Andy Scott looks set to make it through to a second successive semi-final after a strong performance on the opening day of the FIA World Rallycross Championship at Lydden Hill.
Scott knows the track well from his time in British Rallycross where he took the runner up spot in 2011. This time he is back in his Peugeot 208 and took the twelfth fastest time after two heats, which included a third place and a win.
“Overall I’m pretty happy considering where we’ve come from since the horrors of Portugal, where we now have a car that’s in good shape and is all about set up and maximising what we’ve got.” Said Scott.
“We lined up second on the grid for race two, which is an OK starting point here at Lydden Hill, and I made a good start, with a good set up and was able to take the lead into the first corner.”
The typical English weather saw a mixture of sunshine and torrential rain throughout the day which meant the gravel sections of the track took quite a battering.
“I was surprised how much the circuit had deteriorated since heat one though which caught me out a bit, and it was then just a steady race to bring the car home in one piece.”
“In the first heat we lost the lead on the joker, but we didn’t really have the pace to win, it was just damage limitation to be honest. So we made a few changes to the dampers in between the two races, had I known how drastically the track conditions had changed, I’d have made a few more.”
Davy Jeanney steps in for Jacques Villenueve this weekend as the Canadian heads back to the Indy 500, unfortunately for the 2013 European Rallycross Vice-Champion his day wouldn’t go to plan.
Following impressive practice pace it was looking good for the Frenchman as he took third in the opening race which would leave him fourteenth overall in the heat.
The second race would bring problems on the second lap as a water leak resulted in an instant retirement, dropping him down to twenty-sixth in the overnight standings.
“It’s great to be back in a rallycross car at Lydden Hill” said Jeanney, “We had a good start, with a strong pace in practice this morning and after the first heat I was 14th fastest, which was very good after only eight laps in the car.
“The Albatec Peugeot 208 Supercar is very new technology for me, a new engine, new system, new upshifts, and is a very good chassis but obviously with a lot of new things there is a lot of work as it’s more complicated.
“I had a small problem with the car in the second heat, so I stopped on lap two to protect the engine, but for tomorrow after we’ve checked it I’m sure it will be OK.”
