Tarquini inherits victory as Catsburg crashes
Despite he was weakened by a flu that gave him high fever, reigning champion Gabriele Tarquini scored his first victory of the season in WTCR Race 2 at Marrakech.
The BRC Racing driver inherited the victory when his teammate Nicky Catsburg crashed due to a brake failure. Jean-Karl Vernay and Yan Ehrlacher completed the podium.
At the start Nicky Catsburg sprinted from the pole position and led from Gabriele Tarquini, Jean-Karl Vernay and Yann Ehrlacher who overtook Esteban Guerrieri at T1. Mikel Azcona retained his sixth position as he kept Thed Björk and Yvan Muller at bay.
In the middle of the field Tom Coronel was sent into a spin by Gordon Shedden; the incident created a commotion that delayed Rob Huff and Benjamin Leuchter and eliminated Mehdi Bennani.
Position froze until Catsburg crashed from the lead on lap 10. His car swerved to the right while braking for entering a chicane and went straight into the tyre wall. After the race the Dutch driver explained that it was a brake failure and he voluntarily steered to the right to avoid a heavier impact.
The safety car was deployed and circulated until the 14th lap. When the race resumed, Tarquini pulled away from Vernay, who was closely chased by Ehrlacher, Guerrieri and Azcona.
Further back Björk defended the sixth position from the assaults of Muller, Tiago Monteiro and Frédéric Vervisch.
Though the gaps were small, nobody was able to attempt an overtaking manoeuvre.
Race 3 will start at 18:15 local time over the distance of 21 laps; Vervisch will be on pole with Yvan Muller on the outside of the front row.
Race 2
1. Gabriele Tarquini (BRC Squadra Corse, Hyundai i30 N), 20 laps
2. Jean-Karl Vernay (Leopard Racing, Audi RS 3 LMS), 3.317
3. Yann Ehrlacher (Cyan Racing, Lynk&Co 03), 3.991
4. Esteban Guerrieri (Münnich Motorsport, Honda Civic FK7), 4.514
5. Mikel Azcona (PWR Racing, CUPRA), 4.669
Championship points
1. Guerrieri 43 pts; 2. Tarquini 38; 3. Björk 36
