Jari-Matti Latvala says his crash on Rallye Monte-Carlo won't affect his chances of becoming world rally champion for the first time this season, despite his failure to score a single point on the recent WRC season-opener.Latvala, from Finland, was leading when he crashed out on the event’s opening day at the wheel of his Ford Fiesta RS WRC.
He said: “Everything was in place to do well on the rally, and that is what is killing me inside. Now we need to think about the championship. There are 12 rallies in which we can still fight for victory - we need to come back strong in Sweden [venue of round two of the season next month].”
Latvala’s optimism was echoed by Ford of Europe motorsport chief Gerard Quinn who said: “There was obviously disappointment with Jari-Matti going out of the rally so early on, but from the pace he showed, I’m confident it’s going to be an exciting season for the Ford World Rally Team.”
The 2012 FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia resumes on Rally Sweden from 9-12 February. Latvala and co-driver Miikka Anttila won the event in 2008 and will be among the favourites for victory this year.
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