Kris Meeke and Ricardo Teodósio want to highlight the superiority of the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 in Castelo Branco
Absolute dominator of the 2023 Portuguese Rally Championship (CPR), the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 will be the favorite, next weekend (June 21 and 22), to win the Castelo Branco Rally, the fifth race of the season and the first with asphalt qualifiers. The Team Hyundai Portugal duos, Kris Meeke/Stuart Loudon and Ricardo Teodósio/José Teixeira, will present themselves in that city of Beira Baixa determined to maintain the superiority of the i20 N Rally2 in the CPR, whose record marks so far 64.5% of best times in the 48 special classification races disputed.
Kris Meeke, who is 100 per cent victorious this season – four wins in four races – and is therefore the outstanding leader of the championship, says:
"Being the first rally of the season on asphalt, it will certainly be an interesting challenge. I remember last year it was incredibly hot. The high temperatures don't make things easy in the course of the rally. I foresee a tough fight for the victory, as it seems to me that the Portuguese riders are much stronger on asphalt compared to dirt. We'll see how far I can go, but I hope to do a good job so I can enjoy and start the asphalt season well...", said Meeke.
The defending Portuguese champion, Ricardo Teodósio, talks about turning the page, adding:
"This season, the gravel rally phase did not go well for me, as there were several setbacks, but now we have to look ahead with optimism. I feel confident and it would be great to start asphalt rallies with a podium finish. That's what we're going to strive for and give it our all."
The Castelo Branco Rally, with a total of 12 stages (109.53 km), starts Friday, in Castelo Branco, at 15:00 pm, with three "specials" until the end of the afternoon and in the evening, in the city center, the day ends with two "super-specials" (2.5 km), starting at 21:03 pm. On Saturday, the remaining 7 stages (71.33 km) that will decide the fifth race of the CPR will take place from 8:30 am, with the end of the rally scheduled for 9:18 pm.
RallyFish will provide live updates throughout the event on our Facebook page and our Whatsapp channel.
Team Hyundai Portugal
