Néstor Girolami claims maiden pole in wet Ningbo qualifying

Volvo’s Néstor Girolami claimed pole position for the inaugural World Touring Car Championship race at the new Ningbo International Speedpark in China, pipping Honda’s Norbert Michelisz to the top time in the rain.

Girolami had earlier been one of the drivers to beat in Q1 and Q2, putting in the second fastest times. The Argentine then went one better in the Q3 shootout with the fastest lap of the afternoon, taking his first-ever WTCC pole position as a result.

“I’m really thankful to the team – they did a fantastic job,” said Girolami. “Two days ago we were testing, doing a shakedown and trying to solve my problem that I had before the race weekend.

“We expected to be competitive at this race, because this famous vibration went away during this testing, so I’m really happy. Honestly, this is very nice for me and for my confidence, because as a driver, you always want to win and at this race I have the confidence that I have the possibility to fight. I am here to fight and to help my team-mates and we are ready to fight for the championship.”

Michelisz ended up as the leading Honda in second, claiming a crucial four points in his championship challenge, whilst the title contending Volvo of Thed Björk ended up in third.

Münnich Motorsport’s Rob Huff was the leading independent driver in fourth in his Citroën C-Elysée, with the Brit having had the added advantage of extra track time this weekend thanks to taking part in the Chinese Touring Car Championship races.

Honda stand-in driver Gabriele Tarquini took fifth, with the Italian having lost a significant amount of time on his Q3 lap when he ran wide and slide into a corner in the final sector of the lap on the mud.

Sébastien Loeb Racing’s Tom Chilton was sixth, having just missed out on the cut-off to get into Q3, ahead of Campos Racing’s Esteban Guerrieri in seventh, with the Argentine also being the leading Chevrolet driver.

Volvo’s other title contender, Nicky Catsburg, could only manage the eighth best time in Q2, with the Dutchman relying on a strong result in the Opening Race as a result.

Completing the top ten, and therefore forming the front row for the reverse-grid Opening Race, were SLR’s John Filippi in ninth and RC Motorsport’s Yann Ehrlacher in tenth.

Honda’s Ryo Michigami had been inside the top ten until late in Q2 when team-mate Michelisz finally put in a flying lap.

RC Motorsport’s Kevin Gleason had been tenth fastest in Q1, entitling him to a first-ever Q2 outing, but the American did not post a time in Q2 and will therefore start both of Sunday’s races from 12^th on the grid.

It proved to be a difficult session for both SLR’s Mehdi Bennani, who ended up in 13^th, and ROAL Motorsport’s Tom Coronel, who was just 14^th fastest.

The Opening Race takes place at 07:25 BST (08:25 CEST) on Sunday, with the Main Race following at 08:35 BST (09:35 CEST).

Q3 results

POS	NO	CL	DRIVER	NAT	ENTRANT	CAR	LAPS	TIME	GAP
1	61		Néstor GIROLAMI		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	3	1:58.049	0.000
2	5		Norbert MICHELISZ		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	3	1:58.369	0.320
3	62		Thed BJÖRK		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	3	1:58.536	0.487
4	12	T	Rob HUFF		ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	3	1:58.857	0.808
5	2		Gabriele TARQUINI		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	3	2:01.040	2.991

Q2 results

POS	NO	CL	DRIVER	NAT	ENTRANT	CAR	LAPS	TIME	GAP
1	2		Gabriele TARQUINI		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	5	1:58.485	0.000
2	61		Néstor GIROLAMI		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	5	1:58.508	0.023
3	5		Norbert MICHELISZ		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	4	1:58.578	0.093
4	62		Thed BJÖRK		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	5	1:58.662	0.177
5	12	T	Rob HUFF		ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	4	1:58.694	0.209
6	3	T	Tom CHILTON		Sébastien Loeb Racing	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	5	1:59.460	0.975
7	86	T	Esteban GUERRIERI		Campos Racing	Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1	4	1:59.896	1.411
8	63		Nicky CATSBURG		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	4	2:00.025	1.540
9	27	T	John FILIPPI		Sébastien Loeb Racing	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	5	2:00.265	1.780
10	68	T	Yann EHRLACHER		RC Motorsport	LADA Vesta WTCC	5	2:00.641	2.156
11	34		Ryo MICHIGAMI		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	4	2:02.171	3.686
12	24	T	Kevin GLEASON		RC Motorsport	LADA Vesta WTCC	0	No time	N/A

Q1 results

POS	NO	CL	DRIVER	NAT	ENTRANT	CAR	LAPS	TIME	GAP
1	62		Thed BJÖRK		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	9	1:58.243	0.000
2	61		Néstor GIROLAMI		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	9	1:58.595	0.352
3	12	T	Rob HUFF		ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	8	1:58.761	0.518
4	5		Norbert MICHELISZ		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	9	1:58.794	0.551
5	2		Gabriele TARQUINI		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	7	1:58.855	0.612
6	3	T	Tom CHILTON		Sébastien Loeb Racing	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	9	1:59.037	0.794
7	68	T	Yann EHRLACHER		RC Motorsport	LADA Vesta WTCC	10	1:59.361	1.118
8	86	T	Esteban GUERRIERI		Campos Racing	Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1	7	1:59.593	1.350
9	63		Nicky CATSBURG		Polestar Cyan Racing	Volvo S60 Polestar	9	1:59.620	1.377
10	24	T	Kevin GLEASON		RC Motorsport	LADA Vesta WTCC	9	1:59.890	1.647
11	27	T	John FILIPPI		Sébastien Loeb Racing	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	9	2:00.377	2.134
12	34		Ryo MICHIGAMI		Honda Racing Team JAS	Honda Civic WTCC	7	2:00.398	2.155
13	25	T	Mehdi BENNANI		Sébastien Loeb Racing	Citroën C-Elysée WTCC	9	2:00.590	2.347
14	9	T	Tom CORONEL		ROAL Motorsport	Chevrolet RML Cruze TC1	9	2:00.604	2.361
15	99	T	Dániel NAGY		Zengő Motorsport Kft	Honda Civic WTCC	6	2:02.565	4.322
16	26	T	Filipe Clemente DE SOUZA		RC Motorsport	LADA Vesta WTCC	8	2:02.980	4.737
17	66	T	Zsolt Dávid SZABÓ		Zengő Motorsport Kft	Honda Civic WTCC	0	No time	N/A