Catalunya : First Motorsport - FinishFrancois Duval and co-driver Patrick Pivato completed the Rally de Espana Catalunya-Costa Daurada in sixth place for the First Motorsport Skoda Team.
It was a strong performance throughout three days of flat-out driving under clear
blue skies and in temperatures that quickly rose to around 25 degrees in the mountains above Salou.
The 25-year old Belgian's Fabia WRC 05 was contesting its first true asphalt event of the year but from the start of the rally Duval showed he could compete directly with 2006 specification cars from rival teams. As in Monte Carlo, Duval also managed to score a stage win early in the rally and as the event progressed he was competing at a similar pace to drivers such as
Sebastien Loeb and
Marcus Gronholm.
Unfortunately Duval's overall position was compromised by overheating front brakes and heavy tyre wear during the first half of the rally but by the end the team had managed to minimise the problem.
Duval said: “It was quite a difficult rally for us but overall I am happy with my performance.
The roads in Spain do not suit the Fabia as much as the roads in Corsica will next month so I am looking forward to that event.”
First Motorsport team principal Willy Collignon said: “To be able to compete this closely against the latest specification cars from other teams was really good. It was important for us to finish this rally but to achieve this and be so competitive has made us all very happy. This is an excellent start to our relationship with Skoda Auto and makes us confident for Corsica.”
The Rallye de France takes place on April 7-9.
Press release First Motorsport
