Sébastien Ogier heads in to the final day of Rally Argentina looking to consolidate his second place by not taking too many risks.
Ogier unexpectedly found himself in second place when team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala crashed out of the lead, promoting Hyundai Motosport driver Hayden Paddon to the lead and the Frenchman in to second.
“Tomorrow’s ‘Mina Clavero’ stage is definitely the hardest stage of the Rally Argentina, if not the entire world championship.” admitted Ogier.
“The conditions are extremely tough for the car and the tyres. That is not the moment to risk everything. Especially as Hayden Paddon has done a good job so far, and it would not usually be possible to make up 30 seconds.
“My priority is to secure second place, then I can look forward to getting home soon. Jari-Matti’s retirement is obviously a great shame for our entire team, as we really wanted to win here.”
Volkwagen Motorsport team principal Jost Capito is quietly confident that the reigning World Champion can still pull something out of the bag for his first Rally Argentina victory.
“Sébastien Ogier made the most of the day, and could still challenge for the win if he produces an outstanding performance tomorrow.” said Capito.
Team-mate Andreas Mikkelsen starts the final day in third place after a steady drive throughout the weekend. “My co-driver Anders and I have come up with a strategy here, which we have stuck to consistently.” said Mikkelsen.
“We have set a high, but safe pace. Our priority is to score points towards the championship. Third place stands us in good stead for tomorrow’s finale, which we are very much looking forward to. We have never made it onto the podium here before. That is something we are obviously determined to change now.” he added.
Capito added, “The fans can look forward to an exciting finale on Sunday – the ‘El Condor’ and ‘Mina Clavero’ stages are far from a stroll in the park. This rally is not over yet. We will push hard tomorrow.”
