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Category: WRC, Rally
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OC Veiby beats Gill again for MRF 1-2: APRC
Johor Bahru , 13 Aug 2017: Team MRF delivered another 1-2 result with Norwegian Ole Christian Veiby comfortably winning the International Rally of Johor, the third round of FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship, here on Sunday, ahead of India’s Gaurav Gill who made up a deficit of over two minutes to finish second.
Veiby defeated Gill once again despite the 35-year old Delhi-based defending champion winning all the six Special Stages on Sunday in the Race Torque-prepared Skoda Fabia R5. Gill managed to go past overnight second-placed Finnish ace Jari Ketomaa while Veiby held on to a huge Leg-1 lead to win by over four minutes, also in a Skoda Fabia R5.
The 21-year old Veiby, Skoda’s factory-backed driver who recently topped the WRC-2 category in Poland, thus scored back-to-back win following his win in the second round in Australia after Gill had taken the season-opener in New Zealand a month earlier. The win also put helped Veiby to consolidate his championship lead over Gill.
The day that was spared of rains which had marred Saturday’s proceedings, belonged to Gill who had lost a lot of time on Saturday after a run-in with a tree stump and alternator problem as he made up the two-minute, 16-second deficit to Ketomaa over a distance of just 76 Kms and went on to beat the World Rally Championship driver by 18.8 seconds, but finished 04:41.7 adrift of Veiby.
Gill’s pace was phenomenal as he made 26 seconds on Ketomaa in the day’s first Stage (11.98Kms), 31 in each of the next two (12.21Kms and 13.93Kms) on the first loop. After service, Gill made a further 69 seconds in the second loop of the same Stages to emerge second.
“For sure, it was one of my best drives, very fast and precise. I didn’t make any mistakes. I was driving at 110 per cent which was what I always wanted do and what all the top drivers do. We had amazing speed, good pace notes and made correct tyre choice. I drove my heart out and pushed the car beyond its limit. But the small mistake I made yesterday cost me the Rally or else, we could have won.
“Starting the day, we were down by two minutes and 16 seconds to Jari. I wanted to get as close to OC (Veiby) as possible. I made most use of my experience to go past Jari who is not a slow driver and has WRC experience. Yes, it was a satisfying drive today, but not overall. I am still upset with the silly mistake I made yesterday,” said Gill who drew some consolation by topping the FIA Asia Cup category.
Veiby was pleased as punch with the win and said: “Today was all about getting through without any trouble. We didn’t want to make any stupid mistakes when we were leading by over five minutes. We had some problems with oil leak, but we had it fixed during service and got through the day. I didn’t go flat out today and tried to enjoy a bit.
“After what happened to Gill on the first Stage yesterday, we were leading the whole Rally and it was kind of boring here. In Australia, it was more fun as Gill and I kept pushing each other, changing positions up and down. But a win is a win and my target is to win the championship.
“It is good to be back in winning mode after my flip in Finland (during WRC-2 round). I just had to forget what happened and trust in yourself and the car. I prepared my mind as I knew Malaysia was a tough round. I read all about the rally, watched some videos to see what happened last year.”
Provisional classification:
FIA APRC: 1. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (3hrs, 02mins, 39.1secs); 2. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (03:07:20.8); 3. Jari Ketomaa / Ville Mannisenmali (Mpart Sport, Mitsubishi Mirage) (03:07:39.5).
FIA Asia Cup: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (03:07:20.8); 2. Michael Young / Malcolm Read (Cusco Racing, Subaru Impreza) (03:18:42.9); 3. Yuva Sumiyama / Takahiro Yasui (Cusco Racing, Skoda Fabia R5) (04:10:42.8).
eom/AP Media Communications release
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MRF’s Veiby surges ahead; Gill third: APRC
Johor Bahru (Malaysia), 12 Aug 2017: Ole Christian Veiby of Team MRF survived treacherous conditions and rode his luck to take a seemingly winning lead in the International Rally of Johor, the third round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship, here on Saturday while defending champion and team-mate Gaurav Gill was a distant third following a string of mishaps.
Veiby, the 21-year old from Norway, driving the Race Torque-prepared Skoda Fabia R5, finished the day marked by incessant rains which rendered the
Ole Christian Veiby in action at the Malaysian Rally, a round of the APRC on Saturday. An MRF image terrain into a virtual skating rink and led to cancellation of a Stage, four minutes, 32.5 seconds ahead of Finland pair of Jari Ketomaa and co-driver in a Mitsubishi Mirage.
For Delhi-based Gill, 35, it was a wretched outing as he first clipped a tree stump due to “purely a driving error” as he put it in the day’s first Special Stage leading to a bent steering arm and later in the day, suffered alternator problem which fogged the windscreen.
These mishaps cost him precious time, yet, he came up with a superb drive to make about five places, overtaking two cars on different Stages in the process to finish the day third, some 12 minutes behind Ketomaa,
Veiby, who leads Gill by two points in the championship standings, has all but clinched the title here with just two loops of three short Special Stages to be run on Sunday.
“It’s been a good day overall. But for sure, it was not easy as it is my first time down here. I have never driven in such conditions. It was so slippery. I was a bit lucky in some places. On the first stage, I went straight into a tree and after that I used the grass to see how the grip level is. Now I know how fast I could do. In these conditions, it is so easy to do mistakes.
“We have a good gap, but can’t just roll down the Stages tomorrow. My aim is to try to make it to the finish, but I have to keep the pressure up. I am so lucky to be here at the finish today,” said Veiby.
Looking back on his day, Gill said: “Obviously it was not my best day. About 18 Kms into the first Stage, I hit a tree stump which I didn’t see. It was purely a driving error. It bent the steering arm. On finishing the stage, I had to go under the car and repair the steering control arm. It cost us a lot of time. Thereafter, we made time on others in spite of the bent steering.
“Overall, we were down to seventh or eighth, but had some good times. In the day’s third Stage, we had alternator problem and almost immediately, caught up with Sumiyama who held me up for about 30 seconds before I nudged him to pass. But with the windscreen fogging, I had almost nil visibility and had to slow down which again cost us time. So, one drama after another!
“Thereafter, we again made time on others, and I passed Young on one of the Stages and we are now placed third, but with one Stage cancelled today and only short Stages to be run tomorrow, I have to settle for what I have. The gap is too much to make up.”
Classification after Leg-1 (Provisional):
FIA APRC: 1. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (1hr, 58mins, 27.9secs); 2. Jari Ketomaa / Ville Mannisenmali (Mpart Sport, Mitsubishi Mirage) (02:03:00.4); 3. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02:15:17.6).
Asia Cup: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (02:15:17.6); 2. Michael Young / Malcolm Read (Cusco Racing, Subaru Impreza) (02:18:19.5); 3. Yuva Sumiyama / Takahiro Yasui (Cusco Racing, Skoda Fabia R5) (03:13:44.6).
eom/AP Media Communications release
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MRF’s Gill sets early pace in Rally of Johor: APRC
Gaurav Gill (right) and Ole Christian Veiby during FIA press conference a Johor on Friday. An MRF image Johor Bahru (Malaysia), 11 Aug 2017: India’s Gaurav Gill and Norwegian youngster Ole Christian Veiby set the benchmark while showcasing their pace in the International Rally of Johor, the third round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship as the Team MRF duo topped the time sheets during this morning’s shakedown here ahead of the ceremonial flag-off and the Super Special Stage later on Friday.
Delhi-based Gill, 35, was the quickest of the lot as he put in six laps around the 1.6 Kms dirt track clocking a best of one minute, 39 seconds as against 21-year old Veiby’s 01:39.6. The pair was well ahead of the pack that included WRC regular Jari Ketomaa from Finland and Swedish ace Robert Blomberg.
“Since this is my first drive in the Skoda Fabia R5 in nearly three months, I was keen to put in as much seat time as possible and am happy with how everything went today,” said Gill during the pre-event FIA press conference today. “However, the Malaysian Rally is the toughest of the championship with changing conditions and high humidity, but I am well prepared for it.”
Veiby, who is driving a brand new R5 which came here straight from the factory, said his goal was to maintain his lead in the championship, referring to his two-point advantage over Gill who had won the first round in New Zealand while the Norwegian took the next in Australia.
“My target here is to stay ahead in the championship. I know Gaurav is very quick and has the experience driving in these conditions, while this is my first time in Malaysia. I hope to do well,” said Veiby who recently won in the WRC-2 category in Poland.
After tonight’s Super Special Stage which will be run at the same premises as the shakedown, but with a few modifications in the track configurations, the cars head to the nearby palm oil plantations for the Special Stages spread over the next two days.
Shakedown results: 1. Gaurav Gill / Stephane Prevot (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (01min, 39secs); 2. Ole Christian Veiby / Stig Rune Skjarmoen (Team MRF, Skoda Fabia R5) (01:39.6); 3. Yuma Sumiyama / Takahiro Yasui (Cusco Racing, Skoda Fabia R5) (01:41.2).
eom/AP Media Communications
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Gill and co, raring to go: APRC Malaysia leg
Johor Bahru (Malaysia), 10 Aug 2017: The two-car Team MRF, spearheaded by India’s Gaurav Gill, are seeking another 1-2 finish as the third round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship gets underway here on Friday with the International Rally of Johor.
Gill, who was denied an Arjuna Award because of the lop-sided views of the Indian Government on motorsports, continue to hog limelight in motorsports, which is as demanding or more demanding as far as physical high-performance is concerned than many other sports and games like cricket, carrom and golf, which regularly get rewarded with an Arjuna Award. However, it should be noted that Narain Karthikeyan, the first Indian to enter Formula One is awarded Padma Shri in 2010, the highest civilian award and a notch better than Arujuna.
Delhi-based Gill, 35, is defending not only his Malaysian crown, but also the APRC title that he won for the second time last year. Parked between him and success is his MRF-Skoda team-mate, 21-year old from Norway Ole Christian Veiby or just “OC” as he prefers to be called.
Both are piloting the super-quick Race Torque-prepared Skoda Fabia R5 that has dominated the championship in which Veiby (70 points) with Stig Rune Skaermoen in the co-driver’s seat, leads Gill (68) partnered by Belgian veteran Stephane Prevot.
Gill, who enjoyed a great start to the current season with a victory in New Zealand in April, and followed it up by winning the first round of the Indian National Championship in Coimbatore a fortnight ago, is the clear favourite given his vast experience.
Veiby, after finishing second in New Zealand, bounced back to top the next round in Australia and recently, scored his maiden success in the World Rally Championship-2 category in Poland. Being the Skoda factory driver, the Norwegian youngster has enjoyed far more seat time than Gill who is getting the first feel of the R5 since the Australia round in May.
The heat and high humidity besides sudden thunderstorms which in the past have rendered the Special Stages into slush fields are to be factored in and which make the event the toughest in the championship which this year has been cut to five rounds following cancellation of China Rally. Both Gill and Veiby sampled the terrain during Wednesday’s test session in slippery conditions following overnight rains.
Reflecting on the ensuing event, Gill said: “This is the most difficult Rally of the year, be it for man, machine or tyres. The almost 100 per cent levels of humidity and 35 degrees heat takes a huge toll on the body as temperatures inside the car cabin exceeds 55-60 degrees, and let’s not forget the four layers of race fire-proof overalls I have to wear!
“The more time I spend away from the car means more practice I have to put in because the R5 is not a regular Rally car and demands respect and constant driving behind the wheel to keep in tune with it.
“Yes, I had a great weekend in Coimbatore recently, but this is a completely different ball game. Lots of rain is expected over the weekend and the weather is highly unpredictable, but I’ve got only one goal – to win. It’s extremely important to bounce back to the top of the series.”
Veiby, who arrived here on Sunday to acclimatize to the local conditions, said: “This is going to be a special rally. It’s rainy season down here and it’s said that when it’s raining, this is one of the most difficult events in the world. The surface is more or less mud and the rain makes the roads crazily slippery. I have never driven in such conditions.
“Another challenge is the heat and the high humidity. We have a plan for how to be as prepared as possible for what awaits us and will use the days before the rally to drink, eat and train properly.”
The International Rally of Johor will be run over 735.66 Kms of which 236.56 Kms comprise 14 closed Special Stages the first of which is scheduled for Friday night, a 2.64Kms sprint after the ceremonial flag-off. Thursday is set aside for the mandatory reconnaissance of Special Stages which are located in the nearby palm oil plantations.
eom/MRF press release
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Latvala tops Toyota 1-2-3 on Saturday morning: WRC Rally Finland
Jari-Matti Latvala set a string of four fastest times during Saturday morning’s loop of stages to reclaim the lead of Rally Finland and head an impressive Toyota one-two-three on the team’s home event. He heads last night’s leader Esapekka Lappi by 7.8 seconds at the mid-leg service with Juho Hänninen, in the third Yaris WRC, climbing from fifth to third.
After the longest day of the rally yesterday, today’s route takes in two loops of four stages, including the legendary Ouninpohja where cars just fly from jump to jump in the most spectacular fashion. Latvala, who is on supreme form, was on the pace from the outset and slashed the gap to Lappi in the first stage, his young team-mate once again cautious in the opening stage of the day. In the following stage Latvala took the advantage and maintained his lead to top a dream result for the team. Lappi has been unable to match the pace but the young Finn’s performance continues to be outstanding in only his fourth event in the car. Whether he will push this afternoon to try and re-take the lead remains to be seen. Hänninen has run wide a couple of times but was able to move into fourth when Craig Breen spun in SS15. He then also benefitted when third-placed Teemu Suninen missed a chicane in the following stage and lost over 20 seconds.
Suninen’s fourth position sees the Finns lock out the top of the leaderboard and but for missing the chicane, he has avoided problems. Elfyn Evans has had a far better run today after set-up changes last night, the Welshman moving from seventh to fifth and, like Suninen, is battling for the final podium position. Breen continues to struggle; he overshot a junction in the first stage, had a spin in the next and is finding it impossible to commit and find a rhythm. He has now dropped to sixth. Thierry Neuville’s rally is also getting no better and the Belgian has only moved one position up the leaderboard to seventh, making little inroads on the potential he had to slash the points deficit to Sébastien Ogier. The Frenchman did not re-start this morning, co-driver Julien Ingrassia suffering mild concussion following their accident yesterday. Kris Meeke is languishing behind too; after damaging the steering yesterday, he has somehow carried an issue with it into today and will doubtless be happy to put his Rally Finland outing behind him on Sunday. Ott Tänak and Dani Sordo round off the top 10 with Mads Østberg dropping to 11th after going off the road, damaging the suspension and picking up brake issues. Hayden Paddon retired for the second time this weekend after hitting a rock and breaking the suspension on the Hyundai.
In the FIA WRC 2 Championship, three out of four stage wins keeps Jari Huttunen in the lead ahead of Quentin Gilbert and Tom Cave. Nicolas Ciamin continues to top the Junior standings having also won three stages.
eom/FIA press release
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Neuville-Tanak battle it out; Latvala slips to 3rd
Thierry Neuville has maintained his advantage at the head of the Rally Poland leaderboard but the Belgian is battling hard with Ott Tänak who took the lead for two of the morning’s four stages. At the mid-leg service the rivals are split by 1.3 seconds with Jari-Matti Latvala holding station in third, albeit seemingly unable to consistently match their pace.
Saturday’s route covers another two loops of four stages before returning to Mikolajki for the final run around the super special stage. After yesterday’s persistent rain, the morning has been dry providing much less treacherous conditions for the crews as they fight for seconds over the fast gravel roads. Neuville, with the same advantage over Tänak last night, managed to extend his lead to 2.6 seconds after this morning’s opener, despite worrying he had picked up a puncture after hitting a rock. With Tänak setting the pace in the second stage and snatching the lead – despite an off – the Belgian then had to up the pace and with a final stage win in SS14 the Belgian re-took the number one slot as the crews headed into service. Tänak was again fastest in the third stage and is continuing to push hard as he battles for a second consecutive WRC victory.
Jari-Matti Latvala has been unable to fully match the pace of the leaders, despite being comfortable with the conditions and the feeling with the Yaris WRC. He is 9.5 seconds off the lead and now ahead of Hayden Paddon, the Kiwi up to fourth after Sébastien Ogier dropped time. Paddon lost the feeling with the brakes early this morning but is enjoying the more consistent conditions. Dani Sordo is up to fifth, also benefitting from Ogier’s problems, but he is only 6.8 seconds ahead of the Championship leader who picked up a slow puncture in the first stage, then another in the following stage. With the tyre off the rim, Ogier then spun and clouted a kerb, losing the front bumper, aero devices and therefore downforce. He dropped from fourth to fifth and then sixth with the on-going problem.
Teemu Suninen continues his fine run in the Fiesta WRC, his first outing in a 2017 specification car, and holds seventh ahead of the lead Citroën of Stéphane Lefebvre who was happy to get through the morning loop. Mads Østberg continues to push him hard but lost ground with an overshoot in the final stage. Juho Hänninen has had to get through the stages with an engine issue, meaning he’s had to be at high revs and the Finn rounds off the top 10. Elfyn Evans is 11th ahead of Andreas Mikkelsen who went off in the second stage.
In the FIA WRC 2 Championship, Ole Christian Veiby continues to hold the advantage and the Norwegian heads category leader Pontus Tidemand by 13.6 seconds after three fastest times.
eom/FIA press release -
Latvala leads after opening loop: WRC Rally Poland
Jari-Matti Latvala has slipped into the lead of Rally Poland after Friday morning’s opening loop of sodden stages. Overnight and persistent rain has made conditions tricky for all the crews but those running nearer the front of the field have taken a small advantage in the muddy conditions. Surprised by his position, Latvala is topping a close battle and heads Thierry Neuville, Ott Tänak and Sébastien Ogier, the trio all less than 7.3 seconds adrift of the lead.
Rally Poland, the eighth round of the FIA World Rally Championship, is normally a hot and dry affair but persistent rain has turned the soft and sandy roads into muddy, wet and rutted stages that are worsening with the passage of cars. A heavy storm yesterday afternoon forced the organiser to cancel the official start but last night’s opening super special stage ran as scheduled and saw Elfyn Evans take the overnight lead.
Today, however, crews headed out to the fast and flowing countryside stages, again in pouring rain, for two loops of four stages before returning to Mikolajki for a second run around the purpose-built super special. Neuville was on the pace in the opener, but Latvala took the lead in the longer second stage with a fastest time, despite feeling he wasn’t driving particularly well. Victory in the third stage and second in the last one cemented his advantage and the Finn arrived at the mid-leg service happy with his performance. Neuville added a second stage win in SS5 to his tally, despite trying to find a good rhythm all morning. He is just five-tenths of a second ahead of Ott Tänak, the Estonian so close to winning here last year. He ran wide at a junction early this morning and then stalled on the start line of the last stage but has otherwise adapted to the ever-changing conditions. Team-mate Ogier is hot on his heels, the World Champion also trying to judge the level of grip and how much of a risk to take in the treacherous conditions.
Behind the leading quartet, Hayden Paddon is further adrift in fifth, the Kiwi driver struggling with his later road position and simply trying to survive the opening loop. His Hyundai team-mate Dani Sordo hates inconsistent conditions and the Spaniard has had a couple of spins as he struggles to find a good feeling. Juho Hänninen took a 10 second jump start penalty into the day but has otherwise run without problems into seventh. Teemu Suninen, driving a 2017 specification Fiesta WRC, is a fine eighth and ahead of factory driver Elfyn Evans. Stéphane Lefebvre heads the Citroën challenge in 10th, the Frenchman taking no risks. Andreas Mikkelsen, again drafted in by the French squad, is 12th after damaging the suspension in the last stage and Craig Breen had a broken drive-shaft in the first stage, a gutting start for the Irishman who was looking for a clean run after problems on the last event in Italy. Esapekka Lappi is currently the only retiree, the Finn out with broken suspension on the Yaris WRC.
In the FIA WRC 2 Championship, the fight is intense and youngster Ole Christian Veiby currently takes the advantage. The Norwegian, who has set three fastest times this morning, heads series leader Pontus Tidemand with Gus Greensmith third. In the Junior WRC Championship, Dennis Radstrom has taken the lead in what is proving to be a very close battle.
eom/FIA press releaseLatvala during the opening loop in Rally Poland. An FIA image -
M-Sport’s Ott Tanak leads Rally Italia: WRC
M Sport’s Tanak takes a big jump in Rally Italia which he leads. An M-Sports image M-Sport’s Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja lead the way at Rally Italia Sardegna – currently holding a 24.3 second advantage at the head of the field.
Having delivered an intelligent drive through the challenging terrain, the Estonians are now in with a chance of securing a maiden FIA World Rally Championship victory and another win for the Ecoboost-powered Ford Fiesta WRC.
Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:
“It’s been a fantastic drive from Ott and Martin. Working with the team they made a great decision on the set-up for this afternoon and now have a good lead going into tomorrow.
“I was actually speaking with Markko Martin yesterday evening and I said that if Ott could just fine-tune the set-up then he would have a real chance of challenging – he has done exactly that today.
“As we’ve already seen, anything can happen, but he’s in a strong positon at the moment. He’s looking comfortable behind the wheel and just has to continue exactly as he has all weekend.
“Fingers crossed that we can deliver another magic WRC moment tomorrow.”
TÄNAK AND JÄRVEOJA
RALLY LEADERS AFTER STAGE FIFTEEN
Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja have delivered an intelligent strategy to lead the way at Rally Italia Sardegna – maintaining a margin through the early stages and increasing their advantage this afternoon.
With a good feeling behind the wheel of their Ford Fiesta WRC, the Estonians posted a top-three time through all of today’s speed tests and claimed three stage victories on their way to the head of the standings.
Stage performances:
SS10: =3rd (+4.2)
SS11: 3rd (+5.1)
SS12: 1st
SS13: 1st
SS14: 1st
SS15: 3rd (+1.9)Ott Tänak (1st) said:
“It’s been a big fight all rally and I’ve really enjoyed it. Some guys have been dropping out, but we’ve been doing a good job and all we need to do now is keep going and continue exactly as we have been.
“I think we had a good strategy for this weekend. Sardinia is a very special event and it needs a very special approach. You always need to keep that margin and that is what we have done and what we plan to continue doing.
“A massive thanks to the team as the car has been perfect this afternoon. They’ve been working flat-out all hours of the day – literally – and we wouldn’t be sitting here in the first position if it weren’t for them.
“There’s still 40 kilometres of very demanding stages left to come, but there’s a good gap now and we just need to finish the job.”
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Hayden remains in control: Rally Italia
Rally Italia Sardegna leader Hayden Paddon remains in control of the leaderboard after Saturday morning’s loop of three stages as some of his nearest rivals hit problems in the final stage. The Hyundai driver has marginally increased his lead, now over Estonian Ott Tänak, and has crucially stayed out of trouble on stages he loves and that suit the i20 Coupe WRC. With the gaps opening up more, Tänak now sits 13.8 seconds ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala, the Finn climbing from fourth last night.
This morning’s stages have proved tricky and tough, the opener in particular as hanging dust made for poor visibility. Paddon powered on however, seeing it as an opportunity rather than a disadvantage. Fastest time underlined his commitment and the Kiwi was able to extend his advantage to 13.1 seconds over Neuville in this single stage. Maintaining a comfortable pace over the following two stages, he was one of the few drivers to avoid problems and arrives at the mid-leg service 9.4 seconds ahead. Tänak, third last night, was losing the brakes in the final stage but was still fastest and has otherwise fared well. Latvala has been pushing hard but then furiously lost out in the last test when he was held up by Mads Østberg who had stopped to change a puncture.
Thierry Neuville has been hit hard this morning. The Belgian was pushing in second, with a fastest time in the middle stage, but then had no brakes for the whole of the last test, losing him over a minute and two positions. Juho Hänninen has moved into fifth for Toyota, benefitting from Østberg’s puncture, the Norwegian dropping from an overnight fifth to eighth. Esapekka Lappi has exercised a bit of caution this morning, not entirely confident on the slippery stages, and while he too got held up in the dust of Mikkelsen – who also stopped to change a puncture – the Finn remains upbeat in only his second outing for Toyota. He is now sixth with a reasonably comfortable advantage over Sébastien Ogier. The Frenchman struggled for traction and then he too had to change a wheel in the final stage. Mikkelsen continues to try different settings on the C3 WRC and is ninth with Eric Camilli rounding off the top 10.
Dani Sordo, Eflyn Evans and Craig Breen all returned under Rally 2 regulations this morning, but Sordo once again hit problems with an intermittently working gearshift.
In the FIA WRC 2 Championship category, Jan Kopecky continues to head the field and has nearly a minute in hand to Ole Christian Veiby. Nil Solans also remains in control of the Junior WRC category but now leads Nicolas Ciamin in second and Terry Folb in third.
After the mid-leg service in Alghero, the crews return to the same three stages for the afternoon’s competition.
eom/FIA press release -
Rally Italia: WRC 2017 season reaches midpoint
An FIA image Rally Italia (8-11 June) marks the mid-point of the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship and takes the crews to the picturesque Mediterranean island of Sardinia. The scenery may be spectacular, but the sun-baked gravel tracks make for gruelling, rough and rocky competition, leaving little room for error.
Originally known as the Rally of the Flowers and dating back to 1928, Italy’s round joined the Championship in 1973 and was traditionally a mixed surface event based in Sanremo, on the mainland, before moving to Sardinia in 2004 and becoming a full gravel rally. Run during Europe’s summer months, temperatures are normally high and the hard base roads covered with a sandy surface disadvantage the early runners on the first passage. However, when the loose has been swept away, rough and rutted conditions can easily catch out the unwary. Michèle Mouton, President of the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission, claimed her first WRC victory on Rallye Sanremo in 1981 and remains the first and only female to win a round of the FIA World Rally Championship.
An impressive entry list includes three nominated crews from each of the four registered manufacturers and for the first time this season Andreas Mikkelsen will drive a 2017 specification World Rally Car, the Norwegian joining Citroën Racing for his debut outing in the C3 WRC. The fight in WRC 2 is again sure to be intense and the FIA Junior WRC Championship contenders are back in action for the second round of their series.
Three stages will be broadcast live; Saturday’s Coiluna-Loelle stage (SS13) and both runs through Sassari-Argentiera on Sunday, the second run counting for extra points as the closing Power Stage.
ROUTE GRAPHICS
THE 2017 ROUTE
The rally is based out of the northwest town of Alghero but after the start and opening super special stage, the crews head to Olbia on the northeast coast for an overnight halt, allowing the organisers to re-introduce the tough Terranova and Monte Olia stages on Saturday. The mid-rally leg is the longest and toughest with 143.16 competitive kilometres run over six stages, while Sunday is identical to last year with two loops of two identical stages, culminating in the all-important Power Stage.
WHAT WE SAID…
“The heat and rough roads really define Rally Italia, making it a very tough challenge for the crews as well as the cars,” said Jarmo Mahonen, FIA Rally Director. “In these conditions it’s going to be important to mix car preservation with speed over the rock-strewn stages; the days are also lengthy and the sanctuary of service potentially a long way away for anyone who hits trouble.”
RALLY DATA
Total distance:
Stage distance:
Number of stages:1,495.36 km
312.66 km (20,89%)
19
