69. Rally Sweden 2022
24. 2. – 27. 2. 2022, Umeå • Rally Sweden AB • snow - ice 305.85 km - (cancelled 41.04 km) • total distance including road sections - 1223.22 km • Other years
Info
SS19
"I am really pleased. I didn't think that we could be this good, especially starting first on the road on Friday. It was quite a bit job but I have to say I am really happy. The team did a great ob and the car was working great all the time - I feel much more confident now.
I didn't feel like celebrating much now. It has been a really difficult week for the people in Ukraine and I hope they can find strength and hope in these difficult times."
"It should be quite normal, but after Monte Carlo we had a lot of work to do. Everybody worked very hard despite some difficult times. We are here and we are showing that we are going the right way. I am looking forward to the upcoming events - there is a lot of work left, but we are going to do it."
"It was too much risk to push and fight against Thierry, but I am really pleased to be on the podium. This was the target and we managed to do it. Thanks to the team - we had no issues with the car or anything - and thanks for having us back!"
"I tried, but I made one very stupid mistake when I misunderstood a braking point and braked too hard. The most important thing is that we are here. We had a very strong car and in the future I will try to fight at the top."
"The first two rallies were just about getting a consistent start. We had a great run in Monaco and Sweden is my toughest rally, so to walk away with two fifths is a really good start."
"They had only one spare and better tyres than I have. I knew Craig and Ott would be very fast and I made a few mistakes in there. It was not the perfect stage. This weekend has been great. My first time at home in Sweden driving a Rally1 car. The team has made a fantastic job and I know it's not the result we wanted after some issues with the car, but the speed is there."
"It's difficult to summarise. It's been so-and-so and up and down with quite a few things happening. Let's see what the future brings."
"Let's hope that's the end of the bad luck. This weekend was difficult, but we tried our best. I made a very stupid mistake on Friday and ruined the day for us, but I've learned a lot with the car and everything is going in the right direction."
"It's been one of my best fights. Ole Christian has been doing a great rally. I know he has worked super hard over the last twelve months, so I am really happy for him to come here and deliver such a good result."
"It's been a fantastic weekend. The fight with Andreas has been the coolest fight ever and remembering that he has been essentially my mentor in rallying during all the years, thanks to him, I am where I am today. We really tried on the previous one, but that's rallying sometimes."
"I think it's good - it was our plan. I want to thank the team because they did a great job. I made two big mistakes on Friday and also yesterday, so we lost too much time."
"I am not completely happy. The target was to aim for the podium, so probably we are one off. We had some engine problems since day one, so we lost a little bit of time because of that. Overall I think we improved quite a lot in places and we have some ideas of where to find more speed in the future."
SS18
"I gave it my all. It's disappointing. I really tried but I hit a snowbank and spun around - I was quite lucky. That's rallying, but it's been a great fight with Andreas all weekend, That's how it goes sometimes."
in snowbank
"The pace is really high. He is really pushing and these cars are really fast and flowing, so I needed to push to keep the same pace."
"The gap is quite good. I was not pushing in here so much and I tried to save the tyres a bit. It seems that on the power stage the grip was really high. I don't really know what we can do without the hybrid boost but hopefully we can do something there."
Spin
"I have absolutely no traction in there and it was a nightmare to be honest. It looks like the grip is low for everybody, but I struggled to get the confidence."
"It's not over, but I can not catch [Neuville]. The most important thing is to get the points for the team."
"I am really looking forward to the power stage. I was just saving the tyres, but I feel quite comfortable in the car so I will try to push in the next one."
"I wasn't pushing, I was just driving very straight and clean. There's a lot of gravel on the road so I didn't want to kill the tyres."
"I took it very easy - I want to save my tyres."
"On the second pass, the line is so tricky. I think for us it will be a difficult job to get some points, but we have to try to take to something."
"I just tried to be so careful. There's a lot of gravel coming through, so I wanted to preserve the studs. We're here, so let's see what we can do in the next one."
SS17
"I took some risks, but I had a good stage. It was clean with no big dramas. I am happy with my stage, so we will see. We'll do our best to keep the pressure on him."
"We're pushing really hard to be honest. On these fast and flowing roads there is not much more we can do without taking crazy risks."
"Let's see. It's a nice stage and the tome is surprisingly good. I was quite careful and not pushing. I think it could be a bit difficult on the power stage for sure. Without the boost from the hybrid, it's a bit tricky on the long straights."
"I saw a lot of parts on the road and a lot of snowbanks were destroyed. I struggled with the feeling in all of the braking points, so I lose a lot of time there."
"I don't have the confidence. I can do 95% but I can not go faster. The car feels good and the notes are good, so it's just me."
"Just a stall - it was my mistake. I didn't push at all but the time is still not bad. I am feeling quite comfortable."
"Big gaps in front and big gaps behind, so it was a nice and calm drive. We'll see what we can do this afternoon."
"It's okay. Ott only has one spare wheel, I have two. We were just checking the notes for the power stage and they look okay. Flat-out later!"
"It's a very hard road and good conditions at the moment. It's still quite tricky, so let's see. We need to try."
"That's really beautiful. I had a slow run through the first one but then tried to get back up to speed in here. We'll try and make a few set-up changes to give it our all this afternoon."
SS16
Halfspin into a snowbank & air filter full of snow
off road
"We don't even have the hybrid working on the car, so I think the time is quite good! It should be okay [for the other stages]."
"The game is on, but I didn't have a perfect stage. We need to work a little bit on the chassis and I think we can continue pushing."
"I can not do anything more to be honest. This is my speed."
"This stage is so fast! It's nice. I tried to save the tyres a bit for the power stage."
"For me it was just nice and cautious. There's no need to do anything because there are big gaps in front and behind us. We need to get the points."
I think today is about enjoying and getting some good notes ready for next year. I think this stage was super-fast and it was difficult to really go for it. I'm just trying to cruise through and enjoy."
"This stage will be quicker. We were slow, but the other guys will come fast."
Retired on the road section
SS15
Mechanical
Off road
mechanical issue on road section
"I just went a little bit off, but the bank was so soft that we just went straight through!"
"I tried in the previous stage to push but I started to do mistakes. I just tried to stay on the line in this one."
off road after flying finnish
"I think something is wrong with the engine. It's a real shame and very frustrating, but these things happen. Anyway, it's part of the game."
"I had to slow down quite a lot to pass Fourmaux, but that's part of the game. It has been a tough day, but so much better than yesterday. I am really happy."
stopped, engine issue
"It was a much better afternoon, but they were some of the worst conditions I've ever driven. I'm just glad we're here."
"Tricky conditions. The first part of the day was quite fun, but cleaning is frustrating in the second part. We are not fighting for anything, so that makes it easier."
SS14
"I tried to push a bit more, but there's no way we can match the speed like Kalle was going. We have to stick with our rhythm, but it's very difficult to go faster."
"I am happy. After the first one of the loop, the feeling was a bit down, but I knew on this one I could try to push and I pushed a lot."
"It was okay. In a few areas I scrubbed too much speed and I struggled for balance of the front end in here, actually. We'll just keep doing our best and see what happens."
"It was bad - I made so many mistakes. I really tried to push, but it goes really nasty when I try to push harder. I am hitting the banks, and that's just slow."
"It's difficult. I don't know why, but I am getting more into it now. I'm happier with the car this afternoon and it's getting more consistent. It could still be better, but a safe fifth place is good."
"It's getting better and better. I can drive very natural, but maybe at some points I was pushing too much and lost the line. Everything is fine and I will try to push in the next stage as well."
"It was a clean stage. The guys in front are doing well, so there are no worries."
"It wasn't so bad. Towards the end the tyres were gone, but the Hyundais are mega fast in a straight line. When you've got 2km straights there's not an awful lot you can do, but that one felt good for me."
"Tricky conditions. I lost quite a lot [passing Breen]. Half of his car is on the road, so we had to slow down to pass."
mechanical
SS12
"It was okay, but it's not as good as it was yesterday. I can't do more in the twisty sections if I want to push harder, so we still need to work around the car. The confidence is still not 100 per cent there."
"Elfyn was fast here in the morning too. I felt like I did a good stage for these conditions - I can not do much more than that."
"I don't know, let's see. I tried to keep in a clean line, but you never know if you're pushing enough. It's very difficult to judge"
"If I start to concentrate on what the others are doing, I will not stay on the road. The concentration needs to be on our own performance and that's what we are doing."
"It's better - at least now the car is consistent and I can have some confidence. I just took it easy in there because it's so rough and very difficult conditions."
"Some push, but I tried to be tidy. Sometimes it's impossible to stay on the road because there is no lines sometimes. It was like being on a bobsleigh and using the banks to stay on the road!"
"It was not really nice to drive. Unfortunately there was a lot of loose snow and I struggled to find the lines, so I had no traction. It was just about survival, but for sure there is a lot of cleaning effect."
"I stalled at the start and lost 5sec - I don't know why. Apart from that it felt pretty okay."
"It's a bit more than difficult. It's harder work than in the gym - it's a big job at the moment! Anyway, it's good experience."
"Pretty tricky in there. I'm sure the historic boys have a ball of fun sliding around the place, but the lines that they leave behind are definitely not made for these cars!"
SS11
"I struggled with the car in the junctions. There is something with the mapping that is doing the revs going down, so I had a half-spin because of that. Otherwise, it's all okay and I think it's been an okay loop."
"Quite a tricky stage. A lot of high-speed braking down to zero. We had a clean stage and were trying to be fast, but I know the ditch is not an option!"
"I went straight on at the first braking pint. After that, something was strange - the car was slowed down all the time by the hybrid system. I couldn't get the speed, but we are still here. The Toyotas were really fast this morning and I couldn't get the speed to be honest, but we are still here and we are trying."
"It was much more difficult than I expected. I made so many stupid mistakes and it was quite tricky in the ruts, but it's good that we didn't lose much time."
"I honestly don't know what's happening. I am driving very bad today and I have no confidence at all. I'm trying to get something to work, but I don't have any confidence to push the car. We need to try something else."
"I expected more messy sections, but it wasn't so bad. The ice is quite thick and quite slippy but everything is fine. It's not too bad."
"When the conditions are consistent, I feel a lot more confidence so I can push without taking too many risks. I don't want to make mistakes, so for sure it helps me when I am in these conditions. That stage was really nice."
"The last stage felt really nice but the time was rubbish, and the first stage didn't feel so good but the time was okay. In there, it was quite tricky. The grip levels are nice and the sun's out, so it's not bad."
"I am just driving the car. The first loop has been quite good fun."
"We missed that one yesterday. I made a couple of changes before the stage and the car is definitely going in the right direction. We need to keep on making steps like that."
SS10
"We hit too many snowbanks and in the end it felt like we had a puncture, need to check the car."
"I don't know what's wrong, some engine cutting in the end, but for sure not losing that much."
"Keep trying. We had some noise in the car in the end, backed off a little. The stage wasn't so good."
"I tried to be honest, it was better yesterday. I could go faster but not 3 seconds. We will investigate this afternoon. One more stage to go, let's see."
"It was okay, I did few mistakes and i'm not so happy. The cars in front are not making a mess with the banks so it's okay."
"Felt good in places but not in others. Let's see."
Time is not really good, i'm surprised we were that slow. I cannot say any reason for that. Conditions are perfect! (Changes?) Need to improve the driving it seems."
"I made many mistakes. I hesitated in the technical parts."
"That was a really nice stage. Grip levels are really high, so it's impossible not to enjoy that one. It will deteriorate a little bit [on the second pass], but not as much as we saw yesterday."
"In this stage the grip was better than the previous one. Let's see - we are just having fun."
"That was beautiful. Obviously I wasn't taking all the risks on the very fast road, but we've made some changes to the car and we'll keep on going."
SS8
"I didn't find goods grip to be honest, and I had a lot of wheel spin on the start and lost probably two seconds there. This is a tricky stage and anything can happen, but we will try to find the rhythm and go."
"It was very tricky, especially here at it's so narrow. A lot of the lines are quite messy because everybody is touching the banks. I tried to be good, but let's see what Thierry does behind."
"It's okay. A little bit scrappy in places and too careful in others. It's always difficult in these kinds of conditions."
"The beginning of the first half went pretty well, but I don't know what happened in the second half. I was braking too early, but the feeling is good."
"It must have been a big attack from Taka. I lost a lot at the start with the wheels spinning, so that's not good."
"That's good. It's very nice with the snowbanks, but also very narrow and not so easy. I tried to enjoy, but this stage will be more rough in the afternoon."
"It's quite narrow and it's really fresh snow. I expected more grip, so I was struggling a little bit, and I wasn't really driving well - I was a bit tense behind the wheel."
"We'll just make some improvements throughout the day to try and get a good feeling back. That's all we can do."
"The characteristic is a bit similar to yesterday's first one, but the surface is a bit more solid. A bit low grip, but otherwise the stage is good."
"We''ll just try and get some mileage really. I had a very short test and I made a very short day first day of the rally. We took that stage to get settled into it and we'll see how the rest of the day goes."
SS7
"I stalled the car in a junction and then it wouldn't restart. I was sitting there for so long. It was such a good day and it's a big shame that this happened here. At least now he can clean the road for us tomorrow!"
"It's okay but I am really annoyed because I stalled the engine two times today. I lost so much time there, but otherwise I think it's quite okay."
"In this stage I lost too much on the braking. It's difficult to understand the grip and I need to work a lot. At least we are here and let's continue tomorrow."
"All the people are really nice to see. We had a good day and didn't take too many risks this morning. We tried to step it up a little bit for the second pass and I think we managed to improve. Let's see tomorrow, there's still a long way to go. Ole Christian has had a really good day, so that's very cool for him."
"I overshot the first junction, so I lost a hell of a lot of time. That was a bit stupid. Anyway, not really what I hoped for today. The pace is good, but I took a bit of a gamble with the tyres and it didn't pay off. There's a long weekend ahead with still many stages to go tomorrow and Sunday. We just have to keep pushing and we will see what happens."
"I did what I could, but we are having big issues with the tyre wear. The pace is good. I thought I was smart with the tyres, but I just can't save them."
"The tyres are struggling a little bit on this stage, so we had no traction and it was quite tricky under braking. I am happy - it was really interesting to drive in the night and good fun."
"I just had no grip at all. I did what I could, but it was very difficult."
"Of course it's always nice to do this kind of stage. It has been quite a tough day, but many things were important for my future so I just tried to do the rally. It's not good and I'm a bit disappointed, but we still have two days to go so I will try to concentrate."
"I don't know. We'll go again tomorrow..."
"We had a very clever afternoon - we managed our tyres very well and the car was working perfectly. We made some small set-up changes in service - only small ones - and I felt comfortable so I was able to drive fast. I maybe managed the tyres a little too much in the long stage, but I think we played it very well."
"I tried to be smart and I tried to save a bit of tyres for this one. Let's see how the time works out. Perhaps I was a bit careful, but it's fully ice in here so you can not push too much."
SS6
"No tyres! It's as simple as that. I gambled a bit on the tyres in the last stage and that were dead at the end. Now we see the consequence of that."
"I just tried to be very clean all the time. My tyres are completely gone, so I am surprised we did this time!"
"The atmosphere in the night is so beautiful. I was struggling a little bit with the rear because my tyres are worn and I lost a lot of studs. It was a clean stage and I am happy with my drive."
"Not so nice to be honest. The car is quite imbalanced now with warm tyres on the rear."
Hybrid kit error
"It's not so easy, but I'm just trying to keep it clean and go through the stage."
"Good feeling. The car is working fine, so I feel quite comfortable. But the conditions are tricky, and the road is going to clean up a little bit. Our tyres should be okay for the last 5km."
"Not a lot of positives today... not a lot..."
"This one was quite okay. In the beginning it was not so good and there was a narrow line, so I had to clean it quite a lot. I tried to do something clever with the tyres, but I think for this one it was not so good. We will see the time."
SS5
Stalled
"I drove way too careful and took care of my tyres too much in the beginning."
"That's good. It was a very clean stage from me. I was hardly on the banks, but on the next one I need to be better than on the first pass."
"I am improving. I had a good feeling with the car, but I was still really cautious in a lot of places. It's not so bad actually - I'm happy with my driving."
"It was actually a big disappointment because in the last 10km we lost the hybrid power! We hit a bit of a bump and it just went off."
"I felt a bit careful in places, actually. We were sliding quite a bit. Difficult conditions and I knew it wasn't perfect.
"I tried to be very clean without any mistakes. It was a shame that on the first one in the afternoon I lost a lot of time, but this is part of the game. There is still a long way to go, so I will try to focus and get back some time."
"I don't know where the window has gone, that's probably from the stage before. In service, we had to change the gearbox. I was struggling and just sent it into a bank. The front was all clogged up [with snow] and we lost power."
"The conditions are very difficult. You have the parts where there is a lot of snow on the road and you need to make the line, but also some sections where this a lot of grip and you need to look after your tyres."
SS4
"I came in perfect and then all of a sudden it didn't turn in! It was fine. I did a mistake at the end and lost a lot of time and I did a mistake in the second corner too. It's unnecessary."
"We never gave up. I am sure Kalle has a disadvantage on the road position, but we need to concentrate on our own job."
"It's really difficult with lines everywhere. I tried to keep my lines and keep my wheels in the ruts. I didn't expect that time, but it's a really tricky stage."
"It can only be a disaster at the front in conditions like this. Even for us it's difficult, and to manage the pace and the tyres is a big job at the moment."
"It's so difficult in there and so messy. I'm sure it was a nightmare for Kalle, but it didn't feel that great for us either."
"It was very bad conditions and I lost the line and got stuck in the ditch. It's not okay, but I will try to survive and be more clean."
"We just want to improve on this morning. The conditions are very different now - the ruts are insane. I wasn't pushing hard in there, I just tried to keep it in the line."
"The road will continuously get faster. It's the same every year with the historic cars in front. I had a very good stage in these conditions - it was close to perfect apart from one hairpin when I missed the braking."
"In the morning it was okay, but now it's really difficult. There is no line at all. I tried to follow the line and I tried to make my own line but it doesn't work at all."
in snowbank
SS3
fuel pump issue
"It looks like being early on the road is good here. I was too careful in many places and the time flies fast against these guys. It doesn't matter, it's fun and I'm enjoying."
"I stalled on the start and it didn't restart immediately. Definitely also we didn't lose 15sec. I was probably a bit too cautious and trying to stay out of the banks, but it doesn't work like that."
"I think I have to improve more with my driving than with the car. I am just going to keep this pace. We are still here and that's what's important."
"Before this stage we damaged it, and now it came off. It's so fast and the front is quite light, so there's no aero."
"Yeah, just changing a few notes. I don't have great confidence with the car to be honest. I'm struggling with the front end, so it's hard to commit and be smooth."
"There is quite a lot of difference in grip level between stages. I was not really happy this morning, but I will try to improve this afternoon."
"No hybrid, but the bigger issue is the gearbox. We'll fix it at service but it's been a bad morning."
"We had some electrical issues and we were lucky with the red flag [in SS2], but I had to work really hard with the car between the stages. I am really happy that we are here now."
"The morning was already quite tricky, but this stage was the best conditions of them all. The only issue is when you are first car there are a lot of snow blocks on the inside and outside of the corners, so sometimes you have to clean them. I think the afternoon will be even more difficult."
SS2
off road
in snowbank
"We also had some moments, but it's fine. I like these kinds of fast corners, but in some sections I was trying to be clean. Let's see how it goes."
"It's new stages. They are very enjoyable to drive but they are quite tricky conditions. I am trying not to take any risks - it's too early to go flat-out and it's very easy to make a mistake. We are trying to be clever and trying to drive at a good pace."
"I think maybe I had a clean run with the tyres, but my notes were too optimistic in places and I had a few scary moments."
"I'm really surprised because on the big road I was so slow. I braked so many times in the corners where I should have gone flat because I didn't have the confidence."
"It was a really different stage. This one was really fast and the ground was a lot more compact. It was nice to drive, but I didn't take any risks. I can improve, especially under braking, but I want to enjoy and take the pace."
"I am struggling a bit with the balance, but the balance is more important in the slow [sections] than the fast. The car is also new, but of course we are doing everything we can."
"I felt really quite bad in there and I didn't expect to be anywhere near Kalle. We'll take that, but we need to improve for the next one."
"We were lucky with the red flag. The battery pack wasn't working and the car asked me to turn on the emergency, but I can't stop it now."
Accident
Spin
SS1
"Not too bad. I didn't do a good stage and I had a lot of problems with shifting. I think it was okay. It's a long way to go but it's going to be a flat-out rally, that's for sure."
"Tricky! You have no idea if you have the grip and it feels like the lines are completely in the wrong places. The entry of the corner is almost one metre too late. It's challenging."
"I want to get the confidence. It was a clean stage for me and there was a lot of loose snow, so it was difficult to stay in the line."
"This one was a big job. The road is broken and there is a lot of loose snow. It's hard work."
"No big deal. It's very difficult with the lines. The snow is thick and it's very messy in there."
"It was not so great. The conditions were more loose and quite slippy. I expected more grip but it was actually not so good."
"I just got caught in the braking and couldn't get the car stopped. It was trying to stall and I had to keep my foot on the clutch to stop it from stalling. It's frustrating and very tricky."
"I am quite happy with this stage. The grip is quite low, and the road is definitely getting faster. I had a clean run, but I am still not so confident on the entry to the corners, so I need to work on that. Other than that, the car was fine."
"Very tricky. There was so much more snow than I anticipated from the recce and I was just trying not to make any mistakes and stay on the road. There's so much more time there, but you can get stuck in the snow banks so easily."
small off
"I tried my best. It was much more difficult than I thought - especially the small roads. They are really tricky to drive. The line is directly under the snow and we have to open it. I think we are going to lose a lot of time to the guys behind, but it's like this."