Kris Meeke, who is always self critical, took to the media and gave his assessment on the difficult start he had to his 2015 season.
Last year, Kris Meeke went into round three of the championship in Mexico with a mixed start to his first full season in the WRC, which started with a third place in Monte Carlo which he followed up by a strong result in Sweden. This year, the first two even haven’t gone according to plan, due to some small errors that have been costing the Brit. In the Monte Carlo Rally, a crash saw him fighting his way up the leader board where he ultimately finished 10th and added a power stage win to his tally giving himself 3 added points. While in Sweden a short trip into a snow bank saw him lose time after he was setting a quick yet consistent pace. Kris almost claimed 6th place from Welshman Elfyn Evans, but a spin in the Power stage cost him there as well.
Speaking on his Monte Carlo performance, Meeke said “My underlying performances are definitely there: last season I was fast on the Monte Carlo Rally but I wasn’t consistent and that maybe didn’t warrant a podium. This year I was consistent but I wasn’t as fast, so I know that I have to work really hard to try and get the balance right.”
There is race winning pace in Meeke that he has shown several times before; however, it’s not coming together for him yet this season. Judging by his speed, he's a lot closer to the Volkswagens and he’s definitely pleased about that. When speaking about his improved pace with mixed success Meeke said “I am very happy in one way but frustrated in another because if I hadn’t made those mistakes in Monte Carlo and Sweden we could have had two strong finishes.”
They are still 11 rounds left in the 2015 WRC season and Sebastian Ogier is not as invincible as his fellow countryman and nine-times WRC champion Sebastian Loeb. Ogier has proven to be prone to mistakes, and a bit of moaning on more than one occasion. If Meeke can have a faultless season from here on out then come his home event in Wales in November, then he could be in with a chance to give Britain its first top level rally championship since the late great Richard Burns.
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