By Paul Evans
Elfyn Evans lost out on a maiden FIA World Rally Championship victory in Argentina last year by just 0.7 seconds. He scored his first WRC win on Wales Rally GB later in the season of course, and now the 29-year old from Dolgellau is back in South America and on a mission to kick start his 2018 season in style.
Another boost for Evans is that his regular co-driver, Daniel Barritt, is fully fit and back reading the pacenotes in their works M-Sport Ford Fiesta WRC – after missing the recent Tour of Corsica whilst still recuperating from their Rally Mexico shunt.
Evans hasn’t had the best of starts to the WRC, yet he’s still amassed 18 points from four events and will benefit from starting 10th on the road in Argentina, which is a favourable road position on the loose gravel event. This will also be his fifth appearance on the rally, although this year only three stages have run before, with three completely new stages and modifications to all the others making the 2018 route a slightly different challenge.
“It’s great to see Dan fully recovered and back at an event that holds a lot of special memories for the both of us,” says Evans. “It’s where we secured our first podium in 2015, and where we came so close to victory last year. That was a hard defeat to take at the time, but it made us stronger and we’ll be hoping to challenge for the top results again this year.
“It’s fair to say that I’ve not had the best start to the season, but we’re determined to turn that around this week. With a solid result in Corsica, and Dan back by my side in Argentina, we’re looking forward to the challenge and focused on delivering a strong result.
“You have to take a fairly measured approach to an event like this as there is very little margin for error. There’s the potential for something to catch you out around practically every corner – so you have to have a clean rally and keep mistakes to a minimum.
“We completed some development testing in the lead-up to this event where we were able to get a feel for driving on gravel again. We will have a fairly good road position for the opening day and the car feels good – so let’s see what we can do.”
“It’s great to see Dan fully recovered and reunited with Elfyn on an event they came so close to winning last year,” added M-Sport team boss Malcolm Wilson. “They both really enjoy this event and have gone extremely well here in the past. They’re in need of a strong result to kick-start their championship campaign, and I’m confident they can do that.”
Based in the province of Córdoba, the fifth round of the 2018 FIA World Rally Championship starts on Thursday with a super special stage around the host town of Villa Carlos Paz, before the rally continues on Friday over the soft, sandy roads of the Calamuchita Valley. Saturday’s stages take place in the Punilla Valley, while Sunday’s final day of action is located on the narrow rock-strewn roads in the Traslasierra Mountains, famed for their moonlike landscapes. The legendary El Cóndor and Giulio Cesare stages are run in a reverse direction this year, with the second run through El Cóndor counting as the final bonus points scoring Power Stage.