The Alfa Romeo Racing Team have officially withdrawn Gabriele Tarquini’s car from the final event of the FIA World Touring Car Championship in Macau which takes place in just a few hours time. The Italian’s Alfa Romeo 156 was involved in a dramatic shunt on Friday during the timed qualifying session, smashing into the wall at Turn 16 of the street circuit, bouncing back into the track before being collected by Rickard Rydell’s SEAT León. Although he was quickly hospitalised for a check, Tarquini who had posted the fourth fastest time, suffered only from a sore neck and shoulder. However his car was not deemed repairable.

It is another blow for Fabrizio Giovanardi who needs all the help he can get from his three team mates after qualifying down in ninth position while his BMW-driving title rivals Andy Prilaux sits on pole, and Dirk Muller is in sixth place. All three drivers will be lugging around the 60kg maximum 'success' ballast. Giovanardi's team mates, local driver Andre Couto, Brazilian youngster Augusto Farfus Jr and Tarquini, lined up second, third and fourth on the grid after a fraught qualifying session, but it will now fall to Couto and Farfus to help Giovanardi with his title aspirations. The fourth Alfa Romeo driver - James Thompson - is way down the grid in 17th place on the grid.
 

Forty three year old former F1 driver Gabriele Tarquini has had a long and successful association with Alfa Romeo, which includes winning the 1994 British Touring Car Championship, racing the fearsome Alfa Romeo 155 V6 Ti in the mid-1990's DTM and ITC series', while in 2003 he claimed the FIA European Touring Car Championship title. 2006 will see Tarquini (along with James Thompson) will drive for the SEAT team in the WTCC.

Meanwhile, Tarquini is the only driver to be suffering after qualifying in Macau as Ford Hotfiel’s driver Michael Funke, who had qualified in 23rd position will be dropped ten positions on the grid as the team applied for an engine change. Four drivers in the 31-field in fact did not qualify for the race. Ao Chi Hong did not manage to post a qualifying time as he crashed his BMW 320i at the Fisherman’s bend during his first flying lap. Japanese Hironori Takeuchi (Toyota Altezza), Paul Poon (BMW 320i) and Lo Ka Fai (SEAT Toledo), both from Hong Kong, remained well above the qualifying maxima and the Stewards of the Meeting rejected the requests for being allowed to race lodged by their respective teams.