- Èric Gené took pole position and second place, Érik Zabala took another silver and Sandro Pelatti took third.
- Miguel Ángel Romero joined the team for the event at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, where he achieved two fourth positions.
- The Barcelona team leads the team classification and Zabala is third in the drivers’ classification, 34 points behind the leader.
- “It was the first time we had four cars in the TCR Spain and this meant extra work for the technical staff, who were impeccable. We are very happy because we took pole and were competitive throughout the day,” said David Simón, Team Manager of Monlau Motul.
- “We are still alive in the fight for the title and this is thanks to the work of the entire structure. We took three podiums from Cheste and we are still leading the teams, as well as maintaining clear options in the drivers’ championship,” says Jaime Serrano, CEO of Monlau Motorsport.
Monlau Motul Technical School closed the third and penultimate round of the TCR Spain season with three podiums and a true display of talent and competitive pace. The Barcelona-based team left Valencia as the leader in the teams’ category, with a 41-point advantage, and with Érik Zabala third in the drivers’ category, 34 points behind the leader. On this occasion, the usual Zabala, Èric Gené and Sandro Pelatti were joined by a fourth driver, Miguel Ángel Romero, which meant an additional challenge for the mechanics and engineers, who carried out an impeccable job of coordinating the set-up of the two CUPRA León VZ TCRs.
The Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Valencia vibrated on Saturday with a day of intense competition in which both qualifying and the two races were held. Gené showed his potential and was the fastest in the qualifying session to take pole position with a time of 1:40.373. Zabala was fifth (1:41.506); Pelatti, seventh (1:41.633) and Miguel Ángel Romero, 13th (1:42.594).
In the first race, marked by interesting battles on the track, the Catalan driver had a very good start to keep the first position, which he maintained until he collided with his pursuer and had to retire. Zabala, always consistent, finished third, although a penalty to a rival allowed him to move up to second place. Pelatti completed the podium with a solid performance, while Romero surprised with an impressive comeback to fourth position.
On Saturday afternoon the second race was held, with the grid reversed according to the qualifying times, where Pelatti took the lead on the first lap, although he finally crossed the finish line in sixth position. Gené, who started tenth, climbed to second place, Romero was fourth again and Zabala took the chequered flag in 12th place in a meeting that showed the extreme equality of the championship, with three drivers fighting for the title with the final round to go.
David Simón , Team Manager of Monlau Motul, underlined the important work of the team: “It was the first time we went out with four cars in the TCR Spain and this meant extra work for the staff, who were impeccable. I would like to thank the leadership of the chief engineer, Aitor Lago; the track engineer, Víctor Martínez; and the chief mechanic, Juan Miguel Rojo, whose work was key, as was that of the rest of the technical team. Together they prepared the CUPRAs perfectly. As for the drivers, Miguel Ángel Romero made a high-level debut, with two great comebacks. We are very happy because we got the pole and we were competitive throughout the day. Despite Gené’s unfortunate incident in the first race, all of them showed excellent pace.”
Jaime Serrano, CEO of Monlau Motul, highlighted the results achieved: “ We are still alive in the fight for the title and this is thanks to the work of the entire structure. We took three podiums from Cheste and we are still leaders of the teams, as well as maintaining clear options in the drivers’ championship, so we are very proud of the line we are following. Now we are focused on preparing for the last challenge of the season in the TCR Spain, in which we will fight to emerge victorious.”
The last round of the TCR Spain will be held on November 23 and 24 at the emblematic Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where Monlau Motul will seek to be crowned champion in both the teams and drivers’ sections.
