A world champion in the French championship

Entered this year in WRC2 with the ambition of retaining his crown acquired during the last round of 2023 in Japan, Emil Lindholm started the year in a Skoda Fabia from the Toksport team. After a rally of Sweden average (7^e), he had two podiums in Croatia (3^e) and Mexico (2^e) who revived it well. An abandonment due to a broken suspension in Sardinia then damaged his chances.

Following the Italian event, the 27-year-old Finn accepted the offer of Hyundai to replace Teemu Suninen within the 2C team. His compatriot had in fact been recruited to drive the Hyundai i20 Rally1 left vacant by the disappearance of Craig Breen. Emil Lindholm therefore continued his WRC2 program at the wheel of an i20 Rally2 with mixed results. If he finished 3^e in Estonia, he then had more difficulty in Finland (13^e) before experiencing two retirements in Chile and at the CER. Although he failed to defend his title, the Finn is already looking ahead.

When the 2C team offered him the opportunity to participate in the Vaucluse and Var rally, he didn't think too long. With his remarkable teammate Reeta Hämäläinen with such a particular diction, Emil Lindholm will therefore rub shoulders with the best specialists on both surfaces in France. The first meeting takes place this weekend in Courthézon, north of Avignon. 10 special stages and 140,38 km timed await the Nordics who will discover the reconnaissance system with the racing car and on a single pass compared to two in the world. It will be interesting to see the comparison between Lindholm and the regulars of this competition, like Jean-Baptiste Franceschi, Florent Todeschini or Mattieu Margaillan.

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