Monteiro “OK” after big WTCR China crash

Tiago Monteiro was uninjured after a heavy crash in the weekend-closing Race 3 at WTCR Race of China on Sunday.

Contact with Mehdi Bennani resulted in Monteiro’s KCMG Honda Civic Type R TCR striking the pitwall with considerable force.

While his KCMG-run car was badly damaged, the Portuguese – who was seriously injured in a testing crash in 2017 and missed more than a year of racing as a result – was declared unhurt following checks at the Ningbo International Speedpark medical centre, overseen by FIA doctor Christian Wahlen.

“I’m OK, which is about the best thing I can say about this weekend,” said the WTCR Race of Portugal winner. “It was a big impact, but I was checked over and there’s nothing wrong with me.”

Monteiro was also forced to retire from Race 2 following opening-lap contact. In Turn 5, he was hit by another car at the exit of the corner, which pushed him into the side of WTCR / OSCARO rival Benjamin Leuchter’s Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR. Leuchter hit the wall hard and Monteiro’s car bounced quite high over the grass, forcing the German to miss Race 3 due to damage. “In all three races I was hit many, many times and it’s frustrating,” Monteiro added.