After approximately 1 month since the last round, the CTCC returns to Chengdu for the second time this season. With the full force of summer upon the Sichuan basin, race week was held in extremely hot conditions. Tests took place on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday leading up to the race weekend with temperatures averaging around 35 – 38 degrees Celsius. Surface temperatures rose between 48 – 60 degrees and the conditions were testing the endurance of drivers, tires, engines, mechanics and TEIN engineers.

 

Team engineers were particularly troubled with tire set ups as the heat deteriorated grip levels. The 1400cc Nanjing Auto MG3 took part in the 1600cc Class this round equipped with the TEIN Specialized Damper. The Beijing Hyundai Elantra was also equipped with TEIN Specialized Dampers on the front and expectations were high for TEIN users.

 

During the Saturday qualifying session, TEIN supported Ford Focus team were able to set up their cars right and grabbed 1^st, 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th grid positions to monopolize the top field. 2^nd position went to the #10 Honda Accord equipped also with the TEIN N1 Damper.

The night before the race, a violent thunderstorm came through, washing away the circuit surface and the racing lines which were laid down over the past few days.

 

Race day started in rainy conditions as rain clouds from the thunderstorm still lingered. This disrupted the first 2laps of the 1600cc class, causing mayhem. Unfortunately among them was the Specialized Damper equipped MG3! Luckily the #15 Beijing Hyundai Elantra was able to make it through to the end to finish on the podium in 3^rd position.

 

The weather cleared up for the start of the 2000cc class and most teams rolled out on dry tires. The #2 Ford Focus was able to keep the lead starting from pole position, and second placed #10 Honda Accord drove hard to close the gap. The #7 Kia Forte which started on rain tires, made a tire change during the formation lap, and was quickly underway chasing the top cars. The race progressed on with no major disruption until the last lap when disaster struck the #3 Ford Focus. Running in 4^th position his front left tire blew! The #7 Kia Forte was slightly involved in the incident but finished in 5^th position. It was Martin Cao in the #2 Ford Focus who kept his lead from the start, even with the weight handicap, to come home in 1^st position, giving him a his second consecutive win!

 

The next exciting round of the CTCC will take place for the first time in Inner Mongolia in the beginning of September, so stay tuned for more action!