Apparently, Gus Greensmith and co-driver Jonas Andersson are made for rough events. After winning WRC2 at Safari Rally Kenya with RaceSeven’s Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, the British-Swedish duo finished the gruelling Acropolis Rally Greece second in the category.
The rocky mountain roads of central Greece took their toll during the opening leg. Many crews, including some of the WRC2 front runners, lost time due to punctures and the subsequent tyre changes. Among the first to experience misfortune were Emil Lindholm and co-driver Reeta Hämäläinen. The Toksport WRT run Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 suffered two punctures. By the end of the first leg, the 2022 WRC2 champions were down in ninth position. Similar bad luck befell Roberto Daprà/Luca Guglielmetti (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of Delta Rally Team), winners of the WRC2 category at Rally Italia Sardegna. Also, Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of team Toksport WRT) and Lauri Joona/Samu Vaaleri (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of team MS Munaretto) were out of the race for a top position already after the Friday leg.
While Oliver Solberg and Elliott Edmondson's victory in the WRC2 category was never in doubt, a thrilling three-day long duel for second place of the category developed. After the first leg, Kajetan Kajetanowicz and co-driver Maciej Szczepaniak were leading the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 of Gus Greensmith and co-driver Jonas Andersson by just three seconds. “In the morning, we had completely delaminated tyres,” Greensmith described. On Friday evening, the WRC2 interim results saw Martin Prokop and co-driver Michal Ernst in fourth place aboard Prokop's family team-run Škoda Fabia RS Rally2.
The Saturday stages offered no respite for either the crews or the cars. “It's a bit too much; it would be more fun with a Rally Dakar car,” joked Martin Prokop, who has extensive experience of desert racing. Nevertheless, the battle for second place in the WRC2 category intensified. The Škoda crew of Gus Greensmith and Jonas Andersson repeatedly swapped positions with Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak. By the end of the leg, the British Swedish pair were ten seconds ahead of their Polish rivals. "I was saving tyres as much as I could, but they are still wearing out," explained Greensmith, describing the challenges posed by the rough gravel stages in the Lamia area. Over the course of Saturday, Martin Prokop/Michal Ernst dropped to sixth place in the WRC2 standings. Meanwhile, Emil Lindholm/Reeta Hämäläinen advanced to seventh place, with Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo following in eighth position.
During the final leg on Sunday championship leaders Yohan Rossel/Arnaud Dunand leapfrogged Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak to third position. The French pairing even put pressure on Gus Greensmith/Jonas Andersson, with just 5.5 seconds separating the two rivals heading into the final stage. However, Greensmith fended off the attack. The Škoda driver set the fastest WRC2 time in two closing stages, eventually securing second place of the category.
Martin Prokop/Michal Ernst defended sixth position until the finish. Emil Lindholm/Reeta Hämäläinen in seventh, Robert Virves/Jakko Viilo in in eighth and Lauri Joona/Samu Vaaleri in tenth position brought the total number of Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 inside the top 10 to five.
Also, two Škoda crews made it onto the podium of the WRC Masters Cup. Victory in the class reserved for drivers over the age of 50 again went to Mexican Miguel Granados and Spanish co-driver Marc Martí. Uǧur Soylu/Sener Güray took second position.
After the rocky roads of Greece, the smooth gravel of Northern Europe awaits the WRC2 crews. Next round of the FIA World Rally Championship is Rally Estonia, which takes place in the Tartu area from 17th to 20th July 2025.
Number of the rally: 7
The extremely rough mountain roads of Greece not only took their toll among the WRC2 teams. A big number of the top category competitors also didn’t make it the finish. Thus, Škoda crew Gus Greensmith/Jonas Andersson took as strong seventh position in the overall classification.
Acropolis Rally Greece (GRC), 26-29 June 2025, Result WRC2
1 Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson (SWE/GBR), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, 4:22:54.8 hours
2 Gus Greensmith/Jonas Andersson (GBR/SWE), Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, +53.8 seconds
3 Yohan Rossel/Arnaud Dunand (FRA/FRA), Citroën C3 Rally2, +1:09.0 minutes
4 Kajetan Kajetanowicz/Maciej Szczepaniak (POL/POL), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, +2:22.0 minutes
5 Alejandro Cachón/Borja Rozada (ESP/ESP), Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, +3:45.2 minutes
6 Martin Prokop/Michal Ernst (CZE/CZE), Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, +4:19.8 minutes
Standings WRC2/Drivers (after 7 of 14 rallies)
1 Oliver Solberg (SWE), Toyota 85 points
2 Yohan Rossel (FRA), Citroën, 82 points
3 Gus Greensmith (GBR), Škoda, 57 points
4 Roberto Daprà (ITA), Škoda, 49 points