Vila Real, Race 1 : Coronel soaks up the WTCC pressure in Vila Real

Chilton and Catsburg on the podium

Coronel made a fantastic start from pole position in his ROAL Motorsport Chevrolet Cruze, while Sébastien Loeb Racing Citroën driver Chilton squeezed past the LADA of Nicky Catsburg through the opening turns of the race.

From there, the two Toms were inseparable as they pulled away from the rest, but although Chilton kept the pressure on his former team-mate and WTCC Trophy rival, with less than six tenths of a second splitting them at the finish, he was unable to prevent the Dutchman repeating his triumph from Marrakech.

Catsburg completed the podium after soaking up the pressure of a train of cars behind him, which was led by Chilton’s team-mate Mehdi Bennani. Championship leader José María López set the fastest lap late on but had to settle for fifth.

Rob Huff was the leading Honda finisher and took sixth place away from Volvo driver Thed Björk with a good move on the penultimate lap, with the pair going side-by-side through several corners. Norbert Michelisz was eighth in front of Yvan Muller, with home hero Tiago Monteiro 10th and avoiding trouble before starting on pole for the Main Race.