Kiwi Hayden Paddon and British co-driver Seb Marshall survived wintry weather after day one Sweden’s leg of the World Rally Championship.
Kiwi Hayden Paddon and British co-driver Seb Marshall survived treacherous wintry conditions to sit third overall after the first full day of Sweden’s leg of the World Rally Championship (WRC) on Friday (Saturday NZ time).
Paddon and Marshall finished behind Hyundai team-mates Thierry Neuville and Andreas Mikkelsen after running 11th on the road for seven stages when fresh snowfall made course conditions very difficult.
After holding eighth on the leaderboard during the middle of the day, Paddon and Marshall put their foot down to secure two stage wins in the afternoon to climb up to fifth then third in the standings.
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Paddon battled through the snow to be well placed ahead of racing on day two in Sweden.
Snow had covered the track’s lines, making visibility at times poor, but the rest of the competing drivers and Paddon, who was competing in his first WRC event of 2018, battled through the adverse weather.
“The conditions were not easy. We had to be conscious of keeping the car in the lines, and adapting both the car and my driving to suit the stages,” Paddon said.
“The ruts became really pronounced in the afternoon loop. If you go outside of the lines, you become a passenger in your own car, so we had to pull back a bit at times.”
Paddon and Marshall will again start 11th on the road when racing continues in Sweden on Saturday (Sunday NZ time).
– Stuff
Source :Stuff.co.nz
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