Ott Tänak believes he was far from the expected level

When you win twice consecutively the Rally from Germany, or that we have regularly taken first places in Spain or Corsica, it is because we seem at ease on asphalt.

Yet the Croatia did not smile at Ott Tänak last weekend. 4th at the end of the first real test on this surface since August 2019, the Estonian is still looking for his first real reference on dry asphalt with the Hyundai i20 coupe WRC.

Author of a single scratch in SS5, and relegated more than a minute and 25″ overall, the 2019 world champion is looking for answers. “ This is not the level of performance expected or hoped for for this rally, admitted the ex-pilot Toyota.

I enjoy tarmac rallies but throughout the weekend I was far from my comfort zone. Nothing felt natural and we didn't have the performance we needed. Clearly there is work for me to do, but we can take some consolation from the work Thierry did this weekend. »

As Andrea Adamo, Team Principal of Hyundai Motorsport, admitted, the poor choice of tires made on Saturday morning undoubtedly weighed on the results of the three drivers of the Korean brand, but Tänak lacked pace in the face of what was possible. to propose Thierry Neuville, fighting to the end with Sébastien Ogier and Elfyn Evans.

Discover the full report and analysis of the Croatian Rally, produced by our special correspondent in Zagreb, in issue 2308 of AUTOhebdo, available this evening in digital version, and this Wednesday on newsstands.