The chase for the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) success reached its climax at the end of the year in Qatar when the curtain came down on the 2015 season, jam-packed with action, drama, excitement and the odd dose of controversy. It was a historic occasion with Losail International Circuit staging the WTCC’s maiden night race and the Championship’s first visit to the Middle East.
But to top it all and maybe the main attraction for most of the local residents in Qatar; Nasser Al-Attiyah, Qatar’s favorite Dakar rally driver and a Middle East sporting icon, also made his FIA World Touring Car Championship debut on home soil for the inaugural WTCC night race.
The evening started off with a pit lane walk where everyone could get up close and personal with their favorite drivers. It looked like a grand parade with fans walking up and down — snapping selfies and getting signatures. Naturally a bigger crowed formed around Nasser Al-Attiyah’s pit and it was amazing to see how he tried to give personal attention to each and every fan!
As the time drew closer to the start of the official racing, the track was cleared and the fans had to take their seats. You could see all the drivers getting ready and heard all the engines start with a great rambling noise!
Two races were scheduled and it was going to be tough from the start for the drivers competing as just five points separated French Citroën pair Sébastien Loeb and Yvan Muller in the fight to finish runner-up in the final WTCC standings. The Yokohama Drivers’ Trophy, for independent racers, was also up for grabs with Norbert Michelisz seven points ahead of season-long rival Mehdi Bennani – the only Arabic driver to have won in the WTCC.
Race One Round-Up: Lopez Equals Record with Victory Number 10
After surviving a first-corner attack from team-mate Sébastien Loeb, José María López was able to sprint to an impressive victory ahead of Mehdi Bennani and Hugo Valente. By winning the Yokohama Drivers’ Trophy category in second overall, Bennani narrowed Norbert Michelisz’s lead in the battle for the independent racers’ title ahead of the season finale to two points. Loeb, who started third, fell to fourth, fought back ahead of Valente for third before dropping back at Turn 1 on lap two. He hassled Valente for the remainder of the 12-lap contest but ultimately settled for fourth, a result that nevertheless enabled him to extend his advantage to 12 points over Yvan Muller in the fight to be WTCC vice-champion. Muller finished sixth behind Ma Qing Hua with Michelisz seventh ahead of fellow Honda driver Tiago Monteiro, who overtook LADA’s Nicky Catsburg for eighth on the penultimate lap. Stefano D’Aste completed the top 10, while Gabriele Tarquini recovered from a handful of spins to beat local hero Nasser Al-Attiyah to P16.
Race Two Round-Up: Muller on top as Independent Racers Shine
John Filippi gave his all to keep Yvan Muller behind on the charge to the first corner. Although Muller initially got ahead, Filippi fought back at Turn 1 to hold a lead that would last for five laps while the safety car circulated following a collision between Nicky Catsburg and Stefano D’Aste. When racing resumed Muller seized his opportunity at T1 as contact with Filippi sent the youngster spinning to the side of the track, while Muller just did enough to keep Ma Qing Hua at bay as he battled to regain control of his Citroën. Even if Filippi had kept Muller behind, his tenure of top spot wouldn’t have lasted after officials deemed the 20-year-old had made a false start, which earned the privateer a drive-through penalty. While Muller gradually increased his lead over Ma, Loeb was unable to pass Norbert Michelisz for third and the points he needed to secure the runner-up spot in the final table in what is likely to be his final appearance in the WTCC. Mehdi Bennani took fifth with Hugo Valente sixth, Gabriele Tarquini seventh and José María López eighth after opening-lap contact sent him off track and down to P12. Tiago Monteiro and Nicolas Lapierre completed the top 10 for Honda and LADA respectively with Tom Coronel P12 behind Grégoire Demoustier after starting from the pit lane when an oil leak was discovered during the OSCARO.com Repair Time. Tom Chilton fought back from a trip through the gravel on lap one to finish P13 ahead of Nasser Al-Attiyah and Filippi. Rob Huff pitted his Lada with five laps remaining.
After the race, Nassar Al-Attiyah, spoke about his experience: “It’s was very important to me to finish the two races because I don’t really have any experience of this kind of racing and I am really so happy to be with these top drivers and watching from behind, learning a lot. This was a fantastic weekend and a really good experience for me but never do I sweat like this, not even in Dakar.”
Words by: Eulogy van Dyk
Photos by: QMMF Photographer
