ELFYN Evans is ready to tackle the frozen stages of Rally Sweden in one of three M-Sport EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta WRCs on the second round of the FIA World Rally Championship.

Evans and co-driver Daniel Barritt recovered to achieve sixth place at the Rallye Monte-Carlo - but the prestigious event could have yielded so much more in the opening round last month.

Unfortunate to pick up a puncture on the very first stage, the Brits lost more than three minutes to the leading pack, but they refused to lose their focus - following up their disappointment with a resurgent comeback from 16th to sixth overall.

He may have limited experience of winter rallying, but the Gwynedd star knows what it takes to win at Rally Sweden – out-performing some of the region’s most promising young talents to secure victory as part of the WRC2 category in 2016.

This year, he and Barritt will be looking to improve on their career-best sixth place through the snow-covered stages, and will have every chance of doing just that.

“Rally Sweden is an event that everyone looks forward to," said Evans, who is from Dinas Mawddwy.

"On a classic Rally Sweden – like what we’re expecting this year – we can reach incredible speeds and if you get it right it’s easily one of the most enjoyable rallies on the calendar.

“The feeling on snow isn’t a million miles away from driving on gravel, but there are certain techniques that we’ll need to adapt, and it can take a bit of getting used to at first.

“Vision can often be a challenge – particularly if there is a lot of fresh snow making it difficult to read the road ahead. Our pace-notes and recce are going to have to be spot on, but we’re ready for it and really looking forward to it.

“There’s something of a score to settle after Monte where we were capable of achieving more than we did, so let’s see what we can do in Sweden.”

M-Sport Ford have enjoyed much success at Rally Sweden, but Team Principal Malcolm Wilson knows that the competition will be stronger than ever this year.

Having secured six victories on the snow-covered stages, the Swedish fixture remains the team’s most successful event on the current FIA World Rally Championship calendar, and the team will be hoping to give the Scandinavians a run for their money next week.

“Early reports suggest that we’re in for a classic Rally Sweden with plenty of snow and plenty of action out on the stages," said Wilson.

"We completed a comprehensive test with all three crews earlier this week and they all came away with a good feeling, so let’s see what we can do.

“We’re expecting the competition to be extremely strong and we know that the Scandinavian drivers will be on top form, but we also have three very strong candidates.

"Sébastien (Ogier) has won the event three times and Elfyn is also a previous Rally Sweden winner having out-performed the locals as part of the WRC 2 category in 2016.

“The scene is set for another epic battle and we’re certainly hoping to be in the mix for at least a podium. If we can secure another strong haul of points for our Championship defence, we’ll leave Sweden very happy indeed.”.