Among the Ford drivers, Grégoire Munster equalled his career-best result by finishing fifth in the challenging asphalt rally. Munster benefitted from the misfortune of others but avoided trouble himself to take a strong result.
Towards the end of the event, Munster came under pressure from Toyota’s Kalle Rovanperä, who had dropped out of the lead fight early on. The M-Sport driver made no mistakes in the wet conditions and kept the double world champion behind him.
“It was our first time running the Hankook wet tyres. It wasn’t an easy mission, as we had to fight to hold onto fifth with Kalle behind us – finding the right balance to push without making a mistake. Overall, we’re happy to bring a top-five result home after a difficult season,” Munster said.
Munster’s performance drew praise from team principal Richard Millener, who finally saw a glimpse of better fortunes.
“We’re pleased to come away with a solid result with Grégoire and Louis (co-driver Louka). They stayed calm, avoided unnecessary risks and brought the car home, which was the priority in conditions like these,” Millener noted.
Munster’s team-mate Josh McErlean, meanwhile, was not as fortunate. The Irishman crashed heavily early in the rally and was unable to continue.
“Of course, we’re disappointed for Josh and Eoin (co-driver Treacy). The most important thing is that they are both okay after the incident,” Millener said.
McErlean’s crash has given M-Sport Ford a major headache, as the team must now try to repair the damaged car ahead of the season finale. The vehicle suffered significant front-end damage, and McErlean is expected to drive the same car at Rally Saudi Arabia in two weeks’ time. The team is now racing against the clock to get McErlean to the start line for the season finale.
McErlean is competing in his first full World Rally Championship season, and this was already his fifth retirement of the year.
“It was not the result we wanted after all the effort to get here by the team and our supporters, but we’ll regroup and come back stronger for the exciting challenge of Saudi,” McErlean commented.
