Honda Red Bull OMSE driver Sebastian Eriksson feels the team have made a big step forward in the off-season with the Honda Civic.
Olsbergs went winless for the first time in their illustrious history last season, their first with the Japanese marque. Now Eriksson, a race winner with the team during their Ford days, feels the team are closer to the front than they ever have been with the Civic.
“We’ve come a long way!” Eriksson told the Red Bull Global Rallycross website. “We’ve done a lot of testing, the car is easier to drive, and we’ve improved in a lot of areas. I would say everything on the car is better than it was last year. Obviously, the other guys have done their work too, but I definitely feel like we’re closer than we’ve been. We were fighting for the victory until we had bad luck.”
Eriksson was classified seventh in the final in Memphis, the lowest of the three Hondas, after contact hampered his charge, but a change of mindset for the Swede meant he left the south still feeling positive.
“We felt really good coming into last year in the first test, but I learned that it’s not as easy as you think with a brand new car,” he admitted. “It takes a lot of work, and the tracks are all different—you have to change the setup for all of the tracks.”
“(This year), we did a lot of testing in the off-season and we feel much more prepared. Our team is young and hungry to win!”