Croatia Rally 2023
20. 4. – 23. 4. 2023, Zagreb • AK Delta Timing + AK Cro Dakar Team • asphalt 301.26 km • total distance including road sections - 1650.68 km • Other years
Info
SS20
“Honestly I am just happy. It’s for my friend, I don’t know very well the guy but he helped me a lot during the DS3 R5 during 2017 and it’s for him. The engineer for Craig was Thomas and my engineer is Thomas, it’s for him, my team and for my family. It’s good news.”
“It feels so insignificant now again really, that’s the bottom line. Obviously we’ve been working to this for a long time but it’s surprising how little it means just at the moment. Obviously we’re back to missing our friend now after the real focus of the weekend. Straight away when you come across the finish line that’s all you can think about. We promised the family we would enjoy the weekend, we’ve done that. I’m sure they were following us. We definitely thinking of you.”
“Result-wise it’s a lot for sure. For sure are missing a lot of consistency and quite a lot of performance as well. No speed really but again good points so hopefully the speed will follow at some moment.”
“I don’t know where to start to be honest, big thanks to the team. I am sure it was not easy to come here for most of us. Thank you that you came, you give us the opportunity to drive again. I know it was tough, it’s been really tough, the toughest week ever I guess. We kept our head together. With a smart drive we managed to be on the podium which is very important for me and for the team this week. Thanks.”
“I didn’t leave much either. It was quite tricky. I was imagining that we cannot really match his pace because even on the second pass the road is getting all the time dirty. I was having a good run and I couldn’t do much more. Difficult weekend, not the best start. I need to prepare better from the car side, we cannot start with the wrong set-up like this. But thanks to the team we got some points at the end.”
“It was a very difficult Power Stage, the car was undrivable for me. I had massive understeer and I’m glad I finished it because it was one of the messiest stages I’ve ever done. For sure a lot of things to go through from a sporting point of view, we had the pace for much better this weekend but it was not our weekend.”
"Nice to finish this rally. We had quite a bad run in the past two events so it's good to finish. The car was amazing and we had a very good feeling yesterday and today. Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Elfyn [Evans]."
“I think we can take some positive about this race, unfortunately today the thing this morning with the engine and after that the direction after I hit something inside. It’s like that, we did some good things. I think we just need a bit more consistency and I think the pace is here sometimes. We just need to work. For sure it’s been an incredible weekend after what happened to Craig. Thinking a lot of him and I hope he has enjoyed the show this weekend.”
“To be honest I don’t know what to say, I’m so disappointed for the team, for us after all what happened. It’s a tough moment you know, we really wanted that victory, we wanted to make Craig proud for everything. We missed the opportunity unfortunately. We always have to give more than 100 per cent and when you are on the limit you cannot avoid such mistakes and it’s very tough. We gave it everything in here and this one was for Craig, hopefully it’s enough.”
“A good result after all the adventures which we had on this rally. This stage was fun, maybe I tried in some places too much and in a few cuts we just jumped so high. I was expecting the puncture because it was really horrible but it’s all good. This one is a really demanding stage. Unfortunately the time is not what I wanted to have, it’s a really difficult stage.”
“That’s good points, I’m sure after Friday I was not expecting to be third in the points so we can be really happy about that. Good job, honestly, the team and for Reeta this is victory in itself. We tried to enjoy it, we fought until the end. Actually on this stage the intercom didn’t work so Reeta was screaming quite loud and we don’t need an intercom it seems, she can do without. It was not easy but a good result nevertheless.”
“I think with the soft tyre towards the end it’s floating a lot and he [Lindholm] has two hards so hopefully he doesn’t gain too much at the end. I tried anyway but for sure it was very tricky conditions and a very tricky stage.”
“Honestly, I’m really, really happy about the performance of the car this weekend. We were struggling a bit at the beginning but unfortunately we had quite a difficult test on the wet but then we improved the car and it was much better for the last two days. Honestly we can be really happy, we had a really strong performance and it’s also good for me to drive at that pace on Tarmac because I know it was a bit difficult last year on Tarmac so it’s really positive and we take the fourth position, it’s good, perfect.”
“It’s quite tricky, I tried to give it a push but when you don’t know exactly where is the gravel and where is the mud it makes it quite interesting.”
SS19
“Actually I had a clean stage for me, I didn’t want to take too much risk in that one, I wanted to keep a bit my tyres for the Power Stage. It was a clean stage and I’m happy with my time.”
“I am not really sure, it was not so bad but I was a bit struggling with the tyres towards the end. I was hoping for better but it’s fine.”
“It’s drying up and we’re struggling more and more. At least halfway to the finish it’s better because it’s very dirty. I had no control over the wheels at all and I was locking up a lot of times, it was not easy. The Power Stage is very dirty so hopefully it will suit the car well.”
“It’s always tempting to push on the Power Stage but I don’t know what happened in this stage. The countdown, the start lights were lagging and that hasn’t before. We will see, if we find a good rhythm why not [fight for the Power Stage win].”
“For sure we need to work on the Power Stage, let’s see. One stage to go, something can stage, if you do good then it’s clear but let’s see. It’s rallying still.”
“Honestly, no problem, we will see on the next stage, it’s the most important. For the moment all okay.”
“You never know in this game, especially here with this tricky stage to go. You never know, we just need to keep focused now.”
“I am thinking about taking the car home, nothing else, it’s challenging enough. Let’s see. I was fooled with the start clock on this one. The clock froze on ‘58s.”
“The strategy has been quite clear for the whole day [for the Power Stage]. I guess we can see from the tactics that Thierry is not with the same strategy, I am more on that side. There two different ways to approach the Power Stage.”
“Let’s say the final stage is a different story, it’s the Power Stage and for sure points are counting for the team so we will have to keep pushing. It’s nothing wrong [with the brakes locking on the previous stage] bit set-up wise maybe there is something we can do. It was very, very dirty, more than I though. Okay, it was a good stage except for the slide at the end that cost maybe some time. We could not match the speed from the first stage.”
“This one was not a good stage for me, I was not doing well. Even the startline was a big mess, the clock was not working normally and the launch was a bit stressful. Not a good stage from us.”
“Of course it’s more like gravel and there was a lot of mud from the inside. I had to drive a bit careful but it was a nice stage anyway. Definitely easier to drive than the Power Stage.”
“Unfortunately not so much luck this morning. My direction for my steering is completely bent so I am driving like that. I can’t turn on the left, it’s very tricky, so I am very, very careful because we have nothing to play and with the steering like that I just want to go through.”
“To be honest not [feeling good]. The feeling isn’t great but we are going to push as hard as we can. With only five points we can take from the weekend we need to go for it. But it won’t be an easy task.”
SS18
“Just a trial run for the Power Stage but it all felt good. Like I said yesterday, I’m happy with the performance, the car’s there it’s just where I am in the standings is not where I want to be but apart from that all good.”
“For sure, I am trying to push in the places I know where I can but still some places I should be more brave. I think I’m not used to how much this car can really handle in such conditions.”
“I put the softs on the front and it was moving like hell but it was worth a try. It was the first time I ever did this stage compared to everyone else and wow it’s difficult."
“It was a nice save halfway through the stage, it was just braking, braking but it was really dusty. It didn’t look so slippery but it really caught us out and we’re happy to be here.”
“There was a jump on the last part, I felt like the jump is good so I put full throttle but I land on the kerb a little bit. I gess the rim is bent there seems to be the pressure on so let’s see how it looks like. But, okay, it’s a nice stage, it was enjoyable. For sure Yohan is also trying. It’s not easy but the stage is nice. It’s quite dirty, I was not expecting this. The cuts are making it a really difficult stage.”
“It’s not easy, honestly, I tried to push. The car on this condition is a little bit better than yesterday and we continue like that.”
“It was pretty dirty in there to be honest, a few surprises at the beginning in terms of getting caught out on the dirt so then I took it a bit easy to be honest, it’s to be expected. A few little slides here or there, just trying not to do anything silly.”
“It’s hard work, unfortunately one more time.”
“That’s a very difficult stage which you cannot enjoy.”
“He’s driving well, nothing to say. I couldn’t really push. I was struggling with a lot of blocking from the front. There’s no point to take too many risks for fourth place. I tried but it doesn’t really work at the moment.”
“Pretty okay, I was struggling with the cross tyre a bit, it was more tricky than I expected with the tyres. A bit same than before, I was not clean enough and there are a few places where we can be faster by being clean and also a bit more brave. It’s a really tricky stage to take the risk. It’s a big challenge for sure."
“Previous stage obviously the feeling was very good but this on, I don’t know, super-tricky. I feel like on ice in some sections and you have no grip and if you brake a bit you lock up and you are straight forward in the forest. It’s scary but we are here and I try to find something better for the Power Stage.”
“Something with security mode [was wrong]. Now the steering is completely bent at the end of the stage. I hit something and now it’s completely bent. It was three kilometres before the end.”
"At least we enjoyed the ride, the road was quite clean, much drier than in recce and much drier than expected as well. We tried to enjoy the run through and confirm the pacenotes for the Power Stage. We’re going to try hard but I’m not sure if we’re going to take a lot of points.”
SS17
“I’ll push a lot more in the next stage to get a feeling in the first pass and then try and get some points in the second pace and use the stage in between to save the tyres.”
“Honestly it will be a good fight with him all the day. This is what we want ourselves. It was a really good stage for me. I was pushing especially at the end. Unfortunately I didn’t find a really good pace at the beginning but after was good and that’s okay.”
“I think I really need to push hard if I want to stay in front of him [Fourmaux]. This stage was not so bad, I try to continue in the same way.”
“The beginning was a bit like the end yesterday so it was quite okay, the middle section I drove horribly and then the end is very muddy and the car suits better there. Let’s hope for more shit today as I’ve said all weekend and maybe it works better.”
“With a few damp places that surely surprised me at least. I will try to keep up the pace. It’s a nice stage and I like it.”
“I was sliding so much in the damp conditions at the end. Not easy, for sure I am trying to not let him escape. We will see. We need to keep pressure on him, I have no choice, I have to drive.”
“The car on this road is not bad, similar to the first day. We will see what happens on the next.”
“Everything feels good. I don’t see any reason to take any risks so for sure the pace is not there where it should be but it would be still difficult to match even pushing flat out.”
. “It was an okay run. If we can get to the end that would already be positive. Let’s try to get to the end.”
“Pretty okay. Obviously I heard the time of and I wasn’t sure if that was enough to be honest but all is okay.”
“Not happy with the run, I was trying to change the driving style a bit after yesterday on some parts but it was not a clean stage. We can be faster still but let’s see.”
“It was not a bad run but obviously he was better so a good stage for him. OF couse with three stages to go we are going to have to carry on with the fighting.”
“Actually I felt very, very good with the car. I don’t know how it’s going behind me, maybe they are going quicker of course, but at least the feeling is much better than yesterday but for sure I can try to push in the Power Stage and I try to find a bit more confidence with something else.”
“The stage is quite clean on the beginning, slightly more dusty towards the end. It’s going a bit worse for the others. We are trying some different set-ups after yesterday, we’re going to see.”
“We had no engine, no stage mode. It’s like that, we see if we can fix it.”
Engine issue
SS16
“It’s a good end for the day, I am really happy about our pace for the day. We were pushing in every stage, except this one on the first loop but we had some mechanical issues so it was okay. This time we had a much better set-up for this stage.”
“It’s a bit dirtier and slower in the dark, I took it quite easy. Today has been good and somehow we kept the pace in the morning. Since there is a big gap front and rear we try to keep the car and the tyres in one piece and bring it home. It’s been good.”
“Okay, I don’t know how this was but some places I was still a bit careful but I am trying to get better. Overall it’s been really positive. There’s one day to go and anything can happen.”
“This one is okay because it’s short corners, faster, the car is more okay. I am very frustrated because it’s my mistake. I chose this set-up for the race. It was not a good one so for sure I’m frustrated. But you live and learn. It’s still very enjoyable.”
“Tomorrow will be a tough day. This stage was quite demanding. In the first part you want to take the cuts but inside something says… but you need to be really like caution a little bit but still trying to take the edge a little bit. No problems, no big hits and the roundabout was quite okay this time. With this set up it was nice.”
“It’s just the condition is not the same to yesterday, it’s quite similar to a gravel loop. On this stage I had no problem and I don’t know why. The feeling is quite good when it’s completely dry or in a fast section. But when we have a lot of mud it’s impossible to drive for me. Of course [I am confident], the race is not finished and we will see tomorrow.”
“I don’t know, I don’t know, difficult to say. It’s terrible to drive and not for me, I don’t know what is happening, happy it’s over.”
“I can’t say I was so happy with the way I drove in there and if Ott has had problems I wouldn’t wish that on him. It’s not nice to inherit a gap like that but there’s still a long way to go.”
“Yesterday was a better day for us to be honest. I’ve never been really good on the dirty Tarmac and today was one of the days and I struggle a lot when there is a lot of pollution on the road. When there’s a decent amount I can manage somehow. Like the previous stage I don’t know how I should drive it.”
“It’s nice to be here. It was quite a tricky day. The weather was not so bad but still the conditions were quite demanding. I need to find out what I need to improve and hopefiully on the first stage I can push with a good feeling.”
“The first section is just about risk-taking and I know Kalle is just going flat into the cut. I am a bit more careful in those sections and that’s costing time. The last section is fast and just about driving. It’s not for a great position but it’s still a battle.”
“Always if there’s a fight we give everything we’ve got. The beginning of the stage was really tricky to get the hard tyre working, I don’t know if I lose some time there. Otherwise it was quite good. It was a bit tricky lines after the pace cars and small cars, many cuts I had to go in but I only had gravel on the Tarmac. Not easy but we tried.”
“It wasn’t so easy, I’m a bit surprised by the time, I’m very slow. It’s difficult to understand but from the previous stage I’m losing a lot of performance so we’ll have to see what I’m doing wrong.”
SS15
Puncture
"I didn't think it would be enough again to be honest. I felt like I was pushing harder in the previous one - so maybe that's where I'm going wrong!"
"I knew Pierre-Louis would struggle with the hard tyres but I am not satisfied with myself in here."
"I had a good stage. It was difficult to go faster because it was so dirty. I'm happy with my stage."
"It's not been too difficult, actually. But I can not understand the pace of the others."
"What a disaster. It's fine... the handbrake is not working and things like this. It's tricky when things are like this."
"It was not too bad. For sure, some sections are really bad but some are okay with just a few cuts and a lot of lines on the road."
"It wasn't working at all unfortunately. I couldn't maintain the temperature in the tyres and there was no grip."
SS14
“Not so nice to be in no-man’s land. It’s quite disappointing because I wouldn’t really say I’m pushing. The car feels great, I’m happy. The performance is good, just where we are is not great.”
“I’m really happy, I was not really too careful but there were one or two corners where I was a little too cautious maybe because it was really slippery at the end. I did a really good stage, honestly I’m really happy. I was flat out everywhere, honestly I cannot do me and we are there so it’s okay.”
“I took it easy, we didn’t go flat out. P3 is quite okay. Better watch out for the tyres.”
“I am a bit surprised, I was still sliding on the last corner so I didn’t think it was the quickest. I was enjoying a lot, for sure.”
“It’s so difficult to drive, I really struggled. It’s consistently slow the whole weekend. The car is not connecting at all, it’s all over the place, very, very difficult, especially when it’s so slippery. I can’t make any changes, I have to use what I have. It’s just difficult.”
“In the beginning it was interesting. In the end… I go with the hard tyres and in the last part there was too much sliding, more than the first pass. I was expecting it would be hot enough but, it’s okay, there is no drama, we need to drive and do our job.”
“Honestly I push, I don’t know why it is a little bit better on this stage. The plan is to do no mistakes, we see my colleague Nicolas [Ciamin] and for the championship we need to take a lot of points. For the moment all is easy and in control.”
“The rear of the car was moving all around, it was very tricky but okay, we are through.”
“For sure it’s quite tricky now with all the gravel. It’s also really dusty the Tarmac so even when there is no gravel on the road it’s really slippy all the time. This one is a fast and intense stage and you have to be flat out all the time.”
"These last two stages the car has been working well. It's been a good rhythm - definitely on the limit."
"I can believe he's on the limit with that time! For me it was a clean run to be honest, I'm surprised to lose that much. I've got a better feeling [in the car] but the time doesn't feel so good!"
"It's quite fast. The first six or seven kilometres are really fast with a lot of commitment needed. The last section is really slippery and and the surface is changing there."
"I tried to enjoy and push but it didn't feel so good. It's not so easy - there's a lot of pollution from the cutting and low grip."
"It was surprisingly slippery in some corners. I didn't expect it, but all okay. I hope for once I can have a trouble-free loop, so let's see. Two stages to go."
SS13
“I think it’s not an easy stage but honestly the grip is not the same as this morning, more down but honestly it’s a clean stage for me.”
“I was struggling to be honest, it was very, very loose but the car seemed to be very, very skittish, very difficult to get any sort of grip or confidence to be honest.”
“Let’s see, still some way to go, it was an incredibly tricky stage so we need to keep going.”
“The beginning was quite good but then it became a lot of gravel everywhere. On a junction I was afraid I would understeer so I pulled the handbrake and the rear was on gravel.”
“Keep driving the same. I did a bit of a mistake in this one, I went straight in a hairpin where it was full of gravel, a very, very dirty stage.”
“I didn’t enjoy the stage but my co-driver said he enjoyed the stage but it was a strange feeling, tricky stage and I was not able to push.”
“It was much better this afternoon, unfortunately I made one mistake in the first split I go off of the line and I was in the dust so I lose a bit of time. For the rest it was an okay stage, now the car is much better, we found out what it was this morning so everything is fine.”
“Really tricky to be honest, a lot of gravel. Where there have been normal road use and people walking on the road it’s quite messy and the Tarmac line is not so clean, not easy and I had one spin in one junction, really slippery braking and with the hybrid when you are braking on there it’s a bit tricky so I had to do a spin.”
Accident
Spin
SS12
“We need a circuit car on this one and honestly we made a mistake because we went a bit softer for the stage before, which was really shitty, and for this one we should have closed everything and also we made a bad tyre choice. It was okay, honestly I didn’t take risk, it was the first time for me on that one so it was okay.”
“Nothing, I didn’t touch anything in the cuts. If I could tell you [where it happened] I would but I can’t. Same old Pirelli.”
“Pretty happy, I know we could have found a few seconds. Okay, it was good stage anyhow and the feeling was quite nice. I’m looking forward to the afternoon loop. I think we can find a few seconds especially in the first narrow part but we save that for the afternoon."
“To be honest I’m not sure, maybe some sensory issue because it’s not constant. I don’t really know because it was in the downhill section. We need to go and check.”
“It was okay, the car drove fine no problem. I had a cross with the soft tyres so it was moving a lot on the fast downhill part. We just change the wing and the boot lid [in service] and it’s done.”
“I am quite surprised because honestly it was not a good stage. I was waiting for this one because I knew it was the one I don’t like. For the moment it’s good but we could have done much better. It’s nice to be back in second position, keep going and happy to be at the end of the morning already.”
“I think the feeling is not bad. I tried to do my best but when you have a 30-second gap to the other guys it’s not good. Honestly, for the moment all is okay. I am not happy with my car with the soft [tyre], it’s not easy, maybe it’s my driving, but with hard it’s better.”
“We had a really, really long slide on the last downhill, all okay, we lost some time there but all fine. When you go close to the barriers it’s always a bit exciting but not the fastest way to go."
“It was a bit, let’s say, I was a bit stressed by the first section, there were a lot of cuts and I was trying to be careful because there is a very high risk of puncture. After that the downhill is quite fast like circuit style and more enjoyable because it’s just focusing on the driving. At the end, like we said yesterday night, the only thing we can do is to drive flat out to catch position. At the moment we accumulate quite a lot of trouble and penalties during the weekend. It’s difficult to climb but let’s see.”
“We can smile, that’s not a problem but for sure we are lacking a lot of pace at the moment and that’s it. Definitely we need to change something because something is wrong. It’s far from yesterday, grip-wise and I cannot understand.”
"It’s a racing one, unfortunately we lost a tyre on the first one so we didn’t have a good option for this one. But, okay, it was still an okay loop. We’ve done all we can. Today has been feeling a bit different."
“The surface at the end we knew was low on grip but I skimmed the barrier with the rear bumper twice, there wasn’t a lot of room left there but quite okay. It was measured.”
“I don’t think so much about the rest, I was just struggling on the fast section with the soft on the rear. I was not so much confident but in the second loop it will be better on this one.”
“It’s nice to be close but I don’t know why but I am struggling quite a lot today. The car is working pretty well but there’s something I’m struggling with, it feels not so great. I think [we will make some changes in service].”
Puncture
SS11
Accident
“That was interesting. A lot of gravel and mud on the road, especially the last part was tricky. I tried to go but it’s not easy when you don’t know how the grip is.”
“Really a tricky one, somehow really, really tricky and not easy to work out where is the mud and where is the safest route.”
“It was a dry entry but a full-wet exit and it wasn’t like that on the recce so it caught us out.”
“The stage felt quite okay but not fantastic. It’s a new stage for everybody so it’s the first time since the beginning of the rally that I’m at the same level as the others on the knowledge of the stages. Obviously I was expecting on this one to see the time but it was a tricky stage.”
“The stage is nice, it’s really enjoyable but it’s just dirty and tricky. It’s also new for everyone and there is a lot of pollution. It’s difficult to find a good rhythm because some places are really slippery.”
“I think it’s just a crazy stage.”
4s. “It was pretty clear that this stage is going to be a massive advantage up front. Near the end is getting very greasy and muddy. We didn’t really push either.”
“It was a mess in some sections with a lot of mud and dirt coming from the inside. For sure it’s getting worse and worse and tricky I would say. Still we are here but it’s going to be quite messy behind us.”
“Maybe a bit the road but also I was too careful thinking it would be much worse and I didn’t take too much risk and I was too slow.”
“Quite difficult, new stages are always tricky with the new notes and when it’s conditions like this. This one has a lot of mud and cuts all the time and it’s really dirty so not an easy stage, especially with hards on the car it was quite slippy in places but all okay.”
" It was the same back at M-sport as well, Me and Adrien can never help ourselves but battle... That was a good run for me so no complaints".
“It’s a bit more dirty, it’s still quite challenging, a bit unpredictable, but okay, one stage to go.”
“I have zero confidence. It’s been a tough morning. I don’t know what’s wrong. Confidence is not there, maybe I slept bad.”
Spin
Accident
SS10
“On the very last corner of the first stage I ran wide and hit a kerb and bent the rear arm so it’s definitely not driving perfect and I started that stage with a huge moment, still here, just. It was just a lot dirtier than I expected it to be.”
“That was really good for us [winning SS9] and we were trying to get that since Monte-Carlo on Tarmac. I think we deserved some time so it’s good to get it. I think we did also a really good time in that one so we can be happy with this morning. We changed things yesterday night at service and it seems to be working so it’s positive.”
“It’s been good. The car and driving and co-driver have been good all weekend and we’ve been enjoying it. That one was not too bad and I guess we could squeeze a few seconds off that.”
“We had some good slides towards the end. Not so bad, for sure better than yesterday morning and I’m happy for that.”
“I got a puncture on the previous stage so not good, but it’s okay. I had nothing to lose, I wanted to try [taking one spare]. It was a slow puncture and I don’t know where I got it.”
“So far it’s good, we did a very good first stage this morning. This one was a little bit… it was not that good but it was not a disaster. I am happy to be here and I try to keep going.”
“I was a little bit too much out on the last left corner but the rest was a nice stage.”
"I think my car is very good, with this tyre it’s a little bit better compared to yesterday and for the moment all okay. This week I am super-calm.”
“So far okay, it’s just that the road is getting more and more dirty and you don’t know where. In the position we are I need to try to find a good balance and that’s what we did here so happy with the run through.”
“It felt like a pretty okay push to be honest but probably a bit scrappy at the end there and I lost my line a bit in the very slippy parts at the end but okay.”
“It was a good stage actually, in the slippy it was a bit tricky but normally it was a good run.”
“It was a bit tricky to be honest. In the beginning I felt I didn’t get the tyre working so well so it was quite tricky in the beginning and then the last part is really slippy. Let’s see if the Tarmac is cleaning a bit, I don’t know it’s quite dusty.”
“I don’t know what’s going on but it’s more difficult than yesterday. Hard to say, we didn’t change so much, I don’t know.”
“I don’t know, just going through, I guess. A small mistake was done in the service and we had to fix it because the car was not drivable otherwise. Unfortunately we also came a little bit late, getting stuck a little bit behind Esapekka on the road section. He didn’t see us, he was warming his tyres. Anyway we are quite far and 10 seconds doesn’t change much.”
“Nice stage, some high-speed sections and a good grip. For sure we can enjoy this stage but Tarmac stages are still a bit nasty and slippery, nice but let’s see, the next two stages are more tricky I guess.”
“I don’t know, maybe I overheat the rear tyre and on the last split [on SS9] I felt like I had a puncture so I drop off a lot of time. In this one my beginning of the stage was not so good, it was quite aggressive, not the perfect run.”
SS9
Accident
Accident
Puncture
“I think it’s not bad, I tried to push. In some parts I am quite cautious I think but if I am fast it’s the most important.”
“It felt quite okay, quite a big difference to yesterday with the car. For sure we can improve a bit. Strange it’s quite a big difference.”
“Just a little bit too careful really on the gravel cuts. Some places good but others not so.”
“Very dirty, very dirty but I like that stage, it’s an incredible stage with a hug rhythm, very fast, difficult to see the corners but it was much more dirty than we expected. We had a couple of nice slides in there but everything under control.”
Stopped
“It felt quite poor in terms of grip so I couldn’t push.”
“It’s a bit dirty in places for sure like we expected but anyway we are not fighting for much. We had an issue in the car so we had to fix it [on the road section].”
“Some sections are quite okay but when it starts in the forest there is a lot of dirt coming from the inside. It’s not so wet but stones which are dry are washing out everywhere so not so easy.”
"It was quite okay. Let's see how it was compared to the others, but the conditions on the stage are quite good."
“No mistake I just had a puncture. No puncture around the car? So something is broken behind the car, I don’t know.”
SS8
"Quite steady. There was a dampness and I was a bit careful. I am feeling quite okay but I cannot say exactly what I want to change [on the car] to make it easier. It's not bad as we are talking about tenths of seconds all the time."
"I thought it would be more wet or something but it wasn't bad to be honest. Tomorrow is going to be another challenging day."
"I was on hard tyres on the front and the car was very tricky to drive. I think we lost the hybrid and we have a delaminated rear-left tyre or something like that."
"It was a bit better at the end of the day and I am really happy that we had a bit more fun in the car this afternoon. Hopefully we can finish in first place at the end - that would be a great achievement for the team and for us. We have done a decent job, but it hasn't been easy at all."
"Let's see what the others are doing behind. Now that the car and the set-up is like it should be it's quite a lot easier to enjoy the driving and be on the pace. Hopefully everything works out the same tomorrow."
"The tricky part was the start. To start like this is always a bit challenging but we were able to bring it more together in the second half of the day."
"It wasn't the strongest start to the day but after that we kept building and building and it's been okay. It's not an easy rally and there's a long way to go. It's going to be an interesting fight."
"On three tyres, it was not so great. I had a puncture."
SS7
"I have no more tyres, so I had to manage with it. It was a bit like dancing sometimes - not easy."
"I can't claim that I'm being cautious. I'm just trying to drive to the notes and everything else and it's all working pretty okay. Fine for now."
"It's fine. It was a nice stage. We are getting there step by step."
"It's a nice stage. Honestly, I didn't like the first two stages, but this one is faster and nicer. I'm enjoying here."
"You always need to believe, but the reality is still far. We have to push and see how far we can go. It's about trying to find where you can push or not."
"We need to try to stay close to Evans. The decision on the last one was very stupid, but anyway, we try to improve."
"Now it's the first time in this rally when I can enjoy the driving in the car."
"It felt like the first real nice stage of the day and I had full confidence in the car."
SS6
Accident
Spin
"Looked like rain might be coming on SS6 so we had a wet/dry cross tyres - but it didn't rain enough and was not the best choice."
Accident
“I expected more wet but the rain didn’t come. Anyway, on the last stage we lost time so we had nothing to do and that’s why we decided to do it like this. It was a mistake.”
"It was not working unfortunately. It wasn't the choice to do but if there is something try you try it."
“I am sure we had the best choice. Thierry had the same as me. Well not the best choice but better than wets. When you see Loubet is putting wet tyres, Tänak is putting wet tyres, Katsuta is putting wet tyres and we are just waiting, we don’t do anything. You feel a bit stupid but you believe what the team said and it was the right call.”
Spin
"I am sure we had the best tyre choice. Well, not the best choice, but better than the wet tyres. We believed in what our team said and it was the right call."
“I guess maybe it’s drying out a bit but the mud is then doing more damage than what it’s drying. It’s hard to judge against the others.”
"All good, not too bad."
"It was pretty okay. The last section was tricky. When the road and cuts are wet, the mud is coming on the road."
"We didn't know what the stage would be like, so we had to guess a bit. I guess Séb was on three softs and one hard which would have been the best choice for this one, but we did the best we could with what we had."
"It was definitely a bit more tricky at the end, but so far so good with the tyres. I have mixed tyres, soft and hard."
SS5
Puncture
Accident
Accident
"Definitely better. Step by step!"
"It was all pretty okay. Obviously very dirty but that's to be expected."
"It's a bit easier but we spun in a very narrow section and lost a bit of time. We got some rain but it didn't affect us so much."
"It's okay, but tricky."
"It was nice, now the gravel crew marks made sense."
Spin
"Definitely better than the morning."
"I felt a bit better in the car but we have two softs on the rear and the car was moving quite a lot."
"The biggest question is more how the weather is going to develop this afternoon."
SS4
"It was a really nice stage. I'm feeling quite good. I know I can be faster in some places, but I can be happy with how the day has gone so far."
Puncture
"That was a light to medium push. I like this stage, actually I like all of them."
"Conditions are tricky so we tried to do some good runs, but with the cuts and all of these things it's difficult to have a lot of commitment."
"Still not easy but the next loop is going to be even more difficult and tricky."
"When you are discovering the stages for the first time it's difficult to match the other guys."
"It's getting dirtier with every car now. In places the car feels quite good but in others I am struggling a bit with the rear."
"I was able to make it a bit better for this one, but we are happy to go to service now!"
"I am just struggling with the grip of the car too much at the moment. We need to find something at the service."
"We are trying different set-ups all the time but I just don't get the right thing."
"We went a little wide into some branches and that's probably the damage you can see."
SS3
"Of course, a little bit less cutting so it makes it more easy for us to guess what's going to happen. The first two were horrible with a lot of mud coming from the inside. This one was okay but the Tarmac is still quite slippery."
"We had only one gear on the previous stage. The gearbox was missing a bolt but we managed to repair it in the road section."
"The speed isn't so good - the car doesn't feel great on the full dry, I was hoping for more dirt and mess on the road as we have a good setup for those conditions."
"Sometimes you have grip and sometimes you don't. I don't want to do a mistake."
"The last two stages have been a bit better. The first one was really horrible - and it will be horrible again on the second pass."
"We had it just near the end there, so I don't think it cost us too much.
Slow puncture
"That stage is very smooth, so for sure it's easier."
"I am struggling with the car in the cuts and I think that's where I'm losing most of the time."
"I could go so much faster but the car just doesn't let me."
SS2
Lost wheel
"Still not got the best feeling this morning, but no big issues."
Mechanical
Mechanical
"Tricky. The conditions weren't so easy so we tried to do an okay run."
"It was a bit better than the first one, yeah. But still I need to build up the confidence a bit on the dirt. It's challenging - maybe I should find a new word for that because I guess everyone is saying the same!"
"The new section, some cuts are a bit nasty with some rocks inside."
Changed a puncture
"Really difficult. The grip is really hard to trust. There are so many of these loose chippings on the stage."
"It's always too slow to the wheel change, but hopefully we didn't lose too much."
"We are not doing any better than Ogier and Rovanperä, unfortunately! We will work our way back to service and hopefully we can get a better rhythm."
"I avoided the cuts as much as I could but it was just the compression that made the puncture."
"In a chicane I hit the bale and I immediately slowed down. Many, many surprises. We will keep going but if it's going to be tricky."
Hit a bale in a chicane
Changed a puncture
Changed a puncture
SS1
Puncture
Stalled
Accident
Off road due broken inner tie rod
Lost wheel
Off road
"I struggled a bit and it was more dirty than expected."
"It's going to be tough today but we need to survive."
"Too much dirty for me so I am not confident."
"The road is getting very dirty behind and there's only so much you can do."
"I stalled in a hairpin. We had steering issue on a road section."
"Nothing special happened but it was surprisingly dirty and slippery. I was pushing quite well with no mistakes but it was not so fast."
"I was fighting the car through the whole stage."
Stalled in hairpin
"Generally grip is very low."