The fifth round of the FIA World Touring Car Championship, WTCC, will take place this coming weekend, the 24th and 25th of May on the Salzburgring circuit in Austria. This is a very fast track with a few corners which, in theory, do not match the qualities of the Tiago Honda Civic. Even though the mission may seem impossible, the Portuguese driver heads into this weekend with every intention of joining in the fight for the best positions. The Honda Civic # 18 driver’s ambition is to continue to score big points for the Honda and JAS Motorsport team.
Tiago Monteiro currently sits in fourth place in the overall standings with 3 podium finishes to his credit so far this year. In Slovakia, the cancellation of race two, where he was scheduled to start from pole position, Tiago was deprived of the possibility of securing his first victory of the season, so the aim is to have more success in Austria.
"I was very disappointed at the time, but we must move forward and think about the next event, and that’s what I did," said Tiago. "But I have to be realistic. Achieving the same level of performance in Austria would be a remarkable achievement. The track is very fast and we know that our opponents have the advantage on this kind of layout."
Applying the best strategy in qualifying and then waiting to see what unfolds in the race is the best approach in this situation. "We will try to limit the damage, to score points and to be optimistic. Luck also plays a role, as we saw in Slovakia. We’ll see which way it will tip the balance this time... because we’ll be ready to seize any and every opportunity. We will work as usual and wait to see how our work is rewarded," concluded Tiago Monteiro.