Quote Originally Posted by mknight View Post
Thing is the "national championship speed" is what a lot of young drivers with money/drives get very quickly. Ex. Latvala, Mikkelsen and... M. Wilson.

The big step is going from that to top 6 WRC speed. For example, Mikkelsen didn't have nearly that kind of speed during his privateer time in WRC but got there after IRC. Wilson never got it, even though his "young" speed was good.

Which is why I am pessimistic about the hype every driver who shows some speed at 17-19 gets. Time will tell how Huttunen does, I hope he does well, but it's far from guaranteed.
I think your examples show why it is important for drivers to build up through the series and categories gradually.

Lefebvre is another example of someone who they tried to progress too quickly.