‘It’s all about assisting Thed and together claim the manufacturers’ title’

Nicky Catsburg will switch his focus to helping Polestar Cyan Racing teammate Thed Bjork’s FIA World Touring Car Championship bid after his own hopes of title glory faded during a tough Macau return for the Dutchman.
Catsburg had been expected to head the factory Volvo squad’s charge in Macau as the only member of the three-car team with previous experience of the demanding street track.
But a crash early in Qualifying Q1 wrecked his chances and effectively left him 44 points behind his championship-leading team-mate Björk with only 60 points up for grabs from the Qatar double-header next weekend.
WTCC Race of Qatar will celebrate its third anniversary when it takes place from 30 November-1 December. The two floodlight races take place on Friday 1 December 21h20 and 22h35 and mark the final rounds of the 2017 WTCC season.
“I am not happy with the result for me personally, but I am happy to see Thed keeping the championship lead,” said Catsburg. “I had too many issues this weekend and I am more or less out of the title fight, so it is all about assisting Thed in the season finale and together claim the manufacturers’ title.”
Björk tops the WTCC standings by 6.5 points after 18 rounds and will be boosted by his performance on his debut at the Losail International Circuit last season when he placed sixth and second in the two night races at the track.
While barging Michelisz off the track in Qatar won’t be an option for Catsburg and nor would it be a tactic he would even contemplate, Esteban Guerrieri played a key role in helping to safeguard his Honda team-mate Michelisz’s second place in the Main Race at WTCC Race of Macau by holding up the pursuing Tom Chilton in order to protect his colleague. The Argentine was shown the black and white warning flag for his defensive driving style but he ultimately succeeded in ensuring Chilton remained behind Michelisz.
As well as Catsburg, Björk will also be able to count on Argentine driver Néstor Girolami, who completes the Polestar Cyan Racing line-up and has vowed to play a supporting role in Qatar as the Swedish outfit bids to land both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ titles for the first time. “My ambition is to be back in strong form for Qatar to fight for a double world title for the team,” he said.
Björk’s team boss, Alexander Murdzvski Schedvin, added: “We are heading to the last race of the year in the lead of both championships to a circuit where we had a strong result last year. Our goal is of course to secure a double world title.”

SCHEDULE
THURSDAY 30 NOVEMBER
18h30-19h15: Free Practice 1
21h15-22h00: Free Practice 2

FRIDAY 1 DECEMBER
14h30-14h50: Qualifying Q1
14h55-15h05: Qualifying Q2
15h10 (pit lane opens): Qualifying Q3
15h40-16h00: Manufacturers Against the Clock (WTCC MAC3)
21h20-21h45: Opening Race (10 laps)
22h35-23h05: Main Race (12 laps)