Oliver/Aaron and Jari/Mikko suffered early retirements

Rally Estonia was cut short for our two WRC 2 crews as they were both forced to retire from the event on Friday morning’s loop.

Oliver/Aaron and Jari/Mikko showed early promise in their i20 R5 but were unable to get into a rhythm as trouble struck them in quick succession.

Heavy blow

For Oliver and his co-driver Aaron, a heavy landing during the Otepäa stage (SS3) resulted in damage to their radiator which, in turn, caused their engine to overheat. There was no other option but to retire, and no opportunity to re-join the event.

“It would have been nice to show the speed that we have with the i20 R5 this weekend,” said Oliver. “The team has been working really hard with a lot of development to get the car up to pace. That’s rallying; it’s tough at the moment but we will come back stronger.”

Speed shown with stage wins

Jari and Mikko were hoping to build momentum after their WRC 2 success in Sardinia and were immediately on the pace with two stage wins from the opening three tests. However, they were stopped in their tracks after a crash in SS4 Kanepi, which caused irreparable damage to their i20 R5.

“We were targeting so much more this weekend,” said Jari. “It is very annoying to be forced out of the rally, and especially due to your own mistake, but this can happen when pushing for victory in such an intense championship like WRC 2. I am disappointed for myself and for the team, but our ambition is clear, and our speed was shown with the two stage wins.”

Our Team Principal Andrea said: “A short rally with few positives. Jari showed his speed with two stage wins and we are fully aware of Oliver’s pace, but to have a double retirement with terminal car damage is not why we come rallying. These are important lessons to learn.”

The next round of the championship will be Ypres Rally Belgium from August 13-15.