Just one week after the Estering round comes Franciacorta in Italy: an area that is well known for producing sparkling wine. And that’s precisely what Topi is planning to be spraying from the top step of the podium next Sunday.
Currently the flying Finn is 52 points off the lead in the championship standings, with three rounds to go. First of those is Italy next weekend: a very fast and open track that should suit Topi’s exciting driving style extremely well. There are some spectacular jumps as well, plus plenty of very good viewing opportunities for spectators, so it should be a memorable weekend as the title race enters its closing stages.
”My goal is very simple: I want to be the first person to win the FIA World Rallycross Championship,” said Topi. ”At the moment, we are a little bit behind, but I think that every single one of the final three rounds should suit us very well. Franciacorta is a rgood example because it is a very fast track where you need a lot of commitment. My sort of place, in other words!”
The show-stopping nature of the track comes as no surprise, considering that former World Rally Championship star Gigi Galli – renowned for keeping his foot flat to the floor – helped to design it. And that attacking style is something that the Italian has in common with Topi.
”It’s true: flat-out is my favourite way of driving,” adds Topi. ”Maybe that’s not perfectly suited to everywhere, but it should be ideal for Franciacorta. I drove the track at the media day at the beginning of the year, and I really liked it. If I still want to win the title I can’t compromise now. I’ve just got to focus on trying to win every single round. With the Polo RX Supercar and the support that our Marklund team has from Volkswagen behind me, I know that we absolutely have the right equipment to do it. As well as the drivers’ title we are fighting for the teams’ title as well, so it is a big responsibility.”
Franciacorta is located in northern Italy, not far from Milan. With plenty of recent investment in the circuit, the 10th round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship should prove to be extremely popular among the motorsport-mad Italian fans.
”We’ve not really had much time to catch our breath since Germany, so we’ll be going straight into it in Italy,” concluded Topi. ”I’m just looking forward to getting over there and getting stuck in. We’ve had a bit of bad luck recently but I’m confident that we are completely over that now and we can get back to what we’re used to doing: winning!”
Following two open practice sessions, the first of Saturday’s two heats begins at 1230 local time. Sunday’s opening heat gets underway at 0915, with the semi-finals starting at 1500 followed by the final at 1530.
