Ogier Reportedly Delayed Contract Talks to Race in Polo WRC

It took four time World Rally Champion Sebastien Ogier a surprisingly long time to find a new seat in the series following Volkswagen’s shocking withdrawal from the series and now we’re getting some insight as to why.

It seems that the French driver who won all of his WRC titles with VW didn’t want to give up on the brand, but the scramble for time and competition from a Qatari team for the car ultimately pushed Ogier into his current ride with Team M Sport.

Motorsport reports that Ogier was set to race with Martin Prokop with backing from Ogier’s sponsor Red Bull and that the Frenchman even delayed contract talks with other teams to give the Polo its best possible chance.

“Everything was arranged,” Prokop told Motorsport. “Ogier agreed with the fact that we would skip Monte Carlo. He said it should give at least 14 days more time for family.”

“Even the people at Volkswagen were pleased that their car will not end in a museum,” continued Prokop. “But it is a reality.”

Prokop and Ogier weren’t the only people interested in racing the 2017 Polo WRC. A Qatari sportsman with national backing also showed interest, which Prokop blames for derailing his and Ogier’s plans.

Whatever the case, now that the team has failed to be homologated by the FIA, even Andreas Mikkelsen, who had also shown interest in racing the car in just a few rallies, won’t be able to get on the road, so it seems that the car will, after all, end up in a museum.”

[source: Motorsport]

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