The Acropolis Rally returns to the World Championship and Dani Sordo returns into the contest after his absence in the last two meetings in Estonia and Belgium. Spanish, what Co-driver, Cándido Carrera, opens He is a clear favorite to triumph in the mythical Greek event in which he finished second in the last World Cup edition held in 2013. In addition to his better knowledge of the terrain, his delayed starting position will be another factor that favors him in the ninth round of the season.
The Hellenic rally is one of the most traditional in the WRC And, despite being absent from the race for seven seasons, it maintains its prestige intact due to the great toughness of its stages. It kicks off on Thursday with an urban superspecial in Syntagma Square in Athens, for on Friday move from the capital to Lamia, which will be the epicenter for the rest of the weekend. Its sections broken and full of stones and heat will be the great enemies of the participants, among whom Sordo is the one who has run the most times.
“The Acropolis Rally it was one of the hardest when I raced there in the past, but overall it’s a good rally with good stages “explains the Cantabrian.” Usually the main challenges are the rocky surface, which is really demanding on the tires, and the high temperatures. It can create a lot of problems, but now we have other similar events on the calendar, like Portugal and Sardinia, which are equally demanding, so perhaps we are more prepared for this type of terrain. Our position on the road is advantageous when we look at the big picture. It is good to start from the back and we will try to make the most of our starting order the first day. I’m wishing to start. It will be the first rally with Cándido by my side and I hope we can get a good result. “
After the double achieved in Ypres, Hyundai will try to continue with its comeback over the Toyota, currently dominating the rankings of pilots and brands. Sebastien Ogier will suffer a lot on the first day opening the track, but there have been so many times that he has overcome that handicap that they can never be ruled out. In any case, with a 38-point cushion on Elfyn Evans and Thierry Neuville, who are tied behind him in the championship, he can afford to be conservative.
In addition to Sordo and Carrera, the return of the Acropolis will feature more Spaniards: the couple Miguel Díaz Aboitiz-Diego Sanjuán They continue with their World Cup adventure, Carlos del Barrio will run to the right of the Uruguayan Fau Zaldívar and Marc Martí co-pilot to the Chilean Alberto Heller.
World of pilots
1. Sebastien Ogier, 162 points
2. Elfyn Evans, 124
3. Thierry Neuville, 124
