This weekend, Mille Johansson from Sweden makes his fourth WRC2 start of the season as he and co-driver Johan Grönvall contest Rally Portugal on gravel together with M-Sport Ford.
Two weeks ago, Mille and Johan ended Rally Islas Canarias on a high note, setting the fastest WRC2 time on the final stage — their first stage win in WRC2. Carrying that momentum into Portugal, the Swedish duo now head into their first gravel event of the year as they return to M-Sport Ford for the third of their four planned starts with the team this season.
“Above all, we take confidence with us from the Canary Islands. The end of the rally showed that the pace is there when everything comes together, and that we can challenge the top drivers in the class,” says Mille.
Last year, Mille and Johan finished second in Junior WRC in Portugal despite rolling the car and losing more than a minute overall. They responded by setting a string of stage wins and ultimately finished second, just 13 seconds from victory.
A total of 32 crews are entered in WRC2 this weekend, featuring much of the championship’s top-level competition.
“It’s going to be really nice to be back on gravel. The last time we competed on this surface was in Finland last August. Hopefully we can find a good rhythm quite quickly. The Ford also works very well on gravel,” Mille continues. “At the same time, it’s important to mentally reset after the asphalt rallies.”
“I hope we can carry the feeling from the final stages in Spain into Portugal and continue building on the pace, even though it’s a completely different surface,” adds Johan.
The rally begins with shakedown on Wednesday afternoon and starts properly with three stages on Thursday. Friday features seven stages, followed by nine on Saturday before the rally concludes on Sunday with four final stages.
“One challenge could be the weather. Right now it looks like there could be quite a bit of rain, which would make the conditions extremely slippery,” Johan continues.
“The biggest challenge will probably be finding a good rhythm straight away and not losing too much time early on. The competition is incredibly strong, so every small mistake costs time. The goal is to build the pace step by step, drive smart and hopefully fight near the top of the leaderboard by the end of the weekend,” Mille concludes.