Stéphane Sarrazin wins « Les Cévennes » rally !
Stéphane Sarrazin’s return to rally was faultless ! With a win and ten best times in ten special stages, the French driver could not have dreamt of a better performance at the Rallye des Cévennes, penultimate round of the French Championship. At the wheel of a Ford Fiesta WRC entered by team First Motorsport, and supported by 8StarMotorsports & Oreca-Store.com, Stéphane has achieved an interesting success right before racing against the best European drivers in the Tour de Corse. Indeed, he will take part in the ERC’s final with Jacques-Julien Renucci next November 6th to 8th.
Stéphane Sarrazin : « Driving pleasure and a special victory… »
Besides his programme with TOYOTA Racing in the World Endurance Championship, Stéphane Sarrazin does also return to rally every now and then each year. It was the case this weekend with a round that took place at home for him. It did not take long for the Barjaques-born driver (30) to catch the right pace at the Rallye des Cévennes. He actually very quickly took command of the event : he first posted the three best times in a perfect morning and then went onto repeating the same performance in the afternoon, wrapping up the day as a solid leader. The following day, Stéphane maintained that momentum, posting four new best times. He finally won the rally more than five minutes ahead of his opponents.
« I am very happy about this success ! » says Stéphane Sarrazin. « My very first aim was to enjoy the rally, and that was absolutely the case, with some great special stages, sometimes very narrow and difficult to negotiate. I had to get familiar with the car and to find back a pace that is appropriate and specific to rally driving. But I had good feelings quite early on. We kept on attacking throughout the entire event and we did a great job. Jacques-Julien Renucci and I got on perfectly well, as always. First Motorsport did a fantastic job too. We managed to refine the setup whenever possible : it was important for us to do so because we have the Tour de Corse in mind. Overall every single special stage was an opportunity for us to improve. The Rallye des Cévennes was a real dream for me when I was a child, so I am really happy to have won it today, for the first time. It’s quite a special victory for me in fact… I had a fantastic weekend. I want to thank 8StarMotorsports and Oreca-Store.com which have both made it possible. Corsica will be another type of challenge, facing the best European drivers ! »