WRC 2
Gus Greensmith may have launched his WRC2 campaign with victory at Safari Rally Kenya, but the Briton insists there’s still work to be done if he’s to stay ahead of the competition this season.
Making his first points-scoring appearance of the year, Greensmith guided his RaceSeven-prepared Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 to a win of more than three minutes in WRC2. He also placed an impressive sixth overall - but unlike his triumph in Africa 12 months prior, this time he left Naivasha with mixed feelings.
The fight for WRC2 honours ebbed and flowed across Kenya’s punishing four-day fixture, with Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 trio Oliver Solberg, Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Jan Solans all enjoying spells at the top. But it was Greensmith, alongside co-driver Jonas Andersson, who ultimately prevailed, helped in part by Solans’ dramatic final-day roll.
Still, despite his result, Greensmith admitted the performance didn’t quite match his own high standards – and pointed to the pace of the GR Yaris as a key concern.
I wouldn’t say it’s been my best performance – far from it, actually.
“We’ve won Kenya two years in a row,” he told WRC.com. “And, for some reason, I’ve won the first rally of my championship the last three years in a row, so it’s becoming a bit of a habit and I’m very happy. But I wouldn’t say it’s been my best performance – far from it, actually. The performance was far less dominant than last year, which is the negative to take from the weekend.
“It was scrappy in places. There’s definitely a lot to come, and we definitely need to find a lot, because the Toyota [GR Yaris Rally2] is fast – really fast. Now we’re heading into a really busy and highly competitive middle part of the season and we just need to carry this through better than last year.”
Škoda Motorsport recently introduced a new performance package – dubbed ‘Packet 25’ – for its Fabia RS Rally2, and it includes improvements in both power delivery and durability.
But, having tested the GR Yaris himself, Greensmith is under no illusion about the scale of the challenge the car presents.
“I tested the GR Yaris at the back end of last year,” he added, “and the thing is, it feels like you’re not trying but the time is just there. So, if you can then access that second part, then it’s very hard to beat. That’s been the premise of what I feel – it’s a very easy car [to drive], and Jan [Solans] and Kajto [Kajetanowicz] have made huge steps from last year. I’m not saying that’s all down to the car, but for sure it seems to have helped.”
Greensmith will sit out this month's Rally Islas Canarias and has, instead, elected to continue his campaign at Vodafone Rally de Portugal in May.
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