Frustration for Mikkelsen
Andreas Mikkelsen has called on his Hyundai team to address handling issues on the i20 World Rally Car that led to a lacklustre performance at Rally Guanajuato Mexico last weekend.
Although he finished fourth, Mikkelsen was never on the pace of those ahead of him on the gravel mountain roads near León and finished almost two minutes adrift of winner Sébastien Ogier.
The Norwegian was uncomfortable with the back of the i20, a problem also identified by his team-mates on dirt road fixtures last season.
"It was the confidence with the rear of the car. When I really want to push I really need to trust the rear that I don't lose it and it's been living a little bit its own life this weekend. This is something we have to look into," he said.
"It's been pretty much similar on all three cars. All the drivers have been complaining about this."
Overnight changes on Saturday brought about some improvement and although Mikkelsen vaulted from sixth to third in the championship standings, he was frustrated not to be able to fight for a podium.
"It has been more difficult than we expected to be honest. I really struggled in the low-grip conditions. This is something we have to work on and come back stronger. At least we got 14 points for the championship but I was expecting more," he added.
Zdroj: wrc.com