Tanak fastest on the shakedown, Sesks sets fourth time
FIA World Rally Championship Latvian round Tet Rally Latvia has started with Shakedown. Estonians Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja were the quickest on 3.58 km stage, while Latvians Mārtiņš Sesks / Renārs Francis set the fourth time, finishing 0.7 seconds behind the leader.
Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT team driver Ott Tänak set a time of 1 minute 33.6 seconds on his second attempt, beating his teammate and current World Championship leader, Thierry Neuville, by 0.3 seconds. Neuville was the first to tackle the Tet Rally Latvia Shakedown stage, but made a mistake and went off the track, though he managed to avoid significant damage and even set the second fastest time after first runs. During the Shakedown stage, crews have the opportunity to run multiple times.
Japanese driver Takamoto Katsuta finished 0.4 seconds behind the best time, achieving the top result among Toyota Gazoo Racing drivers. Meanwhile, with their final run, the Latvian crew of Sesks/Francis, representing the M-Sport Ford team, climbed to fourth place, trailing Tänak's time by 0.7 seconds.
From fifth to seventh place were the remaining three Toyota drivers: Elfyn Evans, Sébastien Ogier, and Kalle Rovanperä. Esapekka Lappi finished the Shakedown in eighth place, while Grégoire Munster took ninth. Oliver Solberg, the fastest among the WRC2 drivers, recorded the tenth-best time.
Tet Rally Latvia will continue on the afternoon of Thursday, July 18th, with the Opening Ceremony at Rīga Town Hall Square at 17.00. The first special stage, SSS1 Biķernieki Track, will take place at 20.05.
Thierry Neuville: “Fortunately, the car didn't suffer any significant damage; we only had to replace the body part. We also changed the differentials and managed to run the route again with improved setup. I didn't feel like I was driving much faster than the competitors, but the feeling was positive. After Poland, we actively worked on finding the right setup. Tomorrow will be a very tough day because most stages are run only once. Here, the roads are wider and offer more opportunities to push the throttle, with fewer jumps and only a few narrow sections. In the evening, it will be challenging to adjust the car for asphalt conditions, as the main focus is on softer suspension settings for tomorrow. We are quite limited in this regard, so I still don't know what to expect.”
Ott Tänak: “This is just the Shakedown - for now, we are only testing the car and the results don't matter. We also don't know exactly what the plans are for others. The surface here is slightly different from what we expect tomorrow, so the focus was on checking the basic functions. I think the roads in Latvia and Estonia are very similar, while Poland is more demanding due to more elevation changes, but the surface remains consistent.”
Elfyn Evans: “The stages are designed to prevent corner cutting. There are a lot of turns here, requiring an adaptation of driving style different from other rallies. I feel the road is narrower than in Poland. The soft surface of the terrain makes the situation more challenging. It's still too early to make predictions about our goals, but we are never satisfied if we don't make it to the podium. The evening will feature an interesting stage in the city. Of course, with gravel tires, the situation will be quite different from usual.”
Sébastien Ogier: “My first impression of Latvia is good. The stages are beautiful, although some could use more corners. We'll see how the rest of the weekend goes, but it's nice to discover a new country and new roads. Initially, I hadn't planned to be here, but the competition among manufacturers is so tight that I agreed to the offer, and so far, I don't regret it!”
Tet Rally Latvia Shakedown results
Place Driver Time
1 Ott TÄNAK 1:33.6
2 Thierry NEUVILLE 1:33.9
3 Takamoto KATSUTA 1:34.0
4 Martins SESKS 1:34.3
5 Elfyn EVANS 1:34.5
6 Sébastien OGIER 1:34.7
7 Kalle ROVANPERÄ 1:34.7
8 Esapekka LAPPI 1:35.3
9 Grégoire MUNSTER 1:38.2
10 Oliver SOLBERG 1:41.2
Tet Rally Latvia tickets available at Biļešu Paradīze online store www.bilesuparadize.lv.
News and other information about the Tet Rally Latvia, round of the 2024 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), available at www.lvrally.com, as well as on social media X @LVRally, Facebook @LVRally, Instagram @lvrally, and TikTok @tetrallylatvia. While, news about the FIA World Rally Championship available at www.wrc.com.
Tet Rally Latvia, round of the FIA World Rally Championship, is set to take place on July 18-21, 2024. The event is possible thanks to the support provided by Ministry of Education and Science, rally city Liepāja and capital city Rīga, as well as municipalities of Tukums, Talsi, and Kuldīga. Special thanks to general sponsor Tet, many thanks to our main sponsors Ramirent, Sportland, and X3000, official car partner Toyota, as well as sponsors BTA, Fristads, and SIXT. Thanks to our partners Canon Biznesa Centrs Liepāja, Latvijas Valsts meži and municipality of Dienvidkurzeme. Informative support provided by news portal DELFI, Kurzemes Radio, Sporta Avīze un Talsu Vēstis. Thanks to Tet Rally Latvia supporters shopping malls AKROPOLE, AOK, Ballīte Ballītē, Biķernieku trase, Conti STL, Conway, CSDD, DHL, Eco Baltia vide, Elnetworks, Flora, FN Serviss, Getic, Jānis Pūce, Löfbergs, Liepāja Special Economic Zone, MB Grupa, Mission Latvia, OCT Composites, Peltors, Rentadisplay, Rīgas Brīvostas pārvalde, Riga Motormusem, SignTech, Swecon, Swan, Törley, Travel Latvia, as well as technical partner Sports Racing Technologies. Tet Rally Latvia is organised by RA Events in cooperation with Speed Festival Kurzeme and Latvian Automobile Federation.
Tet Rally Latvia supports initiatives carried out by Latvian Children's Support Centre,
who has created and are developing social rehabilitation facility for children with special needs.
We invite you to support this initiative, by making a donation here: http://www.lbaf.lv/lv/ka-ziedot.