British LADA drivers Rob Huff and James Thompson experienced differing fortunes during qualifying for the final World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) race in Macau, with Huff making the top ten in eighth whilst Thompson could only manage 14th.
Macau maestro Huff has been the top LADA driver throughout the weekend so far, making the top ten in all sessions except testing on Thursday, and even going as high as sixth fastest in free practice two.
Huff continued his form into qualifying, where he was ninth fastest in Q1 and eighth fastest in Q2. That puts him third on the grid for the reverse-grid season finale, giving the former champion confidence to push for a podium at the circuit where he has won six times previously.
“The car is really nice to drive around here, as it gives me the confidence to push as hard as I can and has a great balance,” said Huff. “We have the result to show for it, I am looking forward to the races, as always, and am excited at the prospect of a good finish on this amazing track.”
Thompson, on the other hand, missed out on Q2 entry and believes that he could have gone faster but for an incident which slowed him down on his final attempt. Thompson had earlier been 11th fastest in the final practice session before qualifying.
“We had the pace to get the car into the top 12 all through free practice and I was on a lap that would have seen us through to Q2, when the Citroën of Ma Qing Hua half spun in front of me,” explained Thompson. “It cost me valuable time and, while I was able to start a second timed run, I was thwarted by a red flag that stopped the session.”
The third LADA of Russian Mikhail Kozlovskiy qualified in 15th position, almost a second slower than Thompson ahead.
The final two races of the season take place at 11:15 and 12:30 local time on Sunday (04:15 and 05:30 CET; 03:15 and 04:30 GMT).