"Hello everyone,
"Maxi the MINI here - I'm so excited because we just finished fifth overall at ADAC Rallye Deutschland. It was three tough days of competition, 15 special stages a lot of hard work but also loads of fun with Chris, Stéphane and the team. 368.63km of special stages later and we clocked the best result achieved by WRC Team MINI Portugal so far and Chris' highest finish ever in Germany. Not to mention that we clocked the fifth time overall in today's Power Stage.
"Not to brag (too much) but I was the top MINI finishing the rally this weekend. I'll try not to mention it too often to the other MINIs in the workshop back in Italy but I think I'll probably get away with mentioning it (and my Top 5 finish) once or twice.
"I'm really proud that I was part of Chris and Stéphane's success this weekend, they are a great pairing - well we're more like a trio, really - and I felt a connection with them from our very first outing together.
"I think that they like me too, today I heard Chris saying that I was fantastic this weekend. I think we make a perfect match and I already can't wait to compete again. Although, I'll have to wait about a month as my next event will be Rallye de France. I'm having a rest and keeping my Tarmac set-up whilst one of the boys will head out to Wales Rally GB with Chris ready for the rougher gravel. I said that they can copy my livery and put it on the GB car if they want.
"Today we cruised through the last three stages and made sure we didn't make any mistakes and kept our position. Of course we could have been a bit faster, but the conditions today were especially tricky due to the heavy rain so we decided to take it easy!
"When Chris came to get me at Parc Fermé this morning he was quite chilled and said to me: 'Come on Maxi, let's do it!' He always knows how to cheer me up and boost my confidence.
"When we got to the finish of the last stage - Circus Maximus - Chris was all smiles, it felt so good to see him happy. We scooped a very good result together and I'm sure there's still a lot more excitement to come. He said to me: 'There you go, Maxi! Fifth on your first rally and my best result ever here in Germany. You did an amazing job all weekend - and in return, I made sure there wasn't a scratch on you so you'll look pretty for your photos on the finish ramp!'
"Wow, going over the final ramp was really awesome and I could sense Chris was very excited too.
"Tomorrow I go back to Italy together with my friend Porquinho Verde. I'm a bit sad because I already miss Chris loads, because he's heading halfway round the world to Australia, but I'll see him in about a month and I'm already counting down the days.
"This weekend was really special and it was an honour to be your host - I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did! Chris asked me to thank you all for the great support he has been given and to say that he can't wait for Wales Rally GB.
"Bye for now!"
Maxi
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