Katsuta’s weekend was riddled with problems: a puncture right at the start of the event, a retirement due to going off the road on Saturday, and yet another puncture on the Power Stage.
Katsuta’s teammate Kalle Rovanperä also endured a nearly equally painful rally, and he too was far from scoring any overall points.
On the final day of the event, Katsuta and Rovanperä agreed that the Japanese driver would give up his road position to give Rovanperä a slightly better starting slot for the Power Stage, allowing the Finn to attack more aggressively for bonus points. The tactic worked: Rovanperä secured four points for himself and for the Toyota team.
However, the pair gave slightly different versions of how their Sunday agreement came about. Rovanperä told RallyJournal.com that he was the one who suggested swapping places with Katsuta.
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According to the Japanese driver, however, the decision was his own.
“It was just quite clear that for me, I’m not driving for manufacturer points in this rally, and Kalle is. Kalle had an issue, and then he lost the opportunity to take the points from his position. So I just decided to do that,” Katsuta recounted.
“I was happy to do it. And I’m happy that Kalle took the points from that stage. Unfortunately, we couldn’t. But sometimes this happens,” Katsuta said, referring to his own puncture.
Katsuta, who sits sixth in the WRC standings, left Greece without a single point. Without the issues, he could have had a shot at a top result, but fate had something else in store this time.
“We knew this rally would be extremely tough and brutal. It’s important to manage the situation, stay out of trouble and avoid punctures. Unfortunately, we paid a high price with two punctures, and I made a mistake on Saturday. So yes, it was a tough weekend, but the season is long, and these things can happen,” Katsuta reflected.
The WRC season continues with Rally Estonia in mid-July.
