WTCC: Lopez gives Muller win, all but cinches title

Yvan Muller was gifted a bizarre first win of the World Touring Car Championship season, as teammate Jose Maria Lopez provisionally secured a third championship crown at Motegi.

Lopez had held a comfortable lead before slowing on the penultimate lap and allowing Muller through to take honors. Second leaves Lopez 120 points clear of closest challengers Tiago Monteiro and Muller with 165 still officially available. But the Thailand round is now expected to be canceled for financial reasons, leaving just the China and Qatar events to go and only 110 points on the table.

Although confirmation of the loss of the Buriram date is not expected until the next FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting, Citroen was confident enough to celebrate Lopez as champion for a third straight year at the finish.

The Formula E-bound Argentinian said he decided to let Muller have the win as a thank you for his support during their time as teammates.

"I didn't know what to do, whether he'd respect it," said Lopez. "But for me it was to say thank you to Yvan. To give up a victory for me is never easy, but Yvan as a racing driver and a person deserves this."

Muller duly took his first victory since the final race of the 2015 season, having held a comfortable second before Lopez allowed him through.

Lopez held station behind his teammate over the final lap and a half to seal a Citroen one-two, with Honda driver Monteiro claiming his second third-place finish of the day after squirrelling up the inside of the Sebastien Loeb Racing Citroen C-Elysee of Mehdi Bennani to take third.

Bennani followed the Civic throughout the race but was never able to mount a challenge for position, instead settling for fourth.

Nestor Girolami enjoyed a strong run to fifth in his second race with the Polestar team, which included a bold lunge to claim fifth from the second SLR C-Elysee of Tom Chilton.

Thed Bjork finished seventh in the second Polestar Volvo S60, forcing his way back past the Hondas of race one winner Norbert Michelisz and Rob Huff during the race after dropping behind the pair at the start, with Michelisz leading Huff across the line for eighth.

Gabriele Tarquini once again claimed the final point for 10th in his Lada Vesta.

RESULTS - 14 LAPS:

Originally on Autosport.com