Heading into the final round of the Production Car World Rally Championship on the Rally de Espana this weekend, Symtech Racing driver Nicolas Fuchs is fourth in the standings, on the eve of a thrilling six-way battle for the title. But Fuchs, who recently became the second Peruvian to win a World Rally Championship event with class victory on the Rally d’Italia, has a winning team behind him. His Belgium-based Symtech squad claimed the Production title with New Zealander Hayden Paddon in style last year thanks to a run of dominant victories. Symtech Racing’s Dirk Van der Sluys looks forward to the title decider, where Fuchs is determined to give it his all in the Symtech Racing Group N Subaru Impreza STR12.
How confident are you feeling heading into the final round?
DVDS: "We’re feeling confident that we’re as well-prepared as we can be, but we know that the competition is going to be extremely stiff against some excellent drivers. We have every confidence in the abilities of Nicolas, but the great thing is that we have a fantastic level of competition in this championship, so it’s not going to be an easy task to come out on top. It’s been such a strong year though that to have come this far is an achievement in itself."
How much of a boost is it to have won the championship last year?
DVDS: "We know that we can do it but every year is different. However, it’s true that we have already seen at Symtech how our engineers and know-how have the capability to beat the very best in the world. That’s actually not such a surprise to us: we know the hugely high standards to which we work. So we’re confident in our abilities, and that’s a confidence that is shared by Subaru itself, who have appointed us an official base team last year."
What are the challenges of the Rally de Espana for a Group N car?
DVDS: "The main challenge is the same for everyone: Spain is the only mixed surface event on the calendar, which makes it as much of a challenge for the team as it is for the driver. Because we have two days of asphalt and one of gravel, we have to re-prepare the car from gravel to asphalt. Luckily that’s one area where we feel we have an advantage. Our team is a very slick operation so we know that we will be able to master this aspect without too many problems."
What else is on the radar for Symtech Racing?
DVDS: "As well as running Fuchs in the Production championship, we also have our final round of Rally Class in Spain, which is going on to even bigger and better things next year. Although our Rally Class cars are quite a basic specification of Group N car, they have already shown that they can fight for overall Production honours. Next year we’re going to be back and fighting again: not just with our Production entries but also with the Rally Class cars."