Tiago Monteiro unable to take part in Moscow qualifying

Qualifying for the Russian weekend could not have been more frustrating for Tiago Monteiro. After a good start in the first two free practice sessions where he ranked in the top 10, the Portuguese driver suffered from a broken water pump. Tiago only completed 7 laps in the last practice session and one in the first phase of the qualifying in order to check that the problem was solved, but unfortunately it wasn't and he had to leave his fellow colleagues in the World Touring Car Championship, WTCC, to compete for pole position without him. As a result, he will start from 22nd place on the starting grid for both races on the Moscow Raceway.

Tiago's misfortunes today annihilate all the ambitions he had at the start of the weekend. With nothing to lose, JAS Motorsport Honda has now taken the strategic decision to change the engine of the # 18. According to regulations, this action will see Tiago sent back even further on the grid, so he will lose another place and start in 23rd and last position. "An electrical problem damaged the water pump and its dysfunction was threatening to break the engine," Tiago explained. "It was really frustrating as it happened at the very beginning of the first phase of qualifying and we did not have time to work on the car and fix the problem. We have experienced this particular failure before, but the timing could not have been worse today."

Tiago has no choice but to change his goals for the weekend: "I will dedicate these two races to the development of the car. We still have a lot of things to learn about the car. Having said that, I will still try to have a good race. In case of rain, I might have a better chance to climb up the ranks."

Tiago Monteiro