Evans ready to relish asphalt return

Next week’s Croatia Rally (18 - 21 April) has offered Toyota Gazoo Racing star Evans plenty of points in recent years – he arrives back in Zagreb on the back of a victory last season.

“Those first three events are quite specific,” said the Welshman, “they all have been that way. Now we go to some more, let’s say, normal rallies. For the first three, you have a different set-up, there’s a bit more compromise. Okay, the weather for Croatia can be interesting, but it’s not quite the same as the [potential for] snow and ice in Monte.”

Evans arrives at the season’s first pure asphalt round second in the championship, six points down on Hyundai Motorsport rival Thierry Neuville.

“It’s good to get some points down at the start of the season,” said Evans, “but I can’t say I’m happy with the way the start to the year has gone for us. The last rally in Kenya was tough, it wasn’t an easy weekend – the positive was getting the finish. We move on to the next one.”