NEWS

 Interview de Dani Sola avant le San Remo (en anglais)

version française

1 - To begin, why did you want to become rally driver?

I¹ve always been crazy about cars. I live in the country and at the age of 12 I could already drive. In 1996 I started giving assistance to a friend of mine and, a year later, I decided to take part in my first rally with a car which my co-driver and me got ready on our own. I just wanted to test it, but things turned out well and I would slowly progress. In addition, there
is the fact that I am a mechanic, so I am very interested in the car industry.

2 After four events in your first season in JWRC, your results are very good: two wins and a fourth place. So after Deutschland, you are the leader of the championship. How could you explain those results: car, team,... ?

At the beginning of the season, we didn¹t aim at struggling for the title. We all knew that it¹s difficult rallying on the WR championship for the first time: it¹s a three-day event and it¹s run at a different pace. However, in view of our performance, we think that we now have some chances and we are going to fight toughly for the title.

3 To return to the ADAC rally, do you think you could win without Duval's retirement?

In Germany I drove having the championship in mind and not just a race or a victory. François Duval and I were going quite even and he got ahead of us when we made a mistake and chose the wrong tyres, but events have to be completed, you can¹t fail, you need to score and cover as many miles as possible. If I had pressed hard all along the rally I presumably wouldn¹t
have finished it, because, under those conditions, mistakes are very likely to be made.

4 The next event, San Remo, will be running "at home" for Dallavilla. Do you think victory is possible?

One musn¹t forget that at the Championship, apart from Dallavilla, there are at least five Trans-Alpine drivers who are very fast on asphalt and know the Italian event very much. There are still two hard events left, many things may happen and, of course, it won¹t be easy. Obviously Sanremo is not a decisive event for us, but we will try to do our best.

5 Whereas ten drivers can be again champion, You and Dallavilla are favourite for the title. Dallavilla will be at home in San Remo and RAC is a very difficult gravel rally. In other hand, your are in the best team and PH Sport has won RAC last year. What are your feelings about this end of the championship?

After Sanremo, time will have come to decide the best strategy to face GB. In my opinion, it¹s possible that we stake our all at that last rally, which could become a real lottery. We need to get good results at those two remaining events and at the same time as I am still learning, I must be fast and always look for that balance. The team, and obviously the Saxo,
undoubtedly have a lot to do with it.

6 I think you begin to prepare next season. Have you in project to run in WRC or you prefer to do a second season in JWRC ?

The 2002 aim is, as things are presently, the junior championship. As for 2003? There will be time enough to talk about the future, even more so if we manage to win. Of course I wish to drive a WRC, but I wouldn¹t mind competing again at the junior championship in case we don¹t find any better option.

Interview exclusif JWRC.Com