Being the fastest can sometimes count for nothing. Andreas Mikkelsen just has to hope that this week, it finally counts for something.
From a position of supreme authority, Mikkelsen’s control has turned into catastrophe. Two DNFs in his past two starts have left him somewhat scrambling in the championship, and agonizingly it’s all through no fault of his own.
But the rally gods don’t care for such technicalities. The reality of the situation is Mikkelsen should be leading WRC2 at a canter, but instead he starts this week’s Rally Estonia as the driver who needs a result more than anybody else.
Mikkelsen’s quest for the season is clear: defend his title. He craves another shot at the front of the World Rally Championship, and the only way to earn that is to be – as he describes it – “first in line” for any potential opening.
Being first in line means winning the chief support category. It means winning WRC2.
The year couldn’t have started better with wins on both Monte and Sweden. But what was most telling was how Mikkelsen achieved them – his right foot wasn’t flat to the mat, it was Mikkelsen’s brain and countless years of experience that did the winning.
2022 hasn’t been about proving his pace, it’s about winning the race. Mikkelsen has judged it all to perfection, laying it all on the line when he had to but deploying a measured approach in order to minimize risks and ultimately getting the job done.
It was a similar story in Rally Portugal. Teemu Suninen had begun to streak clear but Mikkelsen loitered patiently and pounced when his rival punctured. He ended the day with a 37-second advantage and seemingly looked on his way for a third win from three.
It wasn’t to be. The engine in Mikkelsen’s Škoda had failed and ruled him out of the running. No points.
Sardinia, time to reset, time to recover that lost ground. You already know where he immediately found himself (first) but what happened next? Engine failure yet again. No points yet again. The patience that Mikkelsen had used to win rallies earlier was being sorely tested.
The unveiling of the new Fabia RS Rally2 has distracted Mikkelsen in the five weeks since Rally Italy. Talk has focused on Škoda’s new machine and Mikkelsen even got to drive it on Rally Bohemia (albeit not competitively) at the weekend.
But now Mikkelsen’s focus is firmly on how he makes mission impossible, possible. If this was a top-line WRC season, the task would not be quite so daunting. Two non-scores in 13 rounds isn’t good, but it’s not utterly disastrous.
However in WRC2, a competitor can only score in seven rounds and their best six scores will count. So that means, no matter what happens from here, Mikkelsen has to carry one of his zeros towards his final points tally – which is, at worst, a 28-point handicap to his rivals.
History is at least on Mikkelsen’s side. Mikkelsen got off the mark delightfully in 2021 but struggled on his third and fourth rallies, managing just fifth in Croatia and a DNF in Sardinia. He then rocked up to Estonia and won.
There’s no doubt that both Mikkelsen and his Toksport Fabia Rally2 evo are up to the same job this week, but the crucial difference is Mikkelsen’s zero. Ten points for fifth last year were hardly ideal, but they were at least something. And the competition is far tougher now that WRC3 and WRC2 have amalgamated into one this year too.
The pressure on Mikkelsen’s shoulders is therefore huge. He knows that any slip up, big or small, will likely write off his title chances for good. He’s been around the block enough to not let this ruin him, but his mental fortitude will certainly be tested as he needs to lock those fears away and not let them impact his driving.
Speaking to DirtFish at the aforementioned launch of Škoda’s new Rally2 car last month, Mikkelsen was trying his best to be optimistic.
“It’s a short championship, not so many rallies, you really need the points from every event,” he said.
“I won’t say the championship is lost but we need to deliver in the rest of the season. We have no more jokers so it will be tough.”
Tough, but not undoable. But Mikkelsen will now likely need an assist from his rivals if he’s to run clear and score another world title.
What an opportunity for the rest though. Suddenly the clear favorite has one hand tied behind his back.
What Kajetan Kajetanowicz, Yohan Rossel and co must not do is toss Mikkelsen a knife to cut himself free. The pressure is firmly on them to not fumble the chance they must never have dreamed they’d have.
But as it stands, Mikkelsen still has the most to lose. He’s been queue barged, but he still wants to be the one at the front of the line when the 2022 season is done.
