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WTCR - Race of Hungary Race 1 press conference

28.04.18

Media Centre, Hungaroring, 17h00, 28 April

Present:
Yann Ehrlacher, ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport, first position
Esteban Guerrieri, ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport, second position
Norbert Michelisz, BRC Racing Team, third position

Q: 
Many congratulations on an outstanding victory from fifth on the grid. Did you really think that could be possible?

YE:
Honestly starting from P5 and when you have a tight race like this and there is no crash, you can’t go back to P1. I was lucky enough… for sure we did a great start. I jumped Thed at the start and after I was lucky that the two three firsts crashed together in T2 and I take the opportunity to go in the inside and after it was good to be P1.

Q:
After that you had your team-mate behind you the whole race. What was that like?

YE:
You know it’s like another opponent. For sure we did a bit of team race because we had a big gap to the guys behind and I say ‘yeah, we had to manage a bit our pace’ but that was it.

Q:
No driver has been more successful at this track in terms of world touring car victories and now you’re on that list of winners. What does that feel like?

YE:
I knew that he was the [holder of the] record of poles and also victories as well. It feels great already to be on the same grid and even on this list for the winning driver in Hungary. Big congratulations to the other guys, Esteban and Norbi, but I’m happy to share this with Yann.

Q:
Turning next to Esteban Guerrieri. Now you started second and finished second but explain your race from your point of view?

EG:
Firstly, congratulations to Yann for the victory and to Norbi, I’m happy to see them both on the podium. It couldn’t be a better podium, honestly. Then the race… the start was very good. I actually overshoot a little bit Turn 1, we went with a very low wing setting and I kind of underestimated a bit the braking and I went wide. Then Norbi got side by side and going into Turn 2 I was getting more squeezed than I would have liked to and I brake on the dirty part and we went all wide. Then Norbi told me Tarquini was on the outside also squeezing him so it was like a little bit of three in one place and normally this does not work and Yann was a good spectator from the back.

YE:
Yeah, that’s right!

EG:
I was kind of lucky to be honest to not lose any position. Okay I lost to Yann but I started second and finished second, it was a good result. During the race we had a good pace, probably the Hyundais managed a bit the pace during the race and we got the team orders not to do over-do anything and it was logical to do that in this race. We needed the points and it was nothing much more than we could do. It was a good 1-2 and I’m happy with that.

Q:
Turning next to Norbi and from pole position victory must have been in your mind before the start of the race but what actually happened out there.

NM:
To be honest my start wasn’t ideal. It was not a bad start but I guess on a level with drivers like this you can’t afford to have an average start if you want to win a race. I saw Esteban was very early up the inside. I tried to squeeze him into the wall but he just had the momentum to pass me. Then it was difficult to judge the braking for the first corner. I knew many cars are in the back. I just tried to go for the inside, Esteban did the same. I tried to brake late, I saw Esteban overshooting a bit the corner and I just saw there was an opportunity to come back around the outside in Turn 2. I tried to squeeze him as much as possible. I’m not sure, you were on the grass?

EG:
No, no.

NM:
Then I did a good job I guess! It’s just about not leaving a lot of space. I tried to brake late, stay around the outside but against people like Esteban it’s a bit too optimistic. We were a bit squeezed, we overshoot Turn 2 and I fell back to fifth. I managed to overtake Gabriele [Tarquini] exiting Turn 3. Then I was fighting with Yvan.

Q:
And that fight with Yvan looked fantastic live on WTCR.OSCARO.COM and Facebook but what was it like for you and talk us through the passing move for first place?

NM:
It was difficult to be honest because you need to manage some temperatures when you are following a car really close. My target was just to stay close as much as possible in case he makes a mistake I just wanted to dive up the inside anywhere possible. My first move was braking for Turn 1. Then we touched a little bit, I locked the front and I went wide. I tried to put the pressure on him and almost managed to get up the inside in Turn 13. Then I saw he was struggling a little bit exiting the last corner, which gave me the opportunity to get alongside him exiting the last corner and that gave me the position exiting Turn 1. It was fun to be honest, it was fair, it was tough racing and I think people would like to see something like this.

Q:
Turning back to Yann Ehrlacher, you are now just eight points behind Gabriele Tarquini in the championship battle. Have you had any thoughts about that?

YE:
That’s nice to know. There are still – let me count – 26 races so hundreds of points. For sure it’s better to be here than P15 in the championship but it’s still a long, long way and we have to keep scoring points every time so we will see.