The famous result was recorded by the Citroën C-Elysée WTCC cars at the circuit in Shanghai – their drivers occupied the first four places of the first race in the order of José María López , Ma Qing Hua , Yvan Muller and Sébastien Loeb . This historic result has already earned Citroën the title of world champion in the Constructors' Cup.
It is the first ever circuit title that Citroën has achieved after five championships in the FIA Cross Country Rally World Cup and eight world titles in the FIA WRC. In the World Drivers' Championship, José María López got even closer to the title, which he has a chance to win at the next round in Suzuka , Japan (October 24-26).
Citroën Total left a strong impression in Shanghai on the international circuit already in qualifying. This when he had four of the five leading positions. In the first race, the local fans were excited to see their favorite Ma Qing Hua on the front row. Right after the start, however, José María López got ahead of the Chinese pilot and another teammate Yvan Muller . Fifth on the grid, Sébastien Loeb , mistimed his start and dropped to seventh at the first corner. Ma Qing Hua rode very sharp and kept Pechito López under pressure. He continued to lead despite repeated hard braking. Meanwhile, Sébastien Loeb attempted an impressive comeback. Tiago Monteiro, then Gabriele Tarquini and finally Norbert Michelisz were unable to withstand the pressure of the former rally champion. Already in the middle of the race, the Citroëns lined up in the first four places!
All four Citroëns also completed this historic feat all the way to the checkered flag at the finish line. José María López, Ma Qing Hua, Yvan Muller and Sébastien Loeb thus secured the World Constructors' Cup title for their team .
But there was no time for celebrations, as race number 2 started shortly after the finish of the first. Thanks to the reversed order on the starting grid, the best-placed Citroën driver was Sébastien Loeb in the third row. But after only a few opening corners, Yvan Muller was able to work his way up to his teammate. Loeb tried to overtake Hugo Valent, but Muller took advantage of the situation and overtook him. Loeb tried to get back to his lost place, but unfortunately he got in the way of Yvan, who had to retire with a damaged rear wheel.
As usual, José María López made his way to the front quickly and made it to third position. That's how he also crossed the finish line and gained important points for himself for the World Championship. Sébastien Loeb finished fourth but was penalized 30 seconds for an incident with Muller, dropping him out of the top ten. Ma Qing Hua finished fifth after a beautiful battle with Norbert Michelisz and Tom Coronel.
World Championship – ranking of pilots
1. José María López 384
2. Yvan Muller 291
3. Sébastien Loeb 251
4. Tiago Monteiro 170
5. Norbert Michelisz 142
World Championship – Constructors' Cup
1. Citroën Total 848
2. Honda 574
3. Lada 334
Source: Citroën
