Former IRC champion Hanninen rapid in Ypres shakedown

Juho Hänninen has got his bid to win this year’s Geko Ypres Rally off to a strong start by setting the pace in shakedown for the Intercontinental Rally Challenge qualifier.

Driving a ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000, the Finnish ace completed the 4.8-kilometre course around the village of Nieuwkerke in a time of 3m03.3s, which had remained unbeaten at 22:00hrs local time.

Czech Antonin Tlustak was second fastest, 1.1s slower than Hänninen with Freddy Loix, the seven-time Ypres winner, third quickest in his Peugeot 207 Super 2000, 2.3s adrift of top spot.

Reigning IRC champion and current title leader Andreas Mikkelsen was fourth quickest for ŠKODA UK Motorsport with Patrik Flodin fifth fastest for Petter Solberg Engineering. Dream Team Ukraine’s Oleksandr Saliuk was sixth quickest in a similar M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000.

Heavy rain before the start coated the stage surface with mud and rain, which made driving conditions treacherous and prompted several drivers to only complete a handful of runs.

Hänninen, who completed just one pass of the stage before returning to the permanent service park in Ypres, said: “I wasn’t sure if I was driving on a field or a road because there was so much mud. That’s why I only did one run.”

With some of Friday’s and Saturday’s stages run at night, Mikkelsen was planning to continue running until shakedown finishes at 23:00hrs local time in order to practice driving under the cover of darkness.

“It’s really important to get a good set-up on this event, that’s what it’s all about and that’s what we’re trying to do in shakedown,” he said.