TCR: Monteiro wins, Comini snatches title in Macau

Tiago Monteiro took victory in a chaotic Macau Guia race, as James Nash lost the TCR International title at the last minute to Stefano Comini.

WestCoast Racing Honda driver Monteiro triumphed at the end of two hours in which just four complete laps of racing were completed across the two races.

Comini won the first race from the sister WRT-run Leopard Racing Volkswagen Golf of Jean-Karl Vernay, but with only five laps in the books the race only counted for half points.

One of the incidents was sparked when Craft Bamboo SEAT driver Nash collided with the SEAT of Mato Homola into Lisboa, Homola crashing into the barriers and causing chaos in his wake, which resulted in a blocked track.

With his left-rear suspension deranged, Nash crabbed around the circuit but had to pull up past the pits and did not finish the race, meaning his points lead over Comini had been slashed to just half a point.

With Comini on pole for the second race – carrying the Guia title – and Nash near the back of the grid, the Swiss-Italian was odds-on for the title.

Monteiro got a superb start to lead both VWs, although this race was, like the first, red-flagged before being restarted. Over a two-lap sprint to the finish, Vernay passed Comini for second, and now Nash's teammate Pepe Oriola moved his SEAT onto the bumper of Comini.

Comini made little effort to resist Oriola on the final lap, the points for fourth position being easily enough for him to win the TCR title for the second season running.

The leading six cars were extremely close at the finish, with Dusan Borkovic (SEAT) and German champion Josh Files (Honda) claiming fifth and sixth, respectively. Nash picked his way up the order to eighth.

Originally on Autosport.com