This week is another milestone in the career of Takamoto Katsuta, as he leads the World Rally Championship into an event for the very first time.
“It will be nice to be the first car on the road on Friday,” he smiled, “even though it’s less of an advantage there because there is not much cutting and the roads.”
The Toyota driver leads his team-mate Elfyn Evans by seven points ahead of Rally Islas Canarias, with his other team-mate Oliver Solberg just 13 points adrift.
But does he actually see himself as a contender for the world title?
“I’m really trying to not think about it,” Katsuta told DirtFish. “I try to do my best each rally and each rally will be some improvements I need, so I’m fully focused on that – not thinking about points at all.
“I try to really focus where I can do well and where I should improve and nothing else. I think that’s my approach.”
Katsuta leads the championship, but is he a contender for the title?
So far, it’s worked. After a muted seventh in Monte Carlo, the Japanese driver hasn’t been off the podium since, securing a second-place finish in Sweden and then back-to-back wins in Kenya and Croatia.
That sort of form, coupled to errors by both Evans and Solberg in recent events, has elevated Katsuta to the top of the table, and makes him a definite contender according to Solberg.
“It definitely looks like it,” he said. “We are 1-2-3-4 now in the championship as a team, and [Sébastien] Ogier is coming., so for the next rallies on gravel he has a good starting position.
“To be absolutely honest, when I look at it now, my goal is to try to close that gap for Canaries and not start first in Portugal – that would be actually fantastic, because once you’re done with this Tarmac season, you don’t want to be leading really.”
Katsuta’s home event, Rally Japan, immediately follows Portugal before the entire second half of the season is staged on gravel.
Gilles Panizzi was the last driver to immediately win again after claiming his first WRC win
Regardless of what happens across the rest of the season, Katsuta did make history in Croatia by becoming the first driver to immediately win their second WRC event after their first since Gilles Panizzi conquered the 2000 Tour de Corse and Sanremo rallies.
Could he possibly do the hattrick in Canarias?
“I don’t know, I try my best!” Katsuta laughed. “It’s a very nice rally. I really like the character of the circuit-style stages, so I need to get some tips from Kalle [Rovanperä].
“We will do our best in Canarias.”
