Ott Tänak after his victory in Sardinia: “We are in the game”

Were you surprised to win?

To be honest, yes. We were mainly focused on the Sunday points. We wanted to register as many as possible. I was still following the evolution of the Power Stage times, and halfway through the special, I saw that Sébastien was only 1” behind us. I thought it was cooked. And then, I had to ask Martin what the gap was and ultimately it was in our favor at the end of the special.

How do you feel after this first success at Hyundai en 2024 ?

There is a lot of emotion. I am particularly happy for the team. It is also good from an accounting point of view. I still find it cruel for Sébastien. I know what it feels like to lose like that. I was in the same situation when a victory that I thought was a given was taken away from me a few kilometers from the goal, a few years ago.

Does this success reassure you for the future?

It was a tough weekend, but it's good to finish with such a result. Let's see what the upcoming rallies have in store for us. We're entering the second half of the season and we're really in it.

Comments collected by Loïc Rocci