LADA SPORT ROSNEFT will be looking to continue its points-scoring momentum at Hungary’s Hungaroring this weekend (1-3 May), following the new-for-2015 Vesta TC1’s first top ten finish last time out in Marrakesh.
At 4.38km in length, the Hungaroring – situated near the Hungarian capital, Budapest – encompasses a mixture of long straights and fast flowing corners, all of which will test both car and driver to the limit. With thousands of fans expected to flock to the picturesque circuit in support of local man, Norbert Michelisz, the atmosphere is sure to be electric. However, there will be a lot of LADA fans in attendance, who will all be eager to see the Vesta on track ahead of the anticipated launch of the new LADA model on the European market.
The Russian squad headed to Marrakesh buoyed by a strong showing in Argentina, despite the fact unnecessary contact resulted in retirements for James Thompson and 2012 World Champion, Rob Huff.
The British pairing went on to record the team’s first championship points of the year, bringing their bright yellow Vesta TC1s home in seventh and tenth respectively in the weekend’s two races.
Russian hotshot, Mikhail Kozlovskiy, who was sidelined for the WTCC’s Race of Argentina while his car was in build, finished 12th on his 2015 debut in the team’s third LADA Vesta, before unfortunate contact with teammate Huff brought his weekend to a premature end.
However, having recorded a surprise victory at Hungary two years ago, Huff will be seeking to conclude the weekend with yet more championship points for the Russian team, “I have fond memories of the Hungaroring, not only because I took a win there two years ago, but because Budapest is undoubtedly one of the most amazing circuits we visit,” said Huff. “Of course, the fact it’s a Formula 1 venue makes it special, but the reason I love it so much is primarily down to the 100,000-plus fans at the grand stands. I feel we have what it takes to pull a result out of the bag if we’re able to get the LADA Vesta TC1 running properly. The car is fast, there’s no doubt about that, but a few problems that are relatively straightforward to resolve have arisen and we just need time between races to sort them out. I have every faith in my LADA SPORT ROSNEFT team and we’ll work through the issues one at a time”.
Fellow Briton, James Thompson, added: “We are continuing to develop the car, and the Hungaroring will give us more information about the Vesta’s performance. After the race, the team will stay at the track for two more days to undertake more testing, where we will try to use every possibility to test the new car at different types of venues.”
Kozlovskiy concluded: “I am really thankful to the team for repairing our cars in such a short period of time after the collision in Morocco. I like being in Hungary, as we always have a warm welcome and can see the LADA fans in the paddock, which is really pleasant. Honestly, I don’t like to make any forecasts for the race, but we will always try to do our best to achieve maximum results.”
Qualifying for Round 3 of the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) is scheduled to get underway at 14.30 on Saturday (2 May), which precedes the weekend’s two races at 13.30 and 14.40 on Sunday (3 May).