Gill and Brkic back on gravel in Estonia

Just a fortnight after their previous event in Slovenia, the FIA Rally Star Program Gill and Brkic are a part of moves onto the Estonian Island of Saaremaa for the fast gravel roads that the west of the country has to offer. 

A jam-packed entry list that includes the most recent World Rally Championship (WRC) event winner Ott Tanak demonstrates the popularity of the event – a rally that is the second most popular in Estonia, behind their WRC round.

With such a short turnaround from Slovenia, it puts Gill and the whole Rally Star team in good stead for some consistency.

“The 10-week break between Austria and Slovenia felt like ages out of the car, so it is great to be able to be competing again in such a short turnaround,” Gill said.

“So much of rallying is about time in the car, so it is critical that we make the most of the constant run of events to finish the season.”

Gill and Brkic are looking forward to returning to their more familiar gravel surface, after two tarmac events in a row.

The pair will take confidence to the event and will utilise their experience on the loose surface.

“I’m looking forward to having a push on the fast roads – we went to WRC Rally Estonia earlier in the year, so we have somewhat of an idea of what to expect, but again, it is an event like nothing we’ve ever done, so I expect to learn a lot.”

The Australians are seeded 23rd overall and will eagerly await to see their times against that of 2019 World Champion, Tanak, and their top-seeded FIA Rally Star teammate, Estonian Romet Jurgenson.

“To have Ott Tanak compete in the same rally will give us a great benchmark of where we currently stand,” Gill explained.

“While we are in different cars, we can do some calculations at the end of the event and see how far off we are speed-wise.”

Gill’s car is significantly slower than the Rally2 car that Tanak is driving, but calculations from competing on the same stages can give Gill an indication of how fast he is in comparison to the best Rally3 drivers in the world.

“It will also be another good battle with Romet,” Gill explained further.

“He’s Estonian and has done this rally before, so we will really need to bring our A-game to match it with him, but we’re hoping we can be in a fight.”

The Saaremaa Rally begins on Friday evening with three stages, before the remainder of the 120 competitive kilometers take place on Saturday.