INDIA in F1

Tag: Rally Argentina

  • Rally Argentina: Tanak-Jarveoja snatch win for Toyota; double podium for Hyundai

    Rally Argentina: Tanak-Jarveoja snatch win for Toyota; double podium for Hyundai

    Ott Tanak and Martin Jarveoja who scored a win for Toyota in Rally Argentina. Photo: FIA

    Villa Carlos Paz, 30 April 2018: Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja won the legendary Rally Argentina on Sunday after a weekend-long display of dominance in which they won 10 of the event’s 18 stages. The Estonians were able to manage their pace over the closing three stages to take their first victory with Toyota by 37.7 seconds. Last year’s winners Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul were second and team-mates Dani Sordo and Carlos del Barrio made it a double podium celebration for Hyundai with third.

    In the FIA World Rally Championship, Neuville has managed to close the gap to Championship leader Ogier to 10 points with Tänak 18 points further adrift in the standings. Hyundai’s double podium also sees the Korean manufacturer extend its advantage over M-Sport Ford to 15 points. Toyota is third with Citroen trailing in fourth.

    In the second run of El Cóndor, counting towards all-important Power Stage points, Tänak was able to control the pace and points for fourth fastest added to his Championship haul. Neuville was flat-out however and the Belgian set fastest time to add five points to his tally, his objective always to be ahead of Ogier. Sordo was happy with his Rally Argentina outing and the Spaniard finished well ahead of Ogier in the overall classification.

    Ogier and Mikkelsen went into the stage fighting for fourth but the reigning FIA World Rally Champion managed to hold onto his position by just four seconds at the end of the event. Both Elfyn Evans and Kris Meeke moved up the standings into sixth and seventh respectively after Lappi dropped time with a puncture this morning. He finished eighth on his debut outing in Argentina, the Finn lamenting a huge amount of bad luck in Argentina. Teemu Suninen finished ninth, another debutant on the event.

    Pontus Tidemand and Jonas Andersson snatched the FIA WRC 2 Championship category win after Škoda team-mate Kalle Rovanperä rolled in the penultimate stage while leading. Tidemand beat Gus Greensmith by over seven minutes to take the lead in the Championship standings.

    The sixth round of the FIA World Rally Championship takes the contenders back to Europe for Rally de Portugal (17-20 May).

    Rally Argentina – Final Unofficial classification (subject to scrutineering)

    1 Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 43min 28.9sec
    2 Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3hr 44min 06.6sec
    3 Dani Sordo / Carlos del Barrio Hyundai i20 Couple WRC 3hr 44min 44.6sec
    4 Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 45min 27.5sec
    5 Andreas Mikkelsen / Anders Jæger Hyundai i20 WRC 3hr 45min 31.5sec
    6 Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 46min 35.2sec
    7 Kris Meeke / Paul Nagle Citroen C3 WRC 3hr 46min 54.6sec
    8 Esapekka Lappi / Janne Ferm Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 48min 01.5sec
    9 Teemu Suninen / Mikko Markkula Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 49min 07.5sec
    10 Pontus Tidemand / Jonas Andersson Škoda Fabia R5 3hr 55min 44.7sec
  • Tidemand keeps nerve to win Rally Argentina; leads WRC 2 Championship

    Tidemand keeps nerve to win Rally Argentina; leads WRC 2 Championship

    Pontus Tidemand (right) and co-driver Jonas Andersson celebrate Rally Argentina win. The Swediesh pair leads WRC 2 Championship standings. Photos: SKODA Motorsports

    Villa Carlos Paz, 29 April 2018: Reigning WRC 2 Champions Pontus Tidemand and co-driver Jonas Andersson from Sweden repeated their last year’s victory at Rally Argentina, the fifth round of the 2018 FIA World Rally Championship, here on Sunday. The Swedish pairing takes the lead in the WRC 2 championship standings from ŠKODA teammate Jan Kopecký who did not compete in Argentina.

    ŠKODA factory-supported crews Tidemand and Andersson, and Finland’s Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen were leading the WRC 2 category going into the event’s last day. But in the penultimate stage, Rovanperä went off the road close to the finish. Thanks to the safety package of the ŠKODA FABIA R5, the crew was unhurt, but had to retire. Norwegians Ole Christian Veiby and Stig Rune Skjaermœn, another duo of ŠKODA juniors, finished second in RC 2 class, which includes the WRC 2 category.

    On the final day of Rally Argentina, three more stages, covering 55.27 kilometres, had to be driven. Tidemand tried everything to catch their young Finnish teammate. With a tremendous effort on the opening “El Condor” stage, he was 13.3 seconds quicker than Rovanperä, reducing the gap to only 9.9 seconds.

    Kalle Rovanperä

    On the penultimate stage, the Rovanpera went off the road close to the end of the stage. Thanks to the safety package of their ŠKODA FABIA R5, they escaped without injury, however. With the WRC 2 lead back in his hands, Tidemand drove cautiously in the last stage and won the category with the huge margin.

    The Swedish crew moved as well into the lead of the WRC 2 championship standings. “Sorry for Kalle. We had a tense fight and I always followed our Team instructions. I believed in my speed myself and obviously did not want to win this way,” Tidemand said.

    After two punctures on the Saturday stages, ŠKODA junior Ole Christian Veiby managed to regain the third position in RC 2 class after a fast time on the opening Sunday stage. In the end, the Norwegian finished in second place.

    ŠKODA Motorsport boss Michal Hrabánek commented: “Accidents are a part of the game. Luckily, the safety standards of modern rally cars like our ŠKODA FABIA R5 are extremely high. So Kalle and Jonne escaped from that accident without being injured. Nevertheless, I want to thank both crews for the tremendous performance they delivered, the whole ŠKODA Motorsport Team did an excellent job.”

    Final Result Rally Argentina (WRC 2): 1. Tidemand/Andersson (SWE/SWE), ŠKODA FABIA R5, 03hrs, 55mins, 44.7 secs; 2. Greensmith/Parry (GBR/GBR), Ford Fiesta R5, +7:39.1 min; 3. Heller/Olmos (CHL/ARG), Ford Fiesta R5, +9:02.9 min; 4. Dominguez/Galindo (MEX/MEX), Hyundai i20 R5, + 15:49.6 min; 5. Solans/Ibanez (ESP/ESP), Ford Fiesta R5, +37:43.9 min.

    Current standings WRC 2 (after 5 of 13 rounds): 1. Tidemand (SWE), ŠKODA, 68 points; 2. Kopecký (CZR) ŠKODA, 50 points; 3. Greensmith (GBR), Ford, 36 points; 4. Heller (CHL), Ford, 30 points; 5. Katsuta (JPN), Ford, 29 points.