ERC
Proof of ERC pace on all surfaces boosts Mabellini after late exit
Andrea Mabellini says knowing “he can fight” on all surfaces will help him to hit back from his FIA European Rally Championship Hungarian heartache yesterday.
With Virginia Lenzi co-driving, Mabellini was leading ERC Staff House Rally Hungary when he was forced to retire on the road section prior to the penultimate stage due to suspension damage caused by a tyre deflation on the first stage of the deciding loop.
Had The Racing Factory driver remained in front he would have celebrated a first ERC victory on gravel following his maiden asphalt-based success in Poland last October.
Asked what positives he would take from his late exit, the 25-year-old Italian responded: “That we can fight everywhere. We were fast in the first (asphalt) rally in Sierra Morena and here we were also fast so we can fight everywhere and it means we can be on the top everywhere. That is the most important thing for a driver because you can be fast on gravel and then get lost on Tarmac or vice versa. For us it’s not like this and that’s the most important thing.”
You can be fast on gravel and then get lost on Tarmac. For us it’s not like this and that’s the most important thing
Mabellini knows he can fly on asphalt and gravel
© ERC
Pirelli-equipped Mabellini was on course to win €20,000 in Škoda Motorsport Bonus Programme vouchers to be redeemed for spare parts ordered directly from the Czech manufacturer. His late retirement left him without reward.
“I think it was my best performance but it is like it is, we can do nothing,” he said. “We had a big impact, it was impossible to avoid because just after the jump there was a big rock and we catch it and had a big, big impact. We get a puncture and we exit the stage and we change it and go again. That’s what we were thinking. But once we took off the tyre we saw the bottle of oil that we have under the damper was not there. You can continue but it’s impossible with so many works and something like this, working with just the springs without oil in the damper. You can destroy and explode the top mount and it’s even worse so we decide to go back to the service.
“We were fighting for the [Škoda] bonus but, at the end, we have nothing. It’s not the best way to end and it’s difficult [to accept]. We are really sorry for what’s happened because there are many, many people behind us who are making the maximum, especially the team.”
