Yohan Rossel: “We still have our chances for the title”

For your second participation in this event, have you felt any changes compared to 2023?

I knew it wouldn't be easy, so I really worked on this move. This is a rally so specific! I don't think many people realize how difficult it is. Compared to last year, I have clearly improved my performance. Taking the weather into account, it was much more complicated than last year, we gained between 6 and 7 tenths per kilometer. I understood a lot of things and this year I consider that I managed to place the car much better in particular.

How did you experience it?

I admit that I wasn't really satisfied, but the people who have been at Citroën for a long time showed me the results of the drivers who are currently in the WRC during their 2^e participation in Finland. We looked at the gaps per kilometer and based on this data, we are completely in the running table. When the conditions were good, we were 5 tenths behind. It was a little more rainy and we were unlucky in that area, especially on Saturday. What I also remember as positive is my times against Nikolay (Gryazin). 12 months ago, I had absolutely no idea where I stood. I had no point of reference. It was different to have a teammate who has a reputation for going very fast on this type of terrain. Last year he competed with Oliver Solberg, so being able to gauge myself against him was very beneficial.

What are you missing?

Finland is a rally where you have to commit 100%. This is the only solution if you want to play for the podium. We had no interest in going out on the second stage. It was so important to be able to take advantage of this opportunity that was offered to us to cover kilometers on this terrain. We were therefore at 90% and in addition there was no result objective which could push you to take more risks. I feel that we are not that far from drivers like Lauri Joona, but there is still a gap with boys like Oliver Solberg or Jari-Matti Latvala. Will I be able to take it next year? I hope, but I think that if after three attempts you are not able to play up front, it is because you will always be lacking. However, I don't feel like I've reached my limits in this area.

Is the C3 made for Finland?

We are not hiding our faces. With Citroën, we know that there is still work to be done. We have to manage to make the car easier to drive, particularly with the numerous changes in grip. The roads are very hilly and we have difficulty bracing the rear as soon as it loses grip. In the mud, we also needed a little more traction.

How does your association work with Florian Barral?

This is one of the other very positive aspects of this participation. This allowed us to settle before Greece. Florian was perfect. He had studied the event well and it went very naturally.

Before this trio of fast rallies, you were hoping for a share of points. Oliver Solberg has a 40 lead, but he only has one race left and you can record 3 results. Is everything possible?

If you want to be champion, you need at least three victories. So far we have one success and two second places. Lots of things can still happen, it's very open, but we can potentially score 75 points, so we definitely have our chances. I don't put that much pressure on myself and as I'm not someone who looks back, I don't have any regrets about the previous rounds. We will do everything to regain the lead by showing that we can be fast everywhere and without making mistakes.

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