Craig Breen and Scott Martin produced a battling performance to clinch a richly deserved fourth place in the Dayinsure Wales Rally GB. Meanwhile, Mads Østberg and Torstein Eriksen had to settle for eighth overall, a position that did not reflect their strong pace.
With just 13.5s between the top four, the final leg promised to be very hotly contested, especially as the day began with the brand new Elsi stage (10.06km), a really narrow, technical and muddy test. In conditions like these, it’s never easy to really go for it but Craig Breen, starting the day 1.7s behind the third-placed driver, decided to be bold. After a good opening stage, he made a small mistake in the slippery conditions in the next speed test (SS2o). He nonetheless managed to hang onto fourth position until the end of the event, securing a fine result for Citroen.
Breen to try and build on the momentum from Wales
“I’m pleased with my weekend, I really gave it everything but the other guys were just faster than us. It was important to get a result for the team. I’m now going to try and build on it and keep the momentum going at the last couple of rallies so we can finish the season as strongly as possible. And given that I have a bit of preference for tarmac, I’m already really looking forward to Spain!”, Breen commented.
Also engaged in a no-holds-barred battle for fifth place, Mads Østberg vigorously attempted to hold off his rivals. However, a spin on SS22 meant that he dropped down the standings, finishing in eighth place due to the very narrow gaps between the drivers.
“Although we had a few difficulties putting it all together, we had some very good stages this weekend, winning one speed test and setting several other good times. We never gave up and tried to stay in touch with the leading crews. It’s a shame that we were a little bit unlucky. A minor mistake has ended up proving very costly”, Østberg explained.
Now that #WalesRallyGB is over we put all our focus and efforts into #RallyRACC Spain preparations. But first we make a stop off at the #parismotorshow, make sure to call by the @citroen stand and say hello! ? pic.twitter.com/bit9efUm1b
— Craig Breen (@Craig_Breen) October 8, 2018
