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How casino visit helped Coronel to WTCC podium

Tom Coronel claimed his first podium in this season's FIA World Touring Car Championship - and then revealed how a casino visit last night had brought him much-needed luck.

Coronel finished second to Mehdi Bennani in the Opening Race at WTCC JVCKENWOOD Race of Macau today having failed all season to finish in the top three.

"Somehow I've never found the luck [at Macau] but last night I was in Sands [casino]," Coronel explained. "I put on number nine [my race number]. My friends said ‘don't change the coins, keep them' so they are still in my pocket and I think I found some luck here."

Of his charge to second place, Coronel said: "I had a very good start and saw that [Ryo] Michigami was very strong in Mandarin. I knew in the mountain section I really had to push and there I was really on the limit everywhere for myself because this was my only chance. These are the results I need, especially at the end of the season. We saw in the last few races we couldn't do anything with the car any more and somehow we found the speed in the mountain section so I'm really happy."

Having started second for the Opening Race, the ROAL Motorsport-run Dutchman will start tomorrow's Main Race eighth.

Zdroj: fiawtcc.com