The British-based squad’s quartet was delighted with their running time aboard the Ford Puma Rally1 on roads close to where the Tartu-based encounter will run.
Like the rest of the WRC teams, M-Sport Ford’s last fortnight has been about switching gears from the rough roads of the previous round at Safari Rally Kenya to the Baltic country and its ultra-fast gravel.
Two-time Estonia podium finisher Craig Breen was particularly excited about this week’s seventh round of the FIA World Rally Championship season.
“Obviously really looking forward to Estonia, it’s a rally that has served us well in the past,” he said. “We’ve been on the podium a good couple of times – the last two years as part of the world championship. I can’t wait for it.
“We had a really good test last week, the car felt great and I was really comfortable from the beginning. The stages look great, obviously with high speeds, big jumps and big crests.”
For team-mate Gus Greensmith, last week was as good as anything this season.
“I probably haven’t been this comfortable in the car since Monaco (Rallye Monte-Carlo in January), so really looking forward to this one for sure,” he enthused. “Super-fast rallies mean very close times and putting everything together is a big job here, so we’ll do our best.”
The pair are joined in Pumas by French duo Adrien Fourmaux and Pierre-Louis Loubet.
“It will be my first time with a top category car on this event, but it’ll be my fourth participation in total, so I have a good knowledge of most of the stages,” said Fourmaux, who is looking to turn round his season after just one points-paying top 10 finish in the opening six rounds.
Team principal Richard Millener said Estonia would provide the opportunity to bounce back from a tough Kenya outing, when good pace was not rewarded by strong results.
“All the crews have had a very good test in the lead up to the event in order to get their heads back in gear for such high-speed stages. I’ve had a lot of positive feedback about the car from the test, so I am hopeful we will perform well over the weekend,” he added.
- Full coverage from Rally Estonia will be available on WRC+ All Live here, including every stage broadcast as it happens as well as key interviews, features and expert analysis from the service park
Finland
Italy
Hungary