The Estonian claimed his and Hyundai’s first win of the season at the Acropolis Rally in Greece. Tänak was the fastest driver over the course of the event and beat Toyota’s Sébastien Ogier by more than half a minute. The win also propelled him to third place in the World Rally Championship standings, putting him firmly in the title fight.
Check the current WRC championship standings here!
After celebrating his victory on Sunday afternoon, Tänak and co-driver Martin Järveoja had little time to spare. Their schedule already included a full test day on Monday at Hyundai’s test site in Finland.
The duo boarded a private flight on Sunday evening and headed north. Their Monday began with pacenote work, before stepping into the Hyundai Rally1 car to begin testing at full speed.
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“Back in the office to get ready for the fast stuff,” Tänak wrote on social media.
It was Tänak’s first opportunity this year to test Hyundai’s Rally1 car on high-speed gravel and on Hankook tyres. According to reports from along the test road, the Estonian made a strong impression with his pace.
Also spotted on-site was a service vehicle from the German company ZF, which may indicate that Tänak was working on Hyundai’s transmission setup during the test. ZF also owns Sachs, the manufacturer of shock absorbers.
Tänak pushed hard along the familiar gravel road, delivering big jumps over crests and showing off the car’s performance in full flight.
See more photos from Tänak’s test session below.
The high-speed test roads in Finland served as ideal preparation for what’s coming next. The WRC now heads to two of the fastest events on the calendar – Rally Estonia and Rally Finland – where Tänak will be among the firm favourites.
Rally Estonia takes place in just over two weeks, while Rally Finland will be held around the turn of July and August in the Jyväskylä region.
