Paddon will aim for a top five finish in Poland

Others before him have experienced the pangs of the emotional elevator: from very high, one can quickly find oneself very low. Also Hayden Paddon, if he knew how to perfectly exploit an advantageous road position (11th then 12th the first two days) to sign an authentic feat on the Sardinian special stages, prefers to look to the future with calm and modesty.  » I obviously intend to ensure that this exceptional weekend does not go unanswered, explained the man who was crowned Production world champion in 2011 at a press conference according to rally. But I have to remain realistic and keep my feet on the ground. My goal for the next round of the world championship in Poland was to aim for a top five, and it hasn't changed in the meantime. »

En Sardaigne, là-même où il fit ses débuts un an plus tôt sous les couleurs de l’équipe officielle Hyundai Motorsport, le pilote de vingt-huit ans diposait pour la première fois de l’ultime évolution de l’i20 WRC, equipped with gearbox control via steering wheel paddle. It is clear that he made good use of it. “To my great astonishment, he continued, it's an improvement that brought me a lot even though I didn't really have the opportunity to get used to it. I discovered it during the shakedown, and during the Thursday evening super-special, I found myself looking for the gear change lever several times. It essentially allowed me to better use the engine torque, as the data acquisition available to our engineers attests. »

It was only later in the year that Hayden felt he could repeat his Italian performance. The third man from the South Korean firm has apparently already marked the Australian meeting on his calendar, the closest to his native New Zealand. « I think we can start to look at winning in Australia, he added. The profile of the stages as well as the level of grip are quite similar to what we experienced here in Sardinia. »  So the appointment is made.

Find the full report of the Rally Italy, produced by our special correspondents in Sardinia, in the 2016 issue of AUTOhebdo, available this evening in digital version, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.