Ott Tänak: “My expectations are significantly higher than last year”

La première sortie de la saison de Hyundai du côté du Monte-Carlo n’a pas été facile. Nettement dominées par les Yaris de Toyota, les i20 sud-coréennes ont accusé le coup lors de la manche d’ouverture.

Ott Tänak he didn't even finish the Monte-Carlo, forced to abandon the penultimate day. A real blow for the Estonian whose expectations had been raised for his second season with the team. “ We still have a lot of work to do and my expectations are significantly higher than last year, he warns.

Last year, I wanted to give the team time to get used to my driving while progressing, but we are no longer in a learning year. If we want to keep up with Toyota, we'll really have to move forward now ».

A trigger that Ott Tänak hopes to see at the end of the month in Finland during the second event of the calendar. “ It will be difficult against the Toyotas (at the Arctic Rally). We are on their land in Finland and they perform extremely well both on snow and on fast roads. However, we have made a lot of progress with our car on fast roads and the goal is to be able to challenge them ».

The 2019 world champion can approach the Arctic Rally with a little more serenity. Indeed, he has just won the Otepää Talveralli, a snow event in Estonia. Enough to give him confidence when facing the Toyotas on the snowy roads of Finland in less than two weeks.