Meeke on a tyre preservation mission

Kris Meeke is working on a strategy to extend the life of his tyres after feeling he was too hard on them at Vodafone Rallye de Portugal.

The combination of abrasive gravel stages and soft compound rubber put the spotlight on tyre wear in Portugal - and highlighted to Meeke a big reason why he was unable to keep up with the trio of Volkswagens.

"At the midpoint of the rally it was looking good - we were within six seconds of the lead - but unfortunately we dropped back on Saturday afternoon," Meeke told wrc.com.

"It looks like we’re not able to save our tyres as much as the Volkswagens, and when they had more tread left in the afternoon they could really make a difference."

With less than a fortnight until Rally Italia Sardegna (11-14 June) Meeke and his Citroën team are working on finding a solution.

"It seems that it’s partly down to my driving style and partly about the car," he said. "We’re not able to protect the tyres as much as the Volkswagens. For Ogier especially it seems to come naturally. He was able to beat Loeb because he was even better than him at protecting his tyres."

"I learned a lot in Portugal, and the stages in Sardinia will be similarly abrasive. Okay, we’ll have the hard tyres there, which may help us, but we still have work to do."