Thed Björk claimed his and Polestar Cyan Racing’s best ever FIA World Touring Car Championship qualifying result by making it to the final Q3 session at Hungaroring.
”I am very happy to claim this milestone for us, a real testament to the team being able to bounce back,” said Björk.
The three-time STCC champion was fastest in free practice and claimed the fifth fastest time in the final Q3 session of qualifying, meaning grid position five for the second race tomorrow.
”I didn’t quite get my lap right in Q3, but I am pleased with the progress we have made after the issues we had yesterday and the team has given me a great car,” said Björk.
Björk missed the first test session of the weekend due to an engine issue originating from the previous race in Slovakia. The team was forced to change the engine, meaning that Björk has got to start last in the first race.
Fredrik Ekblom will start from the front row in the first race with the reversed grid after being ninth fastest in the Q2 session.
”We had an okay qualifying result. There is as always more to work on with the car, but I was quite pleased with it in total. Unfortunately I made a mistake on my best lap, but I am looking forward to start from the front row of the grid for the first race and see what we can get out of it,” said Ekblom.
The results translates into grid positions 17 (Race 1) and 5 (Race 2) for Björk, with grid positions 2 (Race 1) and 9 (Race 2) for Ekblom in the two races of 16 and 17 laps respectively.
”We are really pleased by making it to Q3 for the first time, a great effort by the team to get Björk back into the top after the engine change yesterday. We are looking forward to two exciting races tomorrow with Ekblom on a strong position for the first race and Björk for the second race,” said Alexander Murdzevski Schedvin, Head of Motorsport at Polestar.
The two races of tomorrow are broadcasted live on Eurosport, with inside live commentary from the team on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cyanracing
WTCC Race of Hungary
Circuit: Hungaroring
Length: 4381 m
Lap record (WTCC): 1:50.119, Muller
Results
Q3
1 José María López Citroën C-Elysée 1:46.109
2 Tom Coronel Chevrolet Cruze +0.609
3 Rob Huff Honda Civic +0.724
4 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.786
5 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +0.871
Q2 – Top 5
1 Rob Huff Honda Civic 1:46.349
2 José-María López Citroën C-Elysée +0.050
3 Tiago Monteiro Honda Civic +0.070
4 Tom Coronel Chevrolet Cruze +0.108
5 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +0.144
…
9 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +0.482
Q1 – Top 5
1 José-María López Citroën C-Elysée 1:46.261
2 Gabriele Tarquini Lada Vesta +0.372
3 Rob Huff Honda Civic +0.445
4 Thed Björk Volvo S60 +0.461
5 Mehdi Bennani Citroën C-Elysée +0.552
…
10 Fredrik Ekblom Volvo S60 +0.732
Schedule
(Times in CET)
Sunday 24/4
14:15 Race 1 (16 laps)
17:15 Race 2 (17 laps)
TV Schedule
International: https://www.fiawtcc.com/watch-it-on-tv/
Online: http://www.eurosportplayer.com/