by Rob Wilkins
Subaru's
Chris Atkinson ended the 2007 season seventh in the drivers' championship, having notched up 31 points in total.
Crash.net Radio caught up with the Aussie to chat about his season - and his hopes for next year...
Crash.net:
Chris, how happy were you with your performances in 2007?
Chris Atkinson:
I think there are a lot of positive things to look at. We moved forward in quite a lot of areas - with my driving in different conditions and with my pace on tarmac. We won stages on every surface too, which was quite good. But obviously it wasn’t the result the team was looking for and I guess we all know that. That is why we will keep working hard for next year and we are looking forward to the new car as well.
Crash.net:
Everybody knows the Impreza WRC wasn’t exactly the quickest car this year, how tough was it to stay motivated?
CA:
It is obviously difficult. I guess the good results we had and the good stage times kept everyone motivated in the team and kept me motivated to keep training hard. But obviously you have your moments as well. That is part of the sport and part of everyone’s life in sport. You are going to have those times and you have just got to get on with it and move on and keep looking forward.
Crash.net:
The final event was the Rally GB and like the season opening, Rallye Monte Carlo it included a couple of night stages. Do you think bringing back night stages is a positive thing?
CA:
For me it is quite cool to do. I have never done so much night rallying. It is good fun and we get to be able to drive those cars at night. We actually did pretty similar times to what we did in the day. Obviously with the lights and everything it works out well. But it is a different experience and a different challenge and when it starts raining and is foggy it becomes a whole new challenge.
Crash.net:
Would you like to see more night stages in the future?
CA:
It adds to the spectacle - but it is all about what is good for the audiences and what the spectators want to see. I am not sure what the feedback was from them. For me though it is what rallying should be. Rallying should be a challenge, it should be a mix of things and that is just another challenge. I think it is pretty cool.
Crash.net:
Looking to next year, how confident are you that Subaru will be able to bounce back and get closer to Ford and Citroen?
