Present:
Jari-Matti Latvala, Volkswagen Motorsport
Yves Matton, Citroën Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team
Ott Tanak, M-Sport World Rally Team
Dani Sordo, Hyundai Motorsport

Q:
It’s been a long time since the last WRC event in Mexico, a good six weeks. I’m sure now everyone is desperate to get on the stages. What have you been up to during that time Jari-Matti?
J-ML:
Yeah, it’s definitely been a break. It was good because the season has not gone so well for me so I had a two-week holiday in America. I think it was really needed, and one week out for fitness training. And I lost 1000 euros by gambling! Just a tip… if you want any advice on how to lose money, ask me!

Q:
After the holiday you said you’ve been watching on-board footage of Colin McRae which inspired you again to get into the rally car. Is that the case?
J-ML:
Yes, when your self-confidence is a little bit down, have a look at those and you know what is confidence. I think he had the commitment that nobody else had. It’s incredible in some places where he was driving the Ford Focus rally car, for instance in this rally, there is some real commitment.

Q:
So how are you feeling now? We are coming to Rally Argentina after two events you´d rather forget. What are your thoughts on still aiming for the title, there are a large amount of points between you and Seb (Ogier), are you deterred by that or do you think there is still a chance?
J-ML:
Let’s go rally by rally. It’s been a hard time, like I said. I’ve lost some valuable points, but as long as there is a chance, you have to keep fighting even though you know how it is, and see how it’s going to be the end of the year. Okay, the reality is hard, that’s why I said I don’t think about the Championship so much. Let’s focus on rally by rally. We’ll see later on what the result is going to be.

Q:
Looking at memories here from last year, you’re coming back to an event which you won and you did in style last year. Does that give you a little bit of confidence?
J-ML:
Yes, it’s giving me good confidence. I think the rally this year, anyway, will be a combination of speed and durability, so it’s not necessarily as hard as attacking as last year, you have to be wiser this year because it’s asking a lot more from the car. You can’t push 100% per cent all the time. In some stages you’ll flat-out, but then you have to be a little more… you have to be patient in some areas

Q:
Yves, as we head into Rally Argentina, Citroen is fourth in the Manufacturers’ Championship. How would you summarise the team’s start to the season?
YM:
For sure, when you try to be second in the Championship and you are fourth you are not really like expected. The worst was in Sweden where we expected a podium and due to some small technical issues and some driver issues, it was not the case. If you also want to see the positive, in Monte Carlo Sebastien Loeb was able to show the performance of the new car and also what the team did at the end of last year, and Mads also in Mexico he was able to fight until the end of the rally and to finish in the second place. The car is working very well, now we need a little bit to perform better and maybe to be a little more lucky.

Q:
What is the team’s strategy to improve results? How can you help the drivers to succeed?
YM:
We worked a lot with Kris for more than one year. He showed very interesting things in the second part of the season and for sure the first part of the season this year was not like expected. We tried to understand, I don’t really want to say what we tried to put in place for him. Sometimes when you work too much it maybe doesn’t go in a good way. He wants so much to perform and to try to go so fast that sometimes maybe you need to take some time to try another way.

Q:
We’ve seen the pace of Kris and also the pace of Mads, do you believe they have the capability to win WRC events?
YM:
Yes, for sure. I’m pretty sure they are able to win a rally this year. I’m convinced the car is on the level and we will continue to work on the car. It’s been a long time now we are not able to perform well with those cars on the rally, but for sure it will happen in one of these rallies.

Q:
What further upgrades are we going to see this year on the car?
YM:
The first step will be in Portugal where we will have some new aerodynamic package. We are working on the main subject for the second part of the year. It is difficult to say at the moment when it will appear, it will depend on lots of tests.

Q:
How are you feeling ahead of this event Ott, it is an event that you know so are you feeling confident coming into this one?
OT:
More or less it’s a new event for everyone. Maybe not for Dani as he has done some stages before. But for us most of the stages are new. I had always had some troubles here before. I have not too much experience. It’s really tricky this year, it’s really tough in some places, and we just have to take it steady. In these conditions it is really difficult to make sure we are not going to have problems. You never know what the problem is. We have to keep a good pace and hope everything goes okay.

Q:
You were development testing with the brand new car straight after Mexico, what are your thoughts on it?
OT:
I am sure we are going into the right direction. I feel a lot more confident in the new car. It’s more easy and has more freedom. I hope I can go a bit faster in Portugal with the new car.

Q:
Now that you have seen the stages, has that changed your approach to this event?
OT:
Of course it has changed a bit. In these kind of conditions you are normally thinking not to be flat out, where to push and so on, but it is a bit difficult to be confident in each corner.

Q:
Six weeks is a long time, Dani. Have you been having a holiday like Jari-Matti?
DS:
A little bit after Mexico, but not too much. I’ve been doing some tests and waiting for this rally. Nothing special.

Q:
But you’re more than ready now to get back behind the wheel and get the stages started I’m sure. You’ve competed here many times in the past. What, eight times you’ve done this event so far?
DS:
I think because when I started my career I came to this rally. I may have come before, but the stages have changed a little bit this year, so it’s a completely different rally.

Q:
We are hearing that it has been rough on the stages. How challenging is this event, Dani?
DS:
Yes, it’s partially rough this rally. Some people told me there was a lot of the rain in the mountains before and the stages are completely destroyed, a lot of stones. They tried to repair the roads, but the stones are still there. The second stage… okay the first 51 kilometre stage of the rally, the first 25 kilometres are very very bad and you can damage the car, so we need to take a good speed, but also drive with the head.

Q:
What’s the target for you here? You’ve been at the podium twice before so do you think it’s achievable to be on the podium this time?
DS:
Of course. In this rally, everything can happen. It’s very difficult, very long stages, not always about times, so it will be also difficult. During 51 kilometres you need to be very concentrated because you can lose a lot. So I think this rally is a big challenge in many different ways.

Q:
Some of the drivers are happy that there are no split times because they can focus, but you’d rather know where you are on the stage?
DS:
There is no need to flat-out from the beginning, but in 51 kilometres I promise you everyone will want some information even at some point in the stage. Maybe to have one or two splits would be good.

FIA WRC 2 CHAMPIONSHIP

Present:
Jari Ketomaa
Nicolas Fuchs

Q:
Jari, as we head into Rally Argentina you are leading the FIA WRC 2 Championship. It has been a good start so far, but WRC 2 is getting stronger every event. How crucial is it for you to take maximum points from Argentina?
JK:
Well, I want to win every rally where I am participating. You must think to drive as fast as you can. We’ll see towards the end of the season but of course I want to win.

Q:
It’s going to be a tough challenge this weekend. We have seen new stages in Argentina, a little rougher than what we saw in previous seasons. What have you thought from the recce?
JK:
Well, there are obviously a lot of places that are the classical Argentina, nice stages but there are some parts I don’t think a lot of cars will want to compete flat out really to see who is fastest in the stages. There are places where you have to go really slow to keep the car in one piece because it is really tough but it is the same for everyone and we have to think. Of course it makes a difference if someone will push and hope that the car will last. It will be very interesting to see how the different people will approach this rally.

Q:
Where are the rougher stages? Which days?
JK:
Well, Saturday. Also Friday. The first day is a long one. I would say it’s very rough. Again, Saturday morning the first stage, 15 kilometres towards the end is even worse. On Saturday there are some nasty places. One stage is very nice, the second on Friday. In that one you don’t have to worry at all.

Q:
So, you say it’s the sensible driver who will win this weekend?
JK:
It is very difficult to say. Here you have to push because you can’t lose too much in one place. So it is the most clever one who will win.

Q:
Did you have any problems at shakedown or everything was all right?
JK:
We had some small engine problems and we didn’t get a clean run. But we found what it was and everything will be okay for tomorrow. It’s difficult to have a rally without problems but fortunately it happened in shakedown and now it is all fixed

Q:
Nicolas, this year we see you complete with the Fiesta R5. How have you found the car so far?
NF:
This year is a very different rally for me with the RRC. It is very rough. It is difficult to say if I am going to save the car or go flat out. Jari (Ketomaa) is very fast, Yurii (Protasov) too. I need to go fast in the stages without hitting the car.

Q:
Do you think you are adapting to the car?
NF:
Yes, I worked a lot with the team in the test. I checked the set up in the car and I think it is good for this rally. I like the car a lot. In the shakedown I went fast in the corners and in the rough parts. I think it is a good car but I don’t know what will happen in the rally. The shakedown was good. I made only two laps and came back to service.

Q:
Obviously you will want to get a good result here and you have competed in Argentina many times. Do you feel your experience is an advantage over the other drivers?
NF:
It’s difficult to say. I competed a lot of times but I had a lot of problems. Last year I came to fight with Jari and Nasser (Al-Attiyah) and I had a problem and went back to eighth place and I needed to push and push and finished second. It is a very difficult rally, rougher than Greece. This rally is for the brain. I need to take a lot of points for the Championship here.

Q:
What do you hope to achieve in the Championship? You have another five events after Argentina. They are all gravel events. What are your hopes for the season?
NF:
I like the gravel events. I like to go to the gravel rallies: Mexico, Argentina, Portugal, Sardinia, and maybe Finland is not my surface. Maybe it is for Jari, I will try to take some points in Finland and not see Jari. And Poland is a difficult rally too. Last year in GB, Jari was very fast, I didn’t have a good set up for the car but I finished the rally.