Tänak’s season has been difficult so far, and the same struggles have continued at Rally Latvia.
After Friday’s driving day, Tänak is only in sixth place in the rally, and he is already 38.8 seconds behind the rally leader, Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä.
On Friday, Tänak also suffered from his road position, starting the route third, but according to the Estonian, the main reason for his slow pace was his car.
“I have found it really difficult to find the right balance with the car. I have been trying to understand it all day, but I just haven’t found it,” Tänak lamented.
Friday’s leg was also challenging in terms of car settings, but Tänak did not see this as such a big problem.
“Normally, it shouldn’t be like this. The stages do not differ that much from each other,” especially in the fast sections.
Tänak’s Friday ended badly when he lost two positions at the end of the day. This makes his task on Saturday even more challenging as his road position is weaker.
“We no longer have a position where we could drive for podium places. On the other hand, Takamoto (Katsuta) and Adrien (Fourmaux) are not far away, so we will try to fight against them,” Tänak anticipated.
Tänak could not comment on possible car settings for Saturday.
“I can’t say at all what we are missing. We know that time is being lost. Now we just have to get the car to work,” the Estonian pondered.
At Hyundai, Tänak’s statements are certainly not likely to cause amusement. Criticising the available tool is not the best marketing.
