Teemu Suninen is facing a new challenge this coming weekend at the World Rally Championship in Estonia. He will get the chance to show his speed in the Hyundai i20 Rally1 car for the first time in the World Series. Suninen made a spectacular debut in the WRC class six years ago, but in the era of hybrid cars, only Rally2 cars have started.
– It’s going to be a hard place, Suninen says directly.
The Finnish driver drives Hyundai’s third driver in the World Rally Championships in Estonia and Finland by Thierry Neuville and Esapekka Lapin alongside. In terms of the future of the career, it would be important to show speed and drive good results. The team’s expectations are moderate.
– I was taken as a triple driver, which means I have to secure points. The better it goes, the better next year looks to me, Suninen refers to his possibilities to drive more in the WRC class in the future.
Suninen is in Hyundai’s driver development program. He has driven Hyundai’s Rally2 car this season and last season.
Read more: Teemu Suninen at Hyundai for at least “the next year and a half”, says manager Timo Jouhki – also opens up about Kalle Rovanperä’s contract situation
According to Suninen, high-speed gravel rallies require strong confidence in the car. He has been able to test within the framework of the World Series rules and also drove one “practice rally” in Estonia with a Rally1 car. The pace improved as the race progressed. In the last runs, the winner will be separated To Ott Tänak accumulated only a couple of seconds per clip.
– I hope we can get even closer in the World Cup rally. I have a good feeling about the car, it feels drivable, says Suninen.
Challenging rallies in Estonia and Finland are ahead
The Estonian and Finnish gravel rallies are the fastest in the World Series. The routes are familiar to Suni from previous years, which makes it easier to jump behind the wheel of the Rally1 car. On the other hand, too much backup, even in a triple role, can be fatal.
– Estonia and Finland are challenging in such a way that you should be able to drive to the finish line with the gas at the bottom in order to achieve some results, Suninen analyzed.
In 2017, Suninen shined specifically in Finland in the second rally of his career behind the wheel of a WRC car. He fought for second place for a long time, but a mistake in the penultimate special stage watered down his podium dreams. The fourth place in the Jyväskylä rally was preceded by the sixth place in Poland.
However, the situation is very different now, even though the WRC class became familiar after its debut. The hybrid cars that have been in use since last year have changed the driving technique to practically the opposite of what Suninen has been refining for 15 years.
– Before, maximum braking and maximum acceleration were done, we tried to go as hard as possible in every corner and as early as possible on the gas in every place, Suninen opens.
– Now with a hybrid, you have to think about how to recover the collected energy. Braking is longer and you don’t go full throttle right away. If the wheels lock up, the hybrid unit will not create energy, he continues.
The 29-year-old driver says that the use of the unit went fairly well in the practice rally. At the same time, however, he admits that it is difficult to change things that have been done for years and a new way of driving does not come immediately from the spinal cord.
The future inspires Sun
Suninen knows that he will drive the next two World Cup rallies with a Rally1 car. According to him, many factors affect the continuation. One thing is Suninen’s pace and results, but in addition, Hyundai’s position in the teams’ World Cup points determines the end of the season.
– If these rallies go well for me and Hyundai has a big gap to the top in the team points, I can also drive asphalt rallies, Suninen is looking forward to the end of the season.
The employees of the team are familiar to Finns from this year and last year. In addition, he praises the cooperation with Lapland and Neuville as easy. Even the weak cardan shafts that plagued Lapland in the Kenya World Rally have held up well in Suninen’s tests.
– Let’s hope it was just a small manufacturing error and a bad series, Suninen says about the axles and says that no clear reason for their breakdown in Kenya has been found.
At the Finnish World Rally Championship at the beginning of August, Toyota’s team manager made his debut behind the wheel of the hybrid Rally1 Jari-Matti Latvala. Suninen already called Latvala and asked about the ex-driver’s mood during the rally.
– Charring must start immediately. Jokes as jokes, relaxed things were talked about. Mostly about how he feels about jumping into the car again, Suninen laughs.
He says that he is under the rallied in his spots about the opportunity to influence his future. Suninen’s goal is to enjoy, but at the same time make results.
– Jari-Matti gets to enjoy himself, I have more to achieve, Suninen states.
Ralliradio follows the events of the Jyväskylä World Rally Championship from start to finish. You can also see all the highlights of the competition live in the app and on Urheilu’s website.