And it could have been even better for the FIA European Rally Championship contender had it not been for a brake issue costing him eight minutes – and second place overall – on the final morning in Austria.
“It was snowy and icy day from the morning and I experienced driving on small studs for the first time,” said the Czech star. “Stage after stage I’ve been learning and we worked hard to keep the position on the podium. Unfortunately, we encountered a problem with the brakes, which we had to solve directly on the stage by disconnecting the rear brake circuit. The repair cost us more than eight minutes and the chance for a good result was gone.”
Undeterred, Mareš reached the finish in eighth position behind fellow ERC regular Martin László.
“We managed to replace the damaged tube at the road section and we put a lot of effort into the last Power Stage on used tyres,” Mareš said. “We are pleased with the fastest time, it is at least a small reward after an otherwise unlucky day. Overall, however, we can take away a lot of experience, several stage wins and, above all, a good feeling about the performance we showed. It was a beautiful and difficult race and thank you very much to all the fans for the great support. There were a lot of Czech flags and the atmosphere of the race was almost like home for us.”
Other notable performances from ERC drivers past and present came from Simon Wagner – who began his bid for a fourth consecutive Austrian title in second overall behind winner Michael Lengauer – and 2019 ERC champion Chris Ingram, who finished sixth.
Rally Hungary is gearing up to open the 2024 ERC season from 12 - 14 April.
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