Blithely taking advantage of the new points system and the “Super Sundays”, our compatriot enters the fourth round of the WRC with a lead of six units over the only Toyota driver in the running for the title this season, Elfyn Evans. A slim advantage that the Hyundai driver hopes to consolidate this weekend in Croatia where he has already scored two podiums in the past.
”After two atypical games, one on snow, the other on very brittle ground where you can never give 100%, I am happy to find asphalt again, a surface on which we have already was able to show the competitiveness of our i20N WRC1 in Monacorejoices the Saint-Vithois of Monaco. I like this rally, one of the most complicated on tarmac with a lot of changes in grip, blind turns, jumps, very narrow portions and other very wide ones. Showers are common in the region and when it rains it looks like the Belgian stages with mud brought in from the cut ropes.”
Snow in recovery
In any case, his first position on the road this Friday morning will therefore constitute an advantage. “Yes, unless we encounter a thin layer of snow like during reconnaissanceexclaims Thierry. It is true that the trajectory becomes polluted quite quickly here.”
We miss Craig and are remembered here more than ever.
The objective of the weekend is very clear for the spearhead of the Hyundai team. “Even though Ott is probably willing to take a little more risk than me given his delay in the championship, I want to get back on the podium. It is essential in the race for the title to score big points every time. The priority of course is to try to extend my lead over Elfyn Evans, winner in Zagreb last year. The best way to do this will undoubtedly be to win. Honestly, that’s clearly the goal.”
This would be the best way to pay tribute to Craig Breen, one year after the tragic disappearance, on April 13, 2023 in an accident during private testing in Croatia, of the charismatic Irishman whose Hyundais will once again display the national flag on their roofs and bumper. “We miss Craig and are remembered here more than ever,” confides our compatriot, always moved when he talks about his former teammate and friend who left much too soon.
