Recovering from two major crashes on Thursday and Friday, Gabriele Tarquini claimed the 2009 FIA WTCC crown and in the process he set a couple of new records: he has become the oldest FIA World Champion ever and scored the highest number of points ever for a WTCC season.
The 47-year old Italian eclipsed Juan-Manuel Fangio’s record that lasted since 1957, when the Argentine ace claimed his fifth F1 title. Tarquini is also the first Italian to win an FIA world championship since Teo Fabi in the 1991 World Sportscars Championship.
“Experience is a crucial factor to survive touring car tough racing. So the age is not so important. And I still feel young enough to be competitive,” the new champion said. WTCC
Veteran driver Gabriele Tarquini was thrilled to have grabbed his likely last chance to win the WTCC title.
Gabriele Tarquini (championship winner): “Maybe this was my last chance to be world champion and I took it… I started the weekend with a crash which is obviously not the best way to win a championship. The mechanics were fantastic and spent all night and one day to re-build the car better than it was before!”
Robert Huff (Macao race one winner): “It is certainly easier to win starting from pole but winning is never easy in Macau, sometimes it’s an achievement in itself to finish a lap.” Yahoo! Eurosport
The Italian’s triumph came on a bitter-sweet weekend for Britain’s WTCC challengers.
Rob Huff won Race 1 in his Chevrolet Cruze to seal an impressive fifth place in the championship.
The Cambridge driver - watched by his father Peter, known as Huff Daddy - said: “It’s phenomenal to end the year with a win. I’m really pleased for the team and everyone involved with it.”
BMW ace Priaulx was on the front row for Race 1 and had high hopes of a victory. But he got pushed wide by SEAT’s Jordi Gene going into the first corner.
The result was a hard thump into the barrier which tore off a front wheel. The Sun
