Monteiro shines on the US podium at Sonoma

Tiago Monteiro shone in sunny Sonoma, host to the ninth round of the World Touring Car Championship WTCC this weekend. Third on the grid for the first race, the Portuguese driver made a flying start and was in second place by the first corner. He harassed the leader throughout the 13 laps and eventually crossed the finish line in second place.

The Honda Civic # 18 driver then had another great start in the second race, climbing from eighth to sixth place and was up into fifth before the halfway point giving him excellent results in both events. Tiago was also complemented by his fellow Honda drivers who helped the world championship winning manufacturers take glory in their first year of competition in the very demanding FIA WTCC series.

"This is a big weekend for Honda. The results are well deserved," summarized Tiago Monteiro . "This very technical track has helped us to achieve a high level of performance. I loved the entire weekend and these results are an additional motivation for the next races in two weeks' time in Japan."

In the first race, Tiago was eager to fight for victory and took the challenger to the leader, but unfortunately the conditions were not there for him to achieve his goal. "I tried everything to get into first place in the first few miles, but it was not easy to overtake. I pushed as hard as I could but my opponent didn't make any errors and I was unable to get past. But second place is very nice for me, Honda and JAS Motorsport."

In the second race, on a circuit where overtaking is very limited, Tiago's progress from 8th place on the grid did not go unnoticed. "I had a good start and I attacked from beginning to end and passed all the opponents that were within my reach. I definitely have a feeling of accomplishment! Congratulations to Honda on our constructors' title!" concluded Tiago Monteiro .

The next round of the FIA WTCC will take place in Japan on September 22.