Ogier defended the lead in Croatia, the first test of the year on asphalt

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The French Sébastien Ogier (Toyota GR Yaris), eight-time world champion, will face the Croatian Rally as the leader of the World Championship, the fourth qualifying eventwhich takes place from Friday to Sunday and is the first of the season to be run entirely on asphalt and in which the Hyundai team will compete in tribute to their Irish driver Craig Breen, who died in tests before the event.

After winning the two rallies he contested in 2023. Monte Carlo and Mexico -he was not in Sweden-, Ogier leads the overall competition with 56 points, three more than Belgian Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20) and four ahead of the current world champion, the Finnish Kalle Rovanpera (Toyota GR Yaris). Estonian Ott Tänak (Ford Puma), winner of the Swedish Rally, is behind in nine.

Frenchman Ogier, who is only competing part-time this year, arrived in Croatia three points ahead of Thierry Neuville. The i20 N cars of Neuville and his Hyundai Motorsport teammate Esapekka Lappi will carry a special livery in memory of his dear colleague and WRC family member Craig Breen, who was tragically lost by life last week.

In its two editions as part of the World Cup, Rally Croatia has only had two Toyota drivers as winners: Ogier himself in 2021 and Rovanperä in 2022, year in which the French did not compete. Now the goal of the team of the Japanese brand is to achieve a third victory.

“Although for me the goal is not the championship, I still have the same goal to perform at my best and get some wins and good points for the team,” Ogier said in statements released by the championship organizers .

Croatia was tough, but lately I’ve been pretty strong on the asphalt. It was something natural for the team and for me to decide to return to Croatia,” explained the 39-year-old Frenchman.

The Hyundai Motorsport team recently confirmed that it will race two cars in Croatia and that it will be done as a tribute to Craig Breen.

The South Korean brand’s team indicated it had spoken with Breen’s family and his co-driver James Fulton, among others, and they expressed their desire to have a race held in Breen’s honor. Thierry Neuville and the Finn Esapekka Lappi will be their pilots in the Croatian test.

We will be participating in Craig’s memory to pay tribute to him, his passion for rallying and his competitive spirit. We will participate in two vehicles and remove the third as a mark of respect. Both will sport a special decoration in memory of Craig, his family, his friends and his fans,” said Cyril Abiteboul, team principal.

The best way to honor Craig’s legacy is not to retirebut to participate in the memory of our deceased teammate, our friend and an incredible competitor,” he added.

The rally takes place from Friday to Sunday and there will be a total of 20 timed sections (301.26 km).

Source: La Verdad

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