“Basically this powerstage was the first time I drove a full hard [tire] since Canarias, so at least it was quite good to have this kind of feeling before Rally Japan, because at Rally Japan the hard tire will be the main tire,” he added.
“I was killing the tires halfway through so basically on the powerstage. I was not happy that I felt good in the beginning, then I was pushing the tires too much and killing the tires, then I lost a lot of time in the end.
“But like I said, it was good to see like this already before Japan and Japan will be very important for me.”
Katsuta has finished on the podium at home just once, when he claimed third in 2022. Last year he finished fourth.
AloJapan.com