Honda drivers both aiming for title in make-or-break year

With Citroën Racing gone and with José María López and Yvan Muller moving on to other programmes, last year’s third and fourth-placed drivers Tiago Monteiro and Norbert Michelisz both share the same goal for 2017, to win the WTCC drivers’ championship for Honda.

Tiago Monteiro and Norbert Michelisz have stayed on with the Japanese marque for this year, joined by Japan’s Ryo Michigami who will be on more of a development year as his first full season in the WTCC.

2017 will be Monteiro’s 11th, and Michelisz’s eighth in the championship, comparatively veterans in the championship, especially following the departure of Muller and former Honda driver Gabriele Tarquini from the grid.

“We start the season with the aim of capturing the WTCC drivers’ and manufacturers’ titles and have worked incredibly hard over the winter with the developments on the Civic to give us the best chance of doing this,” said Monteiro.

“A year ago, I said it was the biggest step forward in performance I’d witnessed in the WTCC. Twelve months on, we’ve made an even bigger progression with an improved aero package and a more driveable engine, which should help us on every kind of circuit,” he added.

Team-mate Michelisz, in his second year with the factory Honda team and now reunited with his engineer Gergõ Bári, who has swapped back with Andrea Cisotti after working with Monteiro in 2016, has the same goal this year.

“My target is simple; to become World Champion this year, and that has to start with a good points score in Morocco, especially while the Civic isn’t carrying any compensation weight,” said Michelisz.

“Last year we were very fast at the revamped Marrakech circuit, which features a lot of low-speed corners and rewards a car that is well-balanced under braking and has good traction.”

New team-mate Ryo Michigami’s aim is to get up to speed with his team-mates as soon as possible. The 44-year-old will have a key role to play on Saturday as he takes part in the MAC3 post qualifying time trial event with Monteiro and Michelisz, with Honda pitted against Volvo for the first time.

“I am very excited about competing in a full World Championship for the first time,” said Michigami.

“I enjoyed my debut as a wild-card at Motegi last year, but was very aware that I needed to learn the subtleties of a front-wheel-drive touring car after spending the past 20 years in single-seaters and GT cars. But the team and drivers have been incredibly welcoming and have worked hard to help me get up to speed.”