Monte clash of the titans!
Legends meet on the season's opening round
Evans plans podium push
Elfyn Evans admits coming to terms with the relentless competition was one of the hardest challenges during his debut season in the FIA World Rally Championship’s top flight last year.
Evans netted half a dozen top six finishes during his maiden campaign in M-Sport’s Ford Fiesta RS WRC in what was designated a learning year for the 2012 WRC Academy champion.
But as the 26-year-old Welshman prepares for a second season with the British squad, he acknowledges consistent speed across every stage will be vital to his hopes of fighting for podium finishes.
“Nobody lets slip on any stage. When I have come up through the ranks, previously I could bang in a couple of good stage times and that was it, the job for the weekend was done,” he told wrc.com.
“But it never stops now. Every stage is as important as each other and that’s maybe the biggest lesson from last year. Being consistently at a good pace will be a big part of any success we want to have in 2015.”
While Evans accepts that increasing his experience will remain important, he wants to step up his pace.
“Last year was great to get experience but this year is about starting to turn that into results,” he said. “Obviously there are some difficult and specialised events which we have only tackled once so it will still be important to get experience, but we need to start building the speed as well.
“I don’t think I will be massively happy unless I am at least in a position to fight for podiums. There are some events which are just going to be difficult full stop, and it will be more about being smart than fast. Monte-Carlo is the prime example.
“But as the year goes on and everything settles down, especially when we introduce the new car, we want to be there or thereabouts. It could be my last chance if I don’t perform this year,” he said.
