gené overtook his team-mate Jenson Brickley for fourth place on lap eleven, then launching his attack on Sebastien Thome (Audi) for third place four laps later.

“We don’t have team orders, but we always race with much respect for other competitors and also, specially, for my team-mate,” the Spaniard said.

“For instance, he (Jenson) overtook me at the start, and I did so to him later in the race. When I went to overtake him he left me the space, so this is how the races are.”