Poland countdown: fighting talk
We’ve already heard from some of the leading drivers on WRC.com about their Lotos 71st Rally Poland prospects. Here’s a selection of sound bites from some of the other contenders ahead of tomorrow’s first stage.
Mikko Hirvonen (Ford Fiesta RS)
“This is an event that I really enjoy and we won in 2009 so I’m looking forward to returning to Poland. We have a good idea of what to expect in terms of the conditions, but the stages themselves will be almost completely new. Jarmo and I will be making new notes for most of the stages, but that doesn’t really faze me as I’ve always been confident in our ability to do that.”
Andreas Mikkelsen (VW Polo R)
“After doing well with Ola (Floene, his co-driver) in Rally Italy, I’m now looking forward to Rally Poland. I picked up some experience there in the Skoda Fabia WRC in 2009 and I really enjoyed that. The route is pretty fast with stretches of uninterrupted driving, which should suit my driving style nicely.”
Mads Ostberg (Citroen DS3)
“I feel full of confidence. We’re on a positive trend. I have some very good memories of the rally from 2009. I really like fast rallies. That seems to be the main feature of this race – I think the average speeds will be even higher than in Finland. The gaps will undoubtedly be very narrow and there’ll be plenty of contenders. We’ll have to push from the word go on the first stage.”
Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20)
“Although Sardinia didn’t go to plan, we were still able to make some good discoveries for the future and we will use that experience in Poland. We tested in Poland after Argentina and the gravel roads are sandy and soft, so it’s a new type of road surface for me. I expect it could be quite tough on the car but it will be nice and fast to drive on.”
