Whatshot
Hyundai Motorsport down on pace in Rally Estonia
Hyundai Motorsport down on pace in Rally Estonia
Home heroes Ott Tiinak and Martin Jarveoja secured their third podium finish of the season in front of their supportive fans with a consistent performance in Rally Estonia.
The crew, who claimed a joint fastest time on the final morning, were routinely inside the top-three throughout the 24-stage event. Despite lacking the pace in their i20 N Rally 1 to fight for the victory, a disappointed Ott found some positives:
"The real positive is the number of kilometres we have been able to complete across all three cars," he said. "The Estonian fans have shown that they are passionate and full of support, so I am thankful to them for that; it's just a shame we weren't competitive."
Extracting the most in Estonia: Thierry and Martijn adopted a measured approach to this event, knowing that it wouldn't be one of their favoured rallies. Our Belgian pair had to be satisfied with fourth place overall.
"It has been a tough and challenging weekend for us," said Thierry. "Somehow, we were able to come away with fourth position, which is really the best we could have expected in this event. We stay positive, continue fighting and there's always hope for improvements."
"The weekend saw a mix of weather conditions with intermittent rain adding to the spectacle and challenge. None of our crews felt comfortable enough to push for Power Stage points due to the demanding road conditions, but all three of our cars made it to the finish."
The 2022 WRC season moves onto the fast and furious roads of Rally Finland, which takes place from August 4-7.