INDIA in F1

Tag: WRC, Rally

  • WRC Round 9 resumes in Finland with all the jumps

    Jyvaskyla (Finland), 31 July 2019: The FIA World Rally Championship resumes after a six-week break with Rally Finland (August 1-4), round nine of the 2019 season and one of rallying’s most demanding events.

    Part of the WRC schedule since the inaugural season in 1973, the event was formerly known as the ‘1000 Lakes Rally’ and is famed for its fast and smooth gravel roads, which test both the bravery of the drivers and the performance of their machines. Co-drivers also play a crucial role on the rally, as accurate pace-notes are vital for the crew to carry maximum speed on the stages lined with numerous jumps and crests.

    With six events to go, the fight for the drivers’ championship remains intense. Ott Tänak, who took an impressive win in Finland 12 months ago, is at the top of the 2019 standings since the last event in Sardinia. But the Toyota driver only holds a very slim margin over his closest rivals: Sébastien Ogier (Citroën) is just four points behind him with Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville only three points further back.

    Elfyn Evans, currently fourth in the overall classification, will miss Finland while he recovers from a back injury sustained in the recent Rally Estonia – a round of the European Rally Trophy’s Baltic series which took place mid-July. His place among the top-class contenders will be taken by WRC 2 Pro regular Gus Greensmith, who will get a second outing in the Ford Fiesta WRC, following an encouraging debut in Portugal. Also joining the M-Sport line-up as an additional third entry for Finland is Hayden Paddon. The New Zealander is making his first WRC appearance this season, just like Craig Breen, who makes his debut for the Hyundai team alongside Neuville and Andreas Mikkelsen.

    A native of the rally’s host city Jyväskylä, Finland’s young gun Kalle Rovanperä will be out to add to his FIA WRC2 Pro championship lead on his home event. Škoda Motorsport enters an all-Finnish line-up with Eerik Pietarinen driving a second Fabia R5 Evo. M-Sport meanwhile gives a WRC debut to its new Ford Fiesta R5 with the Frenchman Eric Camilli at the wheel.

    Camilli’s fellow compatriot Pierre-Louis Loubet heads the FIA WRC 2 entry after back-to-back wins in Portugal and Sardinia, and upgrades to the latest-specification Škoda for Finland. The Corsican will face tough competition with the fast young Finns Jari Huttunen and Emil Lindholm, Russia’s Nikolay Gryazin, as well as Japan’s Takamoto Katsuta.

    Rally Finland is the fourth round of five in the FIA Junior World Rally Championship, with Spaniard Jan Solans leading the standings. Debutant Sami Pajari will be one of the youngsters to watch as the latest product of the Flying Finn Future Star initiative.

    THE 2019 ROUTE

    This year’s Rally Finland route features only small changes to the 2018 itinerary. The traditional mixed-surface Harju test kicks off the action in Jyväskylä on Thursday evening, before a total of 10 stages on Friday, held mostly to the west. Saturday features a return of the Leustu stage – last run in 2014 – in a marathon day that totals 132.98 kilometers. Two passes of the Laukaa and Ruuhimäki tests provide an exciting finale on Sunday.

    Watch the video here!

  • Phil Short, FIA Junior WRC Sporting Supervisor, to retire

    After over a decade of service to WRC’s various young driver championships, Phil Short, FIA Junior WRC Championship Sporting Supervisor, will retire at the end of the season.

    Short has been a cornerstone of FIA Junior WRC and its various guises for 11 years, providing essential guidance to over 100 young drivers including the likes of Ott Tänak, Elfyn Evans, Hayden Paddon, Craig Breen, Pontus Tidemand and Gus Greensmith.

    His experience in international rallying extends to almost half a century and has made him one of the most knowledgeable members of the sport. Starting in 1970 he had a successful international co-driving career, claiming 17 international victories, before moving onto team management. Seeing even greater success as a team manager for various marques, including Ford and M-Sport, Short supervised nine world drivers’ titles and seven manufacturers’ championships.

    Aside from his role as a co-driver and team manager, he has also acted as an advisor, supervisor and steward. He will leave his current position at the end of Wales Rally GB 2019, the final round of 2019 FIA Junior WRC in October.

    Maciej Woda, FIA Junior WRC Championship Manager, said: “On behalf of everybody at FIA Junior WRC Championship and M-Sport Poland, I would like to extend a huge thanks to Phil for his unrivalled dedication to Junior WRC and it’s different forms in the last 11 years. Phil has been there for so many talented young rally drivers and co-drivers, offering them crucial advice and guidance at the start of their careers. Some of these drivers have gone on, or are certainly on their way, to incredible success in international rallying and Phil is definitely owed thanks for that.

    “His eye for detail and almost infinite knowledge bank that he has developed through his experience in a variety of roles throughout his career will be greatly missed in the Junior WRC service park along with his never-ending kindness and good humour. Phil, I certainly hope to see you at a rally or two next year and in future years and please know that you are always welcome in Junior WRC or at M-Sport Poland.”

    Phil Short, FIA Junior WRC Sporting Supervisor, said: “For the past 11 years I have supervised the young driver championships on WRC –including Junior WRC, working for FIA, M-Sport and M-Sport Poland. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with a good number of very talented young drivers. I calculate well over 100 promising drivers, not to mention a similar number of talented co-drivers, have passed through my hands over those 11 years. I always take pleasure in seeing those guys & girls obtain the success they deserve – in whatever theatre of the sport – in subsequent years. I don’t claim to have ‘discovered’ these prodigious talents, but I hope I have been instrumental in giving them help, advice, guidance and support along the way.

    “My mind is very much a rallying one, and I feel I may still have something to offer, while hopefully doing something not quite as stressful as supervising 14 enthusiastic young drivers and their dedicated co-drivers. It has been my pleasure to work with senior FIA Officials, WRC Event Organisers, Teams, Tyre & other suppliers, Sponsors, TV, Radio & Print Media and all the other enthusiastic people involved in the sport of rallying. I hope our paths will cross again before too long.”

  • Jan Solans-Mauro Barreiro become third different winners in FIA Junior WRC

    Alghero, Sardinia (Italy), 16 June 2019: Jan Solans and Mauro Barreiro claimed their first FIA Junior WRC victory of the 2019 season on Rally d’Italia following a hard-fought battle with Dennis Rådström and Johan Johansson that went down to the wire.

    Solans and Rådström were a cut above the rest of the FIA Junior WRC field sharing all of the 17 possible stage wins between them with twelve and five respectively.

    Solans has now taken the championship lead with 71 points, it is largely thanks to his impressive haul of stage win points which comes to a total of 19 – the most of any other driver this season. Rally Sweden winner Tom Kristensson sits second with 62 points and Rådström remains in third with 55 points.

    The FIA Junior WRC field has been in impressive form all weekend as each crew demonstrated well thought out and mature drives on Rally d’Italia. It resulted in nine out of eleven EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta R2 Junior WRC cars crossing the ceremonial finish in Alghero – an achievement that underlines the depth of talent in the 2019 FIA Junior WRC Championship.

    Solans won the opening Super Special Stage at the Ittiri Arena on Thursday evening, edging Rådström by just 0.1 seconds, however Friday was Rådström’s day. He was able to rely on his experience and asserted his dominance, ending Friday 16.8 seconds ahead of fellow Swede Tom Kristensson. The opening full day of rallying did not start according to plan for Solans after a series of mistakes across stages three and four saw him 29.5s off the lead at the start of SS7.

    In stark contrast to Friday, Solans pushed hard from the get-go on Saturday morning, delivering five stage wins in a row, closing down the gap to Rådström from 17.4s to 1.2s by the conclusion of SS14. Rådström denied Solans of a perfect streak and claimed the final stage win of the day, extending his lead to 4.4s.

    Sunday saw Solans regroup and repeat his Saturday form in the morning loop, adding another pair of stage wins to his name to claim the rally lead by just 1.3s. It set FIA Junior WRC up for a nail-biting conclusion in the Sardinian sun as the duelling duo headed into the final two stages of the rally.

    Solans added another two seconds to his lead after SS18, starting the Wolf Power Stage with a 3.3s cushion to Rådström. In a final display of talent and speed Solans pushed through the last stage of the day, beat Rådström by 11.5 seconds to win the rally by 14.9s.

    FIA Junior WRC Championship Manager, Maciej Woda, said:
    “First of all, I would like to express my sincere condolences to Krisjanis Caune whose father sadly passed away on Saturday. Krisjanis made the decision to continue the rally today and for that I have the upmost admiration and respect for him as it required true bravery and determination.

    So“This rally is an incredibly demanding and tough one. I don’t think anybody imagined that nine out of 11 Junior WRC crews would finish, especially when you consider previous rough rallies in Junior WRC! It is an amazing accomplishment for every crew and we have been very impressed by the level of maturity everybody has demonstrated. The battle for the lead has been a classic and very enjoyable to follow as Jan and Dennis have been on another level. Dennis’s experience has helped him to keep cool in certain moments which allowed him to deliver a very consistent and impressive pace to maintain his lead throughout Saturday even though he won only one stage. Considering Jan was almost 30 seconds behind at one point on Friday, he has certainly raised a few eye brows by delivering so many stage wins while staying on the road and his victory is fully deserved.”

    RALLY D’ITALIA SARDEGNA CLASSIFICATION AND DRIVER QUOTES:

    1. Jan Solans / Mauro Barreiro 4h02m36.2s

    “Amazing weekend, seriously, we have been on the limit on every stage since Friday after we had our problems. We decided to push on every stage and in the end, we achieved victory, so we are really happy and very proud. There’s a little bit of pressure now, I didn’t expect it to be leading the championship after this rally. Next up is Finland so it will be really difficult for us because it will be my first time there on fast roads so it’s time to work and prepare for that rally.”

    1. Dennis Rådström / Johan Johansson + 00:14.9

    “For sure it’s a little bit sad but we had strong competition from Jan this time. Jan did a really great job, we really pushed on the penultimate stage today and he beat us. We should be proud to be here without any problems in Sardinia.”

    1. Tom Kristensson / Henrik Appelskog + 03:27.2

    “I didn’t imagine that we would have finished this rally without any mistakes, punctures or major issues so I am extremely happy with that. Of course, there was more performance available on the stages but I really need to focus on the championship and that is what I am doing. You can lose too much time taking these kinds of risks.”

    1. Raul Badiu / Gabriel Lazar + 04:37.5

    “I’m feeling relieved now after a tough rally, I really enjoyed the car on the gravel. I was perhaps a little too cautious on the rough sections, but it doesn’t matter as we finished the rally, finally without any issues at all.”

    1. Martins Sesks / Krisjanis Caune + 05:34.9

    “We need to analyse this rally and see what to do next. After two big disasters on the previous two rallies this one was a finish which is good but it is not what I am aiming for.”

    1. Julius Tannert / Jurgen Heigl + 06:41.8

    “For sure it was a difficult weekend for us, especially in the beginning, we lost a lot of time. On Saturday morning we had to fix a leaking radiator and lost more time by arriving late to the next stage. In the end we are sixth overall which is not the result we wanted.”

    1. Fabrizio Zaldivar / Fernando Mussano + 08:58.9

    “I’m really happy, we came here, and we wanted a good result so seventh place is great for my first year in the championship. It’s completely different on these European stages, here there are a lot of mountains, in my home country it is just a flat surface.”

    1. Enrico Oldrati / Elia de Guio + 17:44.6

    “It was a very unlucky rally for us but it’s ok as we finished the rally without making too many mistakes. I am really tired but also happy to be here and finish the rally, let’s look forward to Finland.”

    1. Nico Knacker / Michael Wenzel +19:53.9 

    “We learned so much, it was a really difficult rally. We are happy to finish, it was really hard, the stages were so difficult. The last stage time was encouraging for us and we are happy.”

    RETIRED:  Tom Williams / Phil Hall

    “Rally Sardinia’s not gone well for us, it has been a really tough weekend. We learned a huge amount, but we broke the sump on the very last stage and we had to retire on the final road section. This will be a rally to forget for us but we will be pushing stronger in Finland.”

    Sean Johnston / Alex Kihurani

    “It’s definitely been a character-building rally with the incident on Friday. We’ve had lots of good learning experiences and today we had a big compression on the first run of the power stage and when were swapping wheels we noticed an oil leak so called it a day.”

  • Dani Sordo-Carlos del Barrio bring unexpected victory for Hyundai: WRC Rally Italia

    Dani Sordo-Carlos del Barrio bring unexpected victory for Hyundai: WRC Rally Italia

    Dani Sordo (Carlos) takes the unexpected win for Hyundai in 2019 FIA World Rally Championship
    Round 08. Photo: Austral/ Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

    Alghero, Sardinia (Italy), 16 June 2019: Dani Sordo and Carlos del Barrio have taken victory on a dramatic final test of Rally Italia Sardegna after Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja slowed and spun in the Power Stage with a steering issue.

    It is the second win in the Hyundai driver’s FIA WRC career. Teemu Suninen and Jarmo Lehtinen claim second for M-Sport Ford in their first event together, while Sordo’s team-mates Andreas Mikkelsen and Anders Jaeger complete the podium after passing Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin in the last stage.

    Tänak fell to fifth position but does take the championship lead away from Sébastien Ogier… if he makes it to Parc Fermé to close the final road section.

    Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen are also celebrating a hat-trick in the FIA WRC 2 Pro class, leading Jan Kopecký and Pavel Dresler in a second consecutive one-two finish for Škoda.

    Pierre-Louis Loubet and Vincent Landais have taken their second straight win in FIA WRC 2 after the retirement of the overnight leaders Takamoto Katsuta and Daniel Barritt due to a fire caused by oil leaking from their engine.

    Jan Solans and Mauro Barreiro have scored the FIA Junior WRC win after getting ahead of Dennis Rådström and Johan Johansson on the final day.

    Hyundai Motorsport Report:
    Hyundai Motorsport has taken its third victory of the 2019 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) after a dramatic conclusion to Rally Italia Sardegna that saw Dani Sordo and Carlos del Barrio crowned winners.The Spanish crew headed into the final morning aiming to secure second place after a competitive weekend. However, problems for rally leader Ott Tänak on the Power Stage saw the Estonian drop down the order. Having secured the runner-up position, Sordo was unexpectedly elevated to the top spot as a result of Tänak’s woes to claim his first victory for Hyundai Motorsport and the second WRC win of his career.

    Andreas Mikkelsen and Anders Jæger-Amland had their sights set on fourth place but had to dig deep to overturn a 14-second deficit to Elfyn Evans. The Norwegians went about the challenge in style, taking a clean sweep of stage wins on the final morning. Their efforts were further rewarded as they moved up into third place to claim their second podium of 2019 as part of a Hyundai Motorsport 1-3.

    Sunday’s itinerary included two runs through the 14.06km Cala Flumini and 6.89km Sassari-Argentiera stages, narrow, dusty and fast routes that put an emphasis on precision and commitment. The final run acted as the rally’s Power Stage, offering additional points towards the drivers’ championship with Mikkelsen scoring the maximum five points (for the first time since Spain 2015) and Thierry Neuville, who ended the rally in sixth place, picking up three extra points.

    The surprise result sees Hyundai Motorsport extend its lead in the WRC manufacturers’ standings to 46 points over Toyota Gazoo Racing. Neuville retains third place in the drivers’ table on 143 points, three behind Sébastien Ogier and seven adrift of Tänak with six events left of the season.

    Crew Notes: Dani Sordo/Carlos del Barrio (#6 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

    • First victory as a Hyundai Motorsport driver, second of Spaniard’s career
    • 25 points gives the team a much-needed boost in the manufacturers’ standings
    Sordo said: “This is incredible. I have no words; it’s just an amazing feeling to take my first win for Hyundai and the second WRC win of my career. Of course, I am very sorry for Ott and Toyota to have experienced such bad luck on the Power Stage. At the same time, we knew we had to keep the pressure on in case this sort of situation occurred. I just can’t believe it happened. We have been quick and consistent all weekend. There was no chance to beat Ott on outright pace so we just did what we could and avoided mistakes. It wasn’t easy but we made it through to the end – and we now have this fantastic victory as a reward. Thanks to Carlos and to the team for the support and for sharing this result. I think it will take some time to fully sink in.” Crew Notes: Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger-Amland (#89 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

    • Clean sweep of stage wins including Mikkelsen’s first Power Stage win since Spain 2015
    • Third place result marks crew’s second podium of 2019 season
    Mikkelsen said: “We gave it a massive push on the final morning in an effort to cut the gap to Elfyn Evans. We had to dig deep but we were confident in our chances. The car felt really nice and we were properly in the zone. Taking all four stage wins was a fantastic feeling and we would have been content to take fourth. Unfortunately, Ott had his issues, which then handed us a podium finish, which was an unexpected but very welcome bonus. Although it has been achieved at one of our rival’s expense, we are grateful to score a 1-3 result this weekend.”    Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (#11 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

    • Sixth place and three extra Power Stage points keeps Neuville in drivers’ title chase
    • Difficult weekend prevented Belgians from capturing their usual performance level

     Neuville said: “Absolutely not the weekend we were looking for. We have not been in the fight, so it’s been a case of damage limitation. A combination of incorrect tyre choice and other issues on Friday put us on the back foot from the start, and we’ve not been able to play a role since. We have to put it down to ‘one of those weekends’ and look to regroup and fight back in Finland. We pushed as hard as we could in the Power Stage but we could do no more. Congratulations to Dani; we have worked together at Hyundai for six years now and I am really pleased to see him and Carlos secure their first win for the team.”

    Team Director Andrea Adamo: “Personally, I find this result quite difficult to accept. Firstly, we extend our empathy to everyone at Toyota Gazoo Racing, to Tommi, Ott and Martin, for the cruel way that they had a deserved victory taken away from them. For the second time this season, we have inherited a victory that we did not earn on the road. We should not have to rely on unreliability to secure these results. I appreciate that I am perhaps looking at things too much through a sympathetic lens but this is the reality of the situation. At the same time, I am pleased for Dani and Carlos who have worked professionally all weekend, as have all our three crews, to put themselves in a position to capitalise on today’s situation.”

    Next Rally

    • WRC takes its traditional summer break before the championship resumes with Rally Finland August 1-4
    • The popular event will be the fifth consecutive gravel rally on the 2019 calendar, with six weeks for teams and crews to prepare for the extreme high-speed challenge.
    Final Overall Classification – Rally Italia Sardegna
    1 D. Sordo C. del Barrio Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3:32:27.2
    2 T. Suninen J. Lehtinen Ford Fiesta WRC +13.7
    3 A. Mikkelsen A. Jæger-Amland Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC +32.6
    4 E. Evans S. Martin Ford Fiesta WRC +33.5
    5 O. Tänak M. Järveoja Toyota Yaris WRC +1:30.1
    6 T. Neuville N. Gilsoul Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC +2:16.7
    7 E. Lappi J. Ferm Citroën C3 WRC +2:59.6
    8 K. Meeke S. Marshall Toyota Yaris WRC +4:40.1
    9 K. Rovanperä J. Halttunen Škoda Fabia R5 +8:24.6
    10 J. Kopecky P. Dresler Škoda Fabia R5 +8:49.2
    2019 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings 
    After round 8
    1 O. Tanak 150
    2 S. Ogier 146
    3 T. Neuville 143
    4 E. Evans 78
    5 T. Suninen 62
    6 K. Meeke 60
    7 A. Mikkelsen 56
    8 D. Sordo 52
    9 E. Lappi 40
    10 J.M Latvala 40
    11 S.Loeb 39

    2019 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
    After round 8

    1 Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team 242
    2 Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 198
    3 Citroën Total World Rally Team 170
    4 M-Sport Ford World Rally Team 152

    All results remain subject to official FIA confirmation.

  • Ott Tanakm Martin Jarveoja duo surges into the lead of Rally Italia Sardegna on Saturday: WRC

    Ott Tanak and codriver Martin Jarveoja take lead in Rally Italia, the8th round of the FIA World Rally Championship 2019 . Photo: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC

    Alghero, Sardinia (Italy), 15 June 2019: Ott Tänak surged into the lead of Rally Italia Sardegna on Saturday morning, the Toyota driver setting the fastest time in all three stages to take the top spot away from Hyundai’s Dani Sordo.

    Saturday morning’s loop on the Mediterranean island was made up of three classic Sardinian tests to the east of Alghero, totalling 71.21 competitive kilometres and rounded out by the famous Monte Lerno stage and its hugely popular Micky’s Jump.

    As was the case on Friday, there was a diverse range of tyre choices among the crews. While rally leader Sordo went for five hard tyres, Tänak opted for three mediums and two hards. Tänak’s decision quickly paid off in SS10, allowing the Estonian to move past Teemu Suninen to take second place and reduce Sordo’s advantage from 6.5 to 4.7 seconds.

    In SS11, Tänak took 2.1 second out of Sordo and in SS12, he was nine seconds quicker, despite suffering a stall on a hairpin. He now leads Sordo by 6.4 seconds, heading into the afternoon loop.

    Teemu Suninen also left the morning service with five hard tyres and although he couldn’t match the times of Tänak or Sordo, he consolidated his podium place, opening up a gap of 27.9 seconds over M-Sport team-mate Elfyn Evans.

    Andreas Mikkelsen and Evans began the day just 0.1 second apart and traded places in every stage during the morning. Evans won out in SS12 with a tight advantage of 2.6 seconds after Mikkelsen ran wide into a wall near the end of the stage.

    Kris Meeke has run steadily through the morning to maintain his sixth position, 10.8 second behind Mikkelsen.

    After an eventful Friday, Thierry Neuville struggled during the morning, regretting his choice of hard tyres and confessing he wasn’t able to find the confidence. He is now 51.9 seconds behind Meeke in seventh, with Esapekka Lappi 20.1 seconds further back in eighth.

    Rally restarter Sébastien Ogier was due to run first on the road, but the Frenchman checked in late in the first stage of the morning to run third ahead of his team-mate Lappi. He started SS11 even further back in the order, before stopping to fix a damaged left-rear suspension, which continued to hamper him in SS12.

    Kalle Rovanperä continues to lead FIA WRC 2 Pro in ninth overall with his Škoda Fabia R5 Evo, moving ahead of FIA WRC 2 leader Pierre-Louis Loubet, who closes the top 10.

    In the FIA WRC 2 Pro battle, Jan Kopecky is second with a gap of 20.1 seconds to his Škoda team-mate, while Citroën’s Mads Ostberg is about 10 minutes behind his rivals.

    WRC 2 contender Nikolay Gryazin dropped out of second when he ripped off a wheel of his Škoda on SS10, promoting Takamoto Katsuta. Kajetan Kajetanowitz is third.

    Dennis Rådström remains out front in the FIA Junior WRC category, with Jan Solans passing Tom Kristensson for second.

  • Dennis Radstrom holds on to a narrow 4.4 sec lead over Jan Solans on Saturday: FIA Junior WRC

    Alghero, Sardinia (Italy), 15 June 2019:  The FIA Junior WRC Championship is set up for a nail-biting conclusion to Rally d’Italia Sardegna as Dennis Rådström holds onto a narrow 4.4-second lead over Jan Solans going into the final day of the rally.

    Solans pushed hard from the get-go on Saturday morning and delivered five stage wins in a row, closing down the gap to Rådström from 17.4s to 1.2s by the conclusion of SS14.

    The Spaniard was maintaining an impressive and consistent pace while reeling off stage wins and looked set to claim a perfect day together with the rally lead. Rådström, the only current Junior WRC driver to win a Junior WRC gravel event, denied Solans of a perfect streak and claimed the final stage win of the day, extending his lead to 4.4s.

    In terms of stage wins and stage win points, Solans now has eight to his name and Rådström five.

    Solans took victory on SS12 and a stage point, but Rådström was awarded a notional time stage time identical to the Spaniard’s due to being stuck behind a slower car on the stage. Rådström did not receive a stage point due to his time being an artificial stage time.

    Championship leader Tom Kristensson who is yet to win a stage on the rally sits in third position, 1m59.9s adrift from the lead. The Swede kept to his plan of making no mistakes and finishing every stage. The strategy did mean losing a large amount of time on the rough and difficult final stage of the day (SS15) although he has a comfortable margin of 1m02.9s over Raul Badiu in fourth.

    Julius Tannert started the day in fifth position, radiator damage during SS10 meant the German had to make a repair between stages and was 22 minutes late for his start time on SS11. He was handed a 3m40s penalty which dropped him to eighth after completing SS11. Tannert bounced back with consistent pace and ended the day sixth, 2m08.1s behind Latvian Martins Sesks.

    Fabrizio Zaldivar from Paraguay, the youngest driver in the 2019 FIA Junior WRC field, sits in seventh with a five-minute gap to eight placed Tom Williams. Provided Zaldivar has an issue-free Sunday, he could claim his best finish of the season on the final day of Rally d’Italia.

    Dennis Rådström said: “It’s been a typically Sardinian day, a rough one, but we have completed it without problems. I focussed and just made sure I took care of the car. I think we will continue like we have done because this time we have to keep leave our ‘Junior mind’ at home, focus on our job and just go on tomorrow.”

    CLASSIFICATION, SECTIONS FOUR AND FIVE:

    1.Dennis Rådström / Johan Johansson 01:48:26.2
    2. Jan Solans / Mauro Barreiro + 00:04.4
    3. Tom Kristensson / Henrik Appelskog + 01:59.9
    4. Raul Badiu / Gabriel Lazar + 03:02.8
    5. Martins Sesks / Krisjanis Caune + 03:46.3
    6. Julius Tannert / Jürgen Heigl + 05:54.4
    7. Fabrizio Zaldivar / Fernando Mussano + 07:20.3
    8. Tom Williams / Phil Hall + 12:23.2
    9. Enrico Oldrati / Elia de Guio + 14:58.1
    10. Nico Knacker / Anne Stein + 16:49.2
    11. Sean Johnston / Alex Kihurani + 42:43.1

     

  • 2nd straight win for Tanak & Jarveoja: WRC, Rally Portugal

    2nd straight win for Tanak & Jarveoja: WRC, Rally Portugal

    Ott Tänak claimed one of the hardest earned victories of his short rallying career after an enthralling Rally Portugal’s final leg on Sunday.

    Tanak, Jarveoja win Rally Portugal on Sunday. An FIA image

    Matosinhos (Portugal), 2 June 2019: The 31-year-old Estonian confirmed his ninth career WRC win and his seventh with the Toyota team. A third triumph of the season to follow successes in Sweden and Chile also enabled the Yaris driver to move to within two points of six-time FIA World Champion Sébastien Ogier at the top of the Drivers’ Championship after seven rounds.

    He was pushed hard by Toyota team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Kris Meeke for one and a half days, overcame brake and suspension issues of his own and maintained his composure when both his Yaris colleagues hit trouble.

    He and co-driver Martin Järveoja, crossed the finish line of the final stage 15.9 seconds in front of Belgian title rival Thierry Neuville, the winner even managing to avoid winning the Power Stage that would have given him the series lead and a distinct starting position disadvantage at the next round in Sardinia.

    Tänak’s previous best finish in Portugal had been fourth overall in 2017 with the M-Sport World Rally Team. The success was also the first for Toyota in Portugal as a full counting round of the FIA WRC since Finland’s Juha Kankkunen won the event back in 1994 with a Group B Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD.

    Neuville now holds third in the title race in his Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC and now trails by 10 points in what is again developing into a gripping three-way title race.

    A penultimate stage spin at a hairpin proved costly for Kris Meeke and it deprived Toyota of the 1-2 finish they had sought. But it got much worse for the Ulsterman when he spun again at speed in the Power Stage and damaged the Yaris that came to rest across the track. The cruel mistake cost Meeke his place in the rally and gifted Sébastien Ogier an unlikely podium finish.

    Ogier had opted to cruise through the first four stage s of the morning to conserve his tyres for a final push on the Power Stage. The Frenchman was rewarded with the five bonus points but the downside was that he continues to lead the championship and will open the road in Sardinia later this month.

    Esapekka Lappi survived a gently roll in Montim on Sunday morning, clipped a banking and then damaged the rear right suspension in Fafe. The Finn attempted to repair the Citroën C3’s suspension en route to Luilhas, but it was not to be and the unlucky Finn retired from sixth place.

    Teemu Suninen inherited a place after Lappi’s mishap on the day’s opener and the Finn eventually brought the first of the M-Sport Ford Fiestas home in fourth overall. Team-mate Elfyn Evans moved up to sixth when Lappi’s retirement was confirmed and then finished fifth to give the Blue Oval a useful haul of much-needed Manufacturers’ points. It had been a trying weekend for the Welshman after the four minutes he lost with a throttle connector issue on day one.

    Jari-Matti Latvala disposed of FIA WRC 2 front-runner Pierre-Louis Loubet to enter the top 10 in the third Toyota and eventually finished seventh after Meeke and Lappi retired. It was small reward for the veteran Finn, who had claimed two stage wins and pushed the eventual winner hard for the lead on day two.

    Gus Greensmith enjoyed an impressive debut in a World Rally Car. He had been running as high as seventh overall on day two, before planting the factory Ford Fiesta WRC in a ditch. The Briton recovered well and held 11th until he wrecked the Fiesta’s front suspension after a heavy landing and a crash on the Fafe jump on the Power Stage.

    Both Sébastien Loeb and Dani Sordo followed Hyundai’s team orders to support team-mate Neuville after their day one fuel issues. Sordo had led the rally outright for two stages on Friday and set two fastest times, but it was a disappointing event for the duo, exacerbated by last stage suspension woes and a late retirement for Loeb.

    Sixth-placed Kalle Rovanperä dominated the FIA WRC 2 Pro category to take the championship lead. He finished 1min 07.7sec in front of Czech team-mate Jan Kopecký. Both drivers delivered impressive performances in the new factory Škoda Fabia R5 Evos to give the Czech car a 1-2 finish on its WRC debut. A series of punctures had ruined Mads Østberg’s challenge in the Citroën C3 R5 and he finished in a distant third place. The Norwegian had the consolation of claiming all five stage wins on the final morning.

    Corsican Pierre-Louis Loubet held his nerve to confirm victory from Sweden’s Emil Bergkvist and Norwegian veteran Henning Solberg in WRC 2. Mexico’s Benito Guerra continues to lead the FIA WRC 2 Championship after Ole Christian Veiby’s premature retirement.

     

    2019 Rally Portugal – Final provisonal results

    1. Ott Tänak (EST) / Martin Järveoja (EST) Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 20min 22.8sec
    2. Thierry Neuville (BEL) / Nicolas Gilsoul (BEL) Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC 3hr 20min 38.7sec
    3. Sébastien Ogier (FRA) / Julien Ingrassia (FRA) Citroën C3 WRC 3hr 21min 19.9sec
    4. Teemu Suninen (FIN) / Marko Salminen (FIN) Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 23min 04.3sec
    5. Elfyn Evans (GBR) / Scott Martin (GBR) Ford Fiesta WRC 3hr 27min 31.1sec
    6. Kalle Rovanperä (FIN) / Jonne Halttunen (FIN) – WRC 2 Pro Škoda Fabia R5 Evo 3hr 30min 57.0sec
    7. Jari-Matti Latvala (FIN)/Miikka Anttila (FIN) Toyota Yaris WRC Toyota Yaris WRC 3hr 31min 51.0sec
    8. Jan Kopecký (CZE) / Pavel Dresler (CZE) – WRC 2 Pro Škoda Fabia R5 Evo 3hr 32min 04.7sec
    9. Pierre-Louis Loubet (FRA) / Vincent Landais (FRA) – WRC 2 Škoda Fabia R5 3hr 33min 09.1sec
    10. Emil Bergkvist (SWE) / Patrik Barth (SWE) – WRC 2 Ford Fiesta R5 3hr 34min 51.2sec

  • Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin lead the way: Tour de Corse, WRC

    M-Sport Ford World Rally Team’s Elfyn Evans and Scott Martin are leading the way at this weekend’s Tour de Corse – posting three fastest stage times and holding a 4.5 second advantage over Ott Tänak.

    The Welshman made his intent clear from the start with the fastest time through the opening speed test – proving that he and the EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta WRC have as much speed on asphalt as they do on gravel.
     
    Evans may have slipped to second on the second stage, but his desire and determination to succeed came to the fore. Working hard over the midday regroup, he and Martin perfected their notes and were the ones to beat over the afternoon loop.
     
    A further two fastest times could have been joined by another on the final speed test, but the Welshman lost out when stuck behind an ailing Kris Meeke.
     
    In the interest of fairness, Evans was awarded the same time as Tänak and the two former team mates are set to continue their fight as the weekend continues.
     
    Further down the field, Teemu Suninen and Marko Salminen were under strict instruction to finish the rally and make it through all of the stages unscathed. Yet despite taking minimal risks, the Finns also proved competitive.
     
    Tackling the Corsican stages for the first time with the power and performance of the top-specification Fiesta, Suninen currently holds fifth place and is outperforming those with considerably more experience.
     
    Team Principal, Richard Millener, said:
     
    “We’ve had a great day and proven that we have as much pace on asphalt as we do on snow and gravel. Elfyn and Scott have been brilliant right from the off. They’ve set three fastest stage times and have the pace to challenge for the very top results this weekend.
     
    “I was particularly impressed with the way they worked over the midday regroup. They could see that they lost time on the middle stage [SS2] and worked hard to perfect their notes – smashing it with the fastest time on the repeat run this afternoon [SS5]!
     
    “Then again on the last stage [SS6], they had a chance to extend their lead before getting stuck behind Meeke – but they didn’t get stressed. They kept their cool and we were pleased to see the organisers resolve the issue in the fairest way possible.

     

    “We know how tough a competitor Ott [Tänak] is, but we also know how good the Fiesta is and how hungry Elfyn is for another victory. It’s going to be a pretty epic battle between the two of them, and Thierry [Neuville] isn’t too far behind either!
     
    “Teemu and Marko have also had a really good day. They’re under strict instruction to finish this one and aren’t pushing the limits, so to be in fifth and outperforming those with a lot more experience is really impressive. 
     
    “Teemu is a natural competitor so he’s pretty frustrated not to pushing and fighting at the front – especially when he knows there is more to give – but he’s not been here with a world rally car and it’s important that he gets the experience for the future.”
     
    Elfyn Evans (1st) said:
     
    “It’s been a positive day and the car has felt really good. This is the type of rally where you have to be smart and efficient, and I felt like we drove well. We were able to carry the speed through the corners, and keep a smoothness in the driving which seems to be doing the trick.
     
    “There’s going to be a big battle tomorrow and our plan is to stay in this position. Ott [Tänak] and Thierry [Neuville] will both be pushing hard, but we know when everything is working that we can be faster. I’m really looking forward to the day. There’s quite a mix of stages with a bit of everything. It’s all about being adaptable.”
     
    Teemu Suninen (5th) said:
     
    “It’s been a really good day for us and the pace has been good. I could go faster for sure, but I have this monkey on my shoulder holding me back. I have made some mistakes in the last rallies and I need to bring the car home this weekend. But the driving has still been on a good level so we can be happy with that.”

    OVERALL CLASSIFICATION

    1. Elfyn Evans / Scott Martin (Ford Fiesta WRC) 1:09:39.6
    2. Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) +4.5
    3. Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +9.8
    4. Dani Sordo / Carlos del Barrio (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +26.1
    5. Teemu Suninen / Marko Salminen (Ford Fiesta WRC) +30.9
    6. Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Citroen C3 WRC) +36.3
    7. Esapekka Lappi / Janne Ferme (Citroen C3 WRC) +46.3
    8. Sébastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +2:27.9
  • Toyota’s Ott Tanak reclaims first place but M-Sport’s Elfyn Evans just 2.3sec off: WRC

    Toyota’s Ott Tanak reclaims first place but M-Sport’s Elfyn Evans just 2.3sec off: WRC

    Ott Tanak takes narrow lead. An FIA image

    Toyota’s Ott Tänak has reclaimed first place on the Tour de Corse but he heads M-Sport’s Elfyn Evans by only 2.3s. Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville in third had finished yesterday’s first leg less than 10s off the lead but is now 17.2 behind Tänak.

    Saturday is the longest day of the rally with a 3-stage loop run twice, which includes the rally’s longest stage: Castagniccia, a 47.18-kilometre test featuring multiple types of asphalt surface and even a section of gravel, making it a special challenge for the competing crews being all on hard compound asphalt tyres.

    Evans started this morning’s loop with an advantage of 4.5s over his Estonian rival but conceded time on all three stages. The Brit first lost 3.7s on the shortest test, Désert des Agriates, leaving a gap of only 0.2s between the two top contenders. A second-fastest time on the challenging Castagniccia was enough for Tänak to retake the lead with a 2.3s advantage.

    As the lead battle further intensified, Neuville was dropping back slightly, unable to keep the pace. The Belgian is now 17.2s off the lead but his gap to team-mate Dani Sordo behind remained relatively steady throughout the morning loop. Sordo dropped time on Cap Corse, the first stage of the morning, but set the fastest time in Castagniccia, which put him 16.1s behind Neuville in fourth place.

    In the battle for fifth, M-Sport’s Teemu Suninen was able to retain his place over reigning FIA World Rally champion Sébastien Ogier on the first two stages but the Finn lost over half a minute in the following stage to the Citroën driver, who showed his class with a stunning run on Castagniccia. By comparison, Esapekka Lappi was 46.9s slower than his Citroën team-mate on this stage.

    Ogier’s strong time, 1.4s off stage winner Sordo, promoted him to fifth. Lappi, however, continued to struggle with understeer on his Citroën C3. He classified 7th overall, 34s behind Suninen in a safe sixth place.

    Nine-time champion Sébastien Loeb understeered wide into a bank approaching a medium left hander on the Castagniccia test. The Frenchman ended up facing the wrong way and lost 20s trying to get his Hyundai i20 going again.

    Loeb is eighth overall but now has the two Toyotas of Kris Meeke and Jari-Matti Latvala trying to chase him down.

    Meeke passed Latvala on the morning’s first test Désert des Agriates and is now up to ninth overall, 49.8s behind Loeb. Latvala is up to 10th, having now cleared the WRC 2 field behind him.

    The 47km Castagniccia stage was particularly tough for the FIA WRC 2 field, with Eric Camilli dropping out of the lead and the top 10 overall after stopping in the stage and losing nearly two minutes.

    Nicolas Ciamin should have inherited the lead from Camilli but he too was caught out and retired. Yoann Bonato, who had been second until being forced to stop on SS8, is now also down the order and it is Fabio Andolfi who is the new unexpected class leader, making an extraordinary jump from sixth to first in WRC 2 in one morning, with Camilli dropping to second.

    M-Sport’s Ford Łukasz Pieniążek now leads the FIA WRC 2 Pro category for M-Sport after Škoda’s Kalle Rovanperä crashed out on Castagniccia.

     

  • Bengaluru girl Aishwarya Pissay set for Portuguese round of FIM Bajas World Cup

    Bengaluru girl Aishwarya Pissay set for Portuguese round of FIM Bajas World Cup

    Aishwarya Pissay file photo courtesy TVS Racing

    Proença-a-Nova (Portugal), 21 March 2019: India’s Aishwarya Pissay will resume her campaign in the FIM Bajas World Cup, here on Friday when the Baja do Pinhal gets underway with a ceremonial start followed by a Prologue run of 9.57 Kms.

    Looking ahead to the Portuguese Baja which also doubles up as the second round of the World Cup, Bengaluru-based 23-year old Aishwarya said: “The Portugal rally will be a fantastic learning experience for me as the stages will have more enduro than fast sections. I have been training with BigRock Spain team for the past couple of weeks in similar terrain and have improved my riding technique.

    “I am here to learn and develop my skills as a racer and the more rallies I participate in, the better I get. I am thankful to my sponsors TVS Racing, Mountain Dew, BigRock Dirt Park (Bengaluru) and Scott Motorsports India for supporting and believing in me.”

    After Friday’s Prologue, the riders head out on Saturday for the 191.27 Kms Special Stage-1. The event concludes on Sunday at the end of the 173.42 Kms Special Stage-2.

    Aishwarya picked up full complement of 25 points after completing the course in the first round in Dubai earlier this month astride a 450cc bike and she is hoping to add to her tally here in Portugal.

    “I am hoping to perform much better here in Portugal where, unlike in Dubai, navigation is not a major issue. I am focused on securing as many World Cup points as possible by completing the course,” said Aishwarya who is set to compete in only her third international event following her debut in Baja Aragon (Spain) last year and Dubai earlier this month.