Ogier lifts the mood at Toyota
The Portugal Rally it did not end with entirely positive results for the majority of the team’s drivers Toyotaa brand that also lost the leadership of the Constructors’ championship at the end of the fifth round of the championship from Hyundai, now 4 points away. 6th Evansin full fight for the title, while duo Katsuta-Rovanperä he didn’t even make it into the top-20 in the final standings, with the reigning Finnish world champion suffering an accident on Saturday while occupying the top of the standings. In all of this, however, there is one pilot who has reserved a great, great consolation: Sébastien Ogier.
Record in Portugal
The Frenchman, eight times world champion, has in fact won his second consecutive victory this season after the success in Croatia, further entering the history of the Portuguese rally. With the sixth statement on Portuguese soil, Ogier has in fact surpassed the record which belonged to Markku Alen, also carrying the Toyota with eight victories in this test. A success that allows the Japanese company to reach two other brands such as Lancia and Citroën in the all-time ranking of one of the most featured rounds in the history of the world championship.
A victory achieved after taking the lead following the Rovanperä accident, resisting attacks from Tänak from SS12 to Power Stage: “Getting another win is a fantastic feeling – declared Ogier, who participates part-time in the world championship this year and has so far been the only one to achieve more than one seasonal victory – it’s nice to reach other important numbers and I have to enjoy these moments. I had nothing against the fact of being equal on points with Markku Alén for a few years, because for me he is a legend and I have great respect for him, but I have been asked many times when I would break the record and now it has finally happened. It was another intense battle that everyone followed and for us in the car there was no moment of relaxation. I think the way we managed everything was almost perfect: we managed to always remain in contention for the victory without risking as much as we could when we weren’t feeling 100%.”
Thanks from the team leaders
Congratulations to Ogier and his co-pilot Vincent Landais also came from Akio ToyodaPresident of the TGR-WRT team: “Seb, Vincent, congratulations on the two consecutive victories in Portugal! No matter how hard the gravel surface was, Seb was always calm. As close and thrilling as the race was, Seb was always smiling with the fans. When something happened, he calmly informed the engineers of the situation and went back to the steps. Then he returned to the finish line faster than anyone else. I am grateful to have such a “true professional” driver on our team. Seb, thanks again“.
#Ogier #Portugal #Alens #winning #record #broken