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Tag: Rally
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Gill finishes 12th, helps MRF collect data: WRC2
File photo of Gaurav Gill by Anand Philar. Chennai, 30 July 2018: Gaurav Gill and Team MRF Tyres completed the World Rally Championship’s Neste Rally Finland on Sunday. Glenn Macneall (in home page pic) was Gill’s navigator for the WRC2 outing. MRF team is taking part in a few rounds to collect data and prepare for a possible full season next year.
The Indian rally ace, lost a couple of years, with MRF reluctant to field a team in the WRC as it was content with Asia Pacific Rally Championship, which the Delhi-based speed merchant bagged thrice. MRF took over six months to develop the tyres but the preparation seems inadequate and unless the team takes a `fast forward’ approach aggressively to utilise the collected data and fine-tune the rubber, they will lose precious time for next season.
“It was a learning experience for the new tyres which were introduced to help cope with the extremely high speeds and continuous jumps that make up the Finnish stages. One of the primary goals of Rally Neste Finland was to gain data to continue the tyre development and for Gill and Macneall to gain confidence in the car on these stages,” the release said.
“Finland is about confidence – the roads are so fast and there are so many jumps that you need the confidence to be on the pace,” Gill said.
“We were gaining confidence over the weekend and you can see we improved a lot on our second runs through the loops.”
“Additionally, the MRF Tyres worked well on the stages which gave us the confidence to push. I am happy with the weekend and we certainly have a lot more information to the further develop our tyres.”
The M-Sport prepared Ford Fiesta R5 was running solidly in the mid-field of the R5 class (RC2) which was dominated by local drivers. The weekend started well for Gill and Macneall on the city street stage before the solid opening on Friday running in the forests of northern Finland.
After having to run in Rally2 regulations, Saturday morning saw the outright placing was not important but the Saturday running was strong with the team making changes to the car in the midday service, unlocking additional pace and confidence in the car.
For Sunday, there were four stages that greeted the crew – two runs through the 11.14 Laukaa stage and two runs on the 11.12 Ruuhimäki stage.
To prove that confidence breeds pace in Finland, Gill and Macneall were able to improve their pace by more than a second a kilometre in the second loop.
“It was great to see the crowds out on stage at Rally Finland. Even from inside the car you feel the atmosphere and want to try harder for the fans,” Gill said.
“I was happy to be able to improve my times and show the performance of the MRF Tyres team in this legendary event.”
The next outing for the MRF Tyres Ford Fiesta R5 will be the Dayinsure Wales Rally GB. The team will have to cope with the event that is usually run on muddy roads in colder weather.
The Dayinsure Wales Rally GB will be held between October 4 to 7 and will see 23 stages and a competitive distance of more than 323 km (200 miles).
eom/MRF release
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Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja win Rally Finland: WRC Round 8
Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja today won Rally Finland, the eighth round of the FIA World Rally Championship here on Sunday. In doing so, they become the first Estonians to win this spectacular high-speed event in 15 years, following Markko Märtin’s victory in 2003. It is Tänak’s fourth WRC career victory and their second win of the season, keeping the crew in the fight for the World Championship. Mads Østberg and Torstein Eriksen fought to the end in a titanic battle with third-placed Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila. The rivals went into the closing Power Stage split by just 2.5 seconds, but Østberg kept his cool and secured his best result in more than three years, also delivering a maiden WRC podium for his co-driver.
In the FIA World Rally Championships, Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul and the Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team continue to top the standings. With both Neuville and Sebastien Ogier not scoring highly, the Belgian only lost six points to the Frenchman with the gap between the pair coming down to 21 points. In the Manufacturers’ Championship, Hyundai lost just a couple of points, but Toyota was the points-bagger, the Japanese marque taking a 40 point haul from the team’s home event to close the gap to second-placed M-Sport Ford to just one point.
Tänak led Rally Finland for virtually the entire event and has been supreme over the rollercoaster gravel stages. He could afford to ease the pace over today’s closing four stages, but nevertheless claimed the Power Stage win to notch up maximum points and a momentous victory on an event every driver wants to win. Østberg went into the day second overall, just 5.4 seconds ahead of Latvala and determined to hold position. He won the day’s opening stage to marginally extend his lead but the Finn hit back in the next two, winning both to leave them split by 2.5 seconds going into the Power Stage. The Norwegian superbly defended his advantage with second fastest time and claimed the position by 2.8 seconds. It was a near-perfect result for Toyota with Latvala also on the podium, the event only marred by the retirement of Esapekka Lappi from fourth position this morning when he went off the road and rolled.
Hayden Paddon was the highest Hyundai finisher in fourth overall, the Kiwi driver happy with his weekend despite always wanting more. He finished nearly 40 seconds ahead of Ogier, who moved ahead of team-mate Teemu Suninen when the Finn checked in late at the final regroup to aid the Frenchman’s points haul. The team’s third Fiesta WRC, in the hands of Elfyn Evans, finished seventh with Craig Breen eighth for Citroen. Thierry Neuville’s road position was always going to make his assault difficult and this, coupled with an early mistake, saw him ultimately finish ninth ahead of team-mate Andreas Mikkelsen who climbed back up the leaderboard to 10th following his Friday accident.
The FIA WRC 2 Championship was won by the all-Finnish crew of Eerik Pietarinen and Juhana Raitanen in a Škoda Fabia R5. Kalle Rovanperä had originally headed the category but when the youngster hit problems yesterday, Pietarinen was able to claim honours on home soil, despite Rovanperä winning each of today’s four stages. Ken Torn and Kuldar Sikk gave Estonia a double victory today with the win in the FIA Junior and WRC 3 Championships. After a close battle with Emil Bergkvist, they returned to Jyvaskyla with just 9.9 seconds in hand over the Swedes.
The ninth round of the FIA World Rally Championship moves from gravel to Tarmac and the ever-changing sealed surfaces of Rallye Deutschland (16-19 August).
Rally Finland – Final unofficial results (subject to final scrutineering)
1 Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja Toyota Yaris WRC 2hr 35min 18.1sec 2 Mads Østberg / Torstein Eriksen Citroen C3 WRC 2hr 35min 50.8sec 3 Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila Toyota Yaris WRC 2hr 35min 53.6sec 4 Hayden Paddon / Sebastian Marshall Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 2hr 36min 53.7sec 5 Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia Ford Fiesta WRC 2hr 37min 33.1sec 6 Teemu Suninen / Mikko Markkula Ford Fiesta WRC 2hr 37min 37.3sec 7 Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt Ford Fiesta WRC 2hr 37min 47.6sec 8 Craig Breen / Scott Martin Citroen C3 WRC 2hr 38min 26.5sec 9 Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 2hr 39min 09.9sec 10 Andreas Mikkelsen / Anders Jæger Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 2hr 43min 55.5sec -
Sanjay Takale set for WRC debut in Finland
Jyväskylä (Finland), 25 July 2018: India’s Sanjay Takale is all set for the drive of his life as he makes debut in the FIA World Rally Championship this weekend in the Neste Rally Finland. The Pune-based Takale along with co-driver Darren Garrod from Britain will be piloting a WRC 3-spec Ford Fiesta R2 (two-wheel drive) prepared by Baltic Motorsports Promotion team.
“After many years of participating in and winning international rallies, notably the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship, I am now pursing my long-cherished dream of competing in the World Rally Championship as a registered driver in the WRC 3 category,” said Pune-based Takale.
Takale’s immediate target in Rally Finland is to complete the course that comprises of 23 Special Stages spread over 317.26 Kms. Over the four days of action, the competitors will cover a total distance of 1,427.49 Kms.
The Neste Rally Finland, which commences on Thursday night is considered the fastest event in the WRC calendar with average speeds upwards of 126Kmph, besides iconic jumps of Ruuhimäki Special Stage on Sunday.
“The weather forecast for the weekend is dry as it is summer here in Finland. So, I expect a fast and dry rally,” said Takale soon after finishing a test run in the Fiesta.
Takale’s quest for fresh challenges and ultimately realising his WRC dreams saw him shift focus on Europe. He participated in rallies in Iceland and Sweden before tying up with Latvia-based Baltic Motorsports Promotion on whose suggestion he took part in rallies in Latvia and Estonia to prepare for the WRC Finland round.
With BMP offering him a WRC registered car, Takale decided to participate in the Rally Finland to become first Indian registered driver in the WRC 3 category.
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WRC moves to 1000-Lakes Rally in Finland
File photo ahead of WRC Finland Rally. Photo: FIA Budapest, 24 July 2018: Neste Rally Finland is one of the all-time classics on the FIA World Rally Championship calendar, where fearless and, at times, blind commitment rewards the bravest. The event, one of the quickest in the series, presents blisteringly fast smooth gravel roads, but it is the massive stomach-churning jumps and blind crests that characterise what is affectionately known as the Finnish Grand Prix.
The ‘1000 Lakes Rally’, as it was originally termed, dates back to 1951, when it was launched as a means of deciding the Finnish entries for Rallye Monte-Carlo. It first ran in the WRC in its inaugural season in 1973 and has been staged each year since, largely dominated by Finnish drivers who have won 55 of the 67 editions.
The hard-packed gravel roads provide a mix of wide and flowing, narrow and more technical sections and, such is their smooth nature, mechanical issues are rare. It is an event where writing and delivering pace notes is even more critical as blind crests often hide the following corners and knowing where to position the car before these jumps is a real art form. As is mastering the ‘normal’ jumps to ensure the car doesn’t take off like an airplane.
As the series moves into its second half, Thierry Neuville heads the Championship standings by 27 points, the Belgian going into round eight with a lead bigger than any advantage anyone has held over multiple FIA World Rally Champion Sébastien Ogier in the last five years. Both have three wins apiece this season, with third-placed Ott Tänak the only other driver to have won an event. His team-mate Esapekka Lappi, fourth in the standings, will doubtless be looking to repeat his stunning performance of 2017, where he claimed his maiden WRC win on home soil. Hyundai heads the Manufacturers’ Championship standings, and all four makes will be fielding three-car entries in Finland, Khalid Al Qassimi also joining Mads Østberg and Craig Breen in the Citroën squad. The FIA WRC 2 Championship category has an impressive 18 entries and as series frontrunners, Pontus Tidemand and Jan Kopecky will not be competing, their rivals will be looking to close the gap in the title fight. In its penultimate round, 15 crews make up the FIA Junior WRC Championship field, with a further three solely in the similar two-wheel drive FIA WRC 3 Championship category.
Five stages will be broadcast live on television: both runs through Harju (SS1 and SS11), SS17 on Saturday and the two Ruuhimäki stages on Sunday, the second counting as the Power Stage. All stages are however available live on WRC All Live on the WRC+ platform.
eom/db
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Aishwarya begins well; Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team on a high: Baja Aragon
- Michael & Adrien finish the prologue stage at P1 & P5 respectively
Teruel, 21 July 2018: The 35th edition of the Baja Aragon Rally kicked off here on Friday, in Teruel, Spain, with a free practice session and a prologue stage of 12.8 kilometers in the Spanish Terrain. At the end of the prologue stage, Sherco TVS Factory Rally team’s Michael Metge stood at P1 followed by Adrien Metge at P5. Debutant Aishwarya Pissay finished the prologue stage successfully.
Aishwarya Pissay Baja Aragon on Friday. A TVS Sherco Racing team image David Casteu, Team Manager, Sherco TVS Factory Rally team said, “The prologue stage began on a good note with Michael Metge finishing at the top of the table. This is his first Rally with us and he is in excellent form finishing the stage 12 seconds in advance. This is the first time we have a woman representing Sherco TVS Rally Factory Team and Aishwarya has shown commendable spirit; her goal is to finish all stages and she is still getting used to the bike. Adrien slowed down a bit because of his ankle injury but he will bounce back in the forthcoming stages. I wish them the best for the upcoming stages.”
Commenting on his performance Michael Metge, Racer, Sherco TVS Factory Rally Team says, “Baja is a great learning ground as a part of the pre-Dakar series. I am happy with this solid start and will do my best to keep the momentum going. The Sherco TVS team has extended immense support to me. It is a delight to race with Adrien and Aishwarya, both of them has showcased tremendous spirit.”
Rankings for Prologue stage: Michael Metge – P1; Adrien Metge – P5
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MRF, Gaurav Gill pleased with performance of tyres on WRC debut in Rally Italia Sardegna
Gaurav Gill in action during the Rall Italia Sardegna where he and MRF Tyres made their WRC debut. Alghero, 10 June 2018: It was a successful debut in the World Rally Championship (WRC) for MRF Tyres in the Rally Italia Sardegna held over the weekend. MRF Tyres joined the current World Rally Champions M-Sport outfit to run a Fiesta R5 car on the Italian roads with Indian Gaurav Gill behind the wheel. His co-driver, Australian Glenn Macneall has a long history in the WRC and brought valuable experience to the team.
Gill and Macneall put in a string of fast stage times, finishing inside the top 10 of their class across all the Saturday and Sunday stages.
“It was a tough event – this is the toughest of the WRC events across the season and the MRF Tyres performed well on the rough roads,” Gill said. “I am very happy with where we sit after our first event. We took fourth in our category on stage 13 and today we continued to set very good times. The conditions today were very hot, much warmer than over the rest of the weekend but the roads were a little smoother. It is great to make it to this point and I am looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the MRF Tyres Ford Fiesta R5 at our next WRC event.”
The MRF Tyres team was happy with the progress with the rally showing development opportunities while showing the tyres are strong and consistent.
“Our tyres were able to withstand the tough demand of the WRC – the toughest motorsport competition in the world. The MRF Tyres were able to withstand rocks, ruts and boulders without a single issue,” he added.
With the data and confidence that MRF Tyres and Gaurav Gill with Glenn Macneall gained from Rally Italia Sardegna, the team are looking forward to future events.
This is the first of four events for MRF Tyres in the WRC this year as the team aims to gain more data, experience and speed for the 2019 season.
MRF Tyres Press Release
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Neuville snatches dramatic win over Ogier to extend WRC title lead
Thierry Neuville reacts after scoring a sensational win over Sebastien Ogier in the Rally Italia Sardegna. Photo: WRC Alghero, 10 June 2018: Thierry Neuville snatched a thrilling Rally Italia Sardegna victory on Sunday afternoon after edging WRC title rival Sebastien Ogier in an electrifying shootout in the final speed test. He trailed Ogier by 0.8sec ahead of the 6.96 kms test, but delivered a daredevil drive in his Hyundai i20 to overhaul the Frenchman and claim his third win of the season by 0.7sec. Neuville extended his championship lead over Ogier to 27 points.
Esapekka Lappi finished third in a Toyota Yaris, a further 1min 51.3sec behind. The results remain provisional after a bizarre incident at the finish of the penultimate stage when Ogier hurriedly departed in his Ford Fiesta without collecting his time card. It was later delivered to him by Ott Tänak. It was a breach of regulations which prohibit the crew receiving items from a third party.After investigating the issue, stewards removed the 22 points Ogier and Ingrassia gained from the rally and the 18 earned by their M-Sport Ford team. The penalty was suspended, meaning it will only be applied if the pair repeat the offence before the end of the season. They were also fined 10,000 Euros. The decision means Ogier remains 27 points adrift of Neuville with six rounds remaining.
Ingrassia admitted his mistake at the hearing. He said they left the stage finish without checking the time card had been returned by marshals and when he realised the error, it was too late to return to the finish line by car or on foot. Stewards accepted it was a genuine mistake which had no effect on the performance of their Ford Fiesta.Neuville won the final live TV Power Stage to claim five bonus points. Ogier took four points for second with Ott Tänak scoring three in third in a Yaris. Andreas Mikkelsen and Elfyn Evans took two and one point respectively.
It was the third smallest winning margin in the WRC’s 45-year history, matching Neuville’s dramatic success in Argentina last year when he performed a similar snatch and grab on Elfyn Evans.
The Belgian started the sun-kissed short final leg along Sardinia’s north-west coast 3.9sec adrift of Ogier. He won the opening three tests before both drivers threw caution to the wind in the finale. Both made mistakes on the dusty, rocky tracks but Neuville emerged on top.
“I gave it everything, it was a really great fight and such a small difference at the end,” he said. “We needed to make a decision at the start of the last stage and our decision was to go for the win. We believed strongly and pushed hard.”
Ogier was far from downhearted. “We lost one battle but definitely not the war. It’s not the time to panic. I tried everything I could today but I was always losing a few tenths here and there,” he said.
Kopecky takes third WRC 2 win of the season
Jan Kopecky on a high after enjoying a comfortable win in WRC 2, his third of the season. Photo: WRC A clean run through the final day of the rally enabled Jan Kopecky to seal his third WRC 2 win of the year by more than three minutes. After Stéphane Lefebvre’s retirement on Saturday, the Skoda Motorsport driver knew all he had to do was clear Sunday’s four stages cleanly to claim victory, and that is exactly what he did. He kept his Fabia R5 out of trouble on the rocky and rutted roads to win by 3m 02.6sec.
Twenty-five points for victory keeps Kopecky second in the drivers’ standings, behind team-mate Pontus Tidemand. But with the Swede not participating in Italy, the gap between them slims to 18 points.
“The feeling is really nice because the Czech fans are everywhere here,” Kopecký explained. “The rally didn’t start completely perfect, but we’ve been fast the rest of the weekend and there were no mistakes.”
Ole Christian Veiby…..brilliant run. Photo: WRC Ole Christian Veiby secured runner-up spot in the second Skoda Motorsport Fabia R5. The Norwegian claimed a hat-trick of stage wins to add to his six from Saturday as he overhauled Hyundai i20 driver Nicolas Ciamin on the rally’s penultimate stage.
Ciamin claimed the final podium spot, deciding to focus on bringing the car home in one piece as the gravel tracks got rougher on the second run and rocks were pulled onto the racing line.
Pierre-Louis Loubet was one of the drivers caught out by the rough conditions in his i20 R5, he lost more than two minutes on the second run of the 14.06km Cala Flumini stage. That dropped him from fourth to sixth as Fabio Andolfi and Lukasz Pieniazek both squeezed their Skodas into the top five, despite a stall for the latter on the same stage.
Loubet’s woes were compounded when he was forced to retire at final control. That promoted Benito Guerra to sixth after his retirement yesterday. Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Lefebvre rounded out the finishers – the Frenchman showing strong pace in his Citroën C3 R5 by claiming fastest WRC 2 time in the Sassari-Argentiera Live TV Power Stage.
Toyota development driver Takamoto Katsuta retired on SS17 with a broken driveshaft in his Ford Fiesta R5, while Simone Tempestini was unable to restart after mechanical issues with his Citroën on Saturday.
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Rally Italia Sardegna: Gaurav Gill shows good pace; Ogier, Neuville locked for title
Gaurav Gill with M-Sport team principal Malcolm Wilson, OBE, at the Rally Italia Sardegna. Photo: M-Sport Alghero, 09 June 2018: Having taken a restart after retiring yesterday following a hard nose-dive on SS-5, Indian champion Gaurav Gill showed why his credentials should not be taken lightly as the three times Asia Pacific Rally Champion showed impressive pace to end Leg 2 of the Rally Italia Sardegna in 14th spot among RC2 cars.
Gill, the 36-year old from Delhi, backed by MRF Tyres and with Aussie Glenn Macneall as his co-driver, enjoyed a much better outing in the M-Sport Ford Fiesta R5 today when seven Special Stages were run and despite suffering mechanical problems early in the day.
He was 11th quickest in SS-11, 10th in SS-12, fourth in SS-13, ninth in SS-14, 10th in SS-15 and ninth in SS-16 to finish Leg 2 in 15th position. Having re-started under Super Rally format, but with a heavy time penalty, Gill seemed determined to show that he belonged at this level and his pace on some of the Stages underlined the long-held belief that he could more than hold his own on the World stage.
As a non-priority driver, Gill, participating in WRC 2 is not eligible for points, but will be classified.
World champion Sebastien Ogier looking hot . Photo: WRC Ogier leads Neuville by just 3.9secs in WRC!
Title rivals Sebastien Ogier and Theirry Neuville face a thrilling final day victory showdown after gripping duel in the sun on Saturday. They traded seconds across seven dusty and rocky speed tests in the north of the Mediterranean island before Ogier finished with a slender 3.9sec advantage. Neuville, who heads Ogier in the WRC championship battle by 19 points, claimed three stage victories in his Hyundai i20, compared to Ogier’s two at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta.
Ogier extended his overnight advantage to almost 20sec before an overly-cautious drive through the famous Monte Lerno stage cut his lead to less than 5sec. As temperatures soared this afternoon, in contrast to yesterday’s torrential rain, both had problems. Ogier stalled his engine at the Ittiri stage start while Neuville punctured in the next test. With just one spare tyre onboard, he had no room for error in the final two stages.
“It’s so tight,” said Ogier. “It was a big push for me this afternoon because I was so angry with the last stage this morning. All the time I lost to Thierry was there. There’s pressure but it’s been like that all weekend and if we want to win we’ll have to fight for it.”
Thierry Neuville pushing hard. Photo: WRC Neuville said: “I knew if I had one more puncture I would lose a lot of time but it was our decision to carry on pushing. That was the risk we had to take and we managed it well – there were a couple of stones I had to avoid. The fight is open and tomorrow will be intense.”
There were battles across the leaderboard. Jari-Matti Latvala and Toyota Gazoo team-mate Esapekka Lappi fought tooth and nail for the final podium place. Latvala’s lead never rose above 7.0sec and he ended the final stage with a 5.3sec advantage.
However, his Yaris stopped on the liaison section back to Alghero with an alternator problem, believed to have been caused by an impact with a rock. Despite the efforts of the Finn and co-driver Miikka Anttila, they could not restart the car and retired.
Hayden Paddon and Mads Østberg dueled for what became fourth following Latvala’s exit. Østberg began the day in front in his Citroën C3, but his Kiwi rival moved his i20 ahead and held off the Norwegian’s afternoon pursuit. The gap between them was 2.1sec.
Craig Breen was sixth in another C3 after a frustrating day, ahead of WRC 2 leader Jan Kopecký. Ott Tänak recovered to eighth after yesterday’s engine damage, despite stopping to change a puncture in the final stage. Martin Prokop and Nicolas Ciamin completed the top 10.
Sunday’s short finale comprises two loops of two stages along the coast north of Alghero. They add up to 42.04km, the action ending with a spectacular Power Stage which runs alongside the beach and offers bonus points to the fastest five drivers.
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Gaurav Gill’s debut WRC 2 campaign ends in crash; Ogier takes slender lead in WRC
Sebastien Ogier on a late charge to lead Rally Italia Sardegna. Photo: WRC Alghero, 08 June 2018: Indian champion Gaurav Gill’s WRC 2 debut ended in a disaster as he damaged the M-Sport Ford Fiesta R5 following a heavy nose landing on SS-5 on the second day of the Rally Italia Sardegna on Friday. He was docked a time penalty of seven minutes plus the time of the fastest in the Stage. After Leg 1, the MRF Tyres driver was placed 15th among all the RC2 cars.
Gill’s campaign had begun on a promising note on Saturday night when he was placed ninth in the RC2 category after the 2 Kms Super Special Stage before heading out to the Special Stages today.
Through Friday’s first four Stages, Gill kept himself within sight of top-10, but the heavy nose-landing on SS-5 effectively put an end to his campaign. However, he was still classified under the Super Rally format. In all there were as many 10 retirements after 45 cars took the start early morning.
Meanwhile, in WRC, World champion Sebastien Ogier, driving the M-Sport Ford Fiesta, enjoyed a lead of 18.9 seconds over Thierry Neuville (Hyundai i20) with Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota Yaris) a further 18.3 seconds adrift.
The turning point for Ogier came in the latter part of the day when he soared from fifth to first but even he found the muddy roads tough to master. “I did no mistakes but it wasn’t possible to push. It was super tricky,” admitted the Ford Fiesta pilot.
Further torrential rain just before the second pass of the 22.12 Kms Tula test made conditions even more treacherous than this morning. The five-time World champion took charge with a stunning time more than 12sec quicker than anyone else.
His joy contrasted with the disappointment of Andreas Mikkelsen. Starting the stage with a 14.0 sec advantage, the Norwegian firstly overshot a junction and then completed the stage having reportedly lost second gear in his Hyundai i20. A half spin towards the end of Castelsardo brought the car to a halt and he retired after being unable to restart.
Tula became increasingly slippery with the passage of every car and the time gaps were big. Neuville lost vital seconds after spinning his i20 but third fastest through Castelsardo, which ironically was dry and dusty in places, kept him second, 10.9sec behind Ogier.
Ott Tänak made changes to his differential at service in a bid to make his Toyota Yaris turn into corners better. The Estonian was third, a further 4.1sec back and still frustrated at being unable to match the pace of those ahead.
Latvala took the day’s last Stage with a stunning drive to ease past Tanak into third place behind Origer and Neuville.
In WRC 2, which saw lead changing hands through the day, Stephane Lefebvre (Citroen C3 R5) firmly in front, enjoying a lead of 14 seconds over Jan Kopecky (Skoda Fabia R5) who in turn led third-placed Nicolas Ciamin (Hyundai i20) by over a minute.
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Latvala warms up nicely for Rally Italia Sardegna, quickest in shakedown
Jari-Matti Latvala who topped the shakedown on Thursday. Photo: WRC Alghero, 07 June 2018: Jari-Matti Latvala was fastest through an unusually damp shakedown at Rally Italia Sardegna on Thursday morning. He topped the times in the 3.51km Olmeda test in his Toyota Yaris, 0.8sec clear of Hayden Paddon’s Hyundai i20. Thierry Neuville, Esapekka Lappi and Ott Tänak were tied in third, a further tenth behind.
It was the third successive rally in which Latvala has won shakedown, but broken suspension sidelined him early at the last two rounds in Argentina and Portugal after hitting rocks. The Finn has changed his preparations in a bid to avoid an unwanted hat-trick.
“In the recce, I used more time than previously. I stopped at some places to throw the stones away and I walked around and looked at the stones,” he told wrc.com. “I also tried to mark more carefully the bad places or where there was a stone on the ground and rather than going over it, I will go round it.
“We’ll run the car higher which should help with the impacts and I won’t turn so aggressively into corners. There was no time to do any suspension work between Portugal and this rally, but the reality is that I’ve been driving too aggressively.”
Team-mate Lappi set the pace during the first pass of the gravel stage. Paddon was fastest on the next two runs before Latvala moved top of the standings on his fourth and final attempt.
Persistent rain fell in the Alghero service park and while the stage was drier, the obligatory hard compound Michelin rubber was not ideal for the conditions.
Sébastien Ogier and Andreas Mikkelsen were both caught out, swiping a rock during their first runs which caused bodywork damage to the co-driver’s side of their cars.
Leading positions were:
POSITION DRIVER CAR TIME 1 Jari-Matti Latvala Toyota Yaris 1min 53.9sec 2 Hayden Paddon Hyundai i20 +0.8sec 3= Thierry Neuville Hyundai i20 +0.9sec 3= Esapekka Lappi Toyota Yaris +0.9sec 3= Ott Tänak Toyota Yaris +0.9sec 6 Sébastien Ogier Ford Fiesta +1.4sec 7 Elfyn Evans Ford Fiesta +2.2sec 8 Teemu Suninen Ford Fiesta +2.8sec 9 Andreas Mikkelsen Hyundai i20 +3.2sec 10 Craig Breen Citroën C3 +3.6sec
Esapekka Lappi finished third in a Toyota Yaris, a further 1min 51.3sec behind. The results remain provisional after a bizarre incident at the finish of the penultimate stage when Ogier hurriedly departed in his Ford Fiesta without collecting his time card. It was later delivered to him by Ott Tänak. It was a breach of regulations which prohibit the crew receiving items from a third party.
Ingrassia admitted his mistake at the hearing. He said they left the stage finish without checking the time card had been returned by marshals and when he realised the error, it was too late to return to the finish line by car or on foot. Stewards accepted it was a genuine mistake which had no effect on the performance of their Ford Fiesta.
