It was that stellar form, along with a stubborn refusal to give up, that convinced M-Sport boss Malcolm Wilson to sign Craig to lead the team into a new era of hybrid rallying this year with the Ford Puma, which, for the first time, won at the Monte-Carlo Rally with Sébastien Loeb. Craig finished third.
“It was the perfect start to the season,” Craig said. “And there’s no reason why we can’t continue like this in the future. M-Sport may not have the great resources of some of the other teams, but we make up for that with hard work and 110% effort. Round two in Sweden was a ‘disaster’, with Breen twice visiting a snow bank, but there was redemption in the most recent round, in Croatia, where the Irishman finished fourth after s to be beaten for the podium again, currently placing him third in the championship.
Unlike previous years, it now has the chance to build a season and a car around it, although it is a very different type of car to the previous generation as it now has additional hybrid power and reduced aerodynamics.
“Coming here is a bit like coming home,” says Craig. “It’s like a rebirth of my career. I actually started out with Ford and M-Sport, winning the Super 2000 World Championship and the WRC Academy in a Fiesta, and my dad was an Irish champion with Ford. My childhood hero, Frank Meagher – the ultimate underdog – also drove a Ford.
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Source: www.autocar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-05-04 10:18:38
