The Concepción-based event was back
on the schedule for the first time since 2019 and delivered spellbinding and
enormously challenging competition for the world’s fastest drivers last week.
Rally winner Ott Tänak certainly
enjoyed his second consecutive win on the Pacific side of the Andes.
“It’s a really nice rally,” said the
Ford Puma Rally Hybrid driver. “The roads are a big challenge, it’s not so much
about the performance – you have to think more because of the surface. But the
stages themselves are a lot of fun.”
M-Sport Ford team principal Richard
Millener agreed with his driver, adding: “It takes a long time to get to Chile,
but it has certainly been worth it! Memories were made here this weekend none
of us will forget in a hurry.”
The top two in WRC2 were big fans of
Chile too. Category winner Oliver Solberg said: “From the start, from Thursday
night in Los Ángeles, with all of those fans, this has been a fantastic event.
It’s a proper, proper challenge.”
Four years ago, Gus Greensmith wasn’t
sure about Chile. Now he can’t wait to be back.
Solberg’s fellow Toksport Škoda driver
said: “To be brutally honest, when I left here in 2019, I really didn’t think
much of Rally Chile.
“This year for sure, I completely
changed my mind on that idea. For me, it’s been the most challenging rally of
the year [with] the tyre management, the fact some stages we had no tyre wear,
some stages we had more tyre wear than anywhere else in the championship.
“The stages were incredibly beautiful,
incredible deceptive corners, it’s a huge, huge challenge.”
The organisers of the South American
event have promised the 2024 return will provide an even bigger challenge.
Finland
Italy
Hungary