Breen and team-m🦹ate James Fulton were involved in a testing accident last Thursday, with the 33-year-old Irish driver succumbing to the injuries he sustained.

Hyundai Motorsport released a statement yesterday in which it confirmed the car they were in was mechanically sound, although road conditions at the time of the crash w🧸ere described as “slippery”.

The left-side of the i20 N Rally1 bore the brunt of the impact with a wooden fence positioned at the side o🐻f the road, with one of the posts entering the cabin thro🐬ugh the driver’s window.

Pri𓄧or to turning his 𓃲attention to matters in the Baltic State, the 2019 World Champion visited Breen’s parents – Ray and Jackie – in Waterford last weekend to offer his condolences ahead of Tuesday’s Service of Thanksgiving.

Tanak – who was joint second quickest on the shakedown stage with 2021 winner Sebastien Ogier, eight tenths of a second down on last year’s winner Kalle Rovanpera with a time of 1m 53.6s – said the next few days would prove tough mentally for everyone, bo🦋th out on the stages and back in the Zagreb service park.

“It is difficult, it is dema🀅nding, and it is so 🌄hard for all of us,” said Tanak. “It is empty inside and it is eating us alive, so it is tough, but yeah, I promised to give a smile to Jackie [Craig’s mum].

“She had so much positive energy when I was there last Sunday – they are such a l🐠ovely people – and have grown such a happy kid, so I was really happy𒆙 to be there with them. We keep going and so do you,” he added.

Thierry Neuville – Breen’s team-mat💛e at Hyundai Motorsport – expressed his sympathies at the end of his first run over the 3.65km of Okic, saying: “We are all very sorry for what happened.

“It will be a tough weekend for everybo🧔dy but as a tജeam and as a rally family we need to be strong and we need to keep going.

“That is what Craig would have wanted for sure. I think w🐼e have t♓o try and enjoy it. It is one of the messages that Craig gave us.

“So, we will try to enjoy and bring back a good re🌳sult for Craig. That is the target.”