73. PZM Rajd Polski - Rally Poland 2016
30. 6. – 3. 7. 2016, Mikołajki • Polski Związek Motorowy • gravel 306.10 km • total distance including road sections - 1209.64 km • Other years
Info
SS21
"We pushed on the limit all weekend. Good to fight with Evans and Lappi. They have factory cars and much more experience."
"I'm disappointed but I guess it's part of the game. I think we deserved to win. Two days without any problems."
"We pushed so hard all weekend. We gave everything, It was like a war in the previous stage. It was all about luck. A weekend I will never forget. I'm sorry for Ott. I told his before this stage that I know how he feels - it happened to me in Sweden."
"That''s much too close for comfort. I really struggled with the conditions here. It was very slippery and I had no confidence with the car."
"I tried to be smooth and clean here to keep my position. I lost the rally because my pace notes on the first pass were too slow. That and the puncture."
"Difficult conditions. A few places we were really sideways. A good run here though."
"I wanted a bit of rain - but not his much," he jokes. "The last two stages were just about survival. We took what we could - eight points is better than nothing."
"In the previous stage I went off in a very slippery braking zone. It's like that."
"In these conditions you don't really control things - I felt like a passenger. Happy to get through the rally. Some of the worst conditions I have seen."
"Today was just about finishing," he says. "I'm not happy but I am satisfied. I have been one second per kilometre faster than last year - I feel I am growing."
"Very bad conditions, such deep ruts now. I'm very happy though - I tried to be as flat-out as I could." This is Henning's last confirmed WRC outing of the season. "I'll try to come back - maybe a late entry for Finland?"
"I made a big mistake here earlier. I'm very happy to finish. It's been a great rally for us, and thanks to the mechanics - they did a great job."
SS20
front right puncture
"The worst stage I have ever done. Really difficult. Wow."
"Really, really slippery. Difficult to judge the speed. We're trying to take it easy."
"A puncture halfway through and a fogged windscreen. We couldn't see anything. A disaster, just a disaster."
"Horrendous conditions. I don't remember conditions like this for a long time. Huge ruts and stones. It's more slippery than Wales."
"I'm so happy to be here [at the finish]. Unbelievable conditions." Your plans for the Power Stage? "It's been a tough weekend for us - I'll be happy just to get some points."
he went off after the flying finish. Right rear damage.
"We took it easy, but even like this it was a nightmare. Crazy."
stopped
stopped
"Very, very slippery and bad. Conditions are worse than Wales! If you're pushing in here it will be difficult."
SS19
"All going to plan. The grip was better in here. Now we can make some changes to the car. We'll soften it for the second loop."
"My priority is keeping the gap behind (to Neuville). Taking it steady. I'm leaving the battle ahead to Andreas and Ott."
"I had a yellow flag in the car so I had to slow," he explains, "I don't know why. I passed Lefebvre parked in the stage."
He loses the car on a right-hander and he smacks the rear-right heavily into a bank. It's a brutal impact. He's moving again - but slowly.
He's crunched his Hyundai into a hay bale chicane. There's considerable panel damage to the front of his car. His car appears to be leaking coolant.
SS18
"So slippery. We are far too hard with the car set-up. Very difficult. We'll change the set-up before the next one."
"We pushed hard. A clean stage with no mistakes. A perfect stage. Happy with that."
"The drive wasn't too bad but the car is too soft - we thought the road would be more slippery. We didn't lose too much. The gap to Neuville increased - that's good. We'll make some set-up changes before the next stage."
"Too steady I think. Too cautious. The stage was very slippery in some places. Many surprises, but I could have been quicker."
"Quite okay. A couple of places I was a bit careful but it's alright. Slippery places but the sandy sections were very grippy. Can I keep Seb behind? We'll see."
"Tricky conditions. Hard to find the limit. I'll try to catch more points but without going crazy. Unfortunately the rain arrived too late to help me but we can't complain about the that."
"Difficult. Slippery in places. I didn't drive very well here. Okay, it's the first stage of the day and my first time in wet conditions in this car."
"Steady away. My first time in the rain so it took time to get into a rhythm. The second half was better than the first. All good experience."
"Not easy but I really like my car in these conditions. I discovered a lot here."
"It was okay but I went off in one place. A stupid thing."
"I missed a junction - I went the same way as last year. The conditions are okay, in some places a little bit bad."
"Very slippery, more than I expected. Not a very good run, the car is too stiff, but okay."
"Very slippy in places I have to say. If you're pushing, everything can happen in here - a lot of dangerous places."
"Okay. The grip changes a lot. We try to keep our focus."
"Very slippery between the trees. No water on the road, just mud. Ideal position in the start order? Between fifth and seventh."
SS15
"A big push. I raised the car between stages and I now I feel more comfortable. We gave it a big push."
"It was okay. I thought we were good but I hit a rock and slowed a bit after that."
"A lot of grip in there now - it's almost like a tarmac road in places. I had an absolute blast in there."
"We're pushing for the win."
SS14
"It was a good run, I pushed really hard, but like yesterday on the repeated runs the time is just not there."
"Lost a bit of rhythm towards the end but generally happy with that."
"I would like to change the pace notes. We lose a few seconds here and there. I know where I can find another nine or ten seconds."
Stopped to change a front-right puncture.
"I can't push more. I gave my maximum."
"I was pushing, but you know how it is in the afternoon - no grip. I just try and make it through."
"Okay but I didn't raise the car and we were too low in places. We lost a bit of time."
"Getting better and better. Some mistakes in the ruts, but the time is good."
"A beautiful stage but tricky for tyres. I have a [compound] mix and the softs were overheating."
"The stage cleaned more than I expected. We were at the maximum. A good job."
"Very nice. I have the hard tyres and I'm not sure if that was the correct choice. Generally happy."
"It's really hot now in the car [it's 31˚C outside]. A much better run than this morning."
SS13
rolled, continue
rolled
"No issues but we have stepped the pace back a bit after a couple of moments on the previous stage. We're still above and beyond our target."
"One small
"I had a very, very good run. When there are no junctions I am flat out."
"Good, but I am slow today. I didn't have the trip [meter] on my recce car so my pace notes are not so good."
"Feels quite fast in the car. Another good stage. Our tyre was working well on his hard surface. I am enjoying a lot. A nice weekend."
"We overshot a junction and stalled the engine. That cost us about three seconds but now the driving is better and the speed is coming."
"We're driving our own rally. Over driving a bit here - hanging it out in a few ditches. We'll try and keep the pressure on."
"Some cleaner lines appearing now. We tried our best, like always. I hope the repeat loop is okay - that's where we struggled yesterday."
"I feel I drive very badly. It was okay but I didn't enjoy it."
"I have nothing special to tell you. Completely on the limit, a few times in the ditch."
SS12
"This is mostly about training for Finland. I'll try to push harder on the next stage."
"It's okay. I'm taking it cautiously to avoid mistakes. The front three drivers are pushing like hell. My job is to keep it on the road."
"Pretty good but hard on the tyres. We found something by default last night and that seems to have made the car a lot better."
"If I take six-tenths every stage it's enough to win. I'm not going to push hard - this pace is enough."
"A better rhythm than earlier. We are trying to manage the gap and keep the lead."
"I'm not competing against him! I struggled in there, a few slides and I lost my rhythm."
"So far much better than yesterday. We have improved our pace notes and now we are much closer. Not a bad job."
"I tried to push. My pace notes were not so good in some places - maybe one mistake."
"I go flat out absolutely everywhere, I can't do better."
"One mistake, I was too fast in one junction and lost a few seconds. All good with the car, just my driving is a bit far away."
"This was a new stage, so not maximum risk but a good run."
"We broke the gear lever [linkage] in the stage, and it was pushing on my foot."
"Getting better. I'm still losing time but my mindset is definitely better."
"A difficult one on the soft tyres. They were moving around right from the start - that's just something I have to get used to. A few wide moments but generally happy."
"A very funny stage. Some nice sections and some tricky places but I really enjoyed it. I had a good push. Not happy with my time."
"I gave it everything. At the absolute maximum everywhere. We have to take big risks if we want to try and fight at the top. And we really want to."
"An unbelievable stage. Incredible to drive. I enjoyed it a lot. Good grip, good balance."
"A disaster"
SS11
"We had a ball-joint failure under braking - we didn't touch anything. It's a shame but it happens. A new day today for us to get experience."
"We were quite aggressive but that's how it's going to be today. I'm raring to go."
"Not perfect but a good start. Everything is possible."
"Hopefully as good as yesterday. A cautious start, I can give more in the afternoon. Not my favourite stage."
"It wasn't so bad for us but I can do better on this stage. Some little mistakes. I will be better on the next pass."
"I don't like the junctions where you change directions onto different roads - they're not normal corners. I have to learn."
"Obviously I can see there's a lot of cleaning but I had a perfect stage!"
"I'm not happy - my pace notes are too slow. The road is much faster and I didn't adjust my pace notes. I could have done more if I was confident in my notes."
"We had a 'quite okay' run. The car feels good, at least, but I'm still hesitating in places. I'm lost. Sometimes you have those days when things don't go as you planned."
"Okay, there's a bit of cleaning to do, and the guys behind will be quick, but the car feels perfect - it's set-up just as I like it."
"This is the stage that is the most similar to yesterday's. The ones coming up are more twisty and technical. I hope they suit me better."
"I tried to push but there's so much cleaning - it's not human to be able to challenge Tanak here."
"I'm disappointed. More grip than I expected. I could have pushed more."
"It went very well. I'm very happy with my drive. Like yesterday it's pretty fast but a little more technical."
SS9
"We stopped on the stage for a few seconds because we thought [Tidemand's co-driver] Andersson showed us a cross sign. But he waved us on. Later we lost our brakes after we hit something."
"We had to wait a few minutes at the start but that's rally sometimes. The stage was okay, a bit rough in places, just like the rest of the stages this afternoon."
"It has been a very good day and I'm very happy with my speed. Being 10 cars behind the lead fight isn't very equal so I'm looking forward to a better road position tomorrow."
"A tough day. A combination of bad driving, brake problems and a rock strike that holed the radiator. I was annoyed earlier. Everything went wrong today. I'm hoping for a better day tomorrow."
"It's a shame about Pontus. I think he hit a bank on a 90 degree corner in a narrow place. Okay, we are here and good to continue tomorrow."
off the road
"Losing time in the final sector again. We have to look at that. It's a problem."
"It was okay. We changed our pace notes on the first pass and this one was much better."
"I lost some time slowing for the dust in here but I wanted to complete in one piece. We are very happy about the day. A good pace for our first rally in Poland."
"A great day. I'm really enjoying it - especially the second loop. The stages look quite bad in places but if you want to win you have to keep the button pressed - there's no other way."
"A very bad day overall. No feeling for the driving and I don't understand it. I am not together with the car. I have no words."
"We've made a set-up change to improve the balance but this was a tricky stage. It's not good driving in dust when you're in sixth gear. It feels good to get to the end of the day."
"Horrible in places. There was dust in some of the high speed sections and if you want to live you have to slow down."
"Ott is doing a really good job. The dust was bad in here though, hard to see. Not an easy stage in these conditions. You just close your eyes and go for it! Not perfect, but close."
"The time is not so bad. There was a lot of hanging dust in the forest."
"Nothing special. Business like always. I tried to push as hard as I can. It's not enough."
SS8
"I was totally flat out on the final section so I'll be interested to see how much time I'll lose there. I think there is some difference with Tidemand's engine."
"It's getting really rough now. This might feel like a PlayStation game but there is no reset button. There were a couple of huge stones in the road near the end."
"We were doing good but then we had a big moment when we hit a hole in 6th gear and almost lost control of the car. "
"A big push. I had one nasty place with the ruts but all good! Today is Foot Down Friday!"
"A much better stage. I felt good in the car. Shame about the dust though - in two places I slowed too much."
"The time was a disappointment. I'm surprised. I thought we were going to do a good time. Today is not happening."
"The afternoon loops are not so good for us. The car balance isn't great. I know what we have to change but for now we just have to get through and limit the time loss."
"The handling feels better. Moving in the right direction. In a few places I could go faster but not a bad stage."
"An unbelievable stage, I really enjoyed it. The car feels really good. I tried to brake well. It's feeling better and better."
"I'm trying as hard as I can and it's been a good loop so far. Some big ruts now, sometimes I'm just a passenger."
SS7
"Fantastic. This car is absolutely perfect in these conditions. I can do whatever I want. I go flat out in the lines and the car just stays there."
"It's really difficult. The ruts are so deep and in the corners you can't even turn. I was very, very untidy."
"This stage was really tricky and I'm still struggling with turn in. I'm not happy with the set-up. We need to make some changes. We have limited options but we will try."
"It was quite tricky in here. I tried to follow the line"
"Quite a lot of ruts on this stage and I suffered quite a bit. I'm happy with what I've done. It's easy to make a mistake here."
SS6
"I don't think I can catch Pontus. I did a good stage, but here we are slower. The stage is getting very rutted."
"Amazing. A little rough and I went out a little in one place."
"A good run bar two annoying mistakes in junctions - just a little untidy. We'll try to keep the pressure on."
"Something broke when we landed after the big jump. A steering arm perhaps. We want to finish the rally so we will try and fix it."
"A little mistake in a junction cost us a few seconds. I missed a braking point in front of a crowd of Irish fans!"
"Very difficult now. I went off the road for one or two seconds."
"We are pushing a bit more this afternoon."
"I was on the door handles in here. I gave absolutely everything, I want to show my speed. That's the target."
"We corrected our pace notes in the loop and stepped on the gas here. Still not the perfect stage but much better."
Stalled on the start line and lost a few seconds.
"No understeer for us but maybe too low on the ride height."
"Not so easy to have a good stage - tricky conditions in here. The ruts take you off in a different direction."
"A terrible stage. I really struggled with understeer. We have to make a change."
"A little bit better. A cleaner road with more grip. Enjoyable to drive."
"Really pushing. I can't go faster than this."
SS5
stopped in the stage with a broken radiator after a heavy landing...
"Pontus has been really pushing this morning. I tried hard here."
"An incredible stage. The car is perfect."
"I pushed quite hard in there. The times haven't been what we were hoping for this morning. The Skodas have been taking a lot."
"Driving a car like this is the best job in the world!"
"This was nightmare. I tried to push harder but ended up going slower."
"Not so bad but still too cautious in places. I can be better."
"I'm quite happy with the morning but the second half here was really dry and we struggled with grip. This afternoon we have to be smart with our tyre choices. We should be okay."
"All okay but we need to check the front-left damper. Sometimes the car was getting out of the line - we need to have a look."
"Like always here in Poland I just can't find the feeling. Even if it feels okay in the car the times are just not there."
"The times are pretty close near the top. I had a lot of understeer in here. We have plenty of things to improve on in the afternoon."
"I was completely off the road here. We lost a lot of time. Not good for the second stage in a row. We have to go back to service and start again this afternoon."
"Not so good for me, I was not really on it. Overall though the morning has not been so bad."
"We are trying but the time is not there."
"Really, really dry and slippery now. Very difficult. Not much chance to fight but I do what I can."
SS4
"I'm pleased with that. We're getting a bit closer with every stage."
"This is a stage I have done before and it was better than the others this morning."
"I lost three or four seconds in a junction."
He's tried to fix the helmet intercom with a cable tie but it's only partially successful.
"The time is good. We took some pleasure here. To be honest we are very, very happy."
"That time is a surprise. The car was moving about a lot, so I wasn't feeling over confident, but it's good. Next time we will be quicker!"
"The car set-up is too soft and I am being too slow in the corners. We will change the notes. I can be more committed."
"The front-right corner seems a bit soft too [he has a puncture]. It didn't feel right near the end. Otherwise I started to get a better feeling here."
"Not so bad and better than the last stage. I was trying to be a bit more aggressive here. I can tidy it up a bit."
"We're pretty much driving to the notes - trying to do what we planned on the recce. So far everything is working really well."
"This stage will clean a lot I think. I enjoyed a lot."
"On the two first stages I was not completely happy with my driving - but I was on this one. The road is much drier. How the time will compare I do not know."
SS3
"A great stage. At the beginning I was sleeping a bit but I woke up towards the end."
"We're pushing more than we did on the first stage. Let's see if it's enough. If not, we can push more."
"Enjoying so far, but it's harder to carry the speed in there - the road was much softer."
"I'm struggling a bit, I don't have a good feeling with the front on corner entry. A bit of understeer. Maybe down to set-up or maybe I'm just not used to it."
"The pace notes are a bit too slow. We can carry more speed in the corners."
"The road was very sandy in places and it's not easy to keep the line. I expect it will be worse for the repeat."
"My intercom is broken so I can't hear [my co-driver] Ilka. It's off and on - something in the wiring loom I think."
"We are happy. Our first time here and we need to learn - especially the tight corners."
"A perfect stage for me, but the ground is getting soft and we are carrying two spares. This is all we can do for the moment."
"The road is getting softer and slower. The softer road is sapping engine power. It feels like we are not going forward."
"Everything is okay but in the beginning I was too aggressive. I have to improve."
"A lot of cuts in there. No drama. I was trying to be smooth but I reckon I could have been more aggressive."
"No problem. I was on the limit."
"We tried to cut wherever possible. We found a huge rock in the road, I was worried, we tried to hit it with the middle of the car. It seems okay."
"This road was a bit slower than the first one. The grip was better than I expected."
SS2
"Crazy. I know what this rally is all about now. I love it."
"The guys ahead are cutting like idiots! I'm not brave enough to do that in this car."
"The first sector was okay but then I was more cautious."
"It's okay, the first jump maybe a bit too fast but okay."
"Too cautious near the beginning."
"I didn't drive very well at the start. The car felt good."
"Good. I like the road. I made some mistakes - too fast in some corners, not cutting enough - but I learn a lot. I try to understand."
"A very nice stage but it is completely different to the recce."
"They changed the road compared the the recce - some cuts weren't there any more."
"Quite good. A little bit slippy in the cuts but otherwise fine."
"I really enjoyed the driving but it's a little disappointing that since the recce the organisers have put things in the corners, like bits of wood, to stop us cutting."
"Quite happy but maybe too aggressive in a few corners."
"Not so bad. Very fast places. I lost a bit of time going wide."
"Very fast, a bit damp at the start but normally dry. Not a perfect stage but okay for us."
SS1
"In the first corner Jari-Matti completely sprayed my car with mud - it took half a lap to clean my windscreen!"
spun