MACAU – Chevrolet won yesterday (November 21 2010) in Macau the Manufacturers’ WTCC title, while Yvan Muller was officially declared Drivers’ WTCC Champion. This double success, the first of Chevrolet and GM in a FIA-sanctioned world championship, seals a perfect finale to the outstanding campaign of the Cruze throughout the season.
The championships were conquered with bravura, as Rob Huff and Yvan Muller took a double win in Race 1, after a faultless flag-to-flag performance. In Race 2, the Chevrolet duo had to fight hard to pass Farfus, finishing 3rd and 4th, which means that Chevrolet has been on the podium in 21 of the 22 races this year. Unfortunately, this was not enough for Huff to take the runner-up position in the championship, as he finished tied in points with Tarquini, declared vice-champion only on number of wins. Alain Menu had a more difficult week-end but showed again his tremendous team spirit and personal bravery, having to cope with the sad news of his dad’s death. The Swiss finished Race 1 in 7th position, after a contact with the wall in lap 1, but could not take advantage from the first row position in Race 2, as a mechanical problem got him stuck on the grid.
As “We are the Champions!” was being sung in the Chevrolet garage after the race, amid accolades, toasts and some tears, the RML team was preparing for a long night of well-deserved celebrations. Once back in Europe, work will resume, with a new challenge in sight: getting the new Cruze 1.6 turbo as competitive as the current race car in 2011.
Quotes
Yvan Muller (2010 WTCC Champion): "It’s fantastic to conquer the title in my first year with Chevrolet. It’s never easy to be competitive straight away with a new car and a new team, but integration into this wonderful team has been easy, as I received a lot of support from every member of the team. I have no words to express my appreciation and my gratitude to them. It is my second WTCC title, I am really very happy, I want to enjoy every single second of this success and share it with all the people that made it possible. Moments like this are so rare in life that one has really to take the chance to savor and enjoy them fully!”
Rob Huff (3rd in 2010 WTCC): “What a great car and what a great team we have. Congratulations to Yvan, he drove beautifully throughout the season and fully deserves the title. The team has done a terrific job in putting all the pieces of the puzzle together to achieve this great result. I am proud of being part of such a team and grateful of the trust that Chevrolet and RML put on me since day one. I had some cracking results throughout this season, although I couldn’t be in a position to fight for the title due to some race incidents out of my control, but I really look forward to next year”.
Alain Menu (6th in 2010 WTCC): "It’s a fantastic day for Chevrolet, RML and the entire team, I am really very, very happy. When we started, almost from nothing some six years ago, we really had a very big task ahead of us, bigger than anyone would have thought at that time. But we made it and I am proud of having brought my contribution. I still remember with deep emotion our first win in Brands Hatch in 2006, that is really a special memory. Now we have to enjoy the moment and then go back to work. After a difficult season for me this year, I really look forward to give Alain and Rob a hard time in 2011!”
Wayne Brannon, President and Managing Director Chevrolet Europe: “Today’s achievement is the culmination of six years of hard work, of incredible dedication and true passion. I want to thank all the many talented and dedicated people who have been involved in Chevrolet’s WTCC programme since the very beginning and who have made this success possible. It is them who are always first place in my book. “World Champion” is a label that Chevrolet is very proud of, especially as our brand continues to grow globally with more and more customers choosing us every day. We are excited about the launch of many new and innovative products that respond to customer needs. I am immensely happy for this incredible RML racing team and all the Chevrolet employees, customers and fans throughout the world”.
Nick Reilly, President GM Europe: “It is with great happiness that I extend my warmest congratulations to the whole Chevrolet team for this great success, which is a well-deserved reward to the great work done over six years. Since the launch of Chevrolet’s WTCC campaign in 2005, from a blank sheet of paper, I was convinced this team was to become a World Champion, and today is the day! “
Eric Nève, Manager Motorsports Chevrolet Europe: “We all share a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment today, it’s a very rewarding moment. What I would say, from my perspective, is that consistency and continuity have paid off. Those have been my guidelines during the six years of this programme: chose the best technical partner, the best people, the best drivers, build something with them and stick with them. I always prefer to look ahead rather than behind, but if I have to chose a moment among the many lived during this six years, I would pick up the week-end of our debut, Monza 2005. It was an emotional moment, where one could feel the excitement of the entire company around us. Our cars qualified in positions 21, 22 and 23 in that first race, three second and a half from the pole. That in itself shows the long way we’ve come since then. At the end of that week-end, the list of “points to work on” included no less than 160 items! I guess we’ve gone through all of them...”
Ray Mallock, CEO RML Ltd: “It’s a fantastic feeling to be World Champions and the cherry on the cake to an incredible season. We knew we were competitive and that we could deliver this result, now it’s done! This was our objective since we started the WTCC programme with Chevrolet, it has been a tough and wonderful journey, building up year after year. We now look forward to the new Cruze 1.6 turbo and are very excited about this next challenge”.
MACAU RACE 1 RESULTS
1. R Huff Chevrolet Cruze 11 laps in 35m34s840
2. Y Muller Chevrolet Cruze + 0s366
3. T Monteiro SEAT León TDI + 0s631
4. G Tarquini SEAT León TDI + 0s909
5. N Michelisz SEAT León TDI + 1s306
8. A Menu Chevrolet Cruze + 2s564
MACAU RACE 2 RESULTS
1. N Michelisz SEAT León TDI 10 laps in 54m37s415
2. G Tarquini SEAT León TDI + 1s193
3. R Huff Chevrolet Cruze + 1s543
4. A Menu Chevrolet Cruze + 10s886
5. A Farfus BMW 320si + 14s675
DNF A Menu Chevrolet Cruze 2 laps (mechanical)
DRIVERS POINTS STANDINGS AFTER RACE 22 OF 22
1. Y Muller (Chevrolet), 331 points; 2. G Tarquini (SEAT), 276; 3. R Huff (Chevrolet), 276 ; 4. A Priaulx (BMW), 246 ; 5. T Monteiro (SEAT), 177; 6. A Menu (Chevrolet), 173; ... 21. L Pernía (Chevrolet), 1.
MANUFACTURERS POINTS STANDINGS AFTER RACE 22 OF 22
1. Chevrolet, 715 points; 2. SEAT, 641; 3. BMW, 580.