“To win in Portugal, several factors will have to come together, recalls Thierry. We will need consistency, good settings and total confidence in the car. The racing conditions but also the starting positions will make a big difference. If rain had been forecast, we would have been to our advantage. Unfortunately, this will not be the case a priori. Since it will be dry, we will have more difficulty because everyone knows the stages visited by heart. I was happy with the car during preliminary testing because we found a set-up that allows me to attack when the road gets slippery. I need a precise car to swallow all the sequences of turns here, but also traction like we found in Kenya”.
Optimize my performance on Friday and Saturday before attacking Sunday.
Thierry will notably have to deal with Elfyn Evans and Kalle Rovanpera, the two luxury jokers from Toyota who will be there to pick on him and who will benefit from a better starting position which is so precious in Portugal given that they do not do all the work. championship. A detail that has the gift of making TN groan.
“There are more and more drivers who do partial seasons, and who are better placed at the start. They will immediately take advantage of it, he comments. But I'm still hopeful of having a good rally. My objective is to optimize my performance on Friday and Saturday before attacking Sunday to score as many points as possible. “I would love to finish on the top step of the podium.”
Or score the most points in what Ogier calls “fan school”, which would be a good consolation prize for Thierry Neuville.
