Tom Coronel was left frustrated after suffering a ‘nightmare start’ in the Opening World Touring Car Championship race at Monza, where the Dutchman had started from the reverse-grid pole position.
Coronel twice stalled pulling away at the start of Sunday’s Opening Race, first for the formation lap and again at the race start.
It left the ROAL Motorsport driver at the back of the pack before the first corner, and with an uphill task to gain points.
In the end incidents for three of the front runners, and a string of overtakes, brought the Chevrolet driver back into the hunt and he was able to finish seventh on the road, which became sixth when a ten-second penalty was handed to RC Motorsport’s Yann Ehrlacher.
“The starting system of our car is a story in itself,” explained Coronel. “When that doesn’t work well, it is a nightmare – and that is what happened. At the moment when it counted, the engine played up and then you immediately drop back many places.
“[It was] really annoying and definitely something we will have to work on. After that, I drove a nice race and made a good comeback with some spirited battles to finish sixth.”
The Main Race saw Coronel start from tenth on the grid, but progress was limited by car handling issues and he went on to finish outside the points in 11th overall.
“In race two, I had a slightly better getaway, but I started tenth,” added the 45-year-old. “I didn’t really have a chance to attack, because I soon had a problem with the front splitter. I had a lot of understeer and did everything to survive.
“[I had] another moment in Lesmo 2, where I completely went off the track, but was still able to continue. Eleventh place was all I could do, so I am happy with the points I have scored.
“I am now looking forward to the next races in Hungary. I have good memories of that place, so let’s hope that we can add some more there.”
Coronel leaves Italy tenth overall in the drivers’ championship with 16 points and fifth overall in the Independents’ Trophy on 19 points, eight points adrift of leader Rob Huff.
Watch: Tom Coronel video highlights at Monza