Steve Arpin headed to Washington DC having so far enduring a tough season in Red Bull Global Rallycross. One podium so far in Daytona and a pair of top five finishes the return expected from a driver many expected to be a championship challenger this year.
It looked as if Red Bull GRC DC Presented by Volkswagen might be another tough event, with Arpin’s regular engine in France being repaired, the former NASCAR driver was left with a worn out unit to compete with at the RFK stadium.
A difficult first day at the capital city event followed, leaving Arpin to remark: “Yesterday I wasn’t sure if I even knew how to drive anymore. However, the Ganassi team worked through the night to ensure the driver of the #00 Eneos Ford Fiesta was fast on race day.”
“We sat down after the (first) day and really just dissected the car and what was happening,” said Arpin follwing the conclusion of the event. “(The team) completely started over, tore the entire thing apart, worked through the night last night and it was a remarkable difference. It was like black and white, the difference in that car today.”
Arpin eventually finished the event in fourth place, after battling Tanner Foust for the spot, but this year’s X Games silver medallist believed that he had the potential to go further had he got past the two-time champion earlier in the race.
“Instead of driving on the defence we were able to drive on the offence and really push,” he continued. “I think if I could have got by Tanner Foust better or sooner I think we would have had a shot at the top three, definitely could have got a third.”
Now with the performance seemingly unlocked from his Ganassi-run M-Sport Fiesta, Arpin is looking to turn around the low points from the first half of the season and end on a high.
“My goal for the rest of the season is to stop starting from behind. We qualify bad, we just get behind and come back out and overhaul everything,” he said. “We’re strong in the finals, we’re strong in the semi-finals so now we just need to figure out how to show up at the race track with the right piece and at the same time get me there too.”
Read Dominik Wilde’s full interview with Steve Arpin here.