Topi Heikkinen will be in the hunt for a win this weekend as the FIA World Rallycross Championship heads to Lydden Hill for the second round.
Despite having only raced on the Kent circuit once before Heikkinen is confident of a repeat of from that saw him finish fourth in the opening round and take third in the championship standings.
“Before the start of Portugal, nobody really knew where everyone else was at, but now I think there is more of an idea of what to expect,” said Heikkinen.
“We know we have a competitive car but also we know that there are other areas where we can still improve. I think Lydden should really suit our car, perhaps even more than Portugal, because it’s a really fast and flowing track.
“You need a good engine, which we’ve got. Most of all I’m really looking forward to being in Britain because people are so passionate about the sport.
“Britain is really the home of rallycross: the first round of rallycross that ever took place was in Britain. So I love that whole history side to it too.”
Hekkinen will line up alongside team-mate Anton Marklund in the VW Polo RX Supercar but will also be joined by American Rallycross star Tanner Foust who will be looking to make up for a disappointing opening weekend in the Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship.
“It’s nice to have Tanner to race beside me and Anton,” said Heikkinen. “We raced as team-mates at Ford for two years in GRC. He is a really nice guy and an excellent racer.”
Foust will be well placed for a good run this weekend, having taken wins the last two times he has raced at Lydden Hill.
Since the opening round, the Marklund Motorsport team have been busy tweaking the Polo in preparation for the weekend ahead, Heikkinen admits that he his hoping to get a little track time in before the weekend to gain further understanding of the 2014 challenger.
“Hopefully I can drive a bit before we get to Lydden,” said Heikkinen. “We have some ideas about the general direction we can go in with development, but really as much time as we can get in the car is good. After the first time in competition, we have a really good focus on what we are doing.”
Since Portugal, Topi has enjoyed some free time and concentrated on preparing himself for Lydden. “A bit of fitness work, a bit of relaxation, and some time seeing friends,” is how he puts it.
