2024 FIA Rally Star – Rally Italia Sardegna occasion preview
A difficult gravel contest awaits the FIA Rally Star drivers this week with Rally Italia Sardegna marking the subsequent stage of the quartet’s FIA Junior WRC Championship journey.
Primarily based in Alghero from Could 30-June 2, Rally Italia Sardegna is spherical three of the five-event Junior WRC season and an opportunity for Jose ‘Abito’ Caparó, Taylor Gill, Romet Jürgenson and Max Sensible to go to some previously-charted territory.
Twelve months in the past, the rising abilities had been in Sardinia for the FIA Rally Star Coaching Camp the place they had been put by means of their paces in gravel and Tarmac take a look at classes and coaching workshops, benefitting from a wealth of experience and recommendation from the FIA instructors. The Coaching Camp included the reconnaissance for Rally Italia Sardegna, plus a day of media actions.
Caparó, Gill, Jürgenson and Sensible now return to Sardinia having efficiently progressed by means of the FIA Rally Star Coaching Season in 2023 and into the Junior WRC for 2024.
Following the high-speed, ice-coated phases of Rally Sweden and the low-grip Croatia Rally asphalt, Rally Italia Sardegna is an opportunity for the quick 4 to construct their expertise on tough and hard gravel. With excessive temperatures, rock-lined roads and a compact itinerary that means early begins and late finishes, a difficult three days of motion awaits.
FIA Rally Star newest information and views
• Victory on April’s Croatia Rally propelled Romet Jürgenson to the highest of the provisional Junior WRC standings after two rounds.• He holds a 20-point benefit over Taylor Gill, the subsequent highest-placed Junior WRC common.• Gill’s championship standing follows his runner-up inserting on Croatia Rally after the Australian completed eighth in Junior WRC in Sweden again in February.• Estonian Jürgenson reacclimatised to gravel by contesting Rally Adriatico in Italy earlier this month as a part of his further competitors programme. He completed a powerful second in Rally3 and sixteenth general.• Jose ‘Abito’ Caparó opened his Junior WRC points-scoring account with sixth place on Croatia Rally, making amends for his non-finish on Rally Sweden.• After ending tenth among the many Junior WRC contenders in Sweden, Max Sensible was seventh in Croatia. The South African has ready for Rally Italia Sardegna by following a rigorous bodily and psychological coaching programme in his house metropolis of Cape City.
Watch Be The Subsequent One YouTube sequence multi function place
The complete Be The Subsequent One YouTube sequence, which follows the FIA Rally Star drivers by means of the 2023 FIA Rally Star Coaching Season and supplies an enchanting perception into their achievements, has been launched with the complete playlist obtainable right here.
FIA Rally Star pre-Rally Italia Sardegna quotes
FIA Rally Star Venture Chief Jérôme Roussel mentioned: “With Romet and Taylor first and second within the provisional FIA Junior WRC standings, it’s honest to say the 2024 season goes higher than we might have imagined. There are three very difficult gravel rallies remaining and loads of studying nonetheless to be completed and progress to be made, which may be very a lot the main target going into Rally Italia Sardegna. Whereas Romet and Taylor have tailored rather well to the calls for of Junior WRC, Abito and Max are nonetheless discovering their ft however clearly exhibiting loads of potential and an actual willpower to enhance. They’re working laborious and can take confidence from what they’ve achieved thus far. This can be a troublesome occasion, there’s no query, however the plan stays for our 4 drivers to complete all phases whereas demonstrating their pace when the circumstances permit.”
Romet Jürgenson (EST) mentioned: “Snow and Tarmac is over now and it’s time for gravel. It’s a floor I’m extra used to however, on the identical time, I do know Sardinia goes to be a very tough occasion – perhaps one of the vital tough of the season. With so many Rally2 vehicles in entrance of us, we now have to take a special strategy, significantly for the second go of phases when the roads can be fairly broken. I like these sorts of roads the place you must be correct, you’ll be able to’t actually go extensive anyplace as a result of you have got some hidden rocks on the aspect of the street. We now have overview of the phases from the recce we did final yr though my pacenote system has developed quite a bit since then. We’re in place within the championship so let’s attempt to proceed this.”
Taylor Gill (AUS) mentioned: “Sardinia is clearly going to be an enormous problem, a really tough occasion as everybody is aware of. Fortunately we now have some type of concept of what to anticipate having completed the recce and the Coaching Camp in Sardinia final yr. This provides us a bit of bit of information versus strolling into the unknown. We’ve ready actually laborious, attempting to work out what are the phases the place we will push and maximise the pace and what phases we actually should take simple and get by means of. We simply need to get by means of the occasion cleanly and if we will do each stage with out stopping that will already put us in place for consequence.”
Jose ‘Abito’ Caparó (PER) mentioned: “It will likely be a problem to be on tempo however for certain I’ll apply what I realized on the recce final yr. It’s serving to rather a lot as a result of I can realise how the phases can be and what the climate could be like. For certain I’ve to be on tempo however I’ve to enhance rather a lot and I’m engaged on this, with numerous steps. I’ve ready numerous recordsdata with photos and descriptions of the street. I’m working rather a lot on the simulator and enhancing my reflexes and my reactions with my bodily exercise to be in place. I need to be in place on the end, however with tempo and attempt to enhance extra with Esther my co-driver. We’re having confidence and that’s the primary factor.”
Max Sensible (ZAF): “I’m actually eager for Sardinia and actually eager to get again on gravel, I like gravel and it’s so enjoyable to drive on. The phases look superior, a mixture of medium-speed, low-speed and even some high-speed sections. There are many completely different traits all through the rally with slim sections, some wider sections, some actually bumpy and cresty sections by means of to superior flat-out sections the place you’ll be able to see far forward. Doing the FIA Rally Star Coaching Camp final yr meant we obtained to take a look at among the phases once we did the recce, which was nice. Even from doing the preparation I do know a bit about what’s arising. I’m going to this occasion with the goal of getting a very good rally.”
Rally Italia Sardegna in numbers
Stage distance: 266.12 kmTotal distance: 1035.46 kmNumber of phases: 16
FIA Junior WRC Championship occasion schedule refresher
The 2024 FIA Junior WRC Championship consists of 5 rounds as follows:
Rally Sweden (Snow/ice), February 15-18Croatia Rally (Tarmac), April 18-21Rally Italia Sardegna (Gravel), Could 30-June 2Secto Rally Finland (Gravel), August 1-4EKO Acropolis Rally Greece (Gravel), September 5-8
FIA Rally Star drivers (in Rally Italia Sardegna begin quantity order)
70. Romet Jürgenson (24, Estonia) Co-driver: Siim Oja (EST)71. Taylor Gill (20, Australia) Co-driver: Daniel Brkic (AUS)79. Jose ‘Abito’ Caparó (27, Peru) Co-driver: Esther Gutiérrez (ESP)80. Max Sensible (21, South Africa) Co-driver: Cameron Truthful (GBR)
