LADA Sport race in Macau this weekend for the last time with the current Granta model, as the manufacturer will switch to the new Vesta for the 2015 World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) season.
It is the second successive year that the Russian team has raced on the street circuit with a car which will not compete next season. In 2013 the team ran the previous specification of the Granta, before building a new car for 2014 to the TC1 regulations.
This year’s Granta has already surpassed the previous model’s results, with Rob Huff scoring a memorable first-ever win for the team in the second race in Beijing.
With the Brit having the best Macau record of any WTCC driver, he is pleased to be able to return to the circuit where he has scored an impressive six wins, including taking victory in both races in 2011.
“I’m really proud of my record in Macau and it would be mega to bolster that with more race wins this year,”said Huff. “My LADA Sport team has a taste for victory after Beijing and it would be a great to give the Granta a bit of a send-off.
“I always look forward to returning to Macau and I adore the Circuito da Guia. It’s the longest track we visit and can never be underestimated. It’s absolutely fantastic and, while we might struggle through sector one of the lap, our chassis’ mechanical grip should suit the middle and last sections of the lap.
“The walls are never far away and the weather is known for being unpredictable so there’s little margin for error; you need your wits about you and it’s all about precision. We have achieved far more this year than we ever believed, so there are high hopes and expectations for next year.”
Huff’s team-mate James Thompson came close to scoring LADA’s first-ever podium in the final race of the season in 2013, before being bumped into the barriers by Spaniard Pepe Oriola. The Brit is keen to highlight the fact that overtaking is only really possible in the first sector – something which Oriola did not adhere to in 2013.
“Macau is one of my favourite tracks,” admits Thompson. “I think qualifying will be key factor here as there aren’t many places where you can overtake. Actually, you can do that only at the first sector.
“The team has come to the final round in a very good shape, and the LADA Granta can be competitive here. We were much closer to the pace that expected at the previous race in Japan, so there are many positives to take to Macau. We spent the second race in Suzuka hanging on the coattails of the guys who finished at the top in race one and this highlights the improvements made to the LADA Granta Sport.”
Thompson admits that the team were always focussed on Macau due to the fact that the circuit is more likely to yield a strong result for the team. Indeed in first practice on Thursday the team have already made inroads into the top ten, with Huff seventh fastest and just 1.3 seconds off the pace, ahead of Citroën duo Yvan Muller and Ma Qing Hua.
“The truth is, our focus has always been on Macau, as we see this as our most realistic chance of taking a result,” added Thompson. “Both Rob and I like it there and I was on course for a podium finish last year until I was involved in an incident with Pepe Oriola. We’ve always had one eye on the season finale.”
Mikhail Kozlovskiy expects an “action-packed” weekend with the new wider and faster TC1 cars competing on the famously narrow street circuit.
“Last year in Macau I mainly concentrated on learning the main characteristics of the track and trying to get to grips with the corners, because it was my first driving experience at this circuit,” said the Russian. “This year I feel more confident and ready to take the fight to the competitors.
“I am really looking forward to the final WTCC round at such a tricky racetrack. It is likely to be a very special race – the new WTCC cars on a narrow, dangerous city circuit promises a good fight and an action-packed weekend! Keeping the cars alive and pushing hard, the drivers will have to show all their talent to find this balance and the show for the spectators will be unforgettable.”