By Leonard Lim

MACAU: A frustrated Melvin Choo was left to rue what could have been, after failing to qualify for the finale of the World Touring Car Championship here.

Still, the Singaporean driver managed a best time of 2min 49.352sec in his BMW 320Si around the former Portuguese enclave's twisting street circuit.

Chevrolet's Alain Menu will start on pole ahead of 27 other drivers tomorrow after topping the field in 2:30.285, with the cut-off at 2:42.

Choo said: "Today was a bad day. Twice I was doing a good time when the red flag came out and forced me to abort the laps."

Qualifying was disrupted twice during the 45-minute session. Then, the 29 drivers had to return to their garages while the cars involved in serious accidents were being removed from the track.

The accidents came as no surprise. The tight 6.2-km city track is considered one of the world's toughest street circuits - some parts are eight to 10 metres wide, with the narrowest just 7m. The first accident happened with 18 minutes left, when Masaki Kano's BMW stopped at the midway part of the track.

Four minutes after the restart, former F1 driver Gabriele Tarquini crashed at a corner.

"Both times I went past the second corner at around 203 kmh, and I knew the top drivers were getting about 205 kmh," said Choo, who raced under the Thunder Asia team.

"I was following Tom Coronel (winner of the last leg in Okayama) at that time and keeping pace with him. Then the red flag came out and ruined my race."

Choo, a former property investor who turned to full-time racing three years ago, came here with high hopes after a promising debut three weeks ago in Japan. Then, the first South-east Asian driver to compete in the WTCC qualified during his maiden event, which was a rarity.

Choo, 38, eventually finished 23rd and 20th out of 29 drivers to score two points.

The WTCC, organised by the International Automobile Federation, motorsport's governing body, ranks third behind Formula One and the World Rally Championship in terms of prestige. Cars with four doors, two-litre engines and two-wheel drive are used.

It is one of several international-level races that could be held at the permanent race track in Changi when it is completed in 2012.

Despite the bad luck, Choo was upbeat, saying: "I know I have the speed, I just need more time in the car."

Having raced in Porsche and Aston Martin events before his switch, he is still getting used to the more competitive WTCC, which boasts several former F1 drivers like Tiago Monteiro.

Choo is aiming to compete for the full season next year.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Nov 15, 2008.

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By Leonard Lim

Melvin Choo thought he would be watching today's World Touring Car Championship finale from the stands after being dropped in Friday's qualifying session.

Instead, the Singaporean will belt up for his second WTCC event and start 26th in the 28-driver grid, racing against the likes of former Formula One driver Gabriele Tarquini.

This, after stewards from the FIA, motorsports world governing body, made a surprise decision that the entire field would start.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Nov 16, 2008.

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