Patrik Sandell is braced for a tough second day on Sata Rallye Açores at the wheel of his ŠKODA Sweden Fabia Super 2000. The 29-year-old will run at the head of the field after the top five positions following Thursday’s second stage were reversed to determine the running order for day two.
It means he will have to sweep away the loose surface gravel to create a clear path for the drivers running behind. As a result he is expected to drop time due to the lack of braking performance and traction he will encounter.
“It was not really the plan because I know it won’t be easy being first on the road but [Juho] Hänninen was blindingly fast [on Thursday] from second on the road so it’s not completely a problem,” said Sandell.
While Sandell fears he will struggle at the head of the field, drivers such as Bryan Bouffier, Ricardo Moura and Guy Wilks are set to benefit from their lower starting positions.
Top 10 starting positions for day two
1 Patrik Sandell/Staffan Parmander (ŠKODA Fabia S2000)
2 Jan Kopecký/Petr Starý (ŠKODA Fabia S2000)
3 Bruno Magalhães/Paulo Grave (Peugeot 207 S2000)
4 Andreas Mikkelsen/Ola Fløene (ŠKODA Fabia S2000)
5 Juho Hänninen/Mikko Markkula (ŠKODA Fabia S2000)
6 Ricardo Moura/Sandro Eiró (Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX)
7 Guy Wilks/Phil Pugh (Peugeot 207 S2000)
8 Bryan Bouffier/Xavier Panseri (Peugeot 207 S2000)
9 Vitor Lopes/Hugo Magalhães (Subaru Impreza STI WRX)
10 Toshi Arai/Dale Moscatt (Subaru Impreza STI R4)