WTCR Pau: Girolami pips Honda team-mate Guerrieri to pole

Argentinian Guerrieri claimed the maximum score of 10 points by setting the fastest overall time in qualifying at the end of Q2, then chose to run first in the shootout. But Girolami, running second, beat his mark by 0.154s to knock him from pole position.

“Maybe we were too fast – let’s see how we go at the next race with the 40kg [weight ballast],” said Girolami. “I’m so happy for Esteban too because he put in an amazing lap in Q2. We put everything together. I’m happy to get the first pole position of the season and now we must complete the job tomorrow. We have to be smart. On a street circuit there is not much you can do. But I feel so happy and so confident with the car.”

Yvan Muller was third fastest in his Cyan Racing Lynk & Co, ahead of WTCR returnee Ma Qing Hua who performed well on his debut in the 03 TCR to make it into the shootout and qualify fourth ahead of Nathanael Berthon in his Comtoyou Audi RS3 LMS. The Chinese driver was especially relieved following his own close call in the wake of Bjork’s accident.

The 2017 World Touring Car Champion clipped a wall at Turn 12-13 three minutes into Q2, which sent the Lynk & Co heavily into the barrier on the other side of the track. The front-left punched a big hole in the barrier as Bjork’s car bounced out and was left stranded in the middle of the circuit on the exit of a blind corner. Ma and a second Lynk & Co narrowly missed him, threading through a small gap between the car and the barrier as the red flags flew to stop the session.

“It was really a critical situation,” said Ma. “I saw the yellow flag, I slowed down a little bit, but Thed’s car was stopped just on the exit of a blind corner, and I couldn’t see at all. I was really lucky to go through [the gap]