Jari-Matti Latvala believes Sebastien Ogier will be in top form at Rally Paraguay this weekend. The Toyota Gazoo Racing boss reckons the eight-time world champion will come out swinging to make amends for his costly mistake in Finland.
Latvala himself will not be present in Paraguay, as he will be competing in a round of the European Historic Rally Championship in Sweden at the same time. Still, the Finn will be keeping a close eye on his drivers' performances from afar.
“Paraguay was a new rally last year and now it’s on the calendar for the second time. Everyone liked it and there was a really good feeling on those roads. Hopefully that level of competition continues for Sami Pajari and Elfyn Evans,” Latvala told RallyJournal.
“Elfyn will be first on the road. I think he’ll suffer a little from that and Sami might be able to benefit slightly. But then there is Ogier, who will definitely want to make up for his mistake in Jyvaskyla. I’m pretty sure he’ll be in very strong form and will be trying to win.”
Evans leads the World Rally Championship by 30 points over Pajari. Takamoto Katsuta is third in the standings, ahead of Oliver Solberg and Ogier. All five Toyota drivers still have a mathematical chance of winning the title, but Evans is undoubtedly the team’s strongest card at the moment. Their differing positions in the championship battle also make the situation challenging.
“Elfyn and Sami will probably have to think a little more about the championship. That’s why I believe Ogier will come into this with the mentality that he has nothing left to lose. He will certainly take big risks and attack pretty hard,” Latvala predicted.
“Of course, it will also be interesting to see what Oliver does because he’s found a really good rhythm. I’m sure there will be some fierce competition between our boys.”
Toyota also has a good chance of wrapping up the manufacturers’ championship in Paraguay. To do so, Toyota needs to score six points more than arch-rival Hyundai. “The manufacturers’ championship will come if it comes. We haven’t really been thinking about it that way. It will come if we do things well and the drivers score good results. That’s how the team succeeds,” Latvala concluded.
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