Dual RSEA Safety Motorsport Australia Rally Champion co-driver Dale Moscatt will this weekend represent Australian rallying, as the FIA World Rally Championship resumes its 2020 season at Rally Estonia.

Partnering with local Estonian driver Karl Kruuda aboard a Volkswagen Polo R5 in the WRC3 class, it will be a reunion of sorts with the pair last competing in the Chinese Championship back in 2018. That event was coincidentally Kruuda’s most recent rally.

“When this opportunity came up here to do his home event in Estonia, it was a no brainer they were going to try to do everything to get here,” Moscatt said.

“When a top rate driver like that rings you and says he’s got a Polo R5 car, come and do this fantastic rollercoaster rally, you’re never going to say no to that.”

Moscatt and Kruuda have already sampled the Estonian roads that they will face this weekend, and whilst it may be compared to Finland in some respects, the stages are still unique to Estonia.

“It’s very similar to Finland, the road can be quite hard on the main shire roads here with that fine layer of sandy type gravel on the top, but the grip is still amazing,” Moscatt said.

“The difference here is that the crests are quite rolling. In Finland they’re a lot sharper crests, and a lot more jumps. The organisers did do some work and added jumps, and put a bit of a pitch on those crests to make it a little bit more exciting – which you probably don’t have to, it was exciting enough for me.”

Moscatt was one of a handful of Australians who were granted exemptions by the Australian Government to travel overseas in what is Moscatt’s profession.

“It’s been an epic mission,” Moscatt said.

“Even getting permission to get out of Australia was a massive task… so if you’re an Australian athlete competing for Australia, there’s an exemption to travel for your career. 

“I’m fortunate enough to be a professional doing this, which enabled me to get one of those exemptions so I must thank Motorsport Australia for their assistance in that too.”

Moscatt in recent years has partnered with Richie Dalton in the RSEA Safety Motorsport Australia Rally Championship, but his impressive CV also includes ARC and WRC starts alongside Cody Crocker, Scott Pedder, Mark Pedder, Chris Atkinson and Lewis Bates to name a few.

In the latest edition of the ARC Service Park, Dale also reflects on his rise up the Australian and global rallying ranks.

The 2020 Rally Estonia begins on Friday 4 September, with live streaming available at wrc.com.