WRC2 CHAMPION 2022

Emil Lindholm Emil Lindholm

WRC2 CHAMPION 2022

Emil Lindholm Emil Lindholm

WRC2 CHAMPION 2022

Emil Lindholm Emil Lindholm

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Emil Lindholm: ”It’s great to continue towards WRC Finland from here”

24 July 2023

Emil Lindholm and Reeta Hämäläinen, who drove their first WRC round with Hyundai i20 N Rally2, finished third in the WRC2 class in the WRC Estonia that ended on Sunday. "I am very satisfied with our result. We gained a lot of experience and good information for future rallies," Lindholm summed up.

Emil Lindholm and Reeta Hämäläinen, who made their debut in Hyundai Motorsport N team, took third place on the podium in the WRC2 class and 11th place in the overall competition in the eight round of World Rally Championship driven in Tartu, Estonia. In WRC2 class World Championship points, the duo is in fifth place.

Lindholm improved his speed as the rally progressed. After one test day and one World Rally Championship round later, a solid ground has been built under the collaboration with a new team, from which it is good to push forward.

- We knew that we had a challenging rally ahead of us. There were lot of new things for us to think about, including a new car, but in the end we achieved what we realistically set out to pursue in Estonia - a podium finish. We think it's a very good result in our first rally.

- The rally was full of events for us, but that's the thing of this sport. We compete in a tough company and the Estonian World Rally Championship is the rally that requires the most trust out of all the rallies of the season. And only competition brings the important experience and additional knowledge that we need in future rallies to succeed even better.

Lindholm was very satisfied with his new Hyundai i20 N Rally2 car and his team's performance.

- We reached the finish line and got immediately on the podium in our first rally together. Big thanks to our team for that. Professional work and our cooperation worked excellently. We developed our car to suit me better during this whole weekend. The direction is right and it is great to continue towards WRC Finland from here, says Lindholm.

Results; WRC Estonia, WRC2-class:
1. Andreas Mikkelsen – Torsten Eriksen (N) Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 2:45:57.3
2. Sami Pajari – Enni Mälkönen (FIN) Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 + 9.7
3. Emil Lindholm – Reeta Hämäläinen (FIN) Hyundai i20 N Rally2 + 1:21.7

WRC2-class Championship standings:
1. Yohan Rossel (F) Citroën 77
2. Andreas Mikkelsen (N) Škoda 69
3. Oliver Solberg (SWE) Škoda 64
4. Gus Greensmith (GB) Škoda 62
5. Emil Lindholm (FIN) Hyundai 59
6. Kajetan Kajetanowicz (POL) Škoda 55