Lasek Doesn’t Get Keys to the New Subaru WRX STI

Subaru Rally Team USA and David Higgins won’t bring the new 2016 Subaru WRX STI rally car to Sno* Drift Rally this weekend. It will be Bucky Lasek driving an older model STI at the Rally America season opener. Higgins is at the race, but he’s coaching Lasek who is the team’s driver for the first event. It’s a good thing he will have the experienced Craig Drew as his co-driver. Drew has five Rally America National Championship titles and 33 podium finishes in 35 events.

Drew is helping him navigate the snowy and slippery stages

Craig Drew, the experienced co-pilot for David Higgins is training the inexperienced Bucky Lasek on how to avoid snow banks. If Lasek doesn’t do well, it won’t be a new WRX STI taking the beating this weekend. Higgins is at the race and has been giving the Global Rallycross driver some pointers as they rode together on the practice stages this week.

Lasek gets an older STI

The #81 Subaru WRX STI Lasek is driving will be a third generation hatchback STI model Higgins drove two years ago with a new livery. SRT USA isn’t ready to give Lasek the keys to the new 2016 rally car just yet. It’s being prepared for Higgins for the later rally stage races. Subaru apparently wants to see how Lasek handles the snowy and slippery Michigan stages at Sno* Drift Rally in the older STI. The rally stages are lined with snowbanks making mistakes less damaging to the car.

Subaru says they fully intend to compete for another championship this season and Bucky Lasek will be the one to start things off. Recce will take place today (Thursday) and the racing starts Friday afternoon following a Parc Expose on Parland Street in Atlanta, Michigan. Can Lasek pull off a victory in his first-ever stage rally in the older Subaru WRX STI? Stay tuned.

Source: Subaru Motorsports