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  • Rallye Deutschland 2018 review – Ott Tanak makes it two in a row!

    Rallye Deutschland 2018 review – Ott Tanak makes it two in a row!

    Shakedown took place on Thursday morning, with Ott showing great pace, and the two top championship protagonists in third and fourth.

    SHAKEDOWN STANDINGS

    1. Tänak / Jarveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) 2:52.9
    2. Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) 2:53.1
    3. Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) 2:53.5
    4. Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 2:53.6
    5. Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) 2:53.8
    6. Breen / Martin (Citroën C3 WRC) 2:54.3
    7. Evans / Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) 2:54.3
    8. Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) 2:54.7
    9. Ostberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 WRC) 2:55.4
    10. Suninen / Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) 2:55.9
    11. Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) 2:57.3

     

    Later in the same day, we had the first stage of the day and with Ott taking and early lead from Kalle Rovanpera who is driving a Skoda Fabia WRC2 in this event! Real giant killing driving! In fact, there were a number of WRC2 drivers inside the top ten.

    Onto Friday’s action and with six stages, who would emerge in front? The start list looked like this – Neuville, Ogier, Tänak, Lappi, Sordo, Mikkelsen, Latvala, Evans, Ostberg, Breen, Suninen.

    Seb won SS2 from Thierry and Ott third and with it took the lead by just eight tenths of a second from the Estonian. The road was becoming quite gravel strewn by the time Craig came to it, with him finding he needed to be cautious, and getting his braking points right, so made it through with no moments.

    Onto SS3 and there was a change in the lead, with Ott five seconds faster than Seb in the stage. Everyone who finished the stage before Craig had a clean run, but three or four km’s into the stage the heavens had opened and it was really wet! His Citroen teammate, Mads had a spin in a hairpin as well, so not a great stage for their team.

    It was a Toyota 1-2 in SS4 with Ott faster than Esapekka, and Thierry taking third, closing the gap to Ogier a little. Further back, Latvala passed Elfyn, moving into sixth.

    It was time for service, and the opportunity to change some aspects in the car set up.

    Into the afternoon stages, and Ott won SS5 by just three tenths of a second from Seb. There was a big change though, with Elfyn jumping from seventh to fourth overall with a great stage time. Mads sadly had a car problem, losing engine power. Craig was also on the move in his Citroen, passing Andreas in their battle for eighth overall.

    FIA World Rally Championship 2018 / Round 09 / Rallye Deutschland 2018 / August 16-19, 2018 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC

    Well, SS6 had dried out since the run in the morning and Ott won again, increasing his lead a little bit over Seb. Mads lost some more time with his engine problem dropping out of the top ten. There was another change in the top ten, with Dani getting past Esapekka Lappi into sixth.

    The final stage of the day and SS7 was won by Ott again, whilst Lappi and Sordo were ahead of Seb. Ott’s lead over Seb was now 12.3, with Thierry in third overall. Craig was optimistic that Saturday would be better too.

    Here’s the top ten then after Friday’s stages.

    STANDINGS AFTER DAY 1

    1. Tänak / Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) 59:22.6
    2. Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 12.3
    3. Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) +27.4
    4. Evans / Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 37.8
    5. Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 38.8
    6. Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 42.7
    7. Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 42.8
    8. Breen / Martin (Citroën C3 WRC) + 58.0
    9. Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 59.0
    10. Suninen / Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 1:21.4
    11. Ostberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 WRC) +1:28.1

     

    Here’s the thoughts of the drivers then – Top three first

    Ott Tänak

    “I think we have had close to a perfect day today. The driving was clean and the car was working really well. Everything was new for me, driving this car on these very specific stages, but I could adapt quickly, the rhythm was there from the first stage and I was able to push hard all day. This afternoon it was more difficult because it rained during lunchtime and every corner had a different level of grip, but we had a clean run with no mistakes. Tomorrow is a different day with more demanding stages on Baumholder, but the mindset is still the same. There is a long way to go and we just need to keep focused and keep concentrated.”

    Sébastien Ogier

    “I’m pretty happy with my day. I was pushing hard all the time and the car feels good. The chassis is working really well this weekend and I had a lot of fun driving.

    “Hats off to Ott [Tänak] for a really strong day – but of course it is frustrating to see him just that little bit faster than us on almost every stage; making the gap 12 seconds at the end of the day.

    “We need to keep trying tomorrow and with Baumholder having a different characteristic you never know what’s going to happen.

    “The main target is to stay ahead of Thierry [Neuville], but the second target is to win the rally – so I’m only halfway there! Tomorrow will be a long day and we have to keep trying.”

    Thierry Neuville

    “I think we have done all we could today with no real mistakes. We had one minor problem this morning, which we were able to resolve and we can reflect on a safe start to this rally. In the morning loop we took the safer option with two spare tyres, and lost some time because of the extra weight. It was also quite dusty. It’s been difficult to match the times of Ott and Seb, but we are in the podium fight, which is good. I am not in the mood to take big risks being in the lead of the championship.”

     

    M-Sport Ford WRT

    Elfyn Evans (4th)

    “It’s been an okay day and I think we can be pretty happy with the way things have gone. It was a bit of a shame to lose so much time this morning, but that’s just the way it goes sometimes and we have to keep trying. It’s extremely close in the mid-pack, but we’ll give it a good push for the podium positions tomorrow.”

    Elfyn Evans, Dan Barritt. Rally Deutschland. Photo credit M-Sport

    Teemu Suninen (10th)

    “The feeling has been getting better and better and I have been really happy with the car. This is my first time with this car on Tarmac, but already the level is quite good. There is still a lot to learn and the main thing is the braking and turning with these cars, but I’m enjoying and looking forward to another challenge tomorrow.”

     

    Toyota Gazoo WRT

    Jari-Matti Latvala (5th)

    “This morning I lacked a little bit of confidence in the conditions: with my road position there was more dirt coming on the road than I was used to here before. In service we made some changes with the front differential and the afternoon was definitely better for me. I was very happy with what we did on the second run over Mittelmosel in particular. It’s going to be a good fight tomorrow. For me, tomorrow’s stages are the best ones on this rally. It’s wider and you can use racing lines more, and that’s what I like. Also, the roads will be cleaner than today and that should suit me better.”

    Esapekka Lappi (7th)

    “I was quite pleased with the morning loop. The conditions were quite nice and the car worked really well. The afternoon was then quite tough. The vineyard roads got really dirty in some corners and I struggled a lot in these places. The car feels fine, it’s just a lack of confidence on my side because I don’t want to make a mistake and I am backing off too much. Still, tomorrow is a long day and we have a good road position, and we are only five seconds away from fourth place.”

     

    Hyundai Motorsport

    Dani Sordo (6th)

    “It has been a difficult start to the rally for us. I wasn’t particularly happy on the morning loop and struggled to find grip. We have continued to push as hard as possible but the times at the front are very quick and we haven’t been able to match them. We have suffered with understeer and just haven’t been able to get into the required rhythm. The stages tomorrow will give us a different tarmac challenge, so we will continue to do what we can. The fight for fourth place is very close!”

    Andreas Mikkelsen (9th)

    “We have spent the day working hard on adapting my driving style as well as making some adjustments to the car. It was clear during the morning loop that I had to be more aggressive on the steering. We looked closely at the situation at service, and my engineer did a great job to help us make improvements. The afternoon was definitely a step in the right direction. Changing my style of driving after ten years is not the work of a moment but I hope we can continue in this way for the remainder of the weekend.”

     

    Citroen Abu Dhabi Racing WRT

    Craig Breen (8th)

    “It really does seem that I can’t get a break on a Friday. Things didn’t go the way I had hoped, but there’s still a long way to go. The weather is forecast to be dry and sunny tomorrow and I’ll have a decent road position, so hopefully I can show what we’re capable of.”

    Mads Østberg (11th)

    “I’m still learning about the car, and getting used to racing on tarmac again as well. Given the conditions, the morning went fairly well for us in terms of our pace. The afternoon was harder with the engine issue, but I really hope that tomorrow’s leg will work out better for us.”

     

    Day Two – Saturday

    Into Saturday then and with eight stages run, a much longer day to deal with. The start list reflected the top ten – Serderidis, Ostberg, Suninen, Mikkelsen, Breen, Lappi, Sordo, Latvala, Evans, Neuville, Ogier, Tänak. Certainly, Craig was looking to a better day, with his best road position since Sweden.

    The first one, SS8 saw Latvala go fastest with Dani and Craig just a tiny gap behind. Jari-Matti’s pace took him past Elfyn. Craig’s pace took him closer to Lappi, with the Citroen driver so much faster than the Finn.

    The next one, SS9 saw a fastest time from Dani Sordo and with that, he jumped into fourth passing Elfyn who now fell to sixth. Ott Tanak’s lead was now 13 seconds over Seb. Mads, who was looking to get back into changed part of the setup, but it introduced understeer when on the power, making the car hard to drive. Craig was fourth as well, getting a little closer to Lappi.

    It was Lappi though who hit back in SS10, winning the stage from Jari-Matti with Ogier third. This moved him ahead of Elfyn. Mads and Teemu continued their battle for the final points position, with just a little over a second between them, but in Teemu’s favour.

    Disaster would befall Elfyn in SS11, after he went off. Craig Breen won the stage, from Lappi with Mads and Ott sharing the third fastest time. Dani could only manage the eighth fastest time whilst Thierry was ninth, meaning they’d both been passed by Jari-Matti who was now in third place overall.

    A service break followed, with Thierry looking to make some changes to his car, so that he would feel a lot more confident with it. Ott said that he wasn’t that happy with his car

    Into SS12 then, and Dani won the stage, moving ahead of his teammate, Thierry, who was now in fifth place. The gap closed a little between Ott and Seb, but not really anything to get too excited about with the gap still at over 13 seconds between them.

    Massive change happened in SS13. Another stage victory for Dani – he was really in the groove – moved him ahead of Jari-Matti, and with Ogier getting a puncture 8.4km into the stage, he only managed 21st fastest, losing 1 minute 43 seconds and dropping to ninth overall. Mads didn’t understand why he was slow, after reporting that his car felt great in the stage. Dani was now in second overall.

    2018 FIA World Rally Championship
    Round 09, Rallye Deutschland 16-19 August 2018
    Dani Sordo, Carlos Del Barrio, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
    Photographer: Austral
    Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

    Just two stages remained and the first, SS14 was won by Seb, fighting back after his problem in stage 13. Lappi and Latvala were second and third after setting the same time. Top three overall was Ott, Dani and Jari-Matti. Ogier’s pace was good enough to put him up one place into seventh, Teemu dropping behind. Andreas will be Seb’s next target, with just 3.5 seconds between them.

    Okay, the final stage of the day, SS15. Drama for Craig, who went off the road, damaging the rear left tyre. He lost so much time and dropped to tenth place, behind Mads. Winner of the stage was Jari-Matti, four tenths faster than Esapekka whilst Ogier set the third fastest time and this meant the gap to Andreas had come down to just half a second. But what a day that Ott had?! His lead over second placed Dani stood at 43.7 seconds and now Jari-Matti was just eight tenths of a second behind the Spaniard.

    STANDINGS AFTER DAY 2

    1. Tänak / Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) 2:23:2711
    2. Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 43.7
    3. Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 44.5
    4. Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) +52.5
    5. Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 58.8
    6. Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 1:50.7
    7. Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 1:51.2
    8. Suninen / Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 1:57.0
    9. Ostberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 WRC) +2:20.4
    10. Breen / Martin (Citroën C3 WRC) + 2:34.4

     

    Thought’s then of the drivers – Top three first

    Ott Tanak

    “Obviously it has been another good day. This morning it wasn’t easy, because I had to get used to driving on different types of road in this car for the first time, and I needed to push hard because it was a really close fight. In the afternoon my feeling was much better and I was enjoying it a lot. The changes we made during lunchtime service were a good step in the right direction and the car is really comfortable to drive. Now we have a big gap behind us and there are some nice stages tomorrow, so the most important thing will be just to enjoy it.”

    Dani Sordo

    “All in all, it has been a competitive day for us and it’s encouraging to be involved in such an exciting fight for the podium in the team’s home rally. We have taken three stage wins and have pushed really hard throughout the day, I felt really comfortable and competitive in the Panzerplatte stages, getting absolutely everything out of the car. We struggled a bit in some other stages, especially in the morning, but we couldn’t do more. Jari-Matti closed the gap a lot on the final stage, after I lost quite a lot of time, so we will be focused on defending our position from him on Sunday morning.”

    Jari-Matti Latvala

    “It has been a really enjoyable day. It started well this morning and then I was delighted with how the afternoon went. I couldn’t match Dani Sordo’s pace in the military area, but then on the Saarland stages on the farm roads I tried to push harder. He was better in one area and I was better in the other and now we are really closer to each other. To be fighting like this is a really nice feeling and I am looking forward to continuing the battle tomorrow.”

     

    Hyundai Motorsport

    Thierry Neuville (4th)

    “We have to accept that we haven’t really been on the pace today. We have struggled with the handling of the car, and have had to be careful not to push too much because we know how easy it is to make a critical mistake. There’s a lot to think about so we have to remain calm and just do what we can. I didn’t do some of these stages last year, so we have been using Dani as a reference and have to be satisfied, even if we’re not completely happy.”

    Andreas Mikkelsen (6th)

    “It has been another challenging day, that’s for sure, but we have fought hard and continued to find out little things which we can use to improve. All the stages have their own characteristics so we have had to continue trying and evaluating different driving styles. We have been working closely with the team and I’ve tried to be more aggressive with the handbrake. We want to be fighting for better results than we are currently. The time sheets don’t make for good reading but we are taking steps and that is the most important thing right now.”

     

    Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

    Esapekka Lappi (5th)

    “Overall, today has been quite average for me. In the Baumholder area I struggled a bit. This morning I had too soft a setup for those stages, and although I think I managed to improve that for this afternoon, I still lost a lot of time there for some reason and that is frustrating. On the other hand, on the other stages among the fields everything felt nice and the times were good, even when there was dirt on the road on the second pass. The gap to fourth place is still quite small so let’s see how it goes tomorrow.”

     

    M-Sport Ford WRT

    Sébastien Ogier (7th)

    “We had some bad luck today. We know that this stage has a lot of stones everywhere and that it’s always a bit of a lottery whether you will pick up a puncture. Unfortunately, this time, we didn’t win that lottery.

    “It was a slow puncture after seven kilometres and we had to stop and change it. After that I took some crazy risks as I had nothing to lose. I was pushing super hard to finish the day, but there isn’t so much we can do now – only some points in the Power Stage.

    “We made a good effort this weekend and were doing a good job. It’s frustrating not to get the reward for that, but we will come back stronger.”

    Seb at speed. Photo credit, M-Sport Fordd

    Teemu Suninen (8th)

    “It’s been a good day and the driving is starting to be on a good level now. I was able to be much closer to the fastest guys which was really good, and I know where we can be faster. That is a big positive as I already know how to make the fastest times.”

    Elfyn Evans (Rally 2)

    “It didn’t go fantastically well for us today. We spun at the start of the third stage in the loop [SS10], and then on the fourth one [SS11] we hit some gravel and understeered off into a field. Unfortunately for us, there was a big concrete block on the line we took and that broke the suspension which meant we could go no further.”

     

    Citroen Abu Dhabi Racing WRT

    Mads Østberg (9th)

    “There were highs and lows today, with some difficulties in finding the right rhythm in the military base. The main thing for me was that I managed to set a few good times, particularly the third-place finish this morning. I can’t wait to get back out there tomorrow to keep learning about this car on this surface, especially as the Power Stage, for example, is being contested on similar roads to the sections where I have been the most comfortable so far.”

    Craig Breen (10th)

    “It had been a positive day for us, setting quite a few good times, until this final stage. Unfortunately, on a fast, difficult right-hander, there was a bump on the inside of the corner that sent me slightly off the line and I ran wide into a field. Obviously, I’m very disappointed for the team, but I’m going to try and find some confidence again tomorrow and the same sort of pace we had today.”

    Craig Breen, Scott Martin. Photo credit Citroen Racing

     

    Sunday

    The final day then and three stages remained. Interestingly, the power stage would only be run once. The start list looked like this – Serderidis, Breen, Ostberg, Suninen, Ogier, Mikkelsen, Lappi, Neuville, Latvala, Sordo, Tänak, Evans. We had just a little under 45km’s to run.

    There would be drama from the get go in SS16! First up, Jari-Matti had the bonnet up on his car before the start of the stage…. What was happening? Meantime, Dani had lost time, and there were reports of a damaged right-front corner and a smashed windscreen. Trouble for both of those in second and third… Jari-Matti appeared to have a problem with changing gear, as he was using his manual gear change. It all came to naught, just a kilometre from stage end, Jari-Matti pulled over and it looked like transmission failure for the Finn. With Dani, he reported that he’d lost the car in a right-hand corner and hit the vineyards. Mads also went off in the stage, so it was all over for him. All of this had the result of bringing Thierry, who won the stage, and Esapekka into second and third!

    Before the re-run of the same stage, both crews were attempting to start the next stage. Sadly, despite their best efforts, they didn’t manage to do it. Still, SS17 saw Seb win from Thierry and Craig who was now up to seventh overall.

    Mads Ostberg and Torstein Erikson. Photo credit Citroen Racing

    The final stage then – SS18. Top five was Seb, Ott, Esapekka, Craig and Thierry! Ott was so close to taking the stage, just one tenth slower than Seb! The Estonian was bringing himself back into the title fight though. What a drive, and it meant that he now matched Markko Martin for WRC victories, both of them on five apiece. A very impressive drive from Esapekka Lappi, plus a mechanical failure for his teammate Jari-Matti, brought him to a good podium, but he still has more to learn, as Dani, Craig and Elfyn could all have finished ahead of him.

     

    FINAL CLASSIFICATION

    1. Tänak / Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) 3:03:36.9
    2. Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 39.2
    3. Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 1:00.9
    4. Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 1:34.5
    5. Suninen / Markkula (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 2:02.9
    6. Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 2:13.8
    7. Breen / Martin (Citroën C3 WRC) + 2:39.1
    FIA World Rally Championship 2018 / Round 09 / Rallye Deutschland 2018 / August 16-19, 2018 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC

    Drivers points after Rallye Deutschland

    1. Thierry Neuville – 172 points
    2. Sébastien Ogier – 149 points
    3. Ott Tänak – 136 points
    4. Esapekka Lappi – 88 points
    5. Andreas Mikkelsen – 65 points
    6. Dani Sordo – 60 points
    7. Jari-Matti Latvala – 55 points
    8. Elfyn Evans – 52 points
    9. Mads Ostberg – 48 points
    10. Craig Breen – 47 points

     

    Manufacturers standings

    1. Hyundai WRT – 254 points
    2. Toyota Gazoo Racing – 241 points
    3. M-Sport Ford WRT – 224 points
    4. Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT – 159 points

     

    Here then are the thoughts of the drivers – Top three first

     

    Ott Tanak

    “This was definitely the hardest victory I have ever had. For the majority of the weekend it was a really close fight and I had to push so hard. On Friday in the vineyards I felt very comfortable with the car. On Saturday morning I did not feel so confident, but the team really improved the car in service. Today I just needed to keep it clean. I am really happy for the whole team: we were really strong this weekend. We are moving in the right direction in the championship but I am still taking it event-by-event: Now my focus is on Turkey and trying to be as well prepared as possible.”

    FIA World Rally Championship 2018 / Round 09 / Rallye Deutschland 2018 / August 16-19, 2018 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC

    Thierry Neuville

    “It has been a challenging weekend so to come away with second is a job well done. I have been able to increase my lead in the drivers’ championship slightly, which was the objective. I was hoping to take a few more points in the Power Stage but unfortunately, I made a mistake and had to reverse, so I took it steady after that. We have struggled with confidence and pace, even if we have been consistent over the weekend. Not an easy weekend but we’ve done what we needed. The championship battle is going to be closely fought right to the end of the season!”

    Esapekka Lappi

    “It has been a difficult weekend but it was also a clean one with no issues and that has brought us this podium. There was a lot of drama for the others yesterday and this morning as well. That is rallying and we have been in that position before. I think we made some good progress during the weekend. I think I still need some more mileage to understand what the limits are when these roads are dirty. There is not much room for mistakes and I really didn’t want to make one this time.”

     

    M-Sport Ford WRT

    Sébastien Ogier (4th)

    “We deserved more this weekend so I can’t say that I am happy with the result, but that’s rallying and we just need to accept it. We saved the day by winning the Power Stage and now we just need to focus on the next one.”

    Teemu Suninen (5th)

    “It was a really great weekend of us and I was improving the driving a lot and finding a good set-up with the car. From the beginning of the rally until the end we made a lot of progress and I was able to set some really good times. Of course, I couldn’t drive all of the stages like this, but I know what it takes – I just need the experience.”

    Elfyn Evans (25th)

    “We had a positive first day and, considering our road position, I think we did a pretty good job. But unfortunately, Saturday just didn’t go our way at all. We lost a bit of time on the opening stage [SS8], had a spin in the third one [SS10] and then a trip into the field in the fourth [SS11] which ended in retirement. It certainly wasn’t the result we came here for, so now we just have to look forward to the next one.”

     

    Hyundai Motorsport

    Andreas Mikkelsen (6th)

    “This weekend has been one of experimentation with the car, trying to adapt the settings and my driving style to match the demands of these tarmac stages. We have found some things that have given us a positive feeling but there have also been things that worked less well. To get a top-six finish is not too bad considering. We didn’t take any risks at all in the Power Stage because these points are too important for the manufacturers’ championship. When you don’t feel completely comfortable, it’s easy to make a mistake when you push. We have a lot of homework to take away from this weekend, to prepare for the tarmac stages in Spain. For now, I am looking forward to getting back on gravel where I feel more confident with the car.”

    Dani Sordo (DNF)

    “I am incredibly disappointed for the team and for myself. We had put ourselves into a strong position after Saturday’s stages and the car this morning – in the first kilometres – felt amazing with lots of grip. I had a lot of confidence. I was a bit late braking into a corner with some gravel in the road that sent us wide into the vineyards. The windscreen was completely smashed and there was some damage to the radiator. We tried to repair it but the temperatures were too high to continue. In any case, our rally was already over with the time lost in the stage. We take comfort from knowing we were able to fight for the podium. The speed was there, but the result this time was not. I can now only look forward to my home event in Catalunya in October.”

     

    Citroen Abu Dhabi Racing WRT

    Craig Breen (7th)

    “Obviously, it’s a shame about the rain on Friday and my mistake yesterday afternoon, because I really wanted to fight with the very best drivers throughout the race. But we managed to make it through yesterday and I also had a good feeling again in the car today. I’m going to give it my very best shot to secure a good result in Turkey. Everyone will be starting from scratch there, so we should be in with a serious chance.”

    Mads Østberg (DNF)

    “On a fast left-hander, I oversteered and ran wide into the bushes. The impact caused damage to the car’s cooling system and we were unable to continue. It’s a shame, but there were still some positives this weekend. We gradually upped our pace and managed to set some decent times despite a lack of knowledge of the car on this surface.”

     

    Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

    Jari-Matti Latvala (DNF)

    “On the road section to the first stage I stopped and when I selected first gear it didn’t take the gear. The hydraulic pump stopped, and although I could switch to the manual gear lever, there was a lot of stress for the gearbox and eventually we lost drive completely. We have had a lot of bad luck this year, but I had a great feeling this weekend. The car’s performance was very good, I was really enjoying the fight and that’s the most important thing.”

    Well, just an incredible event. Two wins in a row for Ott Tanak has done amazing things for the championship. At the end of Sardinia, the points standings between the top three looked like this

    1. Thierry Neuville – 149, 2. Sébastien Ogier – 122 3. Ott Tänak – 77

    The gap between Ott and Thierry stood at 72 points. After Finland it had reduced to 46 points, and now just 36 separate them. Now, it’s a tall order with four events remaining for Ott to catch and pass Thierry and win the title, but he’s certainly capable of winning the remaining events. Turkey next time out will be an all new event, so anything could happen there. It will be a fascinating championship run in.

  • Jean-Eric Vergne approached over 2019 F1 drive

    Jean-Eric Vergne approached over 2019 F1 drive

    2017–18 Formula E champion Jean-Éric Vergne has said that he has been approached by an F1 team over a 2019 race drive.

    LAT Images / Formula E Media

    The former Toro Rosso F1 driver revealed the contact in an interview with crash.net when asked about his chances of returning to Grand Prix racing:

    “It’s a possibility. It’s funny how the world of motorsport changes. Three years ago, I don’t think anybody would have called me from F1 and said: ‘Hey, do you have a contract for next season?’.

    “When you change your state of mind, when you change a little bit how you work, you see the results straight away. You see it in the results, and you see it in how people look at you and how they speak to you. When you start representing a brand [like Formula E], it changes a lot of things.”

    LAT Images / Formula E Media

    Vergne’s comments have come amid a breakout year for the Frenchman, in which he took four Formula E victories en route to the season four title with Techeetah, as well as an LMP2 class win at Le Mans with G-Drive (although this was later taken away for a team technical infringement).

    They also follow a series of surprise announcements in the F1 driver market over the summer, which will see Daniel Ricciardo move from Red Bull to Renault and Fernando Alonso step away from the series in 2019.

    Vergne’s previous F1 tenure spanned three years at Toro Rosso between 2012–2014, in which he partnered future Red Bull graduates Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat. He was dropped from the Red Bull programme for 2015 in favour of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz, and spent two full seasons as a simulator driver at Ferrari before leaving the F1 paddock completely in early 2017.

    Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool

    Who might Vergne’s F1 suitor be?

    Although Vergne confirmed he had been approached by an F1 team for next year, he gave no clues as to which team was interested in his services.

    The most obvious possibility is his former employer, Toro Rosso. The Red Bull junior team is in need of at least one new driver for next year—with Pierre Gasly set to replace Ricciardo—and proved last year with Brendon Hartley that calling back ex-academy drivers is an option when an F1-ready protege isn’t available.

    The chances of Vergne wanting to return to the Red Bull fold after the manner of his 2014 exit are slim—although Vergne hasn’t necessarily said he’s entertaining the offer he’s received, for that matter.

    Haas were said to have had an interest in Vergne ahead of their maiden campaign in 2016, and may do so again as they weigh up alternatives to Romain Grosjean. Williams may also have been the ones to offer Vergne a 2019 drive, as Lance Stroll’s expected move to Force India will leave a race seat open at the Grove team.

  • Haslam Leads BSB into Showdown Run-In

    Five races separate us from the 2018 British Superbike Showdown, and each one of these five will be critical in determining the six contenders for the final three meetings of the year – the seven title-deciding races.

    At the moment, going into Cadwell Park this weekend, only Leon Haslam is assured of a Showdown spot, 176 points clear of Peter Hickman who is seventh in the championship. That means that Jake Dixon and Josh Brookes, whilst being in strong positions at the moment, still need to put in performances to make the top six, although anything outside the rostrum for any of Haslam, Dixon or Brookes would be something of a disappointment at this stage, as they are generally now focusing on podium points.

    All three riders – Haslam, Dixon and Brookes – have been strong in Cadwell. Brookes is one of the most iconic Cadwell Park figures, typically one of the riders to go “full send”, more than most, over “The Mountain”. However, Brookes could only manage a 12-7 last year with the Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha squad, although the McAMS Yamaha team took the second race victory with James Ellison. Brookes did take the Cadwell double, though, back in 2015 on his way to the championship. Another 1-1 at the Lincolnshire circuit would do a lot for his championship hopes, and help him close the 27-point gap which he suffers at the minute to Haslam in the podium points.

    Haslam, though, won last year, in race one, so could be a formidable force this weekend, especially after a strong Thruxton performance two weeks ago where he took his first ever win in the Hampshire track. A double podium for Haslam this weekend could spell real trouble for those hoping to beat him to the title this year.

    Jake Dixon has only been to Cadwell Park in BSB twice before, and he picked up a podium last year, finishing second behind Haslam in race one, although like the JG Speedfit Kawasaki rider, Dixon also retired in race two, crashing in the Hall Bends section. Like Brookes, Dixon will this weekend be after a strong double podium to try to close his podium points deficit to Haslam.

    Glenn Irwin is in a similar points situation to Brookes, sitting five points behind the Aussie in the general standings, and 4 points behind in the podium credits. However, at this moment in the season, you would say that Brookes is in a stronger position with his bike feeling compared to Irwin. However, that assumption is largely based on the results in Thruxton, a very unique circuit where tyre consumption is the most critical aspect. In comparison, Cadwell Park is more ‘normal’ – more like other British tracks – although it still has its own, very unique Cadwell Park flavour. But, considering that it was tyre wear, where Irwin fell short in Thruxton, you might assume that he will be back at the front in Cadwell Park. I suppose it’s important to remember at this point that Irwin had no speed problem in Thruxton – he set pole position – it was all in the tyre duration, which isn’t such an issue in Cadwell.

    Bradley Ray. Image courtesy of Suzuki racing

    After another difficult weekend in Thruxton, Bradley Ray will once again be aiming to make a podium return in Cadwell Park this weekend. The positive side is that Ray found something for his front end issues between Brands Hatch and Thruxton, and he found them in a test at Cadwell Park. With that in mind, he could be back in the lead battle this weekend, fighting for the win, but we have been expecting Ray to return to the front for a while now, so whilst the hope may be high, the expectations are somewhat more tempered. Anyway, Ray needs to get his act together if he is to make the Showdown. He is only eight points ahead of sixth-placed Danny Buchan; 15 ahead of Hickman in 7th and 33 clear of O’Halloran in 8th.

    Of course, you could say that Danny Buchan needs to pull his finger out, too. But what you have to consider is that Buchan’s form of late has been on an upwards trend. His double-DNF in Thruxton was not his fault, and as another one of the “full send mountaineers” you would expect his impressive speed to continue at this track, where for once his excessive height can be something of an advantage.

    Peter Hickman was pretty heroic in Thruxton, going from hospital to rostrum in all of two hours, and then doubling up a few hours after that. He finally seems to have figures out the puzzle of the 2018 Pirelli rear tyre, and at the track where he took his first BSB win back in 2014 in the pouring rain, it is entirely possible that the double 2018 Ulster Grand Prix winner (Supersport and Superbike) could make a return to the BSB top step this weekend for the first time in over one year.

  • IndyCar Pocono Preview

    IndyCar Pocono Preview

    We’re onto the home stretch now for the 2018 IndyCar season with just four races remaining, first of which is at the infamous ‘Tricky Triangle’, otherwise known as Pocono. The nickname has two sources of origin: firstly, it’s a very demanding and notoriously difficult track to master and secondly, it only has three corners so is triangle-shaped. Championship leader Scott Dixon has not won at Pocono since 2013 amid Penske domination at the track and has a reduced lead of 46-points in the championship over Alexander Rossi, who is yet to win at Pocono.

    Rossi was the one who came out victorious at the last round at Mid-Ohio and will be looking to continue that momentum into this coming race. The #27 Andretti driver trounced the field with a two-stop strategy while everyone else was on three-stops, meaning he came home with a near 20-second advantage and trimmed Dixon’s lead down in the championship while he was at it. Dixon himself didn’t have the best of races, finding himself down in fifth after qualifying ninth, but even on his bad weekends, he’s still up there fighting for the podium places – showing just why he’s the man in the lead of the championship.

    Robert Wickens continued his good form with second place while Indy 500 champion Will Power came back into play after a tough run of races with third. Josef Newgarden hung onto his championship aspirations with a fourth, he’s now 60 points back from Dixon – a large but by no means insurmountable gap.

    Josef Newgarden winner at the Mid ohio race 2018. Image courtesy of Gregg Feistman/Team Penske

    Moving onto Pocono now and it’s a track that has been synonymous with Penske domination over the years. Power’s taken the glory for the last two years with teammate Newgarden following him home last year. The most recent non-Penske winner was Ryan Hunter-Reay in 2015 with now ex-Penske man Juan Pablo Montoya winning the year before that. However, this year is perhaps the best chance for the rest of the field to end Penske’s Pocono stranglehold with Chip Ganassi, Andretti and Schmidt Peterson all looking threatening.

    The 500-mile race is often a close one with three-wide more than plausible at all points of the track while even the smallest of touches can result in disaster, as James Hinchcliffe and JR Hildebrand found out last year with rather dramatic effect.

    Away from the track, IndyCar’s silly season is kicking off again. Dixon’s signed a ‘multi-year’ deal with Chip Ganassi to extend his 17-year tenure at the team while Fernando Alonso’s decision to leave F1 means that the entire 2019 driver market is now on hold until he, and potentially McLaren, decides what to do.

    Anyway, back to Pocono…

    If you haven’t already guessed, Pocono is an oval course which means that qualifying is done in reserve championship order with two-lap flying runs. The ‘Tricky Triangle’ is the penultimate oval of the season with only Gateway left after this, showing just how little time there is left.

    There are only a few driver changes for Pocono; Ed Carpenter is back in the #20 Ed Carpenter Racing car, taking over from Jordan King for the second to last time this season while Kyle Kaiser takes the wheel of the solo Juncos entry from Rene Binder. Conor Daly has got the Harding call up again after negotiations with Zachary Claman De Melo to race at Pocono for the team fell through. This, however, is expected to be Daly’s last race of 2018, although that could yet change.

    As the last round at Sonoma is double-points, there are still 250 points on offer – excluding bonus points for pole/laps led – which means that anyone down to Ed Jones in 13th is mathematically in with a chance of the championship but, realistically, it’s between the top five of Dixon, Rossi, Newgarden, Power and Hunter-Reay although Wickens still has an outside chance. Any slip up from any of those drivers could spell disaster for their respective championship challenges so the pressure is on for the final four races to get those points in.

    There’s no Mazda Road to Indy at Pocono so it’s just the IndyCar lot out on track. Practice is being streamed as usual on IndyCar’s channels but qualifying is unfortunately not. The race is live on BT Sport 2 and there will be race commentary on our Twitter channel.

    The schedule for the weekend ahead looks like this…

    Saturday

    Practice 1 – 3:30pm
    Qualifying – 6:30pm
    Final Practice – 9:45pm

    Sunday

    Race – 7:00pm

    (All times BST)

  • Mazda Road to Indy: Patricio O’Ward

    Mazda Road to Indy: Patricio O’Ward

    Patricio O’Ward, along with title rival Colton Herta, is one of the closest drivers in the whole Mazda Road to Indy programme to IndyCar with a 2018 seat firmly in the Indy Lights rookie’s sights. The Mexican is part of the Andretti family and currently leads Indy Lights, despite being one of only two rookies in the full-time field.

    Emily Inganni – How is this season of Indy Lights going for you so far? Is it what you expected it to be?

    Patricio O’Ward – The season has gone great so far. Honestly it is close to what I expected it to be… I knew I would have a great race car and it was just a matter of me putting everything together on the race track. And I knew I could win!

    EI – As a rookie, what have you had to learn entering Indy Lights and how hard has it been to match the more experienced drivers?

    PW – Almost every driver on the grid has at least double or triple the experience I have with that Indy Lights car, so I’ve been playing a little catch up and trying to learn as much as I can, especially in the ovals. But I think I got the hang of it pretty well! It hasn’t been easy, but it’s been something I have enjoyed learning and something I have enjoyed studying.

    EI – With a declining number of drivers and teams, do you think Indy Lights has a problem or do you expect the numbers to go back up in years to come?

    PW – I hope numbers go back up. The issue is that the championship is way too expensive.  That is the issue. If prices go down, then that’s the golden key to have more cars!

    EI – As a whole, do you think the Mazda Road to Indy programme is successful at getting young drivers higher up the motorsport ladder? Are there any improvements that you would like to see in the future?

    PW – Road to Indy is awesome. It gives drivers, especially the champions of each category, a chance to move up to the next one. The only thing I would change is the amount of $ it costs to do each class… especially Pro Mazda and Indy Lights.

    EI – Many Indy Lights drivers have made it to IndyCar before with Kaiser and Leist going up for this current season. Do you see yourself following that path?

    PW – I do. I’ll hopefully be in IndyCar next year and I am more than ready for the challenge.

    EI – What is the support like in a big team like Andretti? Do you get much support from the IndyCar drivers or not?

    PW – I don’t see the IndyCar drivers much, but the help is always there if I need it. I just haven’t really asked around much, but the team have given me an awesome welcoming to the team and any question I have, they answer!

    EI – To finish, what advice would you have for young drivers starting out in the Mazda Road to Indy or lower categories?

    PW – My advice is drive the heck out of that race car every time you get in it. You never know when is the last time you will be driving it so every lap, give it all you’ve got. People will notice, and you will get a chance sooner or later with the big boys if you have got the skills.

    Thanks to Patricio for answering my questions, hopefully we’ll be seeing him in IndyCar very soon! That concludes our Mazda Road to Indy series, another huge thank you to all the drivers for taking part, I hope you’ve enjoyed reading the interviews!

  • Terms & conditions of the giveaway (for Android users)

    1. The promoter of this giveaway is The Pit Crew Online in conjunction VirtTrade Limited.

    2. The giveaway is open worldwide to Android users only over the age of 16 years.

    3. Members of the promoter and sponsor and their immediate families are excluded.

    4. There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter this giveaway however the following terms apply:
    • Download, (if you have not already), the F1 © Trading Card Game from: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.virttrade.foxglove,
    • Register and claim the welcome bonus by using code, PITCREW18815 (the code is valid until 24th of August 2018 23:59 UTC) in ‘Profile’ page’s ‘Redeem Code’,
    • You may enter the giveaway using Android on any of the social media channels mentioned herein under the specific instructions below:
    • Twitter: Follow The Pit Crew Online and F1 Trading Card Game accounts, retweet and like the giveaway post and comment with your nickname from the game to verify your entry,
    • Facebook: Like The Pit Crew Online and F1 Trading Card Game pages, like the giveaway post and comment with your nickname from the game to verify your entry.

    5. By entering this giveaway, an entrant is indicating his/her agreement to be bound by these terms and conditions.

    6. Closing date for entry will be 24th of August 2018 23:59 UTC. After this date the no further entries to the giveaway will be permitted.

    7. No responsibility can be accepted for entries not received for whatever reason.

    8. The promoter reserves the right to cancel or amend the giveaway and these terms and conditions without notice in the event of a catastrophe, war, civil or military disturbance, act of God or any actual or anticipated breach of any applicable law or regulation or any other event outside of the promoter’s control. Any changes to the giveaway will be notified to entrants as soon as possible by the promoter.

    9. The promoter is not responsible for inaccurate prize details supplied to any entrant by any third party connected with this giveaway.

    10. The prize is as stated and no cash or other alternatives will be offered. The welcome bonus is 10,000 coins for everyone, and giveaway winners (5) will receive 10 packs of ‘Featured Driver Pack’ for the F1 © Trading Card game.

    11. The winner will be notified by Twitter/Facebook. If winner cannot be contacted or do not claim the prize within 14 days of notification, we reserve the right to withdraw the prize from the winner and pick a replacement winner.

    12. The promoter will notify the winner when and where the prize can be collected / is delivered. The promoter’s decision in respect of all matters to do with the giveaway will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.

    13. Entry into the giveaway will be deemed as acceptance of these terms and conditions. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Twitter or any other Social Network.

    14. The winner will be picked at random from all complete entries.

    15. The promoter also reserves the right to cancel the giveaway if circumstances arise outside of its control.

  • F1’s Summer Break – Daniel Ricciardo & Max Verstappen Reflect On Red Bull’s Season So Far | M1TG

    F1’s Summer Break – Daniel Ricciardo & Max Verstappen Reflect On Red Bull’s Season So Far | M1TG

    Check out the latest Mobil 1 The Grid feature with Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen, as they reflect on the Red Bull’s season so far.

    Make sure that you follow Mobil 1 The Grid:
    Website: mobil1thegrid.com
    Twitter: twitter.com/mobil1thegrid
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  • Mazda Road to Indy: David Malukas

    Mazda Road to Indy: David Malukas

    David Malukas is fairly new to the single-seater scene and is only in his second year of the Mazda Road to Indy programme however, he’s already made it up to Pro Mazda at just 16 years old. The American took tenth in USF2000 last season, even though he missed the first four races, and is looking set for at least a top five finish with the top three only 20 points away this season in the middle class.

    Emily Inganni – How has this season of Pro Mazda gone for you so far?

    David Malukas – So far the season has been a rollercoaster. We’ve had so many ups and downs throughout the season so far but nonetheless it has been a big learning curve for me and the team.

    Image courtesy of David Malukas

    EI – How hard has it been to adapt to Pro Mazda as a rookie?

    DM – Coming from the USF2000 series the Pro Mazda is a big difference. It has a lot more downforce and grip throughout the car making the driving style a lot different from the USF2000 car. Luckily, we were able to test the car quite a bit before the season started to get a feel for it.

    Image courtesy of David Malukas

    EI – What made you decide to move up to Pro Mazda rather than do another season in USF2000?

    DM – Throughout my racing career my plan has always been to move up to the next class as soon as possible. The reason for it is because I end up racing against a higher level of drivers making me learn and advance quicker.

    EI – Do you have any plans for next season yet? Do you want to stay in Pro Mazda or move elsewhere?

    DM – Well as usual my plan is to continue to move up the ladder with no stops so moving up to Indy Lights isn’t out of question.

    Image courtesy of David Malukas

    EI – What do you think of the Mazda Road to Indy programme? Is it a good organisation for young drivers from what you’ve seen so far?

    DM – 100% the Mazda Road to Indy program is absolutely incredible for young drivers to succeed and make their dreams come true of becoming an IndyCar driver.

    EI – What’s it like, as a young driver, to be in the IndyCar paddock? Do you see much of the IndyCar drivers?

    DM – It is very cool to be able to walk through the paddock and see how professionally operated everything is. I personally haven’t had the chance to speak to one of the IndyCar drivers, but I have seen them driving around on their mopeds, so hopefully one day I’ll be the one driving the moped.

    Image courtesy of David Malukas

    EI – What got you into racing in the first place and where is your end goal?

    DM – It all started when I went with my dad to a local go kart track in South Bend, IN. I drove my first kid-kart and ended up really enjoying and continued to go. After some time, I got noticed by Brent Ebert, who wanted to help me on the coaching side and from there I went to my first professional go-kart race and within time I succeeded and followed the ladder up to where I am now. Like most drivers, my goal is to make it to Indy 500.

    EI – Lastly, what advice would you give to karters starting their racing careers?

    DM – Once you’ve gotten good in the class you’re in, make sure to keep moving up as soon as possible so that you could be surrounded by better drivers and learn quicker.

    A huge thank you to David for taking part in the interview! The last interview of the series will be published tomorrow so keep an eye out!

    (Featured Image courtesy of David Malukas)

  • Bagnaia Defeats Oliveira in Austrian Moto2 Epic

    The Czech Moto2 Grand Prix was the best of the season – by far. The battle between Miguel Oliveira and Luca Marini was stunning, with the pair swapping positions many times in the last laps.

    Start of the Moto2 race at the Redbull Ring. Image courtesy of HondaProRacing

    But the Austrian Grand Prix went a step further. This time it was Marini’s teammate, Francesco Bagnaia, who fought Oliveira for the win, and eventually the Italian came out on top in what was a stunning battle, with obvious differences between the riding styles of the two riders, and the characteristics of their two machines. Oliveira had supreme mid-corner speed, and was strong on corner exit, too, but Bagnaia’s entry speed was incredible, nearly hitting Oliveira’s rear tyre on several occasions, but somehow the pair never came to blows.

    The last lap rolled around, Oliveira leading Bagnaia, and the Italian’s move was obvious. The #42 had made a move for the lead several times into turn nine, the penultimate corner, and really it was the only place he could be close enough such was Oliveira’s corner exit speed. Sure enough, he made his move in T9, and whilst he had run wide on previous laps, on this occasion he managed to hold it tighter, and Oliveira’s response was a much tougher one to pull off than in previous laps. The Portuguese had to lunge Bagnaia, his rear tyre coming off the floor, and so it was simple enough for the Italian to square him off and out-drag him to the line.

    Bagnaia leading Oliveira at the Redbull Ring 2018. Image courtesy of HondaProRacing

    It was Bagnaia’s fifth win of the season, and took him back to the top of the standings, reclaiming the championship lead he lost in Brno, by three points. Furthermore, it was an important win for Bagnaia since it was the first proper duel between the two championship rivals, and psychological benefits he will take from that will be felt for time to come.

    For Oliveira – and KTM – it was a disappointing result, in the end. Oliveira had the early advantage, as Bagnaia ran wide in the first corner and lost a second or so to Miguel, and a position to Jorge Navarro. This gave Oliveira the jump, but he was unable to keep that advantage. Despite this, he was able to be fast enough in the right areas to keep Bagnaia behind, and respond to any passes that the Italian put on him. Unfortunately for Miguel, the only pass he couldn’t respond too was the one from Bagnaia on the final lap, costing him and KTM the victory in KTM’s home track. Still, he is only three points back in the championship, so has everything to play for in the remaining eight rounds.

    Six seconds back of the lead battle was the fight for the final podium spot, Luca Marini finally coming out on top. It was a tough race for Marini – a tough weekend, in fact. He had been struggling with rear tyre life all weekend, but a change in warm up improved his used tyre pace. This enabled him to fight from his grid position of 10th to fight for the podium. That fight was with Mattia Pasini and Alex Marquez, and a late pass on Marquez was what earned Marini the podium. Marquez tried to fight back in the final corner, but ran on and crashed on the concrete kerb in the run-off zone. This brought a flashback to the MotoGP race of last year, as Marini threw a left hand in frustration with Marquez’s move. Fortunately for the number 10, his run out of the last corner was not hampered enough to allow Pasini past, and Marini duly took his third consecutive podium, and gave Sky VR46 their second double podium in two races.

    Pasini took fourth place. He wanted the podium, of course, but opted to take as few risks as possible after crashing a lot in the last races. This fourth place was Pasini’s best ride since his win in Argentina back in round two, and hopefully for the Italian it will trigger a return to form.

    Alex Marquez, Mattia Pasini and Luca Marini. Image courtesy of HondaProRacing

    Jorge Navarro’s best weekend of the season culminated in an impressive fifth place. Navarro is currently on the job search for 2019, so he needed this result, and beating the factory KTM of Brad Binder (6th) by half a second was certainly impressive for the Spaniard.

    Marcel Schrotter was a further two tenths behind the South African, and yet again was unable to translate impressive pace through the weekend into a podium come race time.

    Despite a searing start, coming from 20th to 7th in just two laps, Joan Mir was unable to continue that hot pace, ending the race in a distant eighth place. At a track where he was so dominant in Moto3, it was disappointing to see Mir struggle so much in the race last weekend.

    Fabio Quartararo’s race was ruined in turn one. He had contact with Bagnaia which sent the pair of them wide, but also sent Quartararo back to 20th. He finally came through to ninth, which was quite an impressive comeback from the MotoGP bound Frenchman.

    Iker Lecuona rounded out the top ten. His weekend was tainted by a crash in FP2 where he took out Miguel Oliveira in turn one, but another top ten for the Spaniard is positive after a tough period with the Swiss Innovative Investors KTM team.

    Fabio Quartararo, Ramno Fenati, Stefano Manzi and Danny Kent at The Redbull Ring 2018. Image courtesy of HondaProRacing

    There was just one tenth between Lecuona and eleventh placed Romano Fenati, whilst twelfth place Danny Kent was a further second back.
    Six seconds further back was Andrea Locatelli, who was 4.5 in front of Stefano Manzi, who showed what is possible when he stays on his Forward Racing Suter. Meanwhile, Tetsuta Nagashima rounded out the points finisher.
    Sixteenth went to Khairul Idham Pawi, ahead of Dominique Aegerter, Steven Odendaal, Joe Roberts and Jules Danilo who rounded out the top twenty.

    Niki Tuuli was 21st, ahead of Bo Bendsneyder, Isaac Vinales on his Forward Racing debut; then came Alejandro Medina, Xavi Cardelus and Lorenzo Baldassarri who crashed early on but re-mounted.

    Augusto Fernandez and Simone Corsi were also involved with that Baldassarri crash, and were both lucky to not be hit by riders behind. Remy Gardner, Federico Fuligni, Sam Lowes and Alex Marquez were the other retirements.

  • Alonso retires: What does 2019 and beyond hold for McLaren?

    Alonso retires: What does 2019 and beyond hold for McLaren?

    After the news that Fernando Alonso will be leaving McLaren at the end of the season, on has to ask; how on earth the Woking team will fill the boots of one of the most enigmatic and talented drivers that Formula One has ever seen.

    Alonso has provided a racing know-how that took the car to greater levels than were expected, and frankly, he has made the team look an awful lot better than it really is. Frustratingly for McLaren, the arrival of Renault engines to their car has provided little more than Honda did for three abysmal years, which has bought about the valid suggestion that perhaps it has been the team at fault all along, which has thus frustrated Alonso.

    With someone like Alonso in the car, points finishes can still be achieved, but as Stoffel Vandoorne has proven, the car is not a legitimate points scorer, and it most certainly is not a car that gives any kind of indication or even any hope that success will return to MTC any time soon.

    Of course, if you’re in the Belgian’s shoes, there’s absolutely no shame in being out-done by a legend like Alonso, but the fragilities of the McLaren-Renault are highlighted every race weekend, which has been the cause of much frustration for him as well as Alonso let’s not forget.

    Losing Alonso will have a big effect on the team; they’re losing one of, if not the best to ever have raced in the sport, and the quality of the Spaniard, which at times paper-covered the enormous cracks in their performance, is sure to further expose the lack of harmony between the chassis and the engine, which has already been glaringly obvious even with Alonso in the team

    Hungaroring, Budapest, Hungary.
    Saturday 28 July 2018.
    Zak Brown, Executive Director, McLaren Technology Group, and Gil de Ferrarn, Sporting Director, McLaren.
    Photo: Glenn Dunbar/McLaren
    ref: Digital Image _X4I1271

    However, is there light at the end of the tunnel? Well, when we say that Alonso’s enigmatic, that didn’t half bring pressure upon McLaren’s shoulders. There have been an awful lot of occasions since 2015 in which Alonso has savagely slated the Honda engine, making the team look disjointed and putting his team in a position where they really have no choice but to stand with him in squabbling with the engine supplier. Now of course, Alonso was not the reason for the problems, but if we have to be honest here, his complaining on team radio has never helped his team.

    What happens with Vandoorne now? His future has been cast into doubt amongst the media, but this news may well just aid the Belgian in terms of keeping his seat in the orange car, and now that the superhuman Alonso will be leaving, we will get to see Vandoorne stand out as himself, rather than compared to such a great.

    Who replaces Alonso? There are two main candidates: Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris. Sainz has learned this summer that he will lose his seat at Renault to the incoming Daniel Ricciardo from Red Bull – there was even speculation at some stage that Alonso was to make a sensational move to the Austrian team. Sainz, who is a good friend to compatriot Alonso, would surely much prefer to trade places with Ricciardo and move to Red Bull, but if this becomes an impossibility, McLaren would undoubtedly see Sainz as a brilliant replacement for Alonso. However, Lando Norris has been one of the most promising rising stars in all of motorsport in the  last few years, and he is currently second in the Formula 2 championship for Carlin Racing; the young British driver has been nurtured as a young talent for McLaren up until now, and he will certainly see this as the perfect opportunity to move into Formula One and make a name for himself, perhaps even to surpass Fernando Alonso’s talent.

    Either way, Alonso is going to leave a gaping hole in this McLaren team, which will inauspiciously add to the concerning amount of holes that already exist, and there are lot of unknowns for this brand new chapter for the McLaren Formula One Team.

    Featured Image courtesy of McLaren