Story from www.wrc.com

It was a great start to the with three stage wins after two months away but then what went wrong on stage four? “It was great to win the first three stages of the rally but midway through stage four I came to a tight left bend which was muddy. I wasn’t prepared for it to be so slippery and when I braked the engine stalled and the car overshot the corner, but fortunately there was nothing to hit. In the same stage a box covering the onboard camera fell onto my legs. It distracted me but I was more annoyed about my mistake.”
There was more frustration on stages five and six. Why? “It was surprisingly damp and I didn’t have enough traction. The tyres didn’t warm up quickly enough at the start of the stage and the car understeered. Once they had heated up then I was able to pull time back. I carried two spare wheels and in hindsight perhaps one would have been better. Both stages contained plenty of uphill sections and I think the extra 25 kilograms from a second spare made a difference. It’s normal to carry two spares in Greece because of the high tyre wear in the heat, but temperatures were cooler than usual and the tyres weren’t wearing as much.”
How has your arm been today? “It’s tired compared to my right arm because I haven’t been using it so much but there is no pain. I feel it’s a bit sensitive but it doesn’t bother me when I’m driving. It would have been worse without the padding so it was a relief when [the officials] said I could use it to take some of the pressure off my shoulder.”
Given the fact you’re still recovering from injury, you must be very pleased to be second overall and in a fight with Sebastien Loeb? “I wasn’t sure how my speed would be after two months away. The speed is there but at first there was not the confidence to control the speed and everything felt so fast - that’s why you need to keep driving all of the time.”
What’s the plan tonight? “I’m going to go for a massage then tomorrow I will keep pushing hard and see what I can do.”





More...