Ahead of the final day, the talented German rally driver and his co-driver Frank Christian are in a strong second place in the WRC 2 category. With the asphalt stages now behind them, most of the proceedings on Sunday in the penultimate rally of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) will take place on Wiegand’s preferred track surface, gravel.
“It’s been a good day, although it was tough too. We’re currently ranked second in the WRC 2 category, so the extra asphalt training with WTCC driver Pepe Oriola has really paid off. And with all the twists and turns in the course today, we saw just how important it was to have very precise pace notes,” said Wiegand, commenting on his performance so far in his sixth WRC rally this year. For Wiegand the highlight of the day’s driving on a course that was lined by thousands of fans was achieving the fastest time in the last special stage in Salou.
The 22-year old also benefited from the Brit Elfyn Evans having to pull out – a fact that actually pushed Wiegand up to second place overall in the WRC 2 category, behind the former Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica of Poland. “I’m really looking forward to my favourite track surface – I really like gravel. That said, there are also a lot of rocks along the side of the track, so there is always the risk that the car might get damaged. But I’ll try to play it safe and still secure a spot on the podium,” said Wiegand.
After a category win in Monte Carlo and two third places in Sweden and Portugal, the primary aim is now to get Wiegand and Christian onto the winners’ rostrum once again. If they score a top result, the ŠKODA team will still be in with a chance of taking third place overall in the WRC 2 category at the WRC final in Wales. “We absolutely want to earn ourselves that opportunity on Sunday,” said a fired-up Sepp Wiegand.
www.twitter.com/motorsportskoda
www.facebook.com/motorsportskoda
www.youtube.com/motorsportskoda