Photo: WTCR

Johan Kristoffersson claims first career WTCR pole at Suzuka

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Volkswagen driver Johan Kristoffersson claimed his first World Touring Car Cup pole position in the second qualifying session at Suzuka, beating Honda driver Tiago Monteiro by 0.153 seconds.

The rain ceased ahead of the qualifying session, but the lap times did not drop significantly, with several drivers complaining about the lack of grip during the three sessions.

Kristoffersson was first to complete his lap, with PWR Racing driver Mikel Azcona next to set a time that was close to half a second slower than the Swedish Volkswagen driver.

Münnich Motorsport’s Esteban Guerrieri was next, unable to match the pace of the top three, claiming fourth position, 0.565 seconds adrift.

Lynk & Co driver Andy Priaulx topped the first two sessions leading up to Q3 and seemed set to claim the top spot after setting purple sectors. But the three-time WTCC champion made a mistake at the final corner and dropped to fifth and last of the Q3 drivers, 1.396 seconds behind.

Cyan Racing team-mate Thed Björk missed Q3 by 65 thousands of a second and will start sixth, with Alfa Romeo driver Kevin Ceccon seventh.

Reigning champion Gabriele Tarquini claimed eighth position for Hyundai, with 2012 WTCC champion Rob Huff in ninth.

Championship leader Norbert Michelisz was tenth fastest and secured the reversed grid pole position.

The Q2 session was red flagged with nine seconds left on the clock as BRC Racing Team driver Augusto Farfus spun off and tagged the barriers.

Title contender Guerrieri had a scare on his first Q2 lap, going off track on the exit of the final corner, brushing the barriers and damaged his left front fender. The team managed to repair the damage quickly to get him back out on track.

The first race of the weekend starts tomorrow at 15:05 local time / 08:05 CEST.