Tag: Sebastien Ogier

WRC 2019: Sebastien Ogier to return to Citroen along with co-driver Julien Ingrassia

Ogier and Ingrassia….FIA World Rally Championship 2018 – WRC Monte Carlo (FRA). PHOTO: @World

Paris, 29 September 2018: World rally champion Sébastien Ogier, along with co-driver Julien Ingrassia, will return to Citroën Racing next season after signing a two-year deal with the French manufacturer. He returns to the Satory-based team, with whom he spent the early days of his WRC career, after a two-year spell with M-Sport Ford.

Friday afternoon’s announcement was not a surprise after it became apparent in recent weeks that the 34-year-old Frenchman was edging towards Citroën rather than extending his stay with the British squad.

Ogier made it clear last month he would agree one final WRC contract before ending his stay in a championship he has dominated in recent seasons, but there is no confirmation of how long his contact is.

Five consecutive World titles with Volkswagen Motorsport and M-Sport Ford have made him the WRC’s second most successful driver behind former Citroën team-mate Sébastien Loeb.

Ogier said a key factor behind his switch was the desire to win the Championship with a third team, something only Juha Kankkunen has achieved.

“There were various factors that influenced my decision. I really like the idea of working again with people with whom things went pretty well a few years back and I’m also excited by the chance to try and pull off the challenge of becoming World champion with a third different manufacturer,” he explained.

“And although I’m not taking anything for granted, I am convinced the car has definite potential and I have great faith in the people at Satory.

“I’m really enthusiastic about the prospect of taking on this new challenge with Citroën. In fact, I can’t wait, especially as I haven’t forgotten that this is the team that first gave me the opportunity to compete in the World Championship.”

Ogier won the junior World title with Citroën in 2008 before making his first appearance at the top level later that season.

He drove for Citroën’s second-string in 2009 and 2010, claiming his first WRC win in Portugal. He was promoted to the top team in the second half of 2010, but left after the 2011 season following increasing tension between himself, Loeb and management regarding team orders.

M-Sport team celebrating the Monte Carlo triumph. Photo: M-Sport

Ogier joined M-Sport Ford in 2017 after Volkswagen stepped back from the WRC. The switch from the well-funded German squad to Malcolm’s Wilson privately-run team took many by surprise.

“When we decided to join M-Sport two years ago, many considered it a risk. I considered it a challenge, and together we achieved something extraordinary,” he said.

“Malcolm and his team have such a passion for rallying, and I would like to thank each and every one of them for what has been an incredible two years together.

“It’s now time for another new challenge, but first we will focus on bringing this special partnership to a close in the best possible way. The championship is still extremely close and we’ll keep fighting to keep our chances alive and keep pushing until the very end.”

Citroën team principal Pierre Budar made clear his desire to resign Ogier in a bid to rejuvenate the team’s flagging fortunes following the mid-season departure of Kris Meeke.

“I’m obviously delighted to welcome Sébastien and Julien back into the fold. The fact they are joining us is an incredible boost for the whole team. Everyone is going to be even more motivated than ever.

“We’re already pulling out all the stops to make sure our second stint working together adds to our great history in the sport and showcases the Citroën brand. We feel good!” he said.

Having secured victories in Monte-Carlo, Mexico and Corsica this year, Sébastien and Julien are also in with a strong chance of defending their titles and the entire team will continue to work their hardest to ensure this successful partnership comes to a close on another high.

M-Sport Ford Press Release adds:

Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said: “I would like to thank Sébastien and Julien for everything they have done for the team over the past two years. Their professionalism, attention to detail, determination and outright speed is something to be admired and we’re all very sorry to see them go.

“I am immensely proud of everything we achieved together, and their time with the team is something that I think everyone will remember for a long time to come.

“We wish them well with the next and final chapter of their careers, but there are still three events left to contest this year and the whole team will continue to give one hundred and ten percent in the defence of our championship titles.”

Global Director of Ford Performance Motorsport, Mark Rushbrook, said: “All of us at Ford are sad to see Sébastien and Julien leave the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team at the end of the 2018 WRC season, but I would like to thank them personally for the great work they have done for us over the last two seasons with the team and to wish them both all the very best for the future.

“We know we have a really strong package with the Ford Fiesta World Rally Car and all our efforts are focussed on the remaining three rallies as we try to replicate the success of 2017. We will work with our long term rally partners M-Sport on the 2019 driver line up and I am confident we will have a really strong package to continue to deliver the success that we aim for in all the motorsports activities we have around the World.”

September 29, 2018
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.

June 10, 2018
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 14^th 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 11^th quickest in SS-11, 10^th in SS-12, fourth in SS-13, ninth in SS-14, 10^th in SS-15 and ninth in SS-16 to finish Leg 2 in 15^th 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.

June 10, 2018
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 15^th 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.

June 8, 2018
Sebastien Ogier hoping to bounce back in Rally Italia Sardegna this weekend

Sebastien Ogier…..keen to make up for Portugal debacle. Photo: WRC

Alghero, 05 June 2018: Reigning champion Sebastien Ogier is looking to put the disappointment at the Vodafone Rally de Portugal behind him as he looks to claim a fourth victory at this weekend’s Rally Italia Sardegna.

The M-Sport Ford driver was forced to retire on the opening day in Portugal after a pace note error caused him to hit a tree stump and break the suspension on his Fiesta, sending him sliding into the trees on the following corner.

His first no-score of the season meant he forfeited his lead in the championship to rally winner Thierry Neuville. Ogier now trails the Hyundai i20 driver by 19 points in the drivers’ standings thanks to the Belgian also claiming four bonus points on the Live TV Power Stage.

“Portugal was a shame as we had the speed to challenge for the win,” Ogier explained. “It was a small mistake with big consequences, but we put it behind us and are now fully focused on giving it everything we’ve got in Sardinia.”

The one silver-lining for the Frenchman is that he won’t be tasked with opening the road on Friday, but he conceded starting second won’t be much of an advantage.

“We won’t be opening the road this year, but we’ll still have something of an uphill battle with many fast drivers benefitting from a cleaner road behind,” Ogier said. “Even so, I’m confident that we can challenge for a good result. If we can keep the lead in sight on Friday night, then we’ll be in with a good chance – and will push for the best possible result.”

The five-time World champion has good form on the Mediterranean island rally, with three previous wins – most recently with VW in 2015 – from seven World Rally Car starts.

Ogier added: “I’ve learned to really enjoy these demanding stages, it’s a beautiful island but not the easiest of rallies with some very rough and abrasive terrain. You need to keep a margin and stay focused from start to finish – which is exactly what we intend to do.”

Sardinia’s beautiful beaches and luscious landscapes attract visitors in their droves, but the island is also prime rally territory – its rugged mountains, ancient forests and unspoilt rural terrain providing some of the year’s most demanding stages.

Lined with car-breaking obstacles, these stages leave no room for error. Fast and narrow, they demand precision driving and note calling from the drivers and co-drivers who must maintain their focus in temperatures as high as 30C.

More than a third of this year’s route is new – countless sections within each of the demanding speed tests offering a different challenge to last year’s encounter.

But the service park remains a familiar affair, hosted by the coastal town of Alghero. The town hosts the ceremonial start as well as the podium ceremony, and its idyllic cafes and mouth-watering selection of Italian gelateria are a must for teams and spectators alike.

Rally Italia Sardegna offers 20 Special Stages totalling more than 313 Kms on rugged and sun-baked gravel roads. Not only the tough gravel roads, but as well the temperatures are a challenge for the crews. While it has 28 Centigrade outside, the temperatures inside the rally cars can easily raise up to 68 degrees.

After the Super Special Stage on Thursday at the rally cross circuit of Ittiri, Friday features four stages in the north of the island, each run twice. Saturday is again the longest day of the rally with seven special stages covering over 146 kilometres. Sunday will bring the final decision with four stages close to the coast north of the host town of Alghero. The event first took place in 1928 as the “Rally of Flowers” and has been a round of the WRC since 1973.

June 5, 2018
Rally de Portugal: Neuville makes profit amidst crashes and retirements

Thierry Neuville, who made most of the situation to take early lead on Friday. Photo: WRC

Porto, 18 May 2018: Thierry Neuville led the Vodafone Rally de Portugal on Friday night after a chaotic opening leg destroyed the hopes of a host of front-runners. The lead changed hands on six occasions on rock-strewn dirt roads near the Spanish border before the Belgian took a 17.7sec advantage in his Hyundai i20 over Elfyn Evans. Dani Sordo was a further 6.6sec adrift in third.
WRC leader Sébastien Ogier, previous round winner Ott Tänak, Toyota Yaris team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala and Hyundai duo Andreas Mikkelsen and Hayden Paddon were all sidelined as the gruelling roads took a heavy toll.

Neuville’s gamble to select soft tyres for this afternoon’s second loop of three speed tests appeared to have backfired as temperatures rose and the tracks became rougher than expected. He held his nerve and jumped from sixth to first as bedlam broke out around him, retaining his advantage over two asphalt stages in the streets of central Porto.

“Today was tough, but we managed to stay out of trouble. It was very rough and there were many, many surprises. So I tried to save the car a bit. It was a risky tyre choice which was maybe not great but we made it work,” he said.

Evans held second in a Ford Fiesta until a spin dropped him down the order, but the Welshman vaulted from seventh to second in the twists and turns of the final dirt road stage.

Sordo topped the leaderboard midway through the leg in his i20. Like team-mate Neuville, the Spaniard opted for soft tyres this afternoon, but regretted his decision and had to slow as they became worn.

Teemu Suninen was fourth in another Fiesta, the Finn avoiding the carnage to trail Sordo by 10.1sec and head Esapekka Lappi in the sole-surviving Toyota Yaris by 11.4sec. Mid-leg set-up changes resolved Lappi’s traction problems.

Mads Østberg was sixth in a Citroën C3, half-a-minute clear of team-mate Kris Meeke who twice led. Tyre troubles forced Meeke to drive the final Porto stages with just a wheel rim on the rear left of his car and he conceded a minute.

Craig Breen plunged from third to eighth after stopping to change a puncture, while WRC 2 leader Gus Greensmith and Lukasz Pieniazek completed the leaderboard.

End of road for Sebsatien Ogier. Photo: WRC

Ogier was fourth until he broke a steering arm in his Ford Fiesta after hitting a tree root and he crashed at the next bend. Tänak hit a rock and damaged his engine’s cooling system, forcing him to retire from the rally. Toyota’s turmoil continued when Latvala hit a rock and broke his front right suspension.

Paddon retired from the lead after a heavy impact damaged the front left of his i20 and blocked the stage. The Kiwi was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after complaining of back pain. Broken power steering and engine issues accounted for team-mate Mikkelsen.

Saturday’s leg is the longest of the event, journeying east of the rally base in Matosinhos to demanding roads in the Cabreira Mountains. Three stages are driven morning and afternoon covering 154.64 Kms.

Gus Greensmith takes early lead in WRC 2

Gus Greensmith. Photo: WRC

Greensmith profited when championship leader Pontus Tidemand (Skoda Fabia R5) suffered a puncture on the very first Stage. Driving a Ford Fiesta R5, Greensmith was battling for the lead with Citroën Racing’s Stéphane Lefebvre from the very start of the day as the pair took a stage win apiece. Tidemand recovered from a right-rear puncture early on Friday to claim a stage victory on the third test of the day, but his time loss on the opener dropped him to seventh after the morning loop.

The leader going into mid-day service was Lefebvre, as an intercom failure for Greensmith before the 27.54 kms Ponte de Lima stage wiped out his early gains.

In the afternoon, it was Skoda Motorsport’s Tidemand who was on the pace as he claimed a trio of wins – including a double on the Porto Street Stage – to recover some of the time he lost, ending Friday in fifth.

Greensmith came out on top after Lefebvre was struck with a right-rear puncture on SS5 with the Brit claiming the category lead one stage later. He will start Saturday’s second leg with a lead of 34.3sec.

Citroën C3 driver Lefebvre finished the day third, 0.5sec behind Lukasz Pieniazek who kept out of trouble to work his way onto the podium. Fourth was Pedro Heller, the Fiesta driver rewarded for a clean run through the day while others hit trouble. Sixth was Nil Solans, who couldn’t match the pace of the front-runners, while Pierre-Louis Loubet ended the day’s eight stages seventh in his Hyundai i20 R5.

Six crews retired from the leg, including Sweden category winner Takamoto Katsuta as well as Simone Tempestini and Max Vatanen – who are both making their first appearance of 2018. Also running into issues was Hyundai Racing’s Jari Huttunen who retired after a mechanical problem on SS6.

May 19, 2018
Ott Tanak sets early pace in Super Special Stage; Suninen, Ogier tied second

Ott Tanak in a Toyota Yaris sets the early pace in Rally de Portugal. Photo: WRC

Lousada, 17 May 2018: The duo of Ott Tanak and co-driver Martin Jarveoja in a Toyota Yaris WRC was the quickest on the Super Special Stage (3.36 Kms) in the Vodafone Rally de Portugal which commenced here on Thursday evening.

The Estonian, the recent winner of the Rally of Argentina, beat Finn Teemu Suninen (Ford Fiesta) and five-time champion and World champion Sébastien Ogier (Ford Fiesta) by 0.4 seconds, who set an equal mark to reach second fastest time.

Kris Meeeke was the fastest in Citroën, as was Andreas Mikkelsen at Hyundai, both finishing the special at 1.4s off Tanak.

Suninen outpaced Hayden Paddon, returning after missing the last three WRC rounds, while Ogier was more than a second quicker than Thierry Neuville in the evening’s headline heat. Tänak dictated the previous round in Argentina but acknowledged a repeat is unlikely this weekend.

“It will be tough to dominate here. We know how loose the roads will be tomorrow and there will be a lot more cleaning than in Argentina. It will be a key tomorrow to get a good position so we can fight hard on Saturday,” he said.

Citroën C3 pilot Kris Meeke and Mikkelsen, driving a Hyundai i20, were fourth, a full second behind the tying Ford pair. Neuville completed the top six.

Jari-Matti Latvala dropped almost four seconds after stalling his Yaris in a hairpin. “Under braking, the engine cut completely. There’s something strange happening with the engine and we need to investigate that. It doesn’t worry me, but it annoys me,” he said.

M-Sport Ford mechanics replaced the cooling pack in Elfyn Evans’ Fiesta before this evening’s start at Guimaräes Castle after damage caused by a heavy landing in this morning’s shakedown.

Friday’s first full day is based close to the Spanish border. Two identical loops of three stages are split by service in Matosinhos, before the leg ends with two short street tests in central Porto. The eight stages cover 148.66 Kms.

JARI-MATTI LATVALA QUICKEST IN SHAKEDOWN

Jari-Matti Latvala. Photo: WRC

Latvala edged Origer and Neuville to win Thursday morning’s shakedown. The Toyota Gazoo driver was fastest by 0.3sec through the 4.60 Kms Baltar speed test. Ogier and the Hyundai i20-mounted Neuville tied in second. Conditions were dry and dusty and the stage, which ended with a loop of Baltar’s rallycross circuit, was closely contested. The top eight drivers were covered by a second.

Latvala set the pace in the first run, before Kris Meeke went top of the timesheets in a Citroën C3 at his second attempt. The Finn set the benchmark in his third run as most drivers posted their best time in their final pass.

It has been a disappointing year for Latvala. He is eighth in the points after retiring from the previous two rounds in Corsica and Argentina and views this rally as an opportunity to turn around his fortunes.

“Springtime has been difficult for me and I would really like to use this rally as a turning point for the season. I want to see the finish line, have a clean rally and find the speed I can do. I believe the car is competitive enough, so I have to stay cool and do my job,” he said.

“Three runs in a row this morning and no changes. You normally know that when you don’t need to do any changes then the set-up is correct and that’s the way it should be. If you have to start working in the shakedown, it’s normally not a good sign.”

Meeke, driving a C3, and Andreas Mikkelsen, in an i20, were tied in fourth 0.4sec adrift of Ogier and Neuville. Hayden Paddon, returning to the WRC after a three-rally absence, was another tenth behind in sixth.

May 18, 2018
Rally Monte-Carlo was about surviving; It was tricky till the end: Seb Ogier

Present:
1st – Sébastien Ogier, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
1st – Julien Ingrassia M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
2nd – Ott Tänak, Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT
2nd – Martin Järveoja, Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT
3rd – Jari-Matti Latvala, Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT
3rd – Miikka Anttila, Toyota GAZOO Racing WRT
Malcolm Wilson, Team Principal, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team

Q:
Seb, another win on what’s been a tough Rallye Monte-Carlo. How’s it been for you?
SO:
Once again it was a huge challenge. We always come here knowing it’s going be a difficult week and a tough event to make the good tyre choice. Ott was a difficult contender, but it’s also always very good to be here on the podium. Of course, I’m very pleased, this is the best way to start the season. It’s good to come back and start the season this way, it’s special, but I never struggled so much to be right with the tyres. It was never super-clear with the conditions changing all the time. It’s good that we managed to do fewer mistakes than the others, it was almost impossible to do the perfect weekend and we did mistakes as well. Ours were small mistakes with small consequences and that’s how we did this for the fifth time in the row. It feels good.

Q:
How tough was Saturday morning?
SO:
It was definitely one of the hardest stages of my career to drive in this moment. It was hard to explain how tough, I wasn’t complaining but it was not enjoyable to drive. It was about surviving. You come to the finish with a big relief and you’re super-happy crossing the line, but you have no idea if you are one minute slower or faster. It was a good surprise to see we took the minute compared to Ott. From then on we had the chance to try and manage the gap, but it was not easy. All the day it was tricky with the tyre to control in those conditions. It would have been super-easy to fall out of position. I’m happy to manage to keep the gap yesterday night. I expected today to be easier, but when we wake up we have news of frost and black ice to deal with on Turini. It was tricky until the end.

Q:
What was the plan for the Power Stage?
SO:
I couldn’t be completely relaxed and not really go for it. I knew with Thierry and Ott that we were fighting for two points. Thierry, Andreas and Craig had the four soft tyres for the Power Stage. I had worn super softs and not the right things to be fast, so I tried to drive clean. The road was clean at the beginning, but then we had some dirty corners at the finish and I couldn’t go for it. Every point is important at the moment, so I’m happy with this single point.

Q:
What did you think of Malcolm Wilson’s performance as Team Principal, was it good?
SO:
I had better say yes, I guess! It’s always difficult to start the season in Monte-Carlo on the hardest event in terms of organisation, logistics, meteo and co-ordination – all of that is tricky. We had some changes in the team, some new engineers, a new meteo forecaster who is unfortunately from Estonia – that’s why we got it wrong sometimes! No, I mean when we know how hard it is, we have to congratulate all of them, they have all tried as hard as they can.

Q:
How difficult was your job this week?
JI:
Each time we’re here on the podium – and my rivals say the same – we’re here without any breath for one full week. Congratulations to all the co-drivers on doing a very good job, all the guys do the same as me. It’s a very difficult position to get the notes and read new notes which are completely different from what you have on the recce. You memorise some of these notes and then they are completely different, I realise sometimes I was just reading and not analysing what I was saying. There were a lot of changes of rhythm, so it’s really good when the driver is still trusting you in the car.

Q:
It’s a great start to the season…
JI:
Yes. We know the championship will be hard and Monte-Carlo is special, this is the city of Seb and my region and it reminds me of one year ago. We have to thank those guys, it’s one year on and now we have to start again for everything – it’s a big motivation.

Q:
This is the first event with a new team and you’re on the podium – you must be delighted?
OT:
Yes. I am very relieved as well. It was a bit of an unknown before the rally, I had no idea where we would be. We’d done quite a bit of testing, but testing doesn’t show anything. The rally started quite OK, we lost a bit of time, but then it was improving step-by-step and we were enjoying more and more. When the conditions got tricky I had a good feeling in the car and felt big support from the team, they gave their maximum. It was quite an enjoyable weekend, the conditions were very, very hard, but it’s nice to feel the support and the will to fight.

Q:
The gap grew in the snow, did you back off?
OT:
Unfortunately, we had a bit of an issue with the dampers, something broke; that’s how it is sometimes. We survived the first loop. After this, we were back on the pace and then I’m quite happy. We were playing in Sébastien’s backyard here and we were competitive. Let’s see what the future brings, but in Sweden, it’s more like our backyard…

Q:
How was your route note crew?
OT:
They called me before the Power Stage and he said he wants to talk about this responsibility after the rally, and I can understand that. It was a tough weekend, I’m sure I would not be doing this job myself. We have to say they do a difficult job to predict the weather when it’s raining and snowing. And, knowing what kind of drivers we are, if there’s a bit missing we are still kicking them for this. They did a great job. I kind of love them, even if I’m giving them a hard time sometimes.

Q:
Martin, 12 months ago you were on the podium on your first event. What have you learned in the last year?
MJ:
Last year I didn’t know what to expect, but this year I knew it’s going to be a tough one. Ott mentioned he was enjoying this rally sometimes and I was also enjoying sometimes. Sometimes I was a passenger and sometimes Ott was also a passenger in the car and then we both didn’t enjoy it so much!

Q:
What’s the goal for this year? The Championship?
MJ:
Championship for sure.
SO:
It’s nice to have some dreams.
MJ:
Let’s see.

Q:
Jari-Matti, you talked about getting the monkey off your back with this result, what did you mean?
J-ML:
The reason is that last time I was on the podium with Miikka was over six months ago in Sardinia. In Australia I was aiming for the podium and you always want a good finish and we finished the season with a sh** feeling and then we have to wait two months for the next rally. It’s not a nice feeling. Doing a mistake in the fight, that we can accept, but when you are not in the fight then you can’t accept the mistake.

Q:
Is that now out of your mind?
J-ML:
Yes, now. It was a long time ago. At the end of the Power Stage I didn’t even remember how you have to go off to the podium!

Q:
Has your new team-mate Ott fired you up this year?
J-ML:
It’s been a boost for all the team when Ott and Martin joined. They have brought some very good knowledge from M-Sport. I’m very happy with that and we’ve been able to improve our car, it’s a really good feeling in the car. Let’s see what we can achieve.

Q:
You won Sweden, what’s the plan this time?
J-ML:
The men next to me want to win, I’m 100 percent sure about that – in Sweden, my mind is only about driving fast. Here my mind was on the clean run and a good start to the season. But Sweden I really love.

Q:
Miikka, how does it feel for you?
MA:
It’s good to be back. When we were on the podium I said the Michelin cap has a new design since last summer, but we don’t really know because we didn’t see it since last summer. It’s been good. Like Martin and Julien already explained, it’s hard work and one thing that doesn’t help is the mobile network and road timing – it would be nice if this could be improved.

Q:
Yesterday morning, what was it like in the snow?
MA:
Before Christmas, we had a really good test on full snow and that helped a lot. Before the stage Esapekka and Jari-Matti were nervous, so I said: “Hey, come on we’re from Scandinavia! We’re supposed to be comfortable here!”

Q:
Malcolm how special is this win?
MW:
You can’t imagine… it’s not going to beat last year for sure, but to come here and win the most difficult Monte I’ve been involved in is special. Normally I make decisions inside my head on what tyres I would use and on a couple of occasions I couldn’t have made those decisions. Seb spoke to his gravel crew and I said, what did he say, Seb said: “He didn’t know either!” That tells you how difficult it was.

Q:
A great start from the team, Elfyn showed consistent pace…
MW:
Yeah, it’s been a really strong performance. Unfortunately on Thursday night Elfyn clipped a rock and got a puncture, but the good times followed – including a couple of quickest times. It’s a shame to lose out today, he found Turini tough and didn’t have the confidence and if you don’t have the confidence then you pay the price. He’s done a very solid job.

Q:
Do you think the Championships will be tougher this year?
MW:
I don’t think, I know. At the moment the competition with the cars and drivers, it’s so evenly matched, it’s going to be an unbelievable challenge.
FIA WRC 2 CHAMPIONSHIP

Present:
1st – Jan Kopecky
1st – Pavel Dresler

Q:
Jan, congratulations. How was it from your side?
JK:
We tried many times to win this and now finally we did. It was tricky conditions, especially in Sisteron. This was the first time for me, even though we have done Monte-Carlo several times before. We started slower, the others gave me some pressure but it was a shame when they left – the fight was good. We had to stay concentrated.

Q:
Was Sisteron the most difficult stage?
JK:
On Saturday morning the snow came overnight and it was quite heavy. It was not freezing, but it was slush, it was impossible to do anything and in one moment we were very lucky – we almost hit a tree, but luckily we didn’t.

Q:
It’s a legendary rally, how much does this win mean?
JK:
You see what happened this weekend, easily this is the most difficult rally in the world.

Q:
What about your schedule, when will we see you again?
JK:
Hopefully, this will open us some more chances – the next event could be Corsica possibly, we will see.

Q:
Pavel, how was it for you?
PD:
Very nice, it was like a four-season race, we had spring, summer, winter, and fall. It was nice, but hard to take good tyres and the rhythm was changing a lot. In the stage, we have the winter then the rain. It was hard.

Q:
It’s a complex event for a co-driver, it went well for you?
PD:
I am happy. We made much work before with the gravel crew and during the week, it was incredible.

Q:
Did you get good information from the route note crew?
PD:
They did a very good job, yes. It’s easier for us, they are up so early in the morning.
FIA WRC 3 CHAMPIONSHIP

Present:
1st – Enrico Brazzoli
1st – Luca Beltrame

Q:
Enrico, this is a special result for you. Proud?
EB:
For me it’s very emotional, this is the first time in Monte-Carlo and it is a very difficult rally: very slippery and various conditions with rain, snow, and ice, very, very difficult. I am very happy to win this year.

Q:
This is the first time with your new co-driver too.
EB:
Yes, congratulations for him – this is very big for him.

Q:
Any moments?
EB:
On Sisteron we chose not the right tyres and it was very difficult. I lose four minutes there, it was very difficult, but now we are here I’m very happy.

Q:
What’s your season like?
EB:
Next rally is Sweden and perhaps Argentina, but it’s very difficult – I hope to do the year.

Q:
Luca, what a first outing for you…
LB:
Monte-Carlo is very strong, it’s the second time I did this one – I did one as a gravel crew.

Q:
You know how hard they work then?
LB:
Our ice-note crew works very well, they give good information and a good time for the tyre choice.

Q:
How stressful is this event?
LB:
The driver only works on the stage, but the co-driver works at all the time!

Q:
But you enjoyed it?
LB:
Yes, a lot. Really a lot.

eom/FIA press release

January 29, 2018

M-Sport Ford’s Sebastien Ogier & Julien Ingrassia take 5th Monte-Carlo win: WRC

Ogier celebrates Monte Carlo win on Sunday. WRC Round1. An M-Sport image

Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia notched up their fifth consecutive Rallye Monte-Carlo victory this afternoon, their sixth overall win on home soil. The French reigning FIA World Rally Champions arrived back in the Principality 58.3 seconds ahead of Toyota newcomers Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja who finished a career-best on the event. Team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila rounded out the podium on what has been one of the trickiest and incident-packed ‘Montes’ in years.

After the season-opener Ogier takes an eight-point lead over former team-mate Tänak in the Drivers’ Championship with Latvala and Kris Meeke on equal points, one point further behind. M-Sport Ford and Toyota are also on equal points at the head of the Manufacturers’ Championship, 15 points ahead of Citroën who are in turn four points ahead of Hyundai, the team having a disappointing start to their Championship campaign.

With just the final two stages to run, Ogier was able to control the pace and the Frenchman was also aware he didn’t have the optimum tyres to fight for victory on the Power Stage. “It’s been a difficult weekend,” he said. “Often in Monte-Carlo, you have to face hard conditions but this was extremely hard. I’ve never struggled so much with tyre choices, but in the end, we win and I’m super happy with that. Every driver did mistakes this weekend; I did too – just a few less.”

Tänak was delighted with his performance on his debut outing with the Japanese manufacturer. Not prepared to risk his best finish in Monte-Carlo, the Estonian was relieved to start the season with a top result having had a really good feeling with the car and an almost faultless rally. Latvala was also cautious, determined to start the season on a high and kick-start his campaign with important points.

Behind the leading trio, drama unfolded in the closing two stages. Kris Meeke was able to hold off a charging Thierry Neuville, who won the pair of stages and ultimately came to within 10.7 seconds of overhauling the Briton. Both were set to finish fifth and seventh respectively, until Esapekka Lappi dropped time in the first stage with an off into a snow bank, and then crucially threw away fourth in the Power Stage when he went off the road and plummeted to seventh. Both Meeke and Neuville moved up a position and, with the pace Neuville was setting, he also overhauled Elfyn Evans in the Power Stage to take fifth overall by one second. Bryan Bouffier also had an off-road excursion; he finished eighth with Craig Breen ninth for Citroën.

Jan Kopecky claimed 10th overall and maximum points in the FIA WRC 2 Championship category, and Enrico Brazzoli won the FIA WRC 3 Championship for two-wheel drive cars.

The FIA World Rally Championship contenders now head to more snow in the Scandinavian forests for Rally Sweden (15-18 February).

Rallye Monte-Carlo – Final Provisional Classification (subject to scrutineering)

1. Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia	Ford Fiesta WRC	4hr 18min 55.5sec
2. Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja	Toyota Yaris WRC	4hr 19min 53.8sec
3. Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila	Toyota Yaris WRC	4hr 20min 47.5sec
4. Kris Meeke / Paul Nagle	Citroën C3 WRC	4hr 23min 38.6sec
5. Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul	Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC	4hr 23min 49.3sec
6. Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt	Ford Fiesta WRC	4hr 23min 50.3sec
7. Esapekka Lappi / Janne Ferm	Toyota Yaris WRC	4hr 23min 53.0sec
8. Bryan Bouffier / Xavier Panseri	Ford Fiesta WRC	4hr 26min 35.0sec
9. Craig Breen / Scott Martin	Citroën C3 WRC	4hr 28min 02.2sec
10. Jan Kopecky / Pavel Dresler	Škoda Fabia R5	4hr 35min 38.5sec

January 29, 2018