ŠKODA stars set for early season action

Juho Hänninen and Jan Kopecký will be hoping to gain a small advantage over their Intercontinental Rally Challenge rivals when they contest the Jänner Rallye in Austria from 6/7 January.

Although the event does not form part of the IRC schedule, it will provide the factory ŠKODA Motorsport drivers with useful competition experience ahead of the 2012 IRC season getting underway on Sata Rallye Açores from 23-25 February.

Finn Hänninen, IRC champion in 2010, said: “We are glad that it’s all about to start again. Jänner will be a completely new experience, both the event itself and the whole European championship. At the same time, it’s a new challenge and we are not afraid of it. And it certainly would be even more interesting for all of us if there was some snow on the roads.”

Czech team-mate Kopecký, who has finished runner-up in the IRC for the past three seasons, said: “The first event of the season is always rather special. Pavel [Dresler and I] are looking forward to it - we have our first whole year together ahead of us. I have appeared three times in Jänner, and I realise that a lot will depend on the [stage] conditions.”