Season
Jan Kopecký has gained two world points
Jan Kopecký-Filip Schovánek crew is bringing home from France two championship points for a seventh place in Tour de Corse. Flawless performance in all special stages was well rewarded with an excellent result, which is very precious with regards to the profile of special stages.
Czech Rally Team Kopecký before the start of the race was hopeful of a top ten finish, because the character of the special stages in Tour de Corse is not optimal for the Škoda Fabia WRC car from the perspective of the very limited options of development within the current homologation. In spite of that the careful preparation by all the team members, flawless Škoda Fabia WRC and a mature performance by the Jan Kopecký-Filip Schovánek crew mean two excellent points into the account of Jan Kopecký for the driver standings in the World Rally Championship. Czech Rally Team Kopecký driver collected ten points in ten starts this year, which put him in tenth position of the world championship standings.
"I am utmost happy with the result. Considering the possibilities of the car, which we have available, the seventh place on special stages of such character is a much better result than what I expected.
During the three legs Jan and Filip drove very quickly and especially steady. They fully deserve the two points for the displayed performance. Excellent result however, is not only a consequence of their driving, but of the performance by the entire Czech Rally Team Kopecký. This is why words of praise belong to all of them," said the satisfied team manager Josef Kopecký.
"Seventh place is excellent and I really value this result. During the entire Tour de Corse our Škoda Fabia WRC performed exquisitely and I was also very happy with its driving qualities. In order for us to reach better positions, we would need a greater engine torque and performance.
We entered today's leg with a clear goal. This was to complete the race with no complications. Understandably we watched the crews behind us in order not to permit any drama in the close of the race.
During the ten starts this year we were able to collect points on five occasions. We currently have ten world points, which currently means a tenth place in the world championship standings. Even with this we can be happy, because we have more points than in the last season, where we started with the same car.
I would not be able to achieve these results without the support from the entire Czech Rally Team Kopecký, our partners and especially Škoda Auto a.s.," added the driver Jan Kopecký.
"Although Jan adopted today's pace to the goal to bring our Škoda Fabia WRC to the finish ramp, we still achieved times in the top ten in all special stages. At the finish of the race we had a lead of more than one and half minute on the eighth crew.
With the seventh place we have exceeded our pre race plans and we can be very happy. I believe that our Czech fans, who again lined the special stages in numbers not to be overlooked, are happy with our results," added Filip Schovánek.
Results of Tour de Corse:
1. LOEB S. / ELENA D. Citroën C4 WRC 3:28:31.6
2. GRÖNHOLM M. / RAUTIAINEN T. Ford Focus RS WRC 07 +0:23.7
3. SORDO D. / MARTI M. Citroën C4 WRC +0:44.3
4. LATVALA J.-M. / ANTTILA M. Ford Focus RS WRC 06 +2:30.5
5. SOLBERG P. / MILLS P. Subaru Impreza WRC 2007 +2:42.1
6. ATKINSON Ch. / PREVOT S. Subaru Impreza WRC 2007 +3:53.8
7. KOPECKÝ JAN / SCHOVÁNEK FILIP ŠKODA Fabia WRC +8:02.9
8. PONS X. / AMIGO X. Subaru Impreza WRC 2006 +9:34.2
