Takamoto Katsuta is talking about the roll he had in Stage 16 of Rally Saudi Arabia which costed him a podium finish.
The Japanese driver was in third position overall at the end of Friday after Adrien Fourmaux's time penalty despite the fact that he got punctures and made a mistake in Stage 12 when he had an overshoot and had to reverse to get going again. The rally got worsened for him when he rolled his Yaris in Stage 16 after his going wide and digging into the sand. He managed to complete the stage, but he and Aaron Johnston finished the rally without a windscreen, thus they had to wear their goggles in Powerstage. Finally, Katsuta dropped from third to fifth overall and finished Rally Saudi Arabia just 8,2 seconds behind the fourth Sami Pajari.
"It was good to reach the finish of this rally but today could have been better", said Katsuta after Saturday.
"We were fighting for the podium until one slightly optimistic pacenote in the penultimate stage.
"We went off and when trying to come back to the road, we dug into the very soft sand and it caused us to roll.
"It’s such a pity because we were being patient all weekend and then made this small mistake, but this is rallying.
"I’m sorry to the team but I want to thank them for the massive support they gave me this year, and I will work hard to come back stronger".
Photo Credits: Toyota
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