WORLD TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP IN BRANDS HATCH As expected, the qualifying session for the eighth round of the WTCC season which will be raced tomorrow on the British Brands Hatch track, has been especially difficult for the SEAT Sport drivers.  The best among them, Rickard Rydell, finished fifth, ahead of this teammate Gabriele Tarquini. Tiago Monteiro will start from 9th, Yvan Muller from 11th and Jordi Gené from 16th.

The results were no surprise for the SEAT Sport Team since both the previous simulations and the free practices confirmed that this would be an extremely difficult circuit for the SEAT León TDI, which once again was the front-wheel drive car with the heaviest ballast, as a consequence of the results of the previous races.

Therefore, tomorrow's races will be faced with the aim of scoring points that will allow SEAT to keep the leadership in the overall manufacturers' standings and getting Yvan Muller among the top eight to let him score points in the first and second race and continue leading the overall drivers’ standings.

The surprise of this qualifying session was Hungarian driver Norbert Michelisz at the wheel of the SEAT León WTCC, who is taking part in this round as a prize for his victory in the SEAT León Eurocup races held in Oporto. Michelisz made it to Q2 and qualified 10th.  It is the first time ever that a Eurocup driver manages to qualify among the top ten, and the confirmation that the petrol-powered SEAT León WTCC is also an excellent car for this event. The SEAT León Eurocup has also shown that it is an excellent school for all drivers aiming to take part in the WTCC. The high level of the championship gives them the chance to show an excellent level when the time has come to race against more experienced drivers. The good performances shown by drivers such as Tom Coronel, Tom Boardman, Diego Puyo in the Oporto race or Michelisz today are good proof of that.

Classification: 1. A.Menú (Chevrolet) 1’33”521; 5º R.Rydell (SEAT León TDI), 1’33”871; 6º G.Tarquini (SEAT León TDI), 1’33”963; 9º T.Monteiro (SEAT León TDI), 1’34”204 10º N.Michelisz (SEAT León WTCC), 1’34”857; 11º Y.Muller (SEAT León TDI); 1’34”366; 16. J.Gené (SEAT León TDI) 1’34”859.

TV Schedule: Tomorrow, Sunday, Eurosport will broadcast both races live at 11.45h and 13.30h.