Citroën must reassure itself in Mexico

After the first two events of the 2017 season, Citroën Racing is at the bottom of the Manufacturers' Championship, already 47 points behind M-Sport World Rally Team. The Chevron manufacturer hopes to recover at Rally of Mexico contested this week taking advantage of a dirt surface on which the development of the C3 WRC concentrated and enjoying good positions on the road.

The Reds' main weak point on this trip seems to lie in the lack of experience of their crews. Kris Meeke has only competed in the event twice while Stéphane Lefebvre has only ridden once in Mexico.

“Mexico is one of the rallies I know the least about, but it’s a route that I enjoy, confided Kris Meele. I think we're heading in a good direction in our testing and I'm looking forward to testing that in the race. Despite the loss of power, driving the cars should remain pleasant since we will be roughly at the level of last year's WRC. You must still avoid being too aggressive while driving so as not to waste time. »

His French teammate will have to regain his bearings on the dirt surface and secure the points in the Manufacturers' Championship in order to make the difference against Craig Breen who will be competing in a 3rd C3 WRC for the rest of the season.

“Except for the mud in Wales, I haven't competed in a gravel rally since Poland last July! recalled Stéphane Lefebvre. The tests allowed me to gradually get back into the swing of things. By switching from one base to the other, I was able to set settings that gave me confidence in the car. This is the most important thing for learning and progressing peacefully. I am happy to return to Mexico, I really appreciated this country during my only visit in 2015.”

Kris Meeke and Stéphane Lefebvre prepared for Rally Mexico by taking part in a test session in Spain where they focused on suspension and active differential settings.

“For this first rally on gravel, we think and we hope to be more efficient, underlined Laurent Fregosi, the technical director of Citroën Racing. Our results at the start of the season can be explained firstly by our lack of preparation for the conditions actually encountered in the race. The situation will be different in Mexico, because it is on gravel that we did the most driving with the C3 WRC. At the same time, we have learned from Sweden by correcting a number of flaws. At the end of the test session, our drivers were satisfied with the car. This will have to be confirmed during the race. »