Katsuta struggled in two consecutive WRC rounds over the summer, in Finland and Greece. His season had already been challenging, so Toyota decided to sideline him from the Chilean WRC round at the end of September.
Katsuta returned to the driver’s seat of Toyota’s Rally1 car at the Central European Rally last week, where he put in a fantastic performance. He finished fourth and collected valuable points for Toyota in the manufacturers’ championship battle.
Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala was full of praise for Katsuta’s performance.
“He did a super job. I give him big respect – not to drive and then coming back – and be able to do the speed. But most amazing for me was that he took it a little bit easy in the beginning, then progressively build it up,” Latvala told RallyJournal.com, while Katsuta stood beside him.
“When it was difficult, you took it easy and then it was getting better. You got more confidence and then gradually, progressively you lifted the speed up. That was exactly what had to be done.”
Katsuta’s performance on “Super Sunday” at the Central European Rally was nothing short of spectacular. The Japanese driver was the fastest all day and earned full points from the final Power Stage.
The points Katsuta brought in could prove crucial for Toyota – especially after Sebastien Ogier’s crash on the rally’s final day.
“Super, super, super Sunday! I said to him it’s a Japanese power,” Latvala cheered.
Katsuta became visibly emotional when he heard Latvala’s words.
“Jari-Matti has supported me a lot in last two months, and even before that. But last two months when I was having the really tough times, we had a call and he gave me a lot of tips and also ideas and just trying to support me,” Katsuta reflected.
“Without those things for sure, I wouldn’t be here. I really appreciate not only these words after the rally, but also what he said to me before, when I was having the bad situation. That helped me a lot. So, thank you,” Katsuta expressed to Latvala.
