World touring: Lopez fastest on WTCC's Spa return

World Touring Car Championship leader Jose Maria Lopez topped an overcast Friday test as the series returned to Belgian Grand Prix venue Spa-Francorchamps for the first time since 2005.

Lopez left it until his final lap to topple title rival and Citroen teammate Yvan Muller from the head of the timing screens. The triple TC2000 champion was the only driver to break into the 2m24s, his lap of 2m24.575s being 0.718 seconds quicker than the Frenchman.

In the early damp running, Lopez initially held a 6.5sec edge over Miller, and was still 1.2sec ahead at the mid-way mark.

Tiago Monteiro prevented a Citroen sweep of the top three positions. In the final minute of the session, the factory Honda racer demoted Sebastien Loeb to fourth.

Nine-time World Rally champion Loeb ended the afternoon sandwiched between the two JAS-run Civics of Monteiro and Gabriele Tarquini.

Dusan Borkovic was the top privateer in sixth, the Serbian three tenths quicker than his Campos teammate Hugo Valente, with whom he had collided at the preceding Moscow Raceway meeting.

Citroen's occasional fourth driver Ma Qing Hua, winner of the reversed-grid race in Russia on his championship debut, took a solid eighth. Ma languished outside the top 10 until finding a significant last lap improvement.

James Thompson was the fastest Lada driver in 14th, some 4.471sec off Lopez's benchmark pace.

Aiming for his fifth consecutive TC2 victory, Franz Engstler led the Yokohama Drivers' Trophy runners.