Kris Meeke expects the local Italian drivers to have the upper hand after it began to rain in Sanremo.
Although the Intercontinental Rally Challenge champion conducted his pre-event test in wet conditions he said it had provided little assistance.
“We did our test in the wet although the road we were using turned out to be very muddy,” said Meeke. “Everybody has a lot of practice in the wet from [Barum Czech Rally Zlín] and the Italians seem to go very well here when it’s wet because they know where the grip is and where it’s not. Generally the grip will still be good everywhere even in the wet but there’s still that difference between very good and good. And it’s that step you need to make. It doesn’t have to be a big change.”
With thunderstorms forecast for Friday night, Meeke said the challenge facing the crews will be magnified.
“The rain will make it more difficult for everybody to read the road and from what we see the forecast is only going to get wetter,” said Meeke. “We’ve seen last year we were able to be quite good on day two and the weather seems to be okay for tomorrow. As long as we keep in the hunt tonight we know we can be fast tomorrow if the weather is favourable. I just want to stay in the thick of it tonight and not lose a mountain of time. If we are within 20 or 30 seconds off the lead I’ll be happy.”