ERC Take Five with Jakub Matulka

It was a spectacular return to the ERC with victory in ERC3 on JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion last month. How good was it?
“They were really tricky stages and a really hard beginning because we had some drama on shakedown. But I’m really happy we came back with a good pace on Saturday. We tried to push, we had a great battle with Eamonn [Kelly], unfortunately he crashed but it was a really good experience and I’m really looking forward to doing it again maybe in the future.”  

Rally Silesia is next, how much of a challenge will it be, is there an ERC event you can compare it to?
“It’s tricky but not as tricky as [Rali Ceredigion]. It has some bumpy sections but also some smooth and wide sections. It has everything and the grip is good. There is some cutting potential so let’s see how many anti-cuts we will get but it’s a great rally and I’m really looking forward to it.”

With some stages close to the mountains there must be a lot of undulation, right?
“It’s quite hilly, there are some stages that will be on hills so there are some height differences but there are also some stages that are flat. There is also a really nice super special stage in the centre [of Katowicze].”  

How good will Rally Silesia be for the ERC and the drivers and teams?
“For sure it will be a good event for the ERC, I am 100 per cent sure of this. Last year it was really a proper event [as part of the FIA European Rally Trophy]. For the ERC I think it will be one of the better rounds this year.”

You’ll be using a different car on Rally Silesia, switching from your Ford Fiesta Rally3 to a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. What’s the target?
“Because it’s also a Polish championship round we will drive in Rally2 and we will compare ourselves with the ERC drivers but I know how fast the guys are.”  

Rally Silesia takes place from 11 - 13 October.