Mar
8
Rob Huff: Post Curitiba thoughts
It was a dream start to our FIA World Touring Car Championship challenge at Curitiba, and the first time we’ve ever scored well on the opening rounds of the series.
When I arrived in Brazil, I thought fourth and fifth could be on the cards, so you can imagine how happy I am with second and fifth.
In recent years, we’ve left Brazil with no WTCC points, but this time I’m fourth in the drivers’ standings with 28 points. What’s more, Chevrolet is leading the manufacturers’ championship after finishing 1-2-3 in Race 1 and 3-4-5 in Race 2. The performance has finally broken our Curitiba jinx.
Curitiba is one of the best places to come racing. The changeable weather always makes for exciting racing and the atmosphere is electric, especially as it’s the first race of the year and everyone is really pumped up.
This year was no exception.
Thirty minutes before the pit lane was due to open for the first race, it started to rain so heavily that we had to start the race in single file behind the Safety Car. I could see Jordi Gené up ahead. I followed Gené before in the wet in Japan and he’d locked up and went straight then, so I wasn’t surprised when he did it this time. Moments later Alain Menu out-braked himself, and within seconds of the start I’d moved from fourth to second.
Only Yvan Muller was ahead of me. I had a little lunge at Turn 4 during the race, and although I felt I was slightly quicker than him – especially in the middle part of the race when my car was very strong – I didn’t attack. If it wasn’t my team-mate ahead, then that would have been another matter; I’d have pushed like hell and gone for the win. However, it had stopped raining, the sun was drying the track out extremely quickly and it was best for me to look after my tyres and get the number 7 Cruze home.
Not only did I do that, for setting fastest lap I won a watch and a mountain ‘bike, courtesy of Monroe Performance. I was presented with the watch at the press conference and the mountain ‘bike, which will be delivered to my home, is supposed to be a good one. I very grateful – I just wish I hadn’t bought a mountain ‘bike a few weeks ago!
Race 2 was dry and I made a great standing start to go around the outside of everyone. We got a bit bunched up in Turn 2. I was overlapping Tom Coronel and Alain was overlapping me, so when Tom hit the brakes and turned sharp right for Turn 3, we hit.
Unfortunately for Tom, that damaged his car. I was gutted, because he’s a good mate. It wasn’t my fault, but I still made a point of going over to see him after the race and explain, because for sure he would not have seen Alain on the inside of me. He’s a pro and he knows these things can happen.
I didn’t come out of the incident scot-free. The front toe on my car was pushed out, and from then on it didn’t take right hand corners very well. The gearbox radiator must have been damaged too, because the gearbox temperature went through the roof and all the warning lights came on.
It meant I couldn’t put pressure on the car in front, but the speed of the Cruze enabled me to keep the local star, Augusto Farfus, behind me and finish fifth.
Chevrolet finished 1-2-3 in the opening race of the 2010 season, we lead the manufacturers’ standings and I’ve made the best start ever to a WTCC season. It’s just reward for all the hard work the Chevrolet and RML team has done over the winter months, and this could just be the start of something great.