Highly motivated Tidemand ready for brand new WRC 2 challenge

It’s been a long wait, but after almost six months, it’s finally time for the WRC to start up again. Toksport World Rally Team still put their faith in Pontus Tidemand and give him a chance in the WRC 2, this time at the WRC newcomer: Rally Estonia.

“This is a brand new challenge for most of the drivers, which makes it even more thrilling. The roads are super fast and technical, with many jumps and crests and I hope that it will be similar to the Finnish rally, because that’s an event I really enjoy” said Pontus, who still has the memory of his victory in Mexico fresh in his mind.

“Sure we felt like we had something great going on and the team felt the same way, and that’s the reason why we’re back on the start line this weekend. I’m hoping that we will be able to continue where we left off in March and fight for another good result and valuable championship points.”

Over the past months the international championships have obviously been forced to take a break, but in the meantime, Pontus has taken every chance to drive. In the beginning of June, he participated at Rally Sweden Lockdown, where he finished second, and later that same month, he jumped into a rallycross car for All-Star Magic Weekend on his home soil. And just last weekend, he did the Euro RX premiere, also in Sweden.

After the Euro RX event, he barely had time to repack his suitcase before he was off to Germany for a test with SKODA Motorsport.

“It’s so important to get time behind the wheel and I’m so grateful that I’ve had these races during the summer. To come back to the rally car last week could not have been more perfect considering Rally Estonia. I feel as warmed up and prepared as can be right now” said Pontus, who had a test together with his co-driver Patrik Barth and Toksport WRT on Estonian soil on Monday.

All in all, 28 crews have entered the RC2, or Rally 2, as the category for all R5 cars is called, and Pontus expects a big battle.

“This will be extremely tough. Like I said, I’m very happy that I’ve been able to do some driving over the last months, but I also know that my competitors have kept busy lately. After a break this long, I think everyone is really eager to get back to business so the pace will be high, no doubts about that” said Pontus with a smile.

This is the tenth annual Rally Estonia, but the first time it is a part of the WRC series and makes Estonia the 33rd nation to host a WRC event. The service park is located in the city of Tartu, while most of the stages are centered around Otepää, which is called Estonia’s ‘winter capital’, in the south of the country. 12 special stages, measuring a total of more than 230 kilometers, will be mastered during the weekend.