2012 FIA WTCC Race of Japan

Japan  2012 Race of Japan
Round details
Round 10 of 12 in the 2012 World Touring Car Championship season at Suzuka Circuit (East Circuit) in Suzuka City, Japan.
Date 21 October, 2012
Location Suzuka City, Japan
Course Suzuka Circuit (East Circuit)
2.243 km
Race One
Laps 26
Pole position
Driver Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet
Time 52.885
Podium
First Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet
Second France Yvan Muller Chevrolet
Third United Kingdom Robert Huff Chevrolet
Fastest Lap
Driver Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet
Time 53.885
Race Two
Laps 26
Podium
First Italy Stefano D'Aste Wiechers-Sport
Second Spain Pepe Oriola Tuenti Racing
Third Italy Gabriele Tarquini Lukoil Racing Team
Fastest Lap
Driver Spain Pepe Oriola Tuenti Racing
Time 54.239

The 2012 FIA WTCC Race of Japan was the tenth round of the 2012 World Touring Car Championship season and the fifth running of the FIA WTCC Race of Japan. It was held on 21 October 2012 at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka City, Japan. The first race was won by Alain Menu for Chevrolet and the second race was won by Stefano D'Aste for Wiechers-Sport.

Background

After the previous round in the United States, the championship was being led jointly by Yvan Muller and Robert Huff on 315 points. Norbert Michelisz was leading the Yokohama Independents' Trophy. Chevrolet had the opportunity to secure the manufacturers championship.

There were a number of driver changes prior to the event, Darryl O'Young left Special Tuning Racing and later returned to bamboo-engineering.[1] His replacement at STR was German racing driver and former FIA GT1 World Championship team owner René Münnich.[2] Masaki Kano joined Liqui Moly Team Engstler for his home event, driving a naturally aspirated BMW 320si.[3] Fellow Japanese racer Hiroki Yoshimoto joined Tuenti Racing Team for the event, driving the SUNRED SR León 1.6T raced up until the last event by Tiago Monteiro.[4]

Monteiro switched to Honda Racing Team JAS for the final three rounds of the championship to debut the works Honda Civic S2000 TC in order to develop the car in preparation for a full programme in 2013.[5]

Report

Free Practice

Muller set the pace in the Friday test session which was interrupted by a trio of red flags, leading a Chevrolet 1–2–3 with Pepe Oriola the leading SEAT in fourth.[6]

Chevrolet continued to set the pace on Saturday in FP1, this time courtesy of Alain Menu at the head of another Chevrolet 1–2–3. Monteiro set the fourth fastest time in his new Honda Civic and Oriola was the quickest independent driver. Local driver Yoshimoto was seventh.[7]

Menu topped the times once again in FP2, although surprisingly the Chevrolet 1–2–3 from earlier on was not repeated as Fernando Monje set the third fastest time in his Tuenti Racing Team SEAT León.[8]

Qualifying

After setting the pace throughout free practice, Menu went on to take pole position ahead of Muller and Huff while Chevrolet wrapped up the manufacturers title. Much of the attention was on the Honda of Monteiro, who at one point looked likely to drop out in Q1 until a last minute quick lap got him through to the second session. He finished Q2 eleventh behind Stefano D'Aste who would take his third reversed grid pole position of the year in race two. Independents' Trophy leader Michelisz could only manage fourteenth, five places behind trophy rival Oriola.[9] The Team Aon duo of James Nash and Tom Chilton qualified in 19th and 21st respectively but would both start the first race at the back of the grid due to them both requiring a new engine for the event.[10]

Warm-Up

Race two pole sitter D'Aste was the quickest driver in Sunday mornings warm up session, Michelisz was a close second. An engine change for Masaki Kano overnight would send him to the back of the race one grid.[11]

Race One

Menu led from start to finish leading a comfortable Chevrolet 1–2–3 in the opening Suzuka race. The lack of action near the front was representative of much of field, although Gabriele Tarquini jumped up from sixth to fourth at the start to lead home independent race winner Alex MacDowall. Having overtaken James Nash, Alberto Cerqui then quickly ended his race in the gravel at turn one. Mehdi Bennani collided with Aleksei Dudukalo while attempting a pass, Dudukalo held the car and continued while Bennani was forced to pit. Monteiro finished tenth to score a point in the debut race for the Honda Civic.[12] After the race, Dudukalo received a 30-second penalty for colliding with Bennani and he dropped to 18th in the classification, while Nash and Cerqui both received 30-second penalties for start infringements dropping Nash to 19th.[13]

Race Two

D'Aste started on pole position for the reverse grid race, he established a comfortable lead over second placed Oriola to take his second win of the season. Tarquini had jumped up to third place to complete the podium. Behind them, the Chevrolet trio found passing difficult and the Proteam Racing BMW of Bennani held them back for much of the race. Huff and Menu passed on the penultimate lap, while Muller passed Bennani on the final lap.[14] Independent trophy contender Michelisz spun out of the race on the first lap, allowing trophy rival Oriola to close the points gap to 12. The overall championship was once again a tie between Huff and Muller.

Results

Qualifying

Pos. No. Name Team Car C Q1 Q2 Points
1 8 Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 52.984 52.885 5
2 1 France Yvan Muller Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 52.940 52.950 4
3 2 United Kingdom Robert Huff Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 53.077 53.054 3
4 11 United Kingdom Alex MacDowall bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 53.357 53.206 2
5 25 Morocco Mehdi Bennani Proteam Racing BMW 320 TC Y 53.652 53.224 1
6 3 Italy Gabriele Tarquini Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC 53.488 53.259
7 15 Netherlands Tom Coronel ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC 53.420 53.400
8 4 Russia Aleksei Dudukalo Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 53.431 53.513
9 74 Spain Pepe Oriola Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 53.740 53.516
10 26 Italy Stefano D'Aste Wiechers-Sport BMW 320 TC Y 53.696 53.729
11 18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Honda Racing Team JAS Honda Civic S2000 TC 53.443 53.886
12 20 China Darryl O'Young bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 53.608 54.491
13 6 Germany Franz Engstler Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 53.742
14 5 Hungary Norbert Michelisz Zengő Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 53.746
15 22 United Kingdom Tom Boardman Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 53.847
16 88 Spain Fernando Monje Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 53.978
17 80 Japan Hiroki Yoshimoto Tuenti Racing SR León 1.6T Y 54.002
18 7 Hong Kong Charles Ng Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 54.030
19 14 United Kingdom James Nash Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 54.082
20 16 Italy Alberto Cerqui ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 54.100
21 23 United Kingdom Tom Chilton Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 54.330
22 38 Germany René Münnich Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 54.690
23 75 Japan Masaki Kano Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320si Y 55.013

Race 1

Pos. No. Name Team Car C Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 8 Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 23:44.880 1 25
2 1 France Yvan Muller Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 +0.812 2 18
3 2 United Kingdom Robert Huff Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 +1.419 3 15
4 3 Italy Gabriele Tarquini Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC 26 +13.828 6 12
5 11 United Kingdom Alex MacDowall bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 26 +14.273 4 10
6 15 Netherlands Tom Coronel ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC 26 +19.870 7 8
7 74 Spain Pepe Oriola Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +20.415 9 6
8 26 Italy Stefano D'Aste Wiechers-Sport BMW 320 TC Y 26 +20.677 10 4
9 18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Honda Racing Team JAS Honda Civic S2000 TC 26 +21.284 11 2
10 6 Germany Franz Engstler Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 26 +21.490 13 1
11 20 China Darryl O'Young bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 26 +23.724 12
12 22 United Kingdom Tom Boardman Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +32.605 15
13 5 Hungary Norbert Michelisz Zengő Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 26 +32.767 14
14 88 Spain Fernando Monje Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +34.151 16
15 23 United Kingdom Tom Chilton Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 26 +34.615 22
16 80 Japan Hiroki Yoshimoto Tuenti Racing SR León 1.6T Y 26 +40.965 17
17 38 Germany René Münnich Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +48.733 20
18 4 Russia Aleksei Dudukalo Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +49.644 8
19 14 United Kingdom James Nash Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 26 +1:03.894 21
20 75 Japan Masaki Kano Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320si Y 25 +1 Lap 23
21 25 Morocco Mehdi Bennani Proteam Racing BMW 320 TC Y 25 +1 Lap 5
22 7 Hong Kong Charles Ng Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 23 +3 Laps 18
Ret 16 Italy Alberto Cerqui ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 14 Race incident 19

Race 2

Pos. No. Name Team Car C Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 26 Italy Stefano D'Aste Wiechers-Sport BMW 320 TC Y 26 23:54.717 1 25
2 74 Spain Pepe Oriola Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +2.562 2 18
3 3 Italy Gabriele Tarquini Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC 26 +2.845 5 15
4 2 United Kingdom Robert Huff Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 +3.774 8 12
5 8 Switzerland Alain Menu Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 +4.220 10 10
6 1 France Yvan Muller Chevrolet Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 26 +4.568 9 8
7 25 Morocco Mehdi Bennani Proteam Racing BMW 320 TC Y 26 +4.879 6 6
8 4 Russia Aleksei Dudukalo Lukoil Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +7.174 3 4
9 11 United Kingdom Alex MacDowall bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 26 +7.707 7 2
10 18 Portugal Tiago Monteiro Honda Racing Team JAS Honda Civic S2000 TC 26 +10.583 11 1
11 6 Germany Franz Engstler Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 26 +11.997 13
12 22 United Kingdom Tom Boardman Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +18.156 15
13 20 China Darryl O'Young bamboo-engineering Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T Y 26 +18.945 12
14 16 Italy Alberto Cerqui ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 26 +19.154 20
15 15 Netherlands Tom Coronel ROAL Motorsport BMW 320 TC 26 +19.492 4
16 14 United Kingdom James Nash Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 26 +25.856 19
17 7 Hong Kong Charles Ng Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320 TC Y 26 +25.857 18
18 23 United Kingdom Tom Chilton Team Aon Ford Focus S2000 TC 26 +26.142 21
19 80 Japan Hiroki Yoshimoto Tuenti Racing SR León 1.6T Y 26 +34.762 17
20 38 Germany René Münnich Special Tuning Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 26 +35.074 22
21 75 Japan Masaki Kano Liqui Moly Team Engstler BMW 320si Y 26 +40.576 23
Ret 88 Spain Fernando Monje Tuenti Racing SEAT León WTCC Y 18 Mechanical 16
Ret 5 Hungary Norbert Michelisz Zengő Motorsport BMW 320 TC Y 0 Race incident 14

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 France Yvan Muller 345
2 United Kingdom Robert Huff 345
3 Switzerland Alain Menu 307
4 Italy Gabriele Tarquini 220
5 Netherlands Tom Coronel 172
Yokohama Independents' Trophy standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Hungary Norbert Michelisz 136
2 Spain Pepe Oriola 126
3 Italy Stefano D'Aste 101
4 United Kingdom Alex MacDowall 95
5 Germany Franz Engstler 76
Manufacturers' Championship standings
Pos Manufacturer Points
1 United States Chevrolet 835
2 Germany BMW Customer Racing Teams 543
3 Spain SEAT Racing Technology 532

References

  1. ↑ Meissner, Johan (10 October 2012). "Darryl O'Young returns to Bamboo Engineering". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  2. ↑ Mills, Peter (11 October 2012). "Special Tuning signs Rene Munnich for WTCC race at Suzuka". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  3. ↑ Ferret, Olivier (29 August 2012). "Team Engstler to run 3rd car in Asia". NextGen-Auto.com. NextGen-Auto. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  4. ↑ Meissner, Johan (10 October 2012). "Hiroki Yoshimoto joins SUNRED at Suzuka". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  5. ↑ Elizalde, Pablo (18 July 2012). "Honda confirms Tarquini and Monteiro for its first season in the WTCC". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  6. ↑ "Muller quickest in Suzuka testing". Yahoo! Eurosport. TF1 Group. 19 October 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Hudson, Neil (20 October 2012). "Alain Menu leads Chevrolet 1–2–3 in FP1". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  8. ↑ Meissner, Johan (20 October 2012). "Alain Menu remains on top in free practice two". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  9. ↑ Mills, Peter (20 October 2012). "Alain Menu claims pole as Chevrolet seals title". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  10. ↑ Hudson, Neil (20 October 2012). "Engine changes send Arena to the back for race one". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  11. ↑ "BMW top two in Suzuka warm up". TouringCarTimes. Mediaempire Stockholm AB. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  12. ↑ Abbott, Andrew (21 October 2012). "Menu cruises to Japan victory". Touring-Cars.net. Andrew Abbott. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  13. ↑ Mills, Peter (21 October 2012). "Suzuka WTCC: Aleksei Dudukalo penalised for race one crash". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  14. ↑ "D'Aste wins race two at Suzuka". Yahoo! Eurosport. TF1 Group. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2012.

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