MRF’s Gaurav Gill finished second at the International Rally of Johor, the third round of FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship in Johor Bahru after making up a deficit of over two minutes to deliver another 1-2 result with Ole Christian Veiby of Norwegian finishing first.
The 35-year old Gill, who is the defending champion, registered one of his best drives ever, winning all the six Special Stages in the race on Sunday. Veiby, on the other hand, held on to the lead in Leg-1 to win by over four minutes.
The defending champion from Delhi, Gill, said, “For sure, it was one of my best drives, very fast and precise. I didn’t make any mistakes. I was driving at 110 per cent which was what I always wanted do and what all the top drivers do.”
“We had amazing speed, good pace notes and made correct tyre choice. I drove my heart out and pushed the car beyond its limit. But the small mistake I made yesterday cost me the Rally or else, we could have won,” said Gill, who had a frustrating Saturday after a run-in with a tree stump and alternator problem, losing out on a lot of time.
Provisional classification:
FIA APRC:
1. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (3hrs, 02mins, 39.1secs)
2. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) 03:07:20.8)
3. Jari Ketomaa / Ville Mannisenmali (Mpart Sport, Mitsubishi Mirage) (03:07:39.5)
FIA Asia Cup:
1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (03:07:20.8)
2. Michael Young / Malcolm Read (Cusco Racing, Subaru Impreza) (03:18:42.9)
3. Yuva Sumiyama / Takahiro Yasui (Cusco Racing, Skoda Fabia R5) (04:10:42.8)