原标题：TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Rally Challenge Program丰田Gazoo赛车挑战赛计划
TOKYO, Dec 13, 2019 - (JCN Newswire) - - The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Rally Challenge Program takes another significant step in 2020, with Japanese driver Takamoto Katsuta set to drive a Toyota Yaris WRC on eight FIA World Rally Championship events.
Katsuta began 2019 by contesting seven WRC rounds in with an R5-specification car--winning the WRC2 class on Rally Chile--alongside two victories from his two initial starts in the Yaris WRC in the Finnish championship. Given the strong progress shown, his program for the second half of the season was revised accordingly, and he stepped up to the top category of the WRC with a Yaris WRC for Rallye Deutschland and Rally de Espana. This represented a significant achievement for the program, which set out to develop a Japanese WRC driver.
With Katsuta having met his objectives by gaining crucial experience and demonstrating improvement through both events, another milestone is set to follow. Next season he will tackle an expanded schedule at rallying's top-level, starting all seven European rallies as well as his home event, Rally Japan. He will continue to be guided by experienced co-driver Dan Barritt.
Tommi Makinen (TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Rally Challenge Program supervisor)
"Takamoto has already gained some experience driving the Yaris WRC this year, and just this week he did the final day of our test to prepare for Rallye Monte Carlo, so he's becoming more knowledgeable about the car and gaining a better understanding of how a World Rally Car behaves, compared to what he's driven before. In Spain we had already seen him set some good stage times, especially on his second time through the stages. Now he just needs more experience, which will help him to improve his consistency. I'm very confident that he will show good things throughout his programme of events in 2020."
Jarkko Miettinen (TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Rally Challenge Program instructor)
"I expect Taka and Dan to continue developing constantly during our 2020 programme. They already made big steps in 2019 with their speed in the Yaris in the two WRC events they did. Having said that, improving their stage times now gets harder and harder as the margins at the top level are so small. In our calendar for next season there are some familiar events where Taka can push more, and some events that will have to be taken purely for learning more about the Yaris and the conditions. We will focus our training on all the small details that can be made better to keep learning more and to reach the top level in this demanding sport."
Takamoto Katsuta
"I must say thank you very much to TOYOTA GAZOO Racing and Tommi Makinen Racing for giving me this amazing opportunity. 2020 will be a new challenge for me. I have good experience of each event from this year, but to be able to compete at the top level in a World Rally Car is a big step up. Although my first events in the Yaris WRC this year were very positive, I know that I still need to improve my driving and my pace-notes to reach a higher level. I'm really motivated to do that and I'm looking forward to seeing how much progress I can make next year. I hope that I can show a good step between the beginning and the end of the season, and I'm really excited for it to start."
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About Toyota Motor Corporation
Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is the global mobility company that introduced the Prius hybrid-electric car in 1997 and the first mass-produced fuel cell sedan, Mirai, in 2014. Headquartered in Toyota City, Japan, Toyota has been making cars since 1937. Today, Toyota proudly employs 370,000 employees in communities around the world. Together, they build around 10 million vehicles per year in 29 countries, from mainstream cars and premium vehicles to mini-vehicles and commercial trucks, and sell them in more than 170 countries under the brands Toyota, Lexus, Daihatsu and Hino. For more information, please visit www.toyota-global.com.
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东京，2019年12月13日(JCN Newswire)--丰田Gazoo赛车联盟挑战赛计划在2020年又迈出了重要的一步，日本车手Takamoto Katsuta将在八届国际汽联世界拉力锦标赛上驾驶一辆丰田Yaris WRC。
Katsuta于2019年开始使用R5规格的赛车--在智利拉力赛上赢得WRC2级--与他在芬兰锦标赛Yaris WRC的两场开局中取得的两场胜利竞争WRC的7轮比赛。由于取得了很大的进步，他在下半个赛季的日程被相应地修改了，并且他提升到了WRC的顶级级别，其中一个是Rallye Deutschland和Rally de Espana的Yaris WRC。这是该计划的一项重大成就，该计划将开发一种日本的WRC驱动程序。
由于胜田已达到他的目标，获得了关键的经验，并证明通过这两个事件的改进，另一个里程碑将紧随其后。下个赛季，他将在拉力赛的顶级水平上处理扩大的时间表，开始所有七次欧洲集会以及他的主场比赛，日本拉力赛。他将继续由经验丰富的合作司机丹·巴里特指导。
Tommi Makinen(丰田Gazoo赛车挑战赛项目主管)
“今年，高本已经获得了一些驾驶亚力士赛车的经验，就在本周，他做了最后一天的测试，为拉莱·蒙特卡洛做准备，所以他对赛车的了解越来越多，对世界拉力赛车的表现也有了更好的了解。在西班牙，我们已经见过他在舞台上的表现不错，尤其是在他第二次通过比赛的时候。现在他需要更多的经验，这将帮助他提高自己的稳定性。我很有信心，他在2020年的比赛中会表现出好的一面。”
Jarkko Miettinen(丰田Gazoo赛车挑战赛项目指导员)
“我预计塔卡和丹将在2020年项目期间继续不断发展。他们在2019年的两项WRC赛事中，在亚力士项目上取得了长足的进步。话虽如此，但随着顶级赛事的利润率太小，他们的舞台时间变得越来越艰难。在我们的下个赛季日历中，有一些熟悉的赛事，塔卡可以推动更多的比赛，有些项目必须采取，纯粹是为了更多地了解亚力士和亚力士的情况。我们将把训练的重点放在所有可以更好地学习的小细节上，这样才能更好地学习更多知识，并在这项要求很高的运动中达到最高水平。”
高本胜田
“我必须说非常感谢丰田Gazoo赛车和Tommi Makinen赛车给我这个惊人的机会。2020年对我来说将是一个新的挑战。从今年开始，我对每一项赛事都有很好的经验，但是能够在一辆世界拉力赛赛车的顶级水平上竞争是一个很大的进步。虽然我今年第一次参加亚力士世界赛车比赛是非常积极的，但我知道我仍然需要提高我的驾驶和速度记录才能达到一个更高的水平。我真的很有动力去做这件事，我期待着明年我能取得多大的进步。我希望我能在赛季的开始和结束之间迈出一大步，我真的很兴奋它的开始。“
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丰田汽车公司简介
丰田汽车公司(Tmc)是一家全球移动公司，在1997年推出了普锐斯混合动力汽车，并于2014年推出了第一辆大规模生产的燃料电池轿车mirai。丰田公司总部设在日本丰田市，自1937年以来一直在生产汽车。如今，丰田自豪地在世界各地的社区中雇佣了37万名员工。他们每年在29个国家生产大约1000万辆汽车，从主流汽车和高档汽车到微型汽车和商用卡车，并以丰田、雷克萨斯、大发和日野的品牌在170多个国家销售。欲了解更多信息，请访问www.toyota-global.com。
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