Kiwis aim for Japan win
Rising stars Zeal Jones and co-driver Bayden Thomson finished an impressive third in their first Japanese rally.
The two Kiwis, still learning about their car in the GR Yaris Morizo Challenge Cup and fine-tuning its set-up, believe there’s more to come and aim to go even better in next month’s second round.
“We were delighted with the result, but were left with a feeling of what could have been as it was a steep learning curve,” says Jones.
They got off to a flying start in last week’s first round in Mikawawan and were up to speed by the afternoon of the first day of the rally, which had 81 entries and a major media presence.
A minor mistake at the end of day one – missing a cone on a super-special stage – left them with a one-minute penalty but this only served to fire the New Zealanders up for day two.
That was when Jones showed his potential by grabbing two early stage wins and a second place to push the car up the ladder.
More frustration followed in the afternoon as they lost time in stages avoiding crashed vehicles and slowing for blocked stages, although in the case of the latter they were given the time back by the stewards. It was enough, however, to cost them any realistic chance of second instead of third.
Jones says: “Competing on the tarmac for the first time and showing championship contending pace against drivers with over a year of experience with these cars and on the surface left us feeling optimistic.
“Taking it to the factory Toyota team TGR WRJ with the Cusco Racing car obviously felt good too.
“We’re happy with our performance. Going forward, we feel confident we can get ourselves into the fight for the championship.
“The GR Yaris Morizo Challenge Cup vehicle is one of those rare machines that feels right from the moment you get behind the wheel. It’s incredibly stable, easy to get to grips with and gives you the confidence to push harder with every stage.”
The second round of the championship isn’t too far away – the Tour de Kyushu in Karastu starts on April 11.
