MRF driver Katsuhiko Taguchi made a winning start to Rally Hokkaido, the second leg of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship, as he grabbed the top honours in the opening Super Special stage here on Friday.
Taguchi ripped through the 1.20-kilometre stretch in 1 minute 00.5 seconds, ahead of Alister Mcrae of Proton and H. Yanagisawa of Cusco, both tied on 1.01.0. MRF’s second driver Gaurav Gill was fourth, clocking 1.01.2.
Having finished 1-2 in the first round in Malaysia, Taguchi and Gill obviously start favourites here too. “Rally Hokkaido will be challenging. We have to go through the volcanic soil areas as well as forest tracks,” said Gill after the shakedown.
“It’s a tough set up but we are all excited. There is a lot of competition since our main rivals — Proton are a lot more suited to these kind of conditions,” said Gill, who surprised all by clocking the fastest timings in three consecutive stages in Malaysia and finishing second.
“Personally, my teammate, Taguchi, is my biggest competitor. He is a great guy and good friend. He is been very helpful with the experience he has… so it is like I either have to match him or beat him,” said Gill.
While Gill’s co-driver is Glenn Macneall, Taguchi, who currently is leading the APRC, will be accompanied by Australia’s Chris Murphy who replaced Mark Stacey. “The track is similar to last year’s. So it is familiar and Japan has always been good for me,” said Taguchi, who has won the Hokkaido round several times before.
“However, Stage Three seems to be challenging with many jumps and deep ruts. Moreover there are some changes like this is the first time I will be driving the Mitsubishi EVO X. I even have a new co-driver in Chris Murphy,” he added.
The rally comprises 18 competitive stages which cover a total of 220.97 kilometres and drivers will be tested on a mix of terrain. Snow in some forest stages has caused slushy conditions which will slow down the cars. The unpredictable rain in Hokkaido will also determine the pace of the cars.
Other cars in the fray are Toyota, Suzuki, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Honda, Subaru apart from Proton Satria Neo. World Rally Championship Chris Atkinson and former British Rally champion Alister Mcrae for Team Proton are in contention for a podium finish. Both missed the podium in Malaysia due to technical snags. While Atkinson’s car suffered engine problems, Atkinson faced electrical failure. However, this has made both the drivers determined to finish better in Japan. Hence the competition looks stiff between the MRF, Proton and Cusco.