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PWRC: Pre-event press conference - Turkey |
Drivers: Toshi Arai (Subaru Impreza WRX) and Martin Prokop (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo).
Press conference.Q:It's not been the best start to the season for you Toshi. What can you do to turn it around?
Toshi Arai:Yes but I have a test after Greece so I think it is quite good here.
Q:The new Subaru made its debut in Sweden, but it has got off to a tough start. What have been the problems so far and have they been resolved?
TA:It is very difficult to say the worst problems but the suspension has been one of them so far and also overheating in Greece.
Q:What parts of the car need the most development?
TA:Ah! Especially the suspension.
Q:It's been the first season with a new co-driver, Glenn Macneall now sits at your side. How has that gone so far?
TA:I think it is going very well because he was with me five years ago, so we already know each other really well.
Q:The younger less experienced drivers seem to be having a good run so far in the Championship. How tough is it going to be to defend your title this weekend?
TA:I think it will be difficult now but the new car has good prospects for the future so I will try to defend it.
Q:What can you do here?
TA:If the car has no problems I can get a good result.
Q:You are eighth overall in the PWRC going into this event. Did you hope to be higher in the standings at this point?
Martin Prokop:I think all the season we want to have better results because it hasn't gone how we wanted. So here we need a good result to get back in contention. I hope we can do this here in Turkey and make a good result. In Greece I made a mistake on the first stage and then the engine stopped on the second day. We are trying to do our best to fight for things but we haven't had a lot of luck so far.
Q:It's your first full year in the PWRC - is it tougher than you expected?
MP:Actually, right now PWRC is better for us because in the JWRC we need 20 more points to be doing well. But in PWRC we can get a good result at the end of the season because a lot of drivers have only a few points and apart from Andreas [Aigner] no one is out in front too far.
Q:What is it like contesting two Championships (PWRC and JWRC)?
MP:When we test the cars it is OK even though it is a bit of a problem jumping from car to car. But we do have good experience of both of them.
Q:Greece was a bit of nightmare for you - can you turn it round here in Turkey?
MP:For me it's most important to finish the race without any difficulties. If I can do that, then the result should be good.
Q:What did you think of the stages on the recce - were they in good condition? How rough is out there?
MP:They are a little bit better than those in Greece because the roads have been graded more. They also seem a bit wider than last time we were here, although there are narrow and slow parts that will be tricky. But overall I have no problems with the roads.
