Skoda can celebrate: the Czech car manufacturer is rewriting the history of motorsport with its premature win of two titles in the FIA Asia-Pacific Championship (APRC). Skoda won for the third time in a row in the brand and driver rating in the APRC. At the same time, factory rider Jan Kopecký won another continental championship a year after the title in the European championship. Kopecký and co-driver Pavel Dresler completed their triumph with a commanding success at Rally Hokkaido in Japan.
" I am overjoyed that we have once again managed to win both continental titles in this very important region for us. We have thus achieved the most important goal. It is especially gratifying that with these successes we can go to the season finale in the APRC, which takes place in our most important market in China ", commented Skoda Motorsport director Michal Hrabánek . He especially praised the new champion Kopecky, who completed the Czech manufacturer's hat-trick in the APRC after the triumphs of Chris Atkinson and Gaurav Gill .
" It was Jan's first year in the APRC, and to win the title under such difficult conditions is an incredible achievement ", said Hrabánek. Kopecký and Dresler could hardly believe this historically significant achievement. " Thank you to the Skoda Motorsport team and the Skoda MRF team for their amazing support. It is unbelievable that after the title of European champion we can celebrate another such great success. All the competitions this season were new for us, but we faced it and got through it. And an extraordinary compliment goes to my passenger Pavlo Dresler – without him I would have gotten lost in the forests of Asia and the Pacific region ", adds the 32-year-old Kopecký .
Even in the fifth rally, he showed strong nerves and thrilled tens of thousands of spectators along the track. After 222.28 kilometers on 18 stages, the Kopecký/Dresler crew won by a large margin. It was the third success of the five-race APRC season, following triumphs in New Caledonia and Australia .
At the rally in New Zealand and Malaysia , the second pair won with a Skoda – Gaurav Gill / Glenn Macneal . The defending champion and last year's winner in Japan was leading his team-mate closely until the seventh special stage of this traditional rally on the island of Hokkaido, but then he went off the track and did not finish the race. " Of course, I would like to defend the title, but I want to congratulate Jan fairly on his success. The title is in the right hands. I am pleased that I could contribute to the Skoda brand winning the title in brands ", Gill commented on the triumph in Japan.
The two APRC titles are a continuation of the successful series of the legendary Skoda Fabia S2000 . He had previously won three national titles: Freddy Loix , who won the European Rally Championship race in his homeland in June with a top-of-the-line all-wheel drive car from Mladá Boleslav, secured the Belgian championship. Before that, the championship was won in Portugal by Pedro Meireles , supported by Skoda Portugal. In addition, the very experienced Raimund Baumschlager secured his twelfth rally championship in Austria with the Fabia Super 2000. In the ERC , where Skoda factory driver Esapekka Lappi leads the table ahead of his colleague at the brand, Sepp Wiegand , another title could be added.
##SMHokkaido14##
Source: Skoda Motorsport
