Timur Timerzyanov arrived at the 2018 World RX of Great Britain knowing that both he and the team were on the back foot as they had not been able to attend the pre-season test at Silverstone in March.
Regardless of this concern, the former FIA Double European Rallycross Champion has been enjoying an improved season so far, driving the GRX Taneco Hyundai i20 Supercar that began life as an ex-WRC car.
Timerzyanov battled hard during Qualifying for the 2018 World RX of Great Britain. Credit: Set Promotion
“The British round has always been a tough one for me, but this is a brand new track,” explained Timerzyanov
“It’s been a chance for a fresh start, even though we’re at a slight disadvantage, not having been able to take part in the pre-season test sessions.”
Despite this setback, the Hyundai driver pushed hard on Saturday during Qualifying sessions one and two as he learned the track for the first time and tried to find out where he could make up time.
The GRX Taneco driver pushed hard despite no previous track time at Silverstone. Credit: Set Promotion
Come the end of the first days action, Timerzyanov was in eleventh place overall and looking to make up for lost ground in what were hard fought races. The Russian driver knew of the challenges ahead for Sunday.
“We started well in the first qualifying race, but the error in the last turn held me back. I’m not happy with my result and the second race, because our goal is to get better each time. We still have a lot of work ahead of us,” explained the Hyundai driver.
“We qualified in the semi-finals in twelfth place. I can’t say that the result is good for us, since we are losing a lot of speed to other faster rivals on track.”
The Hyundai’s have proven to be the best privateer effort behind the big three works teams so far. Credit: IMG / FIA World RX
Using his circuit knowledge to good effect and using an aggressive Joker strategy in both Q3 and Q4, Timerzyanov stayed inside the top twelve positions and made it to the Semi-Finals.
However after racing hard with the other drivers on track, the Russian driver lost out in a place in the Supercar Final. He would finish in fifth place, eight tenths of a second behind Jerome Grosset-Janin in the GC Kompetition Prodrive built Renault Megane.
“I’m not pleased with this weekend’s results. I should be able to make better times, I should be faster. I don’t know what happened. I feel like I gave it my all but my peak speed isn’t what it should be. But I won’t give up! I know I can do better than that.”
