Autosportfoto

Botka goes fourth in the ERC

Leading Hungarian driver Dávid Botka is preparing to embark on his fourth season in the FIA European Rally Championship in 2018.

And while he's started the Azores Airlines Rallye on three occasions, next week's island spectacular will be the first time he's competed on gravel in his ŠKODA Fabia R5, which he acquired midway through last season.

"We try to prepare ourselves and also the car to the competition and I hope we can go fast," said the 2015 ERC2 champion. "The Fabia was a really good choice and we have already won the Croatia Rally last year. We start to get to know it better and one or two times a week I go through videos of the stages.

"With the entry list we can see how powerful the ERC will be this year. It is sure that I want to do my best in this season and I will see if I can compete with the young beginners and also the older veterans or not. If not, we will go on an other way in the next year so this year will be really important in my career."

Botka, who will be co-driven by compatriot Márk Mesterházi, finished fourth overall in the Azores in 2016 at the wheel of his old Citroën DS3 R5.

The Azores Airlines Rallye takes place from 22-24 March. Multiple Hungarian champion Norbert Herczig will also be in action in his MOL Racing Team ŠKODA while Tibor Érdi Jr, also from Hungary, is chasing ERC2 success in a Mitsubishi Lancer.

Zdroj: fiaerc.com