After a couple of tarmac sealed surface rounds following the Safari Rally, the teams and crews head to the gravel stages of Portugal. As championship leaders Elfyn and Scott will open the road throughout Friday’s stages with former championship leaders Takamoto and Aaron second on the road.

 

Once again we’ll see five Toyota’s out there with Seb and Vincent joining the usual crews from the Finnish based team. At Hyundai they’ll have Dani and Carrera competing at the second rally in a row. They’ll have a good road position and perhaps will be able to battle for victory. For M-Sport they will look to Josh and Eoin to lead the team as Josh and Shane make their first start in the top class in Portugal. Also competing for Malcolm’s team is Martins and Renars. The Latvian crew has shown pace on gravel in past events. What could they do this weekend?

 

Let’s take a look at the stages and hear from the drivers.

 

Twenty-three stages over almost 345 kilometres lie ahead for them all with the first action on Thursday evening with three stages and 37 kilometres, then Friday has eight stages over 96 kilometres and includes one stage only run once as part of the afternoon loop. Saturday is the longest day with nine stages over almost 146 kilometres and the last day has four stages over just under 66 kilometres.

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Elfyn Evans

“We took a good haul of points away from the end of Rally Islas Canarias which was positive for the championship, even if it does mean we need to open the road again in Portugal this year. Usually, it’s an event where the road position is a factor, but we’ve run first there a few times now over recent years, so it’s nothing we’re not used to or prepared for. We also know that the weather in Portugal can be changeable, as it was for our pre-event test this week. Regardless of the conditions, we will just focus on trying to do the best job we can and keep trying to score good points.”

Takamoto Katsuta

“Portugal is a rally I really like: the atmosphere is always amazing; the stages suit me quite well and we’ve had some good results there in the past. This year, I think it’s going to be a very tough event as well. Even though I will not be running first on the road this time, to be second can still be quite tricky, and this year’s route could be quite demanding in this respect, with proper gravel stages already on Thursday as well as Friday. Depending on the weather, it may not be an easy rally, but I will try my best like always to get a good result.”

Sami Pajari

“I’m looking forward to being back on gravel in Portugal: it feels a long time since we had a traditional gravel rally like this – not considering Kenya or Saudi Arabia which were more extreme and specialised. For the first time, we will be running near the front of the road on gravel, but I can’t complain too much, because I’m happy to be in the fight and I’m not the only one who may suffer. There will be some strong drivers starting behind us – like Seb for example – who could be tough to beat, but I’m hoping we can continue the strong run we’re on.”

Oliver Solberg

“The last rally didn’t end the way that we wanted it to, but we just need to try to take the positives forward on to Portugal. It’s a great event with a really cool atmosphere and so many passionate fans, so it’s one I always look forward to competing on. We had a great run last year with the Rally2 car, but this will be the first time I’ve done this kind of rough European gravel rally with this Rally1 car. There will be some more learning to do, but hopefully we can continue the great feeling and great speed we’ve had so far this season and finish with a good solid result.”

Sébastien Ogier

“It was a great feeling to win in the Canaries and a result like that is always bringing a bit of extra confidence for the next rally. Portugal has been a special place in my career and it’s always a rally that I enjoy. The fans create a really nice atmosphere, and it will be a pleasure to go back there once again. We have enjoyed a great record on this event and the target will of course be to try to carry on the winning run we have there. Our road position could be beneficial, but this is a rally where you can never be certain about the conditions, and we have also faced heavy rain there before.”

Yuki Yamamoto (Driver WRC Challenge Program GEN2)

“Portugal will be the first gravel rally for me this year so I’m really looking forward to it. For me, it’s quite a challenging rally; a bit different from the other rough gravel events as the surface is quite slippery and there’s a narrow line that you need to follow. It’s going to be a challenge, but one I’m happy to take on. I’m hoping to have a good pre-event test and good feeling in the rally so that we can be in the fight. Even if we’re not scoring WRC2 points this time, I’m sure we can do well.”

 

Hyundai Motorsport

Adrien Fourmaux

“The season really starts now in Portugal, because it’s a different surface to everything that has come before. Testing has been good, and we are much more comfortable and confident with the pace on gravel. I like Rally de Portugal, and I’ve always been competitive here. I’ve been unlucky with some punctures or technical issues in the past, but we go to Portugal with the motivation to push and get the best result possible. The fans are some of the best in the world at Rally de Portugal, I’m looking forward to seeing them.”

Thierry Neuville

“I have lots of great memories of Rally de Portugal – including it being one of my first events in Junior WRC in 2010 – and a couple of podiums and a win too. It’s a tough event; the most difficult thing is managing the differences in stage profiles across the three or four days. You have the more abrasive and rough stages, but also the smooth and sandy ones. This year, there will be a complete mix of both on every single day, which is something new to the itinerary. We’ve set our targets high, our car should also be more competitive on gravel, so we’re looking forward to it.”

Dani Sordo

“My goal is clear:  to bring home a good result to the team and fight for the podium at a minimum. It’s difficult to switch from tarmac to gravel, especially because my recent rallies in the Portuguese Championship, plus Canarias and La Llana, were all on tarmac. We did one day of gravel testing before Rally de Portugal and the feeling is completely different. It was hard at the beginning, but it’s getting easier. We’re confident we have a good car for gravel, and we’ll be much more competitive than we were in Canarias. I want to do well in front of the Portuguese fans.”

 

M-Sport Ford WRT

Josh McErlean

“I’m excited to be back on gravel in Portugal – it’s an event I’ve always enjoyed and have good memories from. The stages are tough and can get very rough, so it’s about being smart, getting comfortable quickly and showing speed through the weekend. I can’t wait to get going!”

Jon Armstrong

“Looking forward to the first proper gravel rally of the year. I’ve done the rally a couple of times in the past and it’s always a big challenge; some rough action, some very soft sand, and I’m sure after our preparation that it’ll be really fun with the Puma. Hopefully we can make use of a good start position to try and have a solid run.”

Mārtiņš Sesks

“Last year’s Portugal was quite a tough exam as it was a long and tricky rally. There were a lot of things we didn’t get right, and I think it will be interesting to see how we will do this year. Because this is one of the rallies I like quite a lot, it is very important to get things right. So yes, I guess it will be quite a long week again, one of the longest weeks of the season for me. This will be an interesting experience.”

Romet Jürgenson (WRC2)

“It’ll be nice to be back on gravel in Portugal, which is a more natural surface for me. Even though in Portugal we don’t have a huge amount of experience, obviously we did it last year so that at least gives us some patch notes to work on and use this year as well. We definitely want to do a step up in terms of performance compared to last year. We weren’t really showing good pace there last year, so that’s the aim; to step the game up and show some speed whenever possible.”

Mille Johansson (WRC2)

”Portugal is going to be a big challenge with a lot of stages and changing grip levels, but I’m really looking forward to it. Feels good to finally be back on gravel again since Finland last year. The goal is to keep learning, stay consistent and build confidence from the start. We’ve had good preparation with the team, so now I just want to get out there and enjoy the rally.”

 

Summary

Last year Seb took victory from Ott and Kalle and it’s very likely that he could win again this year given his road position throughout Friday. However, the question is could Thierry who will start in seventh just one position behind the Frenchman in the start list.

What kind of result could Elfyn and Scott take? Well, after opening the road on Friday last year they would take a sixth-place finish, and this will make this a tricky rally for them. Their only hope is that it rains on the first full day of action, particularly given the single run stage on Friday.

Oliver and Elliott will want to get to the finish this time and perhaps they could take a podium finish this weekend and improve their position in the championship standings.