Yoann Bonato in ERC: “We want to do well in the Canaries”  

 For your 4^e participation in this event, are you starting to have a good experience?

I don't really know how many times we fought this rally, but it is certain that we have knowledge there which is now interesting.

In the 190,06 timed kilometers, is there much new for you?

I would say that I will have to discover 3 stages including an inverted one. I have the impression that we are going to do things in the race that we have done in liaison. In any case, it's a round that I like. The roads are beautiful, it's circuit type with trajectories, smooth tarmac and constant grip. There must be 3 ropes over the entire rally so the question of punctures does not arise. If you have one, you went looking for it.

You have just won the Lyon-Charbonnière and Yohan Rossel won in Croatia. The developments made to the Citroën C3 seem to make it very efficient?

This is indeed good news. This confirms that what was carried out in testing also works in racing. There is always doubt and it's really great to validate all that in competition. The car responds well in terms of chassis and performance. Looking at the dash cams from previous years, I said to myself: “ there we will be better, there it will go faster… " It's encouraging. I know that we will also be able to count on the Michelin tires with which we already won in Catalonia last year.

Does the fact of not competing in the championship allow you to approach this meeting without the pressure of the result?

It is indeed a pleasant setting, although we must recognize that we cannot do anything either. The races come one after the other and you must not do anything stupid, because the Antibes rally is coming up quickly. We should not mortgage the future. Not aiming for a title allows you to better manage the end of the weekend. This is still something on which I still have progress to make. At Charbo, I could have been satisfied with the points of a 2^e or 3^e rank, but I took risks to seek victory…

Considering all these elements, should you be placed among the favorites at the start of this rally where you already have two podiums? Is it flattering, unjustified, logical?

I never feel like I'm the favorite. I never know where to stand, even if at the moment you say to yourself “ we had to count on us ". It's more flattering than anything else, because we don't do a lot ofERC, but it is a round on asphalt that we are starting to know well. Boys like Hayden Paddon or Mads Ostberg will also ride fast and I always find it difficult to compare myself with drivers like that. I always feel like I'm not on the same level as the guys you watch on television, whereas I see myself... in the mirror! On the other hand, I know that we want to do well.