Hayden Paddon and John Kennard’s capture of nine points on Barum Czech Rally Zlín last weekend means the Hyundai-powered Italian squad now has 133 points in the provisional standings compared to Team MRF Tyres, which has 113 points ahead of next week’s JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion, the penultimate event of the 2024 ERC season.
Gabriele Rizzo, team principal of BRC Racing Team, said: “Barum Rally is by far the trickiest Tarmac event of the season and the unpredictable weather added further drama to the storyboard. Great respect and humility is needed to approach these stages and every time this did not happen you get severely punished. It's what occurred to us in SS8 where we picked up a double puncture that put us out of contention of the top positions. But our strongest point as a team together with Hayden and John is a fierce never give up attitude and the Sunday recovery culminated with a superb third in the Power Stage, in front of many locals, that pays off with extra championship points.
“Despite everything, we leave from here increasing our lead in both standings, drivers and team, that was our main target before the event. A big thank you to the team as it was again a perfect weekend for them and for the reliability of the car.”
Behind Team MRF Tyres, the title-winning squad for the last two seasons, Eurosol Racing Team Hungary has climbed from fourth to third with ACCR Orsák Rally Sport moving up from eighth to sixth. Meanwhile, Topp-Cars Rally Team has returned to the top 10 in ninth place.
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