WTCC - Marrakech - spoilers

[old'uns]

FIA......F****n Idiots Association

[rscott]

So Bernani got penalised for driving in a straight line and not slowing down when Coronel drove across the front of him ? Pathetic.

Citroens seem to have even more of an advantage than the Mercs do in F1 but they're not allowed to race each other.
This could be a very dull season.

[old'uns]

Don't panic ...yet!

Street circuit, sooooo easy to wreck 2/3 cars in one go, even Citroen may not have that many shells with Paul Ricard next w/e

[MonkeyHanger]

The post race barbecue is starting early!

[eastlmark]

great tv though when the Honda driver is being interviewed, the split screen of Coronell heading his way and bursting in was right out of Nascar.

[Allyc85]

eastlmark said:

great tv though when the Honda driver is being interviewed, the split screen of Coronell heading his way and bursting in was right out of Nascar.

Fantastic wasn't it, thought the pit reporters did a really good. Martin Haven's live commentary is really starting to get on my nerves, too many mistakes!

But apart from the poor organisation, shocking drive through pen and boring team orders from Citroen, there were some really good battles in race 2.

Think I will stick to BTCC though

[MonkeyHanger]

Bennani has been excluded from the race 2 result. His car was found to be underweight.

[DiscoColin]

eastlmark said:

great tv though when the Honda driver is being interviewed, the split screen of Coronell heading his way and bursting in was right out of Nascar.

I was thinking American wrestling personally....

I was a bit irked though. I actually rather like Tom Coronel, but from no angle can I see it as anything other than his fault. Bennani was doing nothing but driving in a straight line and keeping his car out of the wall. For him to be penalised was the most absurd stewards decision outside of F1 that I think I have ever encountered. Saddened that it looks like Tom will miss the next round though - unless RML have a nearly finished shell in progress in the workshop the chances look like nill.

But that was all a sideshow. The real story is of course the horror of Citroen team orders, which from the onset (due to their blatant rules superiority) look like they are going to guarantee dull racing at the front all season. If you have a dominant car then you have to race amongst yourselves. Locking results in alienates fans and negates the publicity benefits of winning IMHO. But if you put on a spectacle then nobody will care if there is only one make of car in the race...

[DeltonaS]

It was clearly Bennani's fault..

Bennani kept his line but Coronel is allowed to block/defend his position. And since there wasn't any room to pass, and Bennani wasn't beside Coronel, Bennani should've backed off after the first contact. Instead he persisted, made visible when contact was suddenly stoped when Coronels car overturned and Bennani's car swayed right across the track to the other side, meaning Bennani had been pushing. On top of that, Benanni's reaction was clear, he felt responsible.

Edited by DeltonaS on Monday 14th April 03:15

Edited by DeltonaS on Monday 14th April 03:18

[Allyc85]

Sorry, but apart from Tom and his team the whole world disagrees!!

[coppice]

This is the World Touring car championship isn't it- the one which goes to Morocco and the Balkan states and other motor racing meccas. but no to anywhere in UK . Hardly as though UK much involved in motor sport is it ?

[wildman0609]

DiscoColin said:

But that was all a sideshow. The real story is of course the horror of Citroen team orders, which from the onset (due to their blatant rules superiority) look like they are going to guarantee dull racing at the front all season. If you have a dominant car then you have to race amongst yourselves. Locking results in alienates fans and negates the publicity benefits of winning IMHO. But if you put on a spectacle then nobody will care if there is only one make of car in the race...

Citroen would get more fans if they were mid pack but racing.

I just don't see any point in them competing in WTCC, they will walk the championship, beating teams that aren't spending half as much.
PSA-Peugeot-Citroën pulled the plug on a le mans program and did this, it just seems so pointless.

[old'uns]

DeltonaS said:

It was clearly Bennani's fault..

Bennani kept his line but Coronel is allowed to block/defend his position. And since there wasn't any room to pass, and Bennani wasn't beside Coronel, Bennani should've backed off after the first contact. Instead he persisted, made visible when contact was suddenly stoped when Coronels car overturned and Bennani's car swayed right across the track to the other side, meaning Bennani had been pushing. On top of that, Benanni's reaction was clear, he felt responsible.

Edited by DeltonaS on Monday 14th April 03:15

Edited by DeltonaS on Monday 14th April 03:18

on the other hand Tom could have just gone straighter.......


Citroen's plan with WTCC seems no different to any other manufacturer in any other series.....win?
the C-Elysee is a car for 'emerging' markets, maybe not so savvy as us who know the cars bear no resemblance to the showroom model

[MG CHRIS]

Muller wont be happy to play the waiting game and hold station specially as he has already one dnf. Impressed with lopez 2 wins in 3 wtcc race is pretty good going.

Some good battles below the citroen walk over not a fan of the huge front spliters any contact they will disintegrate. The 2nd race crash was coronel fault bennani didn't move tom turned in on him. Damage looks pretty serious both front and back wipped out.
Not sure on the build of these is it like btcc cars regards to where the strength is etc.

Will keep watching any motorsport outside f1 tbh although the penalty was totally wrong.

[DiscoColin]

DeltonaS said:

It was clearly Bennani's fault..

Bennani kept his line but Coronel is allowed to block/defend his position. And since there wasn't any room to pass, and Bennani wasn't beside Coronel, Bennani should've backed off after the first contact. Instead he persisted, made visible when contact was suddenly stoped when Coronels car overturned and Bennani's car swayed right across the track to the other side, meaning Bennani had been pushing. On top of that, Benanni's reaction was clear, he felt responsible.

No.

Bennani is on a straight course and the initial contact is actually from Tom moving sideways into Bennani, who was just (and only just) beside Coronel. This is a side-side contact, not an end-end one. Bennani was not pushing in the way that you think - as there was a lateral force on his car he would need to have steering pressure to hold a straight line otherwise Tom would literally have pushed him into the wall. It is Tom's own movement to the left that is responsible for the lateral impulse on his rear corner that ultimately initiates his spin. The normal interpretation of this is a racing accident. Tom only needed to give Bennani about 15cm more room and the accident doesn't happen and Tom would almost certainly have had a podium finish. Bennani could have lifted/braked in theory, but no touring car driver would have done that (WTCC, BTCC, Aus V8 or other). To fit Tom's (and indeed your own) view of the incident, the contact would actually have needed to be on the rear of the Chevrolet, and would have sent it to the right rather than across the Honda to the left and into the wall.

Tom is one of my favourite tin top drivers and I am really disappointed in him from this. He has the superior experience and racecraft that should have avoided it. It is as if his indignation is more from embarrassment than conviction. With almost no chance of him making the next round as a result of something that he could so readily have avoided it is really saddening.

[Alex Langheck]

wildman0609 said:

DiscoColin said:

But that was all a sideshow. The real story is of course the horror of Citroen team orders, which from the onset (due to their blatant rules superiority) look like they are going to guarantee dull racing at the front all season. If you have a dominant car then you have to race amongst yourselves. Locking results in alienates fans and negates the publicity benefits of winning IMHO. But if you put on a spectacle then nobody will care if there is only one make of car in the race...

Citroen would get more fans if they were mid pack but racing.

I just don't see any point in them competing in WTCC, they will walk the championship, beating teams that aren't spending half as much.
PSA-Peugeot-Citroën pulled the plug on a le mans program and did this, it just seems so pointless.

In my view they've chosen the WTCC as it's the easiest series to win. DTM, WEC would needs mega bucks, and they'd be up against proper competition. I'd love to see Seb in a proper RWD car - preferably an LMP1.... He's finished 2nd at Le Mans, he's good enough to be there. I just think he's wasted driving a FWD car in a pretty poor series - the weakest of the FiA.

[wildman0609]

Alex Langheck said:

In my view they've chosen the WTCC as it's the easiest series to win. DTM, WEC would needs mega bucks, and they'd be up against proper competition. I'd love to see Seb in a proper RWD car - preferably an LMP1.... He's finished 2nd at Le Mans, he's good enough to be there. I just think he's wasted driving a FWD car in a pretty poor series - the weakest of the FiA.

This is sort of what I was implying. He should be in works peugeot in the WEC.

[BBS-LM]

WTCC this year looks a complete farce if i'm honest.

[Dan Friel]

BBS-LM said:

WTCC this year looks a complete farce if i'm honest.

Have just watched the races on Eurosport, and yes, you're 100% right!

[MG CHRIS]

Dan Friel said:

BBS-LM said:

WTCC this year looks a complete farce if i'm honest.

Have just watched the races on Eurosport, and yes, you're 100% right!

I agree too, not for the fact citroen is so far ahead of the other you expect that when they have been testing for over the year but to have team orders right from the beginning spoils what could be a close battle between loeb, muller and lopez and im sure during the end of the year muller wont play the team orders game just like Vauxhall 2001 with plato as his team mate.