Leg information:
Stages: 6 (140.80 kms competitive total)
Surface: Mud and Gravel
Weather: Cold and Wet

Adventurous start for Suzuki on Rally Great Britain

Event news:
Suzuki will return to the Rally Great Britain on leg two of the event, after the SX4 WRC's gravel debut was interrupted by a stone that damaged a brake pipe. Sebastian Lindholm, Suzuki's test driver, started the event with the intention of accumulating as many kilometres as possible in order to continue the all-new car's development programme.
This morning's conditions were very foggy and also extremely unlucky for Lindholm's Suzuki, which encountered the rogue stone on the very first stage. The Finn tried to fix the problem but it proved to be impossible. After driving slowly through the second stage, the team decided that it would be best to recover the SX4 WRC to the service park in order to fully investigate the issue and be sure of running at full speed tomorrow.

Car news - Suzuki SX4 WRC No.19:
Lindholm tried his best to fix the Suzuki by the roadside after the opening stage, but the drivers only carry limited tools and spare parts. Away from the service park outside assistance is not permitted, so the crew were forced to rely on their own ingenuity. They were eventually able to continue at reduced speed, but stopped the car after the second stage on safety grounds. Tonight it will be thoroughly investigated and re-prepared by the Suzuki mechanics in time for leg two tomorrow.

Driver news:
Although Lindholm did not get to complete the testing distance that the Suzuki World Rally Team had hoped for today, the Finn underlined the fact that problems inevitably form part of the development process. He said: "It's a pity that we had this setback so early, but at least now we have a chance to get our car back to service and fix the brake pipe properly, so that we can continue to work on our testing programme for the remainder of the event. However, even during the short distance we have run, I can feel that the fundamental balance of the car is very good and that is an extremely positive sign for the future."

Team news:
The entire Suzuki World Rally Team is learning as much as the drivers with every kilometre, and tonight they face the challenge of re-preparing the Suzuki for the remaining two days of the event in limited time - while trying to ensure that the brake problem does not repeat itself. Nobuhiro Tajima, team principal of the Suzuki World Rally Team, commented: "This is what testing is all about: identifying potential problems and solving them. Our objective at the start of the rally was to bring our car safely back to the finish with plenty of valuable information and this remains unaltered. Thanks to Sebastian's experience and his sensible approach, I am sure we can still get a lot out of the Rally Great Britain in these very difficult conditions. What we have suffered from today was just pure bad luck: we start again tomorrow!"

Great Britain
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