Citroën’s José María López set the pace in Friday testing for the World Touring Car Championship at Spa-Francorchamps, with team-mate Yvan Muller second and Honda’s Tiago Monteiro third.
Times tumbled throughout the half hour session and the Argentine’s lap came in the final minute of the session, leaving the championship leader 0.718 seconds clear of Frenchman Muller.
Muller himself had briefly enjoyed spells at the top of the timesheets but they never lasted for long, with López continually improving during the session.
Monteiro was third fastest, improving at the end of the session as everyone seemed to go second fastest for a period. Sébastien Loeb was fourth quickest, 1.220 seconds slower than his top team-mate.
The second works Honda of Gabriele Tarquini was fifth, ahead of the top Chevrolet driver Dušan Borković in sixth. The Serb was the last driver to improve in the session, having completed the equal least laps in the session.
Borković’s Campos Racing team-mate Hugo Valente hit the top of the times with five minutes remaining, but was left in seventh following a spate of late improvements.
Ma Qing Hua was eighth quickest, with the Chinese driver contesting only his second WTCC event since joining the series last time out in Russia. The Citroën driver was 2.772 seconds slower than López.
Zengő Motorsport’s Norbert Michelisz and Münnich Motorsport’s Gianni Morbidelli completed the top ten.
Franz Engstler was quickest in TC2 in 18th, with the older-spec cars proving to be more than ten seconds off the pace around the long Belgian circuit.
Rookie Norbert Nagy did not take to the circuit during the session, with his Campos team replacing the engine on his TC2 SEAT.
Top ten times
| POS | NO | CL | DRIVER | NAT | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 37 | TC1 | José María LÓPEZ |  |
Citroën Total WTCC | Citroën C-Elysée WTCC | 10 | 2:24.574 | |
| 2 | 1 | TC1 | Yvan MULLER |  |
Citroën Total WTCC | Citroën C-Elysée WTCC | 12 | 2:25.292 | 0.718 |
| 3 | 18 | TC1 | Tiago MONTEIRO |  |
Castrol Honda WTC Team | Honda Civic WTCC | 10 | 2:25.583 | 1.009 |
| 4 | 9 | TC1 | Sébastien LOEB | |
Citroën Total WTCC | Citroën C-Elysée WTCC | 11 | 2:25.794 | 1.220 |
| 5 | 2 | TC1 | Gabriele TARQUINI |  |
Castrol Honda WTC Team | Honda Civic WTCC | 11 | 2:25.940 | 1.366 |
| 6 | 98 | TC1 | Dušan BORKOVIĆ |  |
NIS Petrol by Campos Racing | Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 | 9 | 2:25.954 | 1.380 |
| 7 | 7 | TC1 | Hugo VALENTE | |
Campos Racing | Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 | 11 | 2:26.242 | 1.668 |
| 8 | 33 | TC1 | MA Qing Hua |  |
Citroën Total WTCC | Citroën C-Elysée WTCC | 11 | 2:27.346 | 2.772 |
| 9 | 5 | TC1 | Norbert MICHELISZ |  |
Zengő Motorsport | Honda Civic WTCC | 11 | 2:27.625 | 3.051 |
| 10 | 10 | TC1 | Gianni MORBIDELLI | |
ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport | Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1 | 9 | 2:27.656 | 3.082 |