“It’s great to be here to be honest. I had a great summer, but of course I’ve always been thinking about the year-end rally, and New Zealand in particular. Like I said, I only come here once, but I think when you ride here once, you’re Definitely want to come back. These are great ways to drive in WRC.”
He is now a Toyota driver, continues:
“For the past here, it’s still a good memory because I was fighting for victory, my first win at the time with Jari-Matti, with Seb Loeb and Peter Solberg. Luckily it happened soon after, but yes, I’m happy to be back and looking forward To ride this week.”
After a three-month hiatus since the Kenya Rally safari at the end of June, the Toyota driver knows he has to be on the fast track in the opening stages if he wants to claim a score.
“I have a chance this weekend, and I’m sure it won’t be easy. With three months without competition and in a fast rally where you need confidence, you really have to find that confidence fast because these guys are going to attack really hard. pMaybe the route site will help us a little. If it’s really dry, we’ll see.
During the poll at the start of the week, the eight-time world champion admitted that the event as a whole was much faster than he remembers.
“I felt like the Wanga Coast phase had changed a bit. This timer keeps the nice flowing profile, I mean it’s the same everywhere, but overall I think it’s a bit wider and faster compared to what it was 12 years ago. I think for me now it’s closer to Finnish profile, career like this or maybe even Estonia. The pitch is still beautiful so I think the decision to come here is clearly the right one and now I want to enjoy the weekend.”
Claude Julien
Photos: WRC – TEAM
