Smack off their fifth consecutive win at the Rally America 100 Acre Wood Rally, Ken Block and Alex Gelsomino are set for the Monster World Rally Team’s first WRC race at Rally Mexico this week.

“I’m super stoked to be down here, getting ready to race this week, especially after taking my fifth win at the 100 Acre Wood Rally,” says Ken Block. “I just wish I could’ve done more than one day of testing in the Ford Focus RS before jumping in the ring with the world’s best drivers this weekend at Rally Mexico. But this is my development year, not that I won’t be going flat where I can, but I realize that I have a bit to learn before becoming a really competitive driver in the WRC.”

In preparation for Rally Mexico, the Monster World Rally Team traveled to the Greystoke Forest, near the M-Sport headquarters in Cumbria, England, two weeks ago, for Ken and Alex’s first and only test in the Ford Focus RS WRC. In the morning, the drivers were greeted with snow-covered roads and below freezing temperatures. Not exactly ideal conditions for Mexico testing. The day was shaping up to be a repeat of a previously aborted test that was snowed out, but the midday sun came out to melt the ice and frost, allowing the team to successfully put in a much needed 170km of seat time before their inaugural WRC Event. “Testing the Focus RS WRC was one of the best days I’ve spent in a rally car,” adds Ken. “It’s just an amazing machine with so much capability. Now I just need to learn how to exploit all of it.”