CHILE - All of M-Sport Ford World Rally Team’s crews have completed the latest challenging edition of Rally Chile, a rally which was full of promising beginnings but marred by bad luck and tricky weather. 

Adrien Fourmaux, Grégoire Munster and Mārtiņš Sesks all battled hard in South America but solid performances from all three crews would sadly not pay off in the form of podium positions. 

Making their debut in Chile this year, Adrien Fourmaux and Alex Coria opened Friday with very positive pace and were third after the morning loop of stages. The afternoon would be all about continuing their quest for a podium finish. Sadly, on the road section after SS4, damage to the alternator belt was found, calling for roadside repairs. Whilst making the repair, one of the water pipes would sustain damage and the additional repairs needed would cost the pair precious time, meaning they arrived at the start control to SS5 late, picking up a costly one minute time penalty. 

With frustration fueling him, Fourmaux would then take the stage win on SS6 by 1.6 seconds, a bitter-sweet victory. At the end of Friday, without the one-minute penalty, Fourmaux would have been second overall, only 2 seconds off the lead.

With the remainder of the weekend tainted, Fourmaux would now focus on gaining back as much ground as possible. Expertly navigating Saturday afternoon’s treacherously foggy conditions, he would gain three positions throughout the day, and round off with another stage win. Fifth at the end of Saturday would see the Frenchman pick up eight provisional championship points. 

Another clean drive on Sunday, only hampered by a half-spin, Fourmaux and Coria would protect their overall position and claim an additional two points in the Super Sunday standings. 

Grégoire Munster and Louis Louka would have a positive weekend in Chile, making their return after their Rally1 debut here last year. Setting competitive times from the start, the pair made use of their good road position on the opening day, claiming third fastest in SS3 along the way and found themselves sitting fifth overall at the end of the day.

Rising to the challenge of Saturday’s difficult weather conditions, Munster would utilise his experience here to navigate the thick fog. His reward would be third fastest on SS11; with the majority of other crews struggling, Munster again showed his capabilities on gravel. 

Munster and Louka would go on to finish the event seventh overall, rounding off the final gravel event of the season with a solid example of a clever but confident drive.

Mārtiņš Sesks and Renārs Francis would also make their debut here in Chile, behind the wheel of a non-hybrid Puma Rally1. Unfortunately, the opening day would prove a difficult lesson for Sesks, the Latvian pairing picking up two punctures on the same corner in SS3. With only one spare tyre, Sesks was forced to retire for the day and miss out on a crucial stage kilometers.

Starting again fresh on Saturday, Sesks was focused on gaining maximum experience for the remaining stages in Chile, delivering a clean drive and gaining valuable seat time. With fairly smooth events experienced in Poland and Latvia, Sesks learns some valuable character-building lessons here in Chile which he will take into the next chapter of his career. 

Richard Millener, Team Principal, said:
“It is definitely a case of what could have been here, the one minute time penalty really hampered the overall result for Adrien, which was a huge shame. However, that’s rally sometimes and despite this disappointment we can still look back on another positive weekend. Two stage wins, another demonstration of the speed of the Puma from both Adrien and Gregoire, and solid results from them both in some really tricky conditions. 

“I am also happy for Grégoire and Louis that they have got a solid result after the last two tricky events.

“For Mārtiņš and Renārs, I guess it wasn’t quite what they had hoped for. A small mistake with big consequences on Friday, and a tough last stage with no rear spoiler, but I think they still did a great job and got an insight into the experience that they need to learn to get to the top of the WRC - one of the key reasons to bring them here.”

Adrien Fourmaux, Fifth overall, said:
“First time here in Chile, and I really enjoyed the stages. The fans were great with us and cheered us on all the time. We enjoyed the rally; it was really a shame what happened on Friday with the issue with the alternator and the water pipe, but that’s part of the game.

“We managed to get a top-five result so we can be pleased with that, now we go back to Tarmac to finish the season.”

Grégoire Munster, Seventh overall, said:
“I’m happy with our Friday performance, we showed good pace and were competitive with the front guys. Saturday was a bit more difficult in the morning, they were new stages for us but we improved in the afternoon in tricky conditions. In the fog we managed to do a third-fastest time in SS11, which was really great for us.

“Sunday was tricky again with the rain and fog but we managed to stay out of trouble and not make any mistakes throughout the weekend. The goal was to bring the car home, which was important for us after a good effort on Friday.”

Mārtiņš Sesks, 24th overall, said:
“First of all I think it was really challenging to be here in Chile for the first time. Our first two Rally1 outings were quite smooth really from our side. But here we found many new challenges, and everyday was different. We caught a double puncture on Friday unfortunately, and since Saturday it was just about keeping it safe and learning as much as we can. 

“Some new experience for us, especially with losing the aero on Sunday. I think it’s better to have these challenges now, when we’re not really fighting for anything. It’s better to know how to cope with it now than in the future when there’s more at stake.”