Young star Brynildsen secures SWRC return

Eyvind Brynildsen says his experience of world rallies will enable him to take the fight to Juho Hanninen in the Super 2000 World Rally Championship this year.

Brynildsen became the eighth driver to register for the hugely competitive SWRC category earlier this week and acknowledged that Hanninen would be a tough nut to crack.

Finn Hanninen will drive a factory-supported Skoda Fabia S2000 in the SWRC with Norwegian Brynildsen turning out in a similar JM Racing Fabia, which is likely to be run in co-operation with countryman Petter Solberg.

“I have done the WRC regularly for four years now and I’ve been all over the world getting a lot of experience,” said the rapid Brynildsen, 23. “That will be a big help as I try to become world champion but I know I’ll get big competition from Juho Hanninen. He’s very fast and will have all the best bits from Skoda available to him. But I will do my best to keep to him.”

Brynildsen has gone up against Hanninen before when both drivers competed in Group N Mitsubishi Lancers earlier in their careers.

“To be successful in the SWRC you need to be both fast and smart,” said Brynildsen, who works for a road construction company in his native Norway when he’s not competing. “Juho is a clever driver in that he can push at 110 per cent all of the time. I look at him as the driver to beat and there have been times before when I have done that. I’m getting closer to being a complete driver now and I’ve got stage wins on Tarmac, snow and gravel. It’s also working good in the car with my co-driver Cato [Menkerud].”

Of his pending agreement with Petter Solberg, Brynildsen explained: “From a funding side we will manage to do a full season in the Skoda starting in Jordan. We hope the car will be run in cooperation with Petter Solberg.”