“It’s definitely not decided! After the Zlín race, Pačejov is still waiting for us, but the weekend can really tell a lot thanks to the increased bonus. The favorite is Honza Kopecký, winner of the last eight years. We’ll see how we deal with it,” smiles the 24-year-old Stříteský, one of the trio of the most successful regional “young guns”, who lead the standings with a 23-point lead over Kopecky
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“I don’t feel under pressure. I kind of take it with a grain of salt, because we are mainly competing here with a person, Honza Kopecký, who was a world champion and several times champion of the republics. And if we can keep up with him now, it’s great,” admitted Dominik Stříteský.
Did you count as a team how many points you need to get to keep the lead, stay in the title game?
No! When a person starts to count, he usually gets confused and starts to get stressed. If we go with Honza, it’s good, and then we’ll see how it all adds up. As I say, counting ahead would bind a person, he would be unnecessarily nervous and think he had to do something, and suddenly some error would appear.
Kopecký has not yet won a major championship race this year, on the other hand, with his experience and knowledge of the local tracks, he is still the favorite…
Certainly for me too! He has won here several times in a row and he is doing well here. We here are all from the neighborhood, but it’s just somehow cursed for us! He comes here, he is able to schedule the race. We’ll see how it goes for us this year!
How do you feel that Václav Pech will ride with you in the RC2 category this time? It will no longer have its own category…
It’s definitely a big change and we’ll see. Conditions will now be the same or very similar. We’ll see what he can do. He won’t drive at the back, he will drive with us at the front and at least it will be shown how different it was with his WRC or if it is the same.
With the length and difficulty of the tracks, it’s not as important to be the fastest as it is to be the fastest. Do you agree?
That’s right! The number of tires that we can use and all similar things that are normally not in the Czech champion also play a role. And Honza Kopecký is a rider from around the world who is used to working with this here.
In the winter, you upgraded the Škoda Fabia RS to the most modern specification. Was it a good choice?
Yes. Last year this car was not yet competitive, but over time it has improved significantly, it is a top racer. In addition, thanks to the cooperation with Roman Kresta and Jarda Vančík, we managed to move one level further! Getting used to it wasn’t easy because there weren’t many tests. But everything worked out, it’s a joy to ride with Fabia!
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Is everything ready for the weekend race? How was the preparation?
Just like a normal race, because we prepare for each race as best we can. As for us – the crew, the car and the team – we are all ready. Everything started on Tuesday and it’s already running like clockwork. Now we are just finalizing the details. However, when it starts, there will be a lot of buzz, as it is every year. But we’re all looking forward to it!
Will the weather also play a role? Do you mind the heat?
Above all, let the weather be the same, because the worst thing is to decide which wheels to put on with that number of tires. Once you start driving, you have to ride them. Nothing will be easy for anyone on Barunka. Stable weather would make things a lot easier for us
In Zlín, you will start as the leader of the championship for the first time. Are you really going to get more nervous?
I don’t take it that way either, because it would be binding for a person, so you need to distance yourself. Barunka will be challenging and not only the four of us will be fast there, like every competition here, but there will be many more people from Europe. And I think they’re going to mess with all of our heads!
How about the competition?
The competition is definitely great! It can be seen that Europe is really driving at a high level, where none of them have anything clear. The point differences are small and everyone is fighting, everyone is pulling the saw for a while. We’ll see what they can do here. After all, they are experienced fighters!
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In the past, foreign riders were not such competitors for the top Czechs at Barumka. Do you see it that way too?
However, many of them went here for the first time last year, and when you come somewhere for the second time, you already know what to expect and are able to react to it. And foreign pilots are shooters. Hayden rode here for the first time last year and rode in the top ten, pulling with us. He will go here for the second time this year and will move on again. Simon Wagner is also fast here. And our Erik Cais always flies here. Unfortunately, it hasn’t worked out for him yet, so I think this year will be even more intense than normal!
What about public interest? Is it increasing?
Yes, it’s great that one has the attention here. However, you also need to distance yourself from it, because a person would start tying himself to things that would then slow him down in that car.
How did the organizers prepare the difficult course?
Barunka is more demanding every year, and this year is no different. We’ll see what it really looks like when driving in, but it will definitely not be light again!
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What position will you be satisfied with at the finish line, what was your goal?
For us, the goal is the Czech champion, the main benchmark for us will be Honza Kopecký, also thanks to the increased bonus. We’ll see what pace he sets and we’ll have to respond accordingly.
