Sesks: 'Better to face challenges now than in the future'

Driving M-Sport’s hybrid-less Ford Puma Rally1 for the second time – he used the car to finish fifth at ORLEN 80th Rally Poland earlier this season – Sesks was just getting into his South American stride when a double puncture after hitting a bank ruled him out on the second stage he tackled competitively.

Returning through the weekend, his hopes of battling for a podium in the way he had at home in Latvia with the Puma Rally1 Hybrid had gone.

Sesks said: “After we caught a double puncture on Friday it was just about keeping it safe and learning as much as we could.

“It was really challenging to be in Chile for the first time. Our first two Rally1 outings were quite smooth really from our side. But here we found many new challenges, and every day was different.”

That challenge did, however, bring more understanding of competition at rallying’s highest level for the 25-year-old Latvian.

He added: “Some new experience for us, especially with losing the aero on the final day. I think it’s better to have these challenges now, when we’re not really fighting for anything. It’s better to know how to cope with it now than in the future when there’s more at stake.”