Skoda: The duel between Kopecky and Hänninen

Skoda does not want to let Peugeot win in the Czech Republic and count on the performances of Jan Kopecky and Juho Hänninen to achieve another victory at the Barum Rally Zlin. Jan Kopecky has already won the 2009 edition while Juho Hänninen, reigning champion of the discipline, still leads the IRC Championship despite his parallel program in S-WRC.

Jan Kopecky does not seem to doubt his abilities on his rally national where he appears as the favorite contender. “It’s our national rally and we have a lot of expectations for this event”, admits the Fabia S2000 driver. “We have been the fastest crew in the last two editions but we unfortunately went off the track last year. We expect great support from the spectators but we will be under pressure because they hope to see us win here. »

Juho Hänninen is keen to increase his lead in the Championship to prove to the rallying world that he has his place in the WRC. But the Finn knows that this event has many pitfalls. “We have performed well in the last editions of the Barum Rally and we want to continue this trend. It is a difficult rally, which includes very complicated sectors, one of the major events of the season. »