BREEN’S WRC RETURN STILL ISN’T CERTAIN
Government decision regarding mass gatherings holds key to Rally Finland
Craig Breen is due to find out this week if his second outing with the factory Hyundai team this season will go ahead.
Breen has been called up to drive a third works i20 Coupe
WRC on Rally Finland – the world championship round he knows best.
The event is due to host the resumption of the WRC season from August 6-9, providing the country’s government decides against extending measures banning mass gatherings beyond the end of July; a prospect that remained on the table when Motorsport News closed for press.
Rally Finland is dependent on ticket sales, making a behindclosed-doors event a non-starter. And with Kai Tarkiainen, the rally’s clerk of the course, previously telling Motorsport News that planning issues would count against a replacement date being sought, Breen’s 11th Finland start is not certain.
Breen finished seventh for Hyundai in Finland last season and again in Sweden this year. He’s set to partner Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak at the team which has not taken a WRC podium in Finland.
“Obviously we are all anticipating the safe running of the rally,” said Breen “Me and Paul [Nagle] really can’t wait to get back in the car again.”
Breen’s Finnish experience
Craig Breen has form when it comes to competing in Finland. He was third on its WRC counter in 2016, his first podium at world level, and completed the top three on the Finnish championship Itaralli in
February, his first outing for Team MRF Tyres, his European championship employer.
“My track record in Finland is not bad, getting on the podium in 2016, and of all the world championship rallies it’s probably the one I have most experience of and am most comfortable on,” Breen said. “I’ve been quite consistent in the past, delivering points and results, and that’s what the team are looking for.
“Rally Finland is incredibly fast in places with big, wide roads and jumps through the forests. It’s a special place and if you feel confident, like you’ve got everything in hand and feel safe, you can really do some incredible things. But the most important part is to feel really confident so you can push. When I had my good results there, I was in that zone and had that feeling, it becomes very easy.”