Category: WRC

23rd November 2017

Rally Australia 2017 Review- Thierry seals victory Down Under!

Thierry Neuville’s victory started with setting the fastest time on shakedown. Despite suffering with some gremlins during shakedown, he powered through the stages and emerged victorious for the fourth time this year. Here’s the story of how it came together for him and Nicolas.

Despite rumours of rain affecting this event, Friday morning dawned bright and sunny. The first day would feature a completely new stage called Sherwood. I received some very useful information about the stage from a member of the support staff. He’s what he had to say about it.

“Sherwood is a real mix up. It has characteristics of the fast-flowing Bakers Creek stage from last year as well as the typical forest stages. It will be fast in the first half and then transitioning to a mix of technically demanding tracks and fast flowing forest runs.”

He explained that all the stages were in very good condition and that the forest stages would be harder on the tyres, compared to the shire stages. He continued by saying that Nambucca was in the best condition he’d ever seen it in as well.

Stage one, Pilbara fell to the ever- fast Andreas, but it was Kris who was surprised by Seb’s time despite running first on the road. Thierry was fifth fastest, five seconds slower than his teammate. It was a good stage in general for the Hyundai team, with three cars in the top five.

Stage two, Eastwood saw a few changes in positions, but Andreas remained at the top of the time sheets. Kris ran him close though, just 1.7 seconds slower at the end of the 19km stage. Paddon, Ogier and Tanak fell down to sixth, seventh and eighth, with Neuville, Jari-Matti and Breen all moving ahead. Wales Rally GB winner, Elfyn was struggling for pace and was now 28 seconds from the lead.

Now it was the first run of Sherwood and the longest stage of the day at 26.68km. It didn’t go well for Kris after he ran wide and had to stop, reverse and turn. Somehow, he still maintained second overall though, albeit 16 seconds down on Andreas, who was definitely in the zone. With Breen’s third fastest time, he moved up to third overall. Ott also found some speed and moved ahead of Latvala, into fifth.

Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle, Photo Credit @Taffey

The crews headed back to Coffs Harbour for service at this point.

Stage 4, the rerun of Pilbara saw the top three of Andreas, Seb and Thierry less than a second apart! Really close times! Overall, the top three was still Andreas followed by Kris and Craig in their C3 WRC’s. Thierry moved a little closer though to Craig after he suffered a deflation on his right-rear. However, he’d be okay, as he had a spare in the car.

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 13, Rally Australia
16-19 November 2017
Andreas Mikkelsen, Anders Jaeger Synnevaag, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Austral
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Thierry won stage 5, Eastwood rerun and with that moved into third overall at the expense of Craig. Hayden was also moving up the leaderboard having been faster than Jari-Matti by 1.7 seconds. Kris had a better run through this stage in the afternoon, consolidating second overall. However, his teammate, Craig, fell behind Jari-Matti after a messy stage that saw him hit a hay bale!

The two short 1.27km stages were won by Thierry and with those under his belt, he’d moved into second overall at the expense of Kris although after his day, he was happy to be third. Hyundai had definitely hit the ground running

End of day 1 (Friday):

1 Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jaeger (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) 57m51.9s

2 Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +20.1s

3 Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle (Citroen C3 WRC): +20.8s

4 Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +29.9s

5 Craig Breen/Scott Martin (Citroen C3 WRC): +30.8s

6 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) +33.0s

7 Hayden Paddon/Seb Marshall (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +38.2s

8 Sebastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +47.9s

9 Stephane Lefebvre/Gabin Moreau (Citroen C3 WRC): +57.3s

10 Elfyn Evans/Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +1m13.8s

11 Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) +3m27.6s

Let’s hear from the drivers then.

Andreas Mikkelsen (1^st) said:

“It has been a very good start to the rally, bringing back memories from our win last season. I have had a clean drive throughout the day with no mistakes and with an incredibly positive feeling from inside the car. It really felt like home! I have focused on increasing the lead wherever possible and 20 seconds is a nice gap. Our challengers will be closer to us on the road tomorrow, so we have had to make the most of our advantage today. Things really couldn’t have gone any better. The weather forecast suggests we might have some rain this weekend, and there are some long stages on the itinerary for tomorrow. For now, though, I am happy with how things have started.”

Thierry Neuville (2^nd) said:

“We have had a promising first day. The conditions on the stages were quite tricky with lots of loose gravel, which meant a bit of cleaning for those earlier on the roads. All of the stages went pretty well from my point of view and I am generally satisfied with our position. We struggled a bit with the soft tyre in the longer afternoon stage (Sherwood II), which prevented us from pushing as much as we’d like, but we were still able to set decent pace. It’s a very close battle for second with Kris, while Andreas is looking very strong out in front. For sure, we want to aim for victory ourselves this weekend. We are in a more favourable road position tomorrow so I am definitely up for the fight.”

Kris Meeke (3^rd) said:

“I enjoyed it today, although I’m a bit frustrated to lose time with my little mistake on SS3. I had too much speed coming into a corner and we ran wide off the road and into bushes. I had to stop, reverse, turn and go again and lost a dozen seconds or so. Apart from that, everything went well and I felt very comfortable in the car. The second loop was interesting, because there was little to choose between us despite tyre choices varying considerably from one team to another. We’ll have a good road position again tomorrow, and perhaps that’s the most important thing!”

Jari-Matti Latvala (4^th) said:

“It wasn’t a perfect way to start for us on the rally here as my intercom broke on the first stage. When you’re pushing hard, it definitely helps to be able to hear your co-driver! Then I also lost the front splitter, which obviously affected the handling of the car. But I’m pretty satisfied with our progress in the afternoon. It was important for us to get back up to fourth after the forest stages this afternoon, as this will give us a better road position tomorrow. To fight for a podium on this rally you have to be in the top five really: if you’re out of the top five than it becomes too tricky with the road position.”

Craig Breen (5^th) said:

“It wasn’t all plain sailing, but it was still a good day for my debut appearance here. This morning, I was really very happy and I felt totally at one with the C3 WRC. The afternoon was harder going, with several little problems that prevented me from making the most of the potential of the car. I’m back in my happy place in fifth, but I’m not too far off the podium!”

Ott Tänak (6^th) said:

“It’s not been the start to the rally that we were hoping for and it’s not been easy with our road position. Obviously, Thierry [Neuville] has done a good job so we can’t complain too much, but we had some damage to the aerodynamics early in both loops which made it even more difficult.

“Looking at the gaps, it’s still really close and the podium isn’t too far away. For sure it will be difficult with the cleaning tomorrow, but we have two very long days to come. If we can find a bit more performance and attack hard, anything is possible.”

Hayden Paddon (7^th) said:

“It’s not been the start that we had wanted to this final event of the season. So far, things haven’t quite clicked. There is no apparent reason; we just haven’t been able to get into the all-important rhythm. We will look through the data this evening to see if there’s anything we can find to improve for tomorrow’s stages. This is an event where I feel very comfortable usually, so we will keep pushing. It is fantastic to have such support from the crowds. There are plenty of Kiwis here and it makes for a great atmosphere. There’s a lot more to come, I’m sure.”

Sébastien Ogier (8^th) said:

“It’s not been the optimum start to the rally, but we knew that we would be at a disadvantage this weekend. We had a gear selection issue throughout the day which didn’t help, and on the second two stages in particular you could see the road getting better and better with every car.

“Of course, this means that we don’t have a great road position for tomorrow – when we expect the road cleaning to be even worse – but we will still try to enjoy. We’re far from a strong result at the moment and it won’t be easy for us tomorrow, but there’s still a long way to go and we will keep pushing.”

Stéphane Lefebvre (9^th) said:

“It wasn’t quite the day I was hoping for. My two punctures – that I don’t entirely understand – lost me close to half a minute. I can take nevertheless some positives from today’s leg. When everything is going well, my times are similar to those of Craig and I’m managing to get into the top five. I hope to have a bit more luck tomorrow!”

Elfyn Evans (10^th) said:

“We knew the conditions were unlikely to suit us this weekend. It’s all been about getting the experience and getting the notes fully up to date. This afternoon was a bit better, but we’re still just focused on the job in hand – on getting through the stages and taking the maximum, we can away from this weekend.”

Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny. The rain had still not arrived having got stuck on the dividing range beyond the stages. The first stage of the day would be the longest stage of the entire event- Nambucca!

Thierry won the stage, averaging 109kph and eating four and a half seconds out of Andreas’ lead. Citroen driver, Lefebvre spun in the stage losing a lot of time after taking a bit longer to restart the car. Kris lost a lot of time and dropped behind Jari-Matti. In fact, this stage was not kind to any of the Citroen drivers with Craig also dropping behind Ott Tanak into sixth place.

The next stage, Newry saw Andreas dramatically exit the event, after sustaining a double puncture! Jari-Matti won the stage from Tanak with new overall leader Thierry third. Kris climbed back into third place overall, but Ott Tanak was just half a dozen seconds behind him.

The short Raceway stage 11 followed and it was won by Ott Tanak followed closely by Ogier and Neuville. The overall top three was, Thierry, Jari-Matti and Kris with just 22 seconds between them.

A very early service for the day at just before 11am followed this and then there would be three normal stages followed by two runs in Raceway to complete Saturday’s action.

Stage 12, Welshs Creek went well for Thierry who won the stage and therefore increased his lead over Jari-Matti by almost ten seconds. Kris touched a bridge near the start of the stage and broke his suspension. The team asked him to retire the car on the road section before stage 13.

Stage 13 saw Thierry again at the top and now his lead was almost 20 seconds over second placed Jari-Matti. Kris’ teammates had different problems though. Craig ended up with a butterfly in the car, definitely not ideal at all, whilst Lefebvre ended up with his tyres completely running out of grip and he was struggling with understeer!

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 13, Rally Australia
16 – 19 November 2017
Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Sarah Vessely
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Stage 14 the rerun of Newry was cancelled as there was damage to a bridge. It was made of old railway sleepers and one became detached, thus falling into a river whilst two others had damage from termites meaning that they’d only got worse with the cars running over them.

Stage 15 and 16 were won first by Craig and then Ott took the second running of it. All of this meant that our top three was unchanged with Thierry ahead of Jari-Matti and Ott Tanak in third after two days of punishing action.

Top ten following Saturday’s stages

1 Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) 2h05m11.6s

2 Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +20.1s

3 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) +40.6s

4 Craig Breen/Scott Martin (Citroen C3 WRC): +1m05.2s

5 Hayden Paddon/Seb Marshall (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +1m21.1s

6 Sebastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +1m48.2s

7 Stephane Lefebvre/Gabin Moreau (Citroen C3 WRC): +3m00.2s

8 Elfyn Evans/Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +3m25.3s

9 Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) +4m20.3s

10 Nathan Quinn/Ben Searcy (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) +17m35.2s

Thought’s then from the drivers-

Thierry Neuville (1^st) said:

“It’s a good feeling to be leading the rally heading into the final day. Of course, the event is far from over but I have been very pleased with our approach to today’s tricky stages. Our pace has been good overall, and we’ve added more stage wins. At the same time, there is a sense of disappointment that we weren’t able to have more of a fight with Andreas following his retirement this morning. It has not been a completely trouble-free day for us either. We made a mistake in the Newry stage, going straight on at a junction, but thankfully we didn’t lose too much time. Something broke in the gearbox, as a result of us rectifying the error, which required a fix at lunchtime service. The afternoon then went more to plan and we could build up a reasonably good gap. There is no such thing as a comfortable lead, though, and with the weather still looking like it could play a part, we will have a challenge on our hands on the final morning.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (2^nd) said:

“It was damp and even wet in some places this morning, so the soft tyre was definitely the correct choice. In the afternoon it was drying out, but just before leaving service we had some information that there were some showers as. Our plan was to go with full hard tyres, but as a result of this new information we decided to swap and take two softs. That information was absolutely correct: it was damp at the beginning and end of the long stage. I don’t think I quite got the right feeling with the balance of the car, but it was still a good day and we’re looking forward to tomorrow. My only regret is that we had one stage cancelled because of a damaged bridge, as I think that stage could have suited us.”

Ott Tänak (3^rd) said:

“Overall I think it’s been a much more positive day than yesterday. We’ve had a much better feeling in the car and managed to improve the confidence and the driving. We had a big push in the afternoon, and to be back on the podium is a good thing.

“There are some more tricky stages tomorrow so we need to keep focused, but hopefully we can finish the year with another top-three result for the team.”

Craig Breen (4^th) said:

“We’ve had another good day. This morning, I found the Nambucca stage particularly difficult. But considering it was our first time on the stage, we didn’t do too badly up against the more experienced drivers. The afternoon loop was better, with drier conditions. We have moved up the standings due the misfortune of the others, but that’s part and parcel of racing. I’ll be ready to grab any opportunities to get onto the podium.”

Craig Breen and Scott Martin, Rally Australia 2017

Hayden Paddon (5^th) said:

“The Australian weather has thrown us a real curveball this year. Some stages were like two totally different rallies with some parts wet and others completely dry. It made for a complicated tyre choice with neither compound perfectly suiting the conditions. Nambucca was a case in point; the first 10 or 15km was wet and muddy but then 100% dry; it caught us out a little bit. We have been trying a few different things today to try and improve our feeling in the car. We found some improvement on the diff mapping for the afternoon, which helped give more confidence and made the driving more natural. We need to continue in this direction tomorrow and secure our top-five position.”

Sébastien Ogier (6^th) said:

“This has not really been our rally but I suppose it’s better to deal with all these issues in one weekend than to deal with them separately over the season!

“We were hoping to try for some strong times through this afternoon’s loop but immediately after service we heard a noise on the rear. There was some damage and that altered the balance of the car. The end of the stage [SS12] was really slippery and in a fast, down-hill corner we had some massive understeer, hit a bank and spun.

“It’s just been about getting though the stages this afternoon, but tomorrow could be interesting with the weather. There are some really tricky stages and, if it’s wet, you never know. The rally isn’t over until it’s over so we have to keep going.”

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Australia (AUS) – WRC 16/11/2017 to 19/11/2017 – PHOTO : @World

Stéphane Lefebvre (7^th) said:

“The start of the day was tricky, in the rain. On Nambucca, I stalled after a spin and then it took some time to restart. After that, I completely lost the rhythm and I struggled until the end of the stage. Running third on the road was a real handicap and that’s what led to me taking a gamble with the soft tyres for the afternoon stages. It wasn’t a particularly astute choice in the end, because the tyres lost their efficiency as we went further through the loop.”

Elfyn Evans (8^th) said:

“We knew that we would struggle coming to this one, and we faced another tough day today. I really enjoy these stages, but we just didn’t have the traction to attack and enjoy them to the fullest. That said, we’ve made it through all of the stages and perfected the notes which will be valuable for the future.”

Esapekka Lappi (9^th)

“Today’s been a tricky day with being first on the road: it’s been really difficult to judge the grip, with the grip levels always changing. Getting the tyre choice right was one of the most crucial things today: we were definitely on the wrong tyres most of the time but there was a good reason for that as we didn’t have any soft tyres left and I want to save the new ones for the Power Stage tomorrow. So that was a tactical decision and also a good learning experience, as we need to concentrate now on gaining as much experience as possible.”

Andreas Mikkelsen (retired) said:

“I am very disappointed. It would have been really fantastic to end the season with a victory but that chance has now gone because of a mistake on my part. About two kilometres after the start of the Newry stage, on a right-hander over a crest, I went wide and touched the bank quite hard. I thought I had only a rear puncture but it became quickly apparent that we had one at the front too. With only one spare in the car, it was game over. Nine times out of ten we would have been OK, but luck was not on our side today. Still, it is great to see Thierry take over the rally lead and we will be keeping our fingers crossed for him as he carries the honours for the team.”

Kris Meeke (retired) said:

“After a fast bend, there was a narrow bridge and we just touched it with the rear wheel. A few kilometres later, I felt that something wasn’t right. We stopped after the time control to try and repair the suspension. I wanted to keep going, but the team asked me to stop. It’s frustrating because in the end, the final long stage of the loop was cancelled. We’ve missed out on a good result.”

Sunday morning and the rain that we had expected finally turned up during stage 17 which was a rerun of Pilbara, but in the opposite direction from Friday. Sadly, Lefebvre retired after running wide and breaking his suspension on the rear after hitting a tree stump. Elfyn at last delivered a quick time and won the stage from Lappi and Ogier. Kris commented on the heavy rain saying “Massive rain in the middle of the stage. I couldn’t even see the road though the wipers. For us it was a monsoon.”

Stage 18 was another bad one for Citroen, as Craig Breen rolled out! Approaching a down-hill right-hander, the car took off as Craig didn’t know the car would take off. When the car landed, it slid wide and the rear caught the bank on the left spinning it and the car then rolled end over end a few times, before coming to rest further down the road. Kris had restarted the rally under Rally2 regs and explained that it was like driving on ice through the stage! Hayden won the stage though, with Lappi and Evans in second and third. In the fight for the win, Jari-Matti cut the gap to Thierry from 19 seconds to 9.9 seconds.

Stage 19, Wedding Bells and this stage would be run later as the power stage. Thierry increased his lead over Latvala to 14.7 seconds after winning the stage, whilst Andreas would take second fastest with Ott third in the stage and maintaining third overall.

Sadly stage 20 was cancelled and not even because the stage was bad. All the access roads had become flooded and the cars couldn’t get to the start.

It was time for the final stage of Rally Australia and in fact the year! Ogier won the stage and with it the maximum points whilst Ott was second. The big drama was that Jari-Matti lost control of his car and crashed out of second overall. Behind the two Fiesta’s was Lappi’s Yaris, Andreas in the i20 and Kris got the final power-stage point with fifth fastest.

After all that drama, Thierry was in control and took his fourth victory of the year, two more than anyone else, whilst the demise of Latvala meant that Ott Tanak finished second and a surprised Hayden rounded out his frustrating season third, much to the delight of his fans.

FINAL RESULT, RALLY AUSTRALIA 2017

1 Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) 2h35m44.8s

2 Ott Tänak/Martin Jarveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) +22.5s

3 Hayden Paddon/Seb Marshall (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +59.1s

4 Sebastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +2m27.7s

5 Elfyn Evans/Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +3m05.6s

6 Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) +3m49.5s

7 Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle (Citroen C3 WRC): +22m58.4s

8 Richie Dalton/John Allen (Skoda Fabia R5) +24m39.6s

9 Nathan Quinn/Ben Searcy (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) +25m03.4s

10 Dean Herridge/Sam Hill (Subaru Impreza WRX STi) +29m52.3s

Here’s the thoughts then of all the drivers after this dramatic event!

Thierry Neuville (1^st) said:

“This is a very special victory, and I dedicate it to the whole team. They have been working hard all-season long. It hasn’t always been easy but they have never given up, so it’s a big thank you on a job well done by everyone – not only those at the rallies but everyone at the factory. We obviously missed out on the championship, but we secured second place today and it gives us a massive motivation for next season. It was a tricky final morning and we didn’t want to take too many risks, so to take our fourth win of the year is fantastic. It’s really the ideal way to end the season. Now, we can enjoy this moment before turning our attention to next year.”

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 13, Rally Australia
13-19 November 2017
Day 2
Portrait
Thierry Neuville
Photographer: Helena El Mokni
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Ott Tänak (2^nd) said:

“It was important to finish the season like this, and to finish our time with the M-Sport family in such a positive way. On Friday we were struggling a bit with the pace and losing the rear diffuser didn’t help with the balance. But after this we managed to find a good average speed and had the pace to achieve a podium.

“To be honest, I didn’t think too much about this being our last rally with Malcolm and the team until the last road section when Martin started to play some sad songs! It’s been a long journey together and it’s never easy to leave a family. It feels quite hard actually, but the whole championship is also a family so this isn’t goodbye, it’s just see you later.”

Hayden Paddon (3^rd) said:

“It has been a difficult season for me. At least we have been able to bring the year to an end with a more representative result. We never want to score a podium through someone else’s misfortune, and it’s a shame for Jari-Matti, but it’s a nice result for us after a tough year. There is some light at the end of the tunnel in terms of finding our feeling with the car. We have found some answers this weekend, which has been the main objective. We were quite lucky with the weather this morning, as we seemed to avoid the worst of the rain in Bucca and could take a stage win. Overall, the car felt better after we made another big change with the diff mapping overnight. We’ve just been gathering information for the future and were set on bringing the car home safely in third and our second podium of the season.”

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 13, Rally Australia
16-19 November 2017
Hayden Paddon, Seb Marshall, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Austral
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Sébastien Ogier (4^th) said:

“It’s not been the smoothest of rallies for us, but at least we finished on a small positive with victory in the Power Stage. To be honest, it was more or less the only stage of the rally where everything was working for us.

“We had a lot to contend with this weekend – with the technical issues and also with our starting position through the opening stages. We just tried to stay focused and in the end that strategy paid off as fourth place was pretty unexpected.

“But regardless of this weekend, it really has been a fantastic season. A big thanks to Malcolm and the whole team. What we have achieved together this year really is incredible.”

Elfyn Evans (5^th) said:

“We knew that we would struggle this weekend, but with the rain today we had an opportunity to use the soft tyre. It was a more enjoyable day for sure and it was nice to secure a stage win. It was unfortunate that we encountered a few little niggles after that, but all in all not a bad way to finish off the weekend.

“The season as a whole has been amazing for the team. We’ve worked with some great people this year who really deserve this success – a big thanks to all of them.”

Esapekka Lappi (6^th) said:

“It was a tough day: a lot of standing water as the rain suddenly came on the stage before the Power Stage. There were a few surprises for us, as we were first on the road again. I wasn’t controlling the car – it was just like a boat – but we’re still here! Yesterday we were first on the road and we were struggling with tyre choice: today the roads were cleaning less so it was a bit easier. The tyre choice was actually good today as we kept some new tyres back, so we had a good feeling. The main thing is that we gained plenty of experience on this event, to try to understand the best way to drive here. Looking at the season as a whole I’m happy with our speed, but I know I’ve got plenty to learn to iron out the ups and downs we had. I’m already looking forward to next year.”

Esapekka Lappi, Toyota Yaris WRC Rally Australia 2017

Kris Meeke (7^th) said:

“The idea today was to prepare for 2018. From that perspective, it was pretty handy that it started raining because we could work in conditions where we have quite a lot of room for improvement. It wasn’t easy for me to push when I had nothing to gain, but what we have learned this morning will undoubtedly prove useful in the future.”

Andreas Mikkelsen said:

“It was disappointing that we were forced to retire from the lead of this rally on Saturday morning. Having said that, looking at the conditions we had to face this morning, it would have been a challenge to defend that. We were unlucky with the rain in the earlier stages. Even with the wipers on maximum, we couldn’t see anything. Still, at least we had a clean finish in the Power Stage and could bring the car home. Whatever the result this weekend, we have shown good pace. It has been a very valuable experience over these past three rallies with Hyundai Motorsport. I know I am in the right place for next season; the car is awesome and the team is fantastic. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for a strong championship challenge together next year.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (retired)

“Obviously this is not the way that I wanted to end the year but this is rallying and you have to take the most and learn from every experience, even if it doesn’t feel like a positive one at the time. We were pushing hard on the Power Stage to try and maximise our chances of doing something special and when you are pushing hard these things can happen. Up until then it had been a good rally for us and we managed to get very close to the front, especially after the first stage this morning. I’d like to apologise for my mistake today after a huge effort from everyone here, and most of all say a big ‘thank you’ to the whole team for delivering a year that went beyond all my expectations.”

Craig Breen (retired)

“It was a big off. I’ve not had one like that for a long time. Fortunately, the C3 WRC is a solid car and the safety features did their job perfectly. We weren’t sure of finishing in fourth place and I knew I had to push to counter a return from Paddon, who had slightly better road conditions than we did. I didn’t want to end the season with another fifth place without making a fight of it.”

Stéphane Lefebvre (retired)

“Obviously, it’s not the best way of ending the season. I just made a mistake on the first stage, a long right-hander. The conditions were awful, with a lot of water, which made the ground as slippery as ice in places. I got caught out by a slippery patch of mud. The car understeered, ran slightly wide and we hit a big tree stump. It’s a shame and I’m sorry for everyone in the team.”

Rally Australia 2017 Podium — 2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 13, Rally Australia
16 – 19 November 2017
Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Hayden Paddon, Seb Marshall, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Sarah Vessely
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Well, what an amazing rally, to top off a brilliant season! Thierry will take a lot of confidence from this victory down-under. Ott rounded out his brilliant season with another podium and Hayden will take heart from his second podium of the year, after a torrid time.

Ogier once again showed why he is the best driver in the world, with the ability to get the results he needs, and able to deliver wins when others wouldn’t. We’re still waiting to find out if he’ll be returning next year, but get the feeling that an announcement is just around the corner.

Thanks for reading my reports this year. I’ll be doing a season review soon, so do look out for that.

Warren Nel

15th November 2017

Summing Up #ElfynsCorner on Friday, on Day One of Wales Rally GB

Well, that was fantastic. #ElfynsCorner went down well indeed! The banner had gone up on Thursday afternoon in very foggy conditions! However, we woke on Friday morning to a beautiful morning. Having driven into the stage very late on Thursday night, we camped out in our cars. This was true rally life!

#ElfynsCorner, Myherin, Wales Rally GB, Thursday Afternoon Photo By Warren Nel

Friday morning, Myherin Stage. Photo by Warren Nel

Up on the hill, looking down on ElfynsCorner we positioned ourselves for the double running of Myherin. The crowd grew until there were hundreds of excited rally fans. There were ElfynsCorner stickers to sell, with the proceeds going to The Welsh Air Ambulance.

The members of the #ElfynsCorner group. Photo credit, Warren Nel

Just a few spectators overlooking #ElfynsCorner!! Photo credit, Warren Nel

During the afternoon, WRC TV came and interviewed Peter Jones, who had become the spokesman for the group. The second run of the stage was about to start, so they stayed and filmed the group when Elfyn and Dan were coming past. The excellent news of course, was that they had increased their overall lead at the end of the stage. The group were very happy indeed!

Peter Jones being interviewed by WRC TV Photo credit, Warren Nel

Neal Parry, Elfyns Cafe, #ElfynsCorner Photo credit, Warren Nel

The #ElfynsCorner group. Photo Credit, Warren Nel

Of course, Elfyn and Dan went on to take their first WRC victory!

Elfyn Evans and Dan Barritt. Photo credit, Warren Nel

Fast forward a couple of weeks and the money collected was handed over to The Welsh Air Ambulance. With the sales of the #ElfynsCorner stickers both before and during Friday, £400.63 was raised!

It was given to them yesterday when Sam Walker visited their base.

Wales Air Ambulance. Photo credit, Sam Walker

Just some of the #ElfynsCorner group, Phil, Sam, Lee and Steve. Photo credit, Warren Nel

Next year, ElfynsCorner will be run again at Wales Rally GB! I suspect it will be even bigger!

11th November 2017

Rally Australia Preview 2017- The WRC Finale

It’s time for this year’s final round! The teams head for Coffs Harbour and the unique roads around the Gold Coast, with stages held on dusty tracks, the rainforest and through bushy territory giving this event an authentic down-under feel!

Last year, Andreas Mikkelsen took the victory in the final event entered by Volkswagen Motorsport. He returns this year, driving for Hyundai Motorsport.

The championships may have been decided, but there is lots to be excited about ahead of this classic event. We have our first winner from these shores for the first time since Richard Burns and Robert Reid won in 2000 for Subaru. If Elfyn wins down-under, he could finish ahead of Jari-Matti in the championship. We shall see….

There are 21 stages and a total of 318.33km’s of competitive action over the three days.

RALLY AUSTRALIA SCHEDULE (GMT+11)

THURSDAY 16 NOVEMBER

8.00am: Shakedown (5.02km)

FRIDAY 17 NOVEMBER

7.30am: Start (Coffs Harbour)

8.13am: SS1 – Pilbara I (9.71km)

8.36am: SS2 – Eastbank I (19.05km)

9.39am: SS3 – Sherwood I (26.68km)

11.24am: Service A (Coffs Harbour – 30 mins)

12.37pm: SS4 – Pilbara II (9.71km)

1.00pm: SS5 – Eastbank II (19.05km)

2.03pm: SS6 – Sherwood II (26.68km)

4.54pm: SS7 – Destination NSW SSS I (1.27km)

5.02pm: SS8 – Destination NSW SSS II (1.27km)

5.22pm: Flexi Service B (Coffs Harbour – 45 mins)

SATURDAY 18 NOVEMBER

6.00am: Service C (Coffs Harbour – 15 mins)

7.18am: SS9 – Nambucca17 (48.89km)

8.56am: SS10 – Newry17 I (20.87km)

9.44am: SS11 – Raceway SSS (1.37km)

10.49am: Service D (Coffs Harbour – 30 mins)

12.22pm: SS12 – Welshs Creek (33.49km)

1.08pm: SS13 – Argents Hill (12.24km)

2.16pm: SS14 – Newry17 II (20.87km)

4.54pm: SS15 – Destination NSW SSS III (1.27km)

5.02pm: SS16 – Destination NSW SSS IIII (1.27km)

7.32pm: Flexi Service E (Coffs Harbour – 45 mins)

SUNDAY 19 NOVEMBER

6.40am: Service F (Coffs Harbour – 15 mins)

7.38am: SS17 – Pilbara Reverse I (9.93km)

7.56am: SS18 – Bucca16 (31.90km)

9.08am: SS19 – Wedding Bells16 (6.44km)

10.33am: Service G (Coffs Harbour – 30 mins)

11.46am: SS20 – Pilbara Reverse II (9.93km)

1.13pm: SS21 – Wedding Bells16 II Power Stage (6.44km)

2.16pm: Service H (Coffs Harbour – 10 mins)

3.30pm: Podium (city centre)

Let’s hear from the drivers then.

Sébastien Ogier said:

“Heading to the final round of the season with a fifth championship already secured is fantastic, and exactly what we were aiming for in Wales. It lifts some of the pressure and means that we can go to Rally Australia fully focused on enjoying the great stages that they have there.

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Italy Sardegna (ITA) – WRC 08/06/2017 to 11/06/2017 – PHOTO : @World

“I say some of the pressure as we still want to secure a good result. So far, the team has had a podium on every event and we want to see that continue next week. If it’s dry, our road position won’t make it easy, but we will try our best as always.

“It’s quite an intimate event, but the locals really get behind the rally and we always receive a very warm welcome. If we could end the season with another strong result, it really would be the perfect ending to an incredible year.”

Ott Tänak said:

“It’s a nice feeling heading to Rally Australia as part of a championship winning team, but the hard work isn’t over yet. We’ve still got a chance of finishing second in the championship and we’ll be giving our all to end our time with the team on a high.

“It won’t be easy – Rally Australia never is – and it’s completely different to anything else we experience. Everything is different – even the shadows in the forest – and we’ll have to be at the very top of our game if we want to deliver a strong result.

“It all starts with the recce and we’ll have to be fully focused from the word go – driving with complete trust in the notes and keeping the foot to the floor to combat what would be some fairly heavy road sweeping if it stays dry.”

Elfyn Evans said:

“Securing the win on home soil gave us an amazing feeling, but there wasn’t too much time to celebrate with the next event just around the corner. After a little party, it was straight into our preparations for Australia.

“I’ve always enjoyed this event, but it’s not been particularly kind to us in the past. It’s not the easiest of events and visibility can often be a big challenge. We can get some hanging dust and when the sun is low it can create a strobe effect through the trees which makes it difficult to read the road. It’s certainly an event where you need complete confidence in your notes.

Elfyn Evans, D-Mack sponsored, M-Sport run Fiesta WRC

“We missed this rally last year and there are quite a lot of new stages to get to grips with. We’ll also have to wait and see how the conditions suit our package. At the moment the forecasts look a bit uncertain, so that could be interesting. But whatever happens, I always enjoy coming to Australia and we’ll be giving it our all as always.”

Hyundai Motorsport

Thierry Neuville said:

“Australia is an enjoyable rally, an event where I have finished on the podium a couple of times in the past. It will certainly be nice to finish the season with a great atmosphere and some Australian summer sunshine, my aim for this final rally is clear: to secure our second place in the Championship. We know we have the technical package to compete at the front, so with the addition of a bit of luck I am hopeful we can do what we need to do.”

2016 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 14 / Rally Australia / November 17-20, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: Hyundai Motorsport

Hayden Paddon said:

“It is always nice to be heading back to our side of the world. It isn’t quite a home event but it is as close as we can get. The support we receive from the fans is unreal and we want to give them a good show – and something to shout about. We are not competing on the public roads as much as previous seasons, with a lot more stages in the forest. That will make the event slightly different but we are confident in our abilities. Finishing the rally in Wales in the top-eight wasn’t necessarily the result we wanted, but it gave us good mileage in the car, which we hope will translate positively to Australia.”

Andreas Mikkelsen said:

“Australia is probably my favourite rally of the season, and I have great experiences from the event previously. Winning in 2016 was a great memory and I hope we can be in the mix again with Hyundai Motorsport. It would be an amazing way to end the season, and to prepare for a full-season campaign in 2018. It is always a challenging event, so nothing can be taken for granted. We do have an advantageous starting position, though, which we hope to make the most of. I am looking forward to it!”

Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT

Kris Meeke said:

“I have some very good memories of my three appearances in Australia. In 2015, I had led the rally for two days before losing out to the VWs, but third place was nonetheless a very good result. This year, a few of the stages that appeared last year will be new to me, but that shouldn’t be a big problem because I feel comfortable on these roads. There are some characteristics that you just don’t get anywhere else. For example, the trees are so tall in the jungle that the light flashes through the branches, creating a ‘strobe’ effect. The changes in light can make it very difficult to read the road. I’m looking forward to contesting the Nambucca speed test again – it’s one of the finest stages of the season in my opinion. Considering our performance level at the last two gravel rallies, I think we’ll be there or thereabouts.”

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Catalunya (SPA) – WRC 05/10/2017 to 08/10/2017 – PHOTO : @World

Craig Breen said:

“I often say Australia is my second home! My sister lives in Perth and there is a big Irish community in the country, so I have a lot of friends and supporters here. I can’t wait to start my second rally outside of Europe. I know it won’t be easy, because I’ll have to learn the whole course, which is quite a disadvantage at an event that doesn’t change much from year to year. But the stages look magnificent and the performance of the C3 WRC on the last few rallies fills me with optimism. I hope we can finish 2017 in a positive manner.”

Stephane Lefebvre said:

“It’s easier to forget it, but this is the longest journey of the year and we have to think ahead and prepare for the time difference. In 2015, I came here originally just to do recce. Then Mads Østberg had an accident and the team asked me to step in to replace him at the last minute. We didn’t have our racing equipment and we had to come up with improvised solutions for all that within a few hours.. Despite the lack of preparation, I set some decent times overall, whilst also experiencing some difficulties in dealing with the stages in the rainforest, such as Nambucca. Everyone would like to finish the season on a high. As far as I’m concerned, I’ll be aiming to build on my level in Spain, when I was setting times within 2/10ths per kilometre of the leading drivers.”

Toyota Gazoo WRT

Jari-Matti Latvala said:

“I’m really looking forward to Rally Australia. It’s a nice event to finish the year, usually in warm conditions and sunshine. The stages are fast and flowing and it’s a rally that I have pretty much always enjoyed. This year there will be some new sections and parts that have not been used for a long time. On Rally GB we struggled slightly but I think the Yaris WRC should be well-suited to the stages in Australia. Personally, I want to go out there and really push for the podium, and if we could challenge for the victory that would be even better.”

Esapekka Lappi said:

“One of the main characteristics of Rally Australia is the loose gravel on top of the surface, so the first cars have to do a lot of road sweeping. Further down the order it should be better, but it is really important to keep the car on the racing line. Another challenge will be tyre management, as the second pass of the stages can be quite hard for the tyres, and if the weather is warm we will need to look after them. We weren’t so successful in Britain, but it should be better for us in Australia hopefully. We certainly want to have a good season finale.”

It should be a spectacular event, with every driver pushing to get a great result before the winter break. Ott Tanak will want to sign off his time with M-Sport with a top result and perhaps we’ll find out what’s happening with Seb as well. Will he be staying at M-Sport?

Kris did well here a couple of years ago, leading before ultimately finishing third, behind two Polo WRC’s. He’ll want to end the year well, after a real up and down season.

Enjoy the event then!

3rd November 20173rd November 2017

Wales Rally GB Review- Elfyn breaks the drought for a British winner at home.

After coming so close earlier this year in Argentina, Elfyn Evans and Dan Barritt took their maiden wrc victory driving a D-Mack shod Fiesta WRC. It had been 17 years since we had last had a British winner.

A record number of fans flocked to the event, numbering more than 100,000, after an amazing season of these new generation cars. What they witnessed was a supreme drive by the 28-year-old. Here’s the story of how it happened.

In shakedown, Elfyn set the pace leading Dani Sordo and Ott Tanak in third. This was looking good. The first stage of the rally was held that evening with Seb winning and continuing his amazing run. Elfyn was sixth, but only 1.1 seconds away.

The view over #ElfynsCorner in Myherin. Photo by Warren Nel

Friday morning dawned a sunny day with light winds. Stage two was the Myherin test. The cars would head onto the stage in championship order meaning that Seb would be first on the road all day. His time would be good enough for third quickest, but it was the home boys that would be top with Elfyn leading Kris in the stage and the welsh wizard moving into the lead as well. Thierry would go wide in this stage, gathering some grass in his wing!

Out on stage, the ElfynsCorner crew were pretty happy! Top three at this point was Elfyn, Seb and Ott- an M-Sport 1-2-3.

Stage three in Sweet Lamb would see Ott and Thierry separated by just a tenth of a second with Elfyn in sixth, the gap was reduced by a second to 2.2 seconds.

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Wales Rally GB (GB) – WRC 26/10/2017 to 29/10/2017 – PHOTO : @World

The next stage in Hafren was the longest of the whole event at 35.14 km. Elfyn would emerge quickest again, and increased his lead over Ott to 6.7 seconds. Seb fell from second to fourth, now 16.4 behind the leader. Further back, Craig suffered a puncture, but it wasn’t clear how it happened.

With no service, the cars headed for Newtown to change tyres and fit light-pods.

The second run started at half past two. It was getting quite warm out there, and the road had really dried a lot, so much so, that the cars were kicking up a dust trail as they came through! Evans won the stage from Ogier by 4.3 seconds. His closest challenger for the lead, Ott could only manage eighth fastest, and 8.4 slower, meaning that he was now 15.1 behind Elfyn. Seb also moved ahead of Kris, back into third overall.

Seb would win the second run of Sweet Lamb, and closed the gap to Ott as well. This was going well for Elfyn indeed as he was second fastest and his lead was 16.1 seconds with one stage to go, this was looking good!

The second run of Hafren, saw Thierry take his first stage win of the weekend and he would climb into fourth overall, moving ahead of Latvala and Meeke. Ott was slower again than Elfyn, meaning that the lead was now an incredible 24.6 seconds. Further back, Craig had made a mistake and slid off the road, but he managed to get going again and completed the stage.

It was the first time that Elfyn and Dan had led at home ever, and the first time we had a Briton pairing lead at home since 2001!

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION- Day One

Elfyn Evans / Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +1:09:20.9
Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) +24.6
Sébastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +26.8
Thierry Neuville / Nicolas Gilsoul (Hyundai 120 Coupe WRC) +37.1
Jari-Matti Latvala / Miikka Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +41.9
Kris Meeke / Paul Nagle (Citroen C3 WRC) +42.0
Andreas Mikkelsen / Ander Jaeger (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +52.0
Dani Sordo / Marc Marti (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +1:13.9
Hayden Paddon / Sebastian Marshall (Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC) +1:22.9
Juho Hänninen / Kaj Lindstrom (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:43.5

Here then are the thoughts of all the drivers, starting with the leader.

Elfyn won three stages today, to become the first Briton to lead since Colin Mcrae in 2001 and the first Welshman since David Llewellin in 1989.

Elfyn Evans (1^st) said:

“It feels pretty good to be in this position at the end of the day. We’ve had a solid run with no problems and no mistakes so, so far, so good.

“It’s definitely not been an easy day – especially this morning when the grip was changing so often through the stages.

“Finding the balance between pushing just enough and over-driving was pretty difficult as the grip was changing from corner to corner. We just tried to concentrate on using the traction we had as best we could, but it wasn’t easy for sure.

“Tomorrow’s stages really are fantastic and so enjoyable to drive. They’re real home territory for me so the plan is just to go out there and enjoy it.”

One stage win combined with good consistency in the other stages means that Ott was in a good position overall.

Ott Tänak (2nd) said:

“It’s not been a bad day for us and it’s been really nice out on the stages. The sun has been shining and I think it’s the first time I’ve actually seen the Myherin stage without the fog!

“It’s still a really close battle behind Elfyn so we’ll have to wait and see what we can do. Tomorrow’s stages are completely different but they’re also really enjoyable.

“I’m sure it’s going to be another exciting day, but it will be difficult to make any big-time differences. We’ll keep fighting and keep pushing as always.”

Rounding out the top three was Seb, only a couple of seconds behind Ott, meaning that M-Sport filled the top three positions. He’d taken two stage wins and set some very consistent times.

Sébastien Ogier (3rd) said:

“I feel good at the end of the day. Some sections were quite tough and I struggled to read the grip through the first pass of Hafren. I was a bit disappointed at the end of that one, but other than that it has been a good day for us.

“I took my 500th stage win today, at exactly the same place where I took my very first stage win in 2008, so that is a nice story and it seems that I like Sweet Lamb! Actually, the profile of today’s whole loop is really nice – nice flowing stages and nice corners which are really enjoyable to drive.

“So long as you can read the grip, you can have a lot of fun out there and for sure Elfyn has had a lot of fun today. We knew he could do well here and, even though the tyres are working well for him, it was still a very strong performance. No matter what tyres you have, you still have to drive the car and he deserves to be where he is tonight.

“All three championship contenders are really close now and if I want to stay in the fight I have to push. That will be the plan for tomorrow – to enjoy, to push, and to see the fight continue.”

Thierry Neuville (4^th) said:

“We have made improvements during the day and can be satisfied with where we are considering our time penalty from Thursday. The pace is there and we would have liked to be fighting at the top but that put us behind before we’d even really started. I struggled with the settings of the car on the first stage this morning, stalling the engine after running wide and losing some seconds. We changed the differential settings midway through the loop and found some improvements, which have allowed us to move up. Finishing the day with a stage win is encouraging and gives us the motivation we need to keep pushing on Saturday.”

Andreas Mikkelsen (7^th) said:

“It is always a pleasure to come back to Wales. I started my career here and it’s fun to be driving this year with Hyundai Motorsport. Although the weather conditions have been fine today, the stages are still incredibly slippery and that has made things quite difficult. From our road position, there hasn’t been much more we could do today. We are still learning about the car in these gravel conditions, and doing all we can to adapt and learn. That is our objective also for the rest of the weekend, and we hope to make up a few more positions on the way, as well.”

Dani Sordo (8^Th) said:

“The stages this morning were a lot more slippery than I anticipated which I wasn’t expecting. The grip in SS4 (Hafren) was better, so we hoped to push more in the repeat loop, after the remote tyre fitting zone. Unfortunately, the grip changed again in the afternoon, which prevented us from doing much more. The stages were really fast at times, and I remain hopeful that we can make up some ground over the next two days.”

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 12, Wales Rally GB
23-29 October 2017
Day 1
Action
Dani Sordo, Marc Martí, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Helena El Mokni
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Hayden Paddon (9^th) said:

“Wales Rally GB is a great rally, but it has certain particularities that you need to deliver against in order to be quick. First, you need absolutely bags of confidence and to be completely comfortable in the car. We always seem to struggle with understeer on the opening day, so we were mentally prepared for that, but it held us back today. The conditions were tricky, as you’d expect in Wales, but I’d almost have preferred it to be raining. We changed the settings for the afternoon loop but the conditions changed as well, so it’s a bit of a moving target. Tomorrow is, of course, another day and I hope we can enjoy it a bit more.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (5^th) said:

“The conditions have been difficult for everybody today. There was heavy rain overnight and then the roads started to dry, which actually made the situation worse as the moisture came to the top of the road and the surface became slippery. In the morning I was struggling with understeer and didn’t have the confidence to push, but we changed some things at the regroup and the car definitely felt better, even though were still struggling a bit with the traction. To be in fifth position is not so bad, but we have been discussing things that we can do to improve for tomorrow.”

Juho Hänninen (10^th) said:

“It hasn’t been so easy today. I knew the conditions would be tricky but trying to estimate the grip this morning when it was changing on every other corner made it hard to find a rhythm. This afternoon the driving didn’t feel too bad but the times were not good at all. Now we are thinking carefully about how we can change the setup a bit and get some more confidence for tomorrow.”

Esapekka Lappi (11^th) said:

“Today has been quite frustrating, as we have just been lacking grip. This morning I was missing some confidence, but it’s hard to build confidence when the pace isn’t there. I think we have something wrong in the setup because I was quite on the maximum in the last stage and we were still losing a lot of time. Now we have the opportunity to make changes in service to find some more grip and to learn for next year.”

Kris Meeke (6^th) said:

“I’m very pleased with how today’s leg went. I managed to maintain a good rhythm throughout the stages. To be honest, I don’t think I could’ve done much more. I was expecting to have a hard time of it, given our position in the running order but the grip was actually pretty good this morning, when the mud cleaned a bit and you were left with the cobblestones. I think tomorrow should be even better, because the road conditions will be more even for all of us.”

Craig Breen (36^th) said:

“I tried to keep it neat and tidy, but we started by losing a minute this morning, with a slow puncture. I hadn’t hit anything, so I was very disappointed to lose contact with the leaders so early in the rally. This afternoon, I spun the car and there was an enormous water hole. The front went in and we couldn’t get out. It was a very small, simple mistake but we didn’t get away with it. Thanks to the spectators for helping us!”

Khalid Al Qassimi (28^th) said:

“It was a very tough day. I’m really not used to driving in conditions like these. Most of the time, it’s been like driving on ice. We are going to work with the engineers to see if it is possible to make it easier to drive the car.”

Mads Østberg (12^th) really struggled through the first day. Setup issues and the challenging conditions left him outside the points. He said:

“We don`t really know what is wrong, except that the set-up on the car doesn`t work in these conditions. Regrettably we had technical issues during our test on Monday and managed only a few runs, and that meant we couldn`t test different set-ups. Today we have been guessing, but not found any answers. We tried a setup from Spain in the afternoon, but that made the car harder to drive. We shall analyse all data during the evening service and hopefully find a better solution for tomorrow”

Day two dawned cloudy and cooler. It was an earlier start as well for everyone with service at ten past six, a full hour earlier than Friday. Nine stages made this day the longest of the weekend, and with two held at night after service, it would really test the crews out.

Aberhirnant was first up, and Elfyn picked up where he had left off on Friday, taking the stage and increasing his lead over Ott to 30 seconds. Kris moved ahead of Latvala into fifth place. Andreas found some good pace as well, going third in the stage.

Stage nine, Dyfnant was next up and second placed Ott fell further behind Evans, but Seb was having a worse start after only setting the ninth fastest time. Thierry was closing on his rival for the championship. Elfyn was pulling away, the gap now 36 seconds.

Into stage ten, Gartheinog and Elfyn made it three from three, taking his lead to almost 40 seconds over Ott. Thierry also moved ahead of Seb into third. Latvala also closed a little on Kris. It was getting close behind our home leader!

Stage 11, Dyfi next and a lot happened in this one! Kris spun in the chicane losing time after a stall as well. The other news was that Thierry moved ahead of Ott and into second place. Further back, Dani Sordo was really struggling.

The rerun of Gartheiniog, stage 12 saw Elfyn extend his lead some more with his lead now 54 seconds over Thierry. The big news was that Kris lost part of his wing during the stage! I was stage-side, and he came past me with the top part missing! Andreas was also closing the gap to Jari-Matti in their fight for fifth place.

Kris Meeke, Citroen C3 WRC, Photo by Warren Nel

In stage 13, Dyfi, Thierry stopped Elfyn winning all the stages with a very good drive to take top spot, but Elfyn was still firmly in charge. The gap between Jari-Matti and Andreas was getting smaller and smaller, now just 1.6 seconds between them.

The short spectator stage at Cholmondeley Castle, stage 14, saw Juho Hanninen crash out of the event. His teammate, Jari-Matti also dropped behind Andreas in their battle over fifth place. With Thierry winning the stage from Dani and Ott, Elfyn kept it simple and set the ninth fastest time.

Now we just had two stages left, but they were run once the sun had gone down. The crews headed to the second run of Aberhirnant. It was going to be a much harder this time round though! The fog had descended, making everything much harder! Kris Meeke said, “It was completely crazy. You can’t see 10 metres off the start line. It was hellishly crazy.” Jari-Matti felt at home, setting the fastest time and moving back ahead of Andreas into fourth place overall. Ogier also moved back into second overall after Thierry only managed the ninth fastest time, a full 33.8 slower than Latvala.

The final stage of the day saw the crews return to Dyfnant and Elfyn returned to the top of the times with a very good time and extended his lead over Seb to 53 seconds. He had driven brilliantly all day, able to find the speed to pull away, and able to play it safe when it was needed.

STANDINGS AFTER DAY 2

Evans / Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) 2:32:39.2
Ogier / Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +53.1
Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) +53.6
Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +57.7
Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) +1:03.6
Tänak / Jarveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) 1:06.1
Meeke / Nagle (Citroën C3 WRC) +1:27.6
Paddon / Kennard (Hyundai i20 WRC) +2:04.0
Lappi / Ferm (Toyota Yaris WRC) +2:41.0
Sordo / Marti (Hyundai i20 WRC) +3:35.8

Let’s catch up with the drivers after day two.

Six stage wins helped Elfyn pull away from his closest challengers, adding almost 30 seconds to his lead throughout the day.

Elfyn Evans (1^st) said:

“It’s been a really good day for us and a really enjoyable one as well. I’ve always enjoyed these stages but I have to say that I was glad to get through the night stages!

“They really were tough. With the fog on Aberhirnant [SS15] you couldn’t even see the road in front of you so it was very, very challenging. But we made it through and actually managed to increase our lead.

“That’s given us a good cushion for tomorrow and there aren’t so many kilometres left, but they’re not easy. There are some very tricky stages coming up with a lot of big breaking areas into not a lot of run off and Gwydir [SS19] is massively technical and not been in use since 2013. There’s plenty in there tomorrow, so we need to keep focused and keep at it.”

Seb endured a puncture and then a failure on his brakes on the same wheel that he got a puncture, although it didn’t hold him back.

Sébastien Ogier (2^nd) said:

“It’s been a tricky day and we’ve been lacking some pace compared to yesterday. We need to understand why that was, but I’m just happy to be here after this evening’s night stages!

“When you drive in conditions as challenging as the ones we faced tonight, there is no way of making it risk free. Do that and you can easily lose a minute or more. The visibility really was terrible at times, but we just decided to go for it.

“It was so close between second and fifth that I had to try and it was working pretty well up until the last kilometre when I didn’t see an almost none existent corner. We hit the bank in the fog, damaged the front-left wheel, lost the brakes and honestly thought it would be difficult to finish the day.

“Without the brakes it would have been un-driveable but we managed to close the damaged system and carry on with only three brakes. Somehow, it was still possible to drive and we didn’t lose too much time.

“With only small gaps between a lot of drivers, and 40 kilometres left to complete, we’ll have to keep pushing if we want to stay on the podium.”

Thierry Neuville (3^rd) said:

“Overall, it was a better day than Friday in terms of the driving, more consistent and we were able to make up a good chunk of time, although I am disappointed with the way our day has ended. We probably had the worst of the fog and honestly could not have gone any faster. We tried to push but it was impossible in those conditions. I expected poor conditions in the evening, but nothing like we experienced. I gave it all I had in the final stage but all our hard work was undone by the weather conditions.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (4^th)

“Things started a bit slowly in the first stage this morning but they just kept improving after that. We had much better traction than we did on Friday, and although we have still been struggling with understeer, we kept playing with the dampers during the day and this helped the car to feel better and better, and the stage times became quicker. Tonight, in the dark and the fog I was quite happy with the performance. Sometimes you have to attack when the conditions are trickiest. The grip was quite good and the feeling with the car was good. I’m looking forward to tomorrow now.”

Andreas Mikkelsen (5^th) said:

“On the whole, we have had a good day. The daylight stages were particularly positive. We benefitted from a better starting position today so we wanted to capitalise on that and regain some time. We were able to achieve that and were not far off the lead times. The car set-up was amazing. We knew the evening stages would be tough, with the fog, but we had nothing to lose so I drove as quick as I could. We set our light pods too high in the penultimate stage of the evening, and couldn’t see anything. We tried to modify those but with no fog in the final stage they were too low and visibility was worse. Still, there are a lot of good things to take from today’s running.”

Ott Tänak (6th) said:

“It has been a long, tricky day, but also a typical Wales Rally GB day. There was just one really foggy stage where we lost a lot of time. For sure it’s disappointing, but it’s done now and that’s how it is. The gaps behind Elfyn aren’t too big so let’s see what we can do tomorrow. Hopefully we can show more pace than today and be able to fight. It will be an interesting day for sure.”

Kris Meeke (7^th) said:

“As we expected, it was a long day with a lot of time spent behind the wheel! I stayed in touch with the group fighting for the podium until I made a small mistake and stalled in a chicane: that cost me a good ten seconds or so. But I don’t think it made that much difference to our situation. Most of the time, we were able to match or get close to the performance level of our rivals and I enjoyed driving the Citroën C3 WRC today. Our position in the standings isn’t brilliant, but we’ll be ready to seize any opportunities if they come up tomorrow.”

Hayden Paddon (8^th) said:

“There have been some positives and some problems today. On the positive side, the car has felt much better today and I have felt more confident. However, we have also encountered some trouble, which has set us back. We had a puncture at the start of the second stage and then hydraulic issues on the second run through Dyfi – the longest stage of the day. We had no gearbox or differentials for the entire stage, and it was an absolute handful if I’m honest. I was looking forward to the evening stages and felt that we got more out of ourselves. It’s the same conditions for everyone, but I am able to trust Seb implicitly on the pace notes, so we could push that bit more.”

Esapekka Lappi (9^th) said:

“Today was certainly better than yesterday. It helped that we were the third car on the road. We made some big changes in service last night and the car started to feel good. I was still struggling for confidence but it has been a bit more enjoyable today. We made more changes in service before the night stages and I think these helped, as the grip felt better than on the previous stages.”

Dani Sordo (10^th) said:

“There is nothing I can say. It has been a difficult day, and it ended with a poor stage where we lost a lot of time. The car has performed well, mostly, but we haven’t been able to make progress. I was struggling with the traction and grip this morning and the suspension was too soft for my preference. This rally is very special and unique, but so far, I haven’t been able to dial into it fully. I am definitely hoping to turn things around on the final day.”

Craig Breen (17^th) said:

“On this rally, the handbrake really is the driver’s best friend. And today, I lost my best friend right at the start! The first runs on the stages were very difficult. It was a bit better on the second pass, because I could use the ruts to get the car to turn on the tight bends. It’s a shame we lost the handbrake, because the speed was definitely there today to set some very good times.”

Khalid Al Qassimi (23^rd):

“It was one of the most difficult days in my WRC career! On the second pass, I was driving on a layer of mud just as slippery as ice. I wasn’t pushing at all, I was just trying to avoid going off the road. The night stages were also very tricky, with a lot of fog. I nonetheless enjoyed myself when there was a bit of grip.”

Mads Østberg had a troubling day. After four stages on Saturday, he retired his car. During stage eleven, the car stopped. He and his co-driver Emil got the car going again and they completed the stage.

Mads explains: “We had a couple of major high-speed “moments” that nearly sent us out among the trees. With no proper service during the day there was no other choice than to retire, and possibly have a chance to sort out the issues and restart on Sunday.”

“Something plays up with the centre differential and suddenly and without warning it stops functioning. We have also had the engine cut out completely at two different occasions on SS11. Both issues are really something that you don`t want to happen flat in sixth gear.”

Juho Hänninen (Ret) said:

“Things were better this morning than they were yesterday. We made some changes with the car that helped us compensate for all the mud that we are collecting on stages, so the rear was not sitting down so much meaning we could have better traction at the front. Unfortunately, on the Cholmondeley stage I braked a bit too late and hit a hay bale, broke a front damper and had to retire. There is also some damage to the chassis so we won’t be able to restart tomorrow.”

Sunday morning dawned bright and sunny like Friday. The crews faced five stages to complete the event. Elfyn had a 53 second lead over his teammate Seb, who was on the verge of his fifth world championship. M-Sport were also looking at winning their first manufacturers championship.

Stage 17, Alwen, fell to Ott, but the big news was that Thierry went three seconds faster than Ogier and with that moved his Hyundai back into second overall.

Next stage, Brenig, which would later be the powerstage, was won by Andreas. Elfyn was on cruise mode, just getting around the stage and using his advantage to his benefit.

Stage 19, Gwydir saw Jari-Matti and Thierry set exactly the same time! Kris was third fastest, which was excellent news for him and Citroen.

Just two stages to go now and history being made. Could Elfyn deliver the win that we had been waiting for at home for 17 years and also become the first driver from Wales to win a World Championship event?

The re-run of Alwen went to Andreas and with the pace he found, he climbed back into fourth overall at the expense of Jari-Matti who could only manage ninth, five seconds slower than the Hyundai driver. Our leader Elfyn was pretty comfortable with this one, going fourth!

Time for the powerstage then and just 6.43km! The top five positions were taken by Thierry, Kris, Jari-Matti, Seb and Andreas.

Seb and M-Sport had done it. Together they’d won the drivers and Manufacturers Championships. However, the big news was that Elfyn had taken his maiden victory at his home event! What a result! Just fantastic!

Let’s hear then from the drivers starting with our seventh different winner this year.

Elfyn Evans (1^st) said:

“I’m feeling pretty good, and just about managed to keep the tears away at the podium. It’s been a really long and difficult weekend, so this one feels good and it was made all the more special when you combine it with everything the team has achieved today.

“Already after Shakedown, we knew if the conditions played into our hands then the speed was there to challenge for the victory. As the weekend went on, I felt that it was always in my reach, but this is an event you can never predict. A clean run with no punctures, spins or mistakes is very difficult. It’s all about finding the right balance and I think that’s what we managed to achieve this weekend.

“I’m definitely hungry for more wins now, so let’s wait and see what next year has in store. Now that I have felt this feeling, it’s one that I would like to repeat!”

Thierry Neuville (2^nd) said:

“Our congratulations to Sébastien on his fifth WRC title, and to M-Sport. We got the message just before the start of the Power Stage that he had done enough. It has been a really exciting battle this year and although we have had our moments of misfortune, we have enjoyed some great fights along the way. Everyone in the team has worked incredibly hard this year, so we can be pleased with our performances and for playing our part in the Championship fight. We could not have done any more this weekend. Elfyn was on incredible form, so to finish second to him is a great achievement. Our five Power Stage points shows our performance level this weekend, and I have enjoyed the rally, despite having to concede the Championship. We will now aim to finish the season well in Australia and to secure second place ahead of Ott.”

Sébastien Ogier (3^rd) said:

“Emotion is something you cannot control. There is something beautiful about that and I have to say that this was the strongest feeling of emotion that I have ever experienced in my professional life. It’s hard to explain the feeling, but it is most definitely a good one.

“Twelve months ago, we decided to take what could have been considered a risk. We decided to team up with Malcolm and set ourselves a challenge. Today, we have succeeded in that challenge and know that we made the right choice.

“I felt immediately proud and very happy for the team. A drivers’ title is something that has never happened for them and it was so well deserved. What they are able to do is amazing. Really, a big thanks to all of them.”

Andreas Mikkelsen (4^th) said:

“We have done our absolute best this weekend, trying to go as fast as we could. We wanted to show progress from Spain and we definitely did that. The battle for the podium was really close and I am pleased that we could finish so close to Séb. Fourth place in our second event with Hyundai Motorsport is pretty good. We took a few stage wins this morning, but also made a few mistakes as well, so there is still room for improvement. Overall, I am happy. As a team, we must now prepare to finish the season in the best way possible in Australia, and then aim to make another improvement in the Championship in 2018.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (5^th) said:

“I couldn’t have gone any quicker than I did on the Power Stage: I gave it absolutely everything! This has not been a perfect rally for us, but we’re happy to score some points, we know what we can do to improve, and it doesn’t take anything away from the fact that the Toyota Yaris WRC is the best car that I’ve ever driven. Conditions between the rally and the test were not exactly the same and that was one of the problems we experienced: on the polished stages today, it was impossible to get the car to turn, so that was frustrating. But I’ve still enjoyed the rally: it was fantastic to see so many spectators out on the stages. Wales is always one of the most difficult events of the year, but after Finland it is definitely my second home rally: I’m always very happy to be competing here.”

Ott Tänak (6th) said:

“Our weekend might not have played out as we had been hoping, but crossing the line and securing the manufacturers’ championship for the team was something very special. Malcolm, and everyone in the team, have done such an incredible job this year and we’ve achieved huge success together. They really do deserve everything this weekend.”

Kris Meeke (7^th) said:

“Normally, I wouldn’t be happy with seventh place. But to be honest, Elfyn Evans was in a different class this weekend, he produced an exceptional performance throughout the rally. The battle was mainly for second place and for a long time, we were only thirty seconds or so back, among a group of drivers that were quite tightly bunched together. I dropped back slightly when I made a little mistake yesterday, but I’m still pleased with my rally. I felt good all weekend – it’s been a while since I felt that comfortable on this type of surface, throughout an entire rally.”

Hayden Paddon (8^th) said:

“We have been in a bit of a no man’s land today, so we have concentrated on keeping things nice and smooth. The result isn’t what we wanted, of course, but we have started to regain our confidence in the car, and just enjoy ourselves a bit more. It has been hard to read the stages this weekend, but it’s been fun to get behind the wheel and to be part of the team again. We can now reset and refocus our efforts on Rally Australia, where we have our sights set much higher!”

Esapekka Lappi (9^th)

“For me the most important thing was to get to the finish, so I made sure that I concentrated on that above everything else, in order to improve my experience of these challenging conditions. Today we had a good run through the first loop of stages and set some promising times, but on the second run when the roads were cleaner, it was more difficult and I struggled to find the grip. We learned a lot on this rally, so even though it wasn’t the result that we wanted, it was very valuable experience that will help us for the future. I’m learning all the time and so is the team.”

Dani Sordo (10^th) said:

“It has been a challenging rally for everyone, with slippery and often unpredictable conditions. Unfortunately, we haven’t had the confidence that we needed to mount a stronger attack this weekend. It’s nice to extend our run of rally finishes this season but it isn’t the result we know we are capable of. We have had some positive results this year. Although I am not competing in Australia, we will be hoping for a competitive event for the team as we prepare to come back stronger in 2018.”

Mads Østberg and co-driver Emil Axelsson finished the event in 39^th place after the problems inflicted on Saturday. He said:

“It`s just a bit comical to finish inside the top forty, but this has been the most difficult and frustrating rally this year. The team worked hard to find the source of the electronic “glitches” yesterday, but we haven`t been able to cure the problems. So today has been about driving through the five stages to collect further data and possibly find a solution.”

Mads won’t be driving in Rally Australia and there are no confirmed details as to what is happening with him next year.

“Finishing the season with the problems we have had here in Wales is of course very frustrating, but all in all there are many positive points from 2017. We have been able to fight for the lead in several rallies and I know my speed is very competitive, especially on the “loose”. Spain became a highlight with leading the rally on gravel the first day and securing a solid and good result after two days on tarmac.”

DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP

Sébastien Ogier – 215
Thierry Neuville – 183
Ott Tänak – 169
Jari-Matti Latvala – 136
Elfyn Evans – 118
Dani Sordo – 95
Juha Hänninen – 71
Kris Meeke – 70
Craig Breen – 64
Hayden Paddon – 59

MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP

M-Sport World Rally Team – 398
Hyundai Motorsport – 305
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC – 241
Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team – 210

M-Sport celebrate winning the 2017 Manufacturers World Championship!

Well, what an amazing Wales Rally GB that was! A home winner and two world championships secured as well!

Elfyn Evans and Dan Barritt hold the Peall Trophy.

I hope you enjoyed my recap of the event, and now it’s just a couple of weeks to the last round of the championship.

Let’s see what happens when the teams head down-under!

24th October 2017

Wales Rally GB Preview 2017- M-Sport look to take the championship.

It’s time for the UK round of this year’s championship. Twelve months ago, Ott Tanak took the fight to his future teammate Seb. It was one of the closest finishes for a long time.

M-Sport can wrap up the Manufacturers Title this weekend, which will be an amazing achievement for this privateer outfit run by Malcolm Wilson.

Here’s his thought’s ahead of the team’s home event.

Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:

“It’s hard to find the words to describe just what a momentous achievement we are on the verge of securing this week.

“When we started developing the Ford Fiesta WRC, I knew we had the people to design a competitive, rally-winning car, and we always hoped to be in this sort of position. Now that it is a reality, it really is hard to find the words.

“But it’s not done yet and we cannot forget just what a challenging event Wales Rally GB can be. The changeable weather, unpredictable grip and long days make it one of the most demanding events of the year.

“All three of our drivers have proven what they are capable of in Wales, and I have no doubt that all three of them are capable of securing the best possible result. But anything can happen and we must remain at the top of our game to get the job done.”

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Poland (POL) – WRC 29/06/2017 to 02/07/2017 – PHOTO : @World

Reigning champion Sébastien Ogier heads to Wales looking to take the championship for an amazing fifth time in a row.

Here’s his thoughts.

“This event is steeped in motorsport history and I think it’s fair to say that Wales Rally GB is one of the most iconic events on the calendar. It’s one that everyone wants to win and we’ll certainly be hoping to be in the battle for victory.

“It’s one of the most challenging rallies of the year and there is a real art to judging the grip levels through the forests. It’s an event that takes a while to get to grips with – quite literally – but I have to say that I now feel at home on the Welsh stages.

“Clearly, this could be a very special event for the team and it also provides us with our first mathematical chance of securing the drivers’ championship. But we can’t think too much about that. We just need to focus on enjoying the rally and delivering the best performance we can.”

Now, here’s the full details on the all the stages! There are twenty-one stages with a total of 304.36km of competitive, twisting muddy welsh roads!

THURSDAY 26 OCTOBER

8.00am: Shakedown – Clocaenog (3.32km)

6.57pm: Start (Tir Prince Raceway)

7.00pm: SS1 – Visit Conwy Tir Prince (1.49km)

8.00pm: Parc ferme (Deeside)

FRIDAY 27 OCTOBER

7.15am: Service A (Deeside – 15 mins)

10.20am: SS2 – Myherin 1 (20.28km)

11:00am: SS3 – Sweet Lamb 1 (4.24km)

11:15am: SS4 – Hafren 1 (35.14km)

1.27pm: Tyre and headlamp pod-fitting zone (Newtown – 15 mins)

2.31pm: SS5 – Myherin 2 (20.28km)

3.11pm: SS6 – Sweet Lamb 2 (4.24km)

3.26pm: SS7 – Hafren 2 (35.14km)

8.01pm: Flexi Service B (Deeside – 45 mins)

SATURDAY 28 OCTOBER

6.10am: Service C (Deeside – 15 mins)

7.55am: SS8 – Aberhirnant 1 (13..91km)

8.47am: SS9 – Dyfnant 1 (17.91km)

9.59am: SS10 – Gartheiniog 1 (12.61km)

10.28am: SS11 – Dyfi 1 (25.86km)

12.08pm: SS12 – Gartheiniog 2 (12.61km)

12.37pm: SS13 – Dyfi 2 (25.86km)

3.48pm: SS14 – Cholmondeley Castle (1.80km)

4.55pm: Service D (Deeside – 30 mins)

6.55pm: SS15 – Aberhirnant 2 (13.91km)

7.47pm: SS16 – Dyfnant 2 (17.91km)

10.26pm: Flexi Service E (Deeside – 45 mins)

SUNDAY 29 OCTOBER

7.00am: Service F (Deeside – 15 mins)

8.34am: SS17 – Alwen 1 (10.41km)

9.08am: SS18 – Brenig 1 (6.43km)

10.06am: SS19 – Gwydir (7.49km)

11.09am: SS20 – Alwen 2 (10.41km)

12.18pm: SS21 – Brenig 2 Power Stage (6.43km)

1.35pm: Finish (Llandudno)

Friday will see the #ElfynsCorner in Myherin! Very big support for D-Mack WRT driver Elfyn Evans has built up since I broke the story back in September. Stickers have been made and sent! Money will be raised for the Welsh Air Ambulance as well.

Saturday sees a mammoth 17-hour day! A very long day! There’s two-night stages as well. These will be very tricky indeed.

Now then what chance a home winner? Could Rally Spain victor Kris Meeke, Craig Breen or Elfyn Evans take victory in the welsh forests this weekend? It would be very popular, that’s for sure!

Here’s the thought’s then of the home-grown talent.

Kris Meeke said:

“Wales Rally GB is obviously a very special event for me. I competed in my very first rally here, almost twenty years ago! So, it’s the event that I know the best and the surface that comes most naturally to me. Our win in Spain was a great morale boost for the whole team. Having said that, it doesn’t guarantee anything for this event. We’ll see what sort of performance level we have in the Welsh forests. Obviously, a lot will depend on the weather. Running ninth on the road on Friday will be a handicap if it rains. In any case, I’m very motivated and will be doing everything I can to secure another good result for Citroën.”

Craig Breen said:

“Between my appearances in the British Rally Championship and the WRC, I feel like I know this event pretty well. I have a lot of good memories here, the highlight being when we won the Junior WRC title. That was in 2011 and it was all more special because my co-driver at the time, Gareth Roberts, was Welsh. After missing the last rally, I’m very happy to be back in the C3 WRC for the final two rounds of the season. As always, it’s pretty difficult to set a specific target, given how much the conditions can affect the standings. But after finishing fifth six times, I would certainly love to do a bit better!”

Elfyn Evans said:

“There’s nothing quite like rallying at home and we’re in for a classic Wales Rally GB this year. The iconic stages, the weather, the night stages, the long days – this year’s offering has it all and it’s that sort of challenge that I really enjoy. I’m looking forward to it and to playing my part in what could be a really historic event for the team.

“It’s always amazing to see the Welsh fans out on the stages, and it’s true that their enthusiasm gives you that little bit extra. We’ll have to wait and see how the conditions suit our package, but we’re hungry for a strong result before the end of the year and will be giving it our all this weekend.”

Now then, what of the Belgian challenger Thierry Neuville? He saw his challenge for the drivers crown really take a dive after a no score last time out in Spain.

He explains: “We were dealt something of a harsh blow in Spain, but we are ready to fight back in Wales. It is a unique event on the calendar, a rally where weather conditions can really dictate performance and confidence levels. If it’s raining, windy and muddy, the stages become incredibly slippery. It is without doubt a tough event, but one that I relish. I have finished on the podium a couple of times, and get a buzz from the fantastic atmosphere. Driving at high-speed through the forest stages, sometimes in the dark, is just incredible. I intend to keep pushing right to the end of the Championship.”

Last year’s runner up Ott Tanak in this rally, will be looking to cement his second position in the championship, with a strong run. Here’s what he had to say:

“Wales Rally GB is a classic in every sense of the word. The days are long and the conditions are unpredictable, but that is rallying and that’s what makes it one of the biggest challenges on the calendar. When you secure a strong result in Wales, you know that you have delivered.

“This will be my seventh time competing in Wales, and six of those were with the top-specification Fiesta. I’ve got good experience here, and the stages are fast and flowing which I really enjoy. They can get quite slippery and ‘polished’ over the second pass but, again, that just adds to the challenge that makes this rally so special.

“Obviously, this will be a very important weekend for the team. We’re on the verge of securing something really amazing and everyone will be working their hardest to secure that goal. If we could top the weekend off with a win, it would be even better!”

Hayden Paddon fans will be happy too. He returns to his i20 and after finishing 5^th in 2015 and then 4^th last year, perhaps he could stand on the podium this year? His thoughts for you.

“Wales Rally GB is an iconic rally with plenty of driving challenges. The event has always been run late in the season, so we can expect some rain and potentially foggy conditions. In many ways, it is like being back home in New Zealand. There are some very nice, fast stages, and it is a rally I enjoy. Hopefully we can put together a good result and build up to a positive conclusion to what has been a tough season.”

2016 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 13 / Wales Rally GB / October 27 – 30, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: Hyundai Motorsport

Now, what of Mads and his Adapta Motorsport run Fiesta WRC? He will not be driving in Australia, and that means he’ll be looking to end his season on a high. He has scored well in this event, having got top results in previous years.

He has another co-driver alongside him. Emil Axelsson who was his co-driver in an Norwegian rally last month will be working very hard to guide Mads through the welsh forests.

Here’s the thoughts from him then.

“I can`t see why I shouldn`t be positive. I have two podiums from before in this rally and I like the often-changing conditions and grip in the Welsh forests. This autumn has also been very “uplifting” and positive, with a very good first day on gravel in Spain where I led the rally after four stages. In September we ran the Norwegian Championship finale as a competition test, and managed to find a very good set-up for the car on quite similar roads and conditions as we are expecting in Wales. I feel I have the necessary speed to be among the lead drivers, and Wales is the place to show it.”

Talking about the conditions on these classic stages, he continues:

“I won`t say that this is my absolutely preferred conditions for rallying, but I like the challenge and the special character of this rally. It`s a classic gravel rally on roads with proper ditches and trees in the forest. To imagine Wales Rally in sunshine and dry roads feels completely wrong. Wales is rain, fog and mud, and that in itself is a great challenge.”

Finally, what of Toyota? It was recently announced that Ott Tanak will be with the team next year. Lead driver Jari-Matti has won this event twice in 2011 and 2012. It’s not been so kind lately though.

Here’s his thoughts then.

“Britain is a bit like my second home as it’s where I started my career and it was also my first world championship rally. There are some fantastic stages like Myherin and Dyfnant, which I’m looking forward to going back to. We obviously had a few technical issues in some of the recent rallies, but I feel confident that the team has got completely on top of those now and I just want to have two strong events to finish this incredible season. The first few rallies were challenging but maybe less demanding on the car than these events now at the end of the year, so we are learning more all the time as it is still only our first season as a team.”

Rumours abound that Juho Hanninen will not be driving in Australia as well, so this will be the last time I believe we’ll see him in the Yaris this year.

Here then are his thoughts.

“I’m happy with what we managed to do in Spain, so we go into Rally GB with a lot of confidence. This will be my last rally of the year, so most of all I just want to enjoy it. I’ve not actually competed there since 2014, but luckily most of the stages are still quite the same. Even though I don’t have a huge amount of experience in Wales I’ve always liked it, so I want to make sure that this rally is a nice one for us. We don’t have a particular plan: we just want to take it stage by stage and build on our pace. It’s a strategy that has worked well before.”

Finally, Finland winner, Esapekka says:

“Our pre-event test was good but it was very strange weather: I brought my winter jacket and my hat, but when I stepped out of the hotel it was 22 degrees! Still, I think what we worked on can still be useful if it’s wet and muddy, which is normally what happens on Rally GB. I just hope that there’s not too much fog, as that can be really difficult. We changed some suspension settings and there are a few other lessons that we learned from Spain that I was able to improve on, so we made a lot of progress during the test. Normally I have a good feeling with Rally GB, so now I’m looking forward to getting out on the stages and hopefully we can have a good result at the end.”

Well, this looks to be an amazing event this year! In addition to that, I will be stage side throughout the rally, having secured a guest pass from the ever-helpful Wales Rally GB media team.

I’ll be joining the Elfyns Corner crew in Myherin on Friday and will journey around with them throughout the rest of the weekend. I can’t wait! Make sure you’re following both @PitCrew_Online and my own twitter account @Warren_S_Nel.

Enjoy the rally and if you’re coming to watch, come and find me!

Warren Nel

24^th October 2017

11th October 2017

Rally Spain 2017 Review- Kris and Paul emerge victorious!

The foundations for Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle’s victory were laid on Friday’s gravel stages. After just two stages, Kris was in the lead and despite some mistakes in the afternoon, at the end of that first day’s action, he was just three seconds from the lead.

Overnight leader was Andreas Mikkelsen on his first outing for Hyundai. His fellow teammates, Dani and Championship challenger Thierry were in sixth and seventh position. The wrong tyre choices and hotter than expected conditions on the stages had meant that there was little that Thierry could do other than get through the day and see what he and Nicolas could do on the smooth wide tarmac on Saturday.

It was an impressive Friday for Seb Ogier that despite running at the front of the field on the loose gravel, he was just 1.4 seconds from the lead. Ott Tanak was also driving very well. Third on the road, he maintained top ten pace in each of the six stages and holding fourth overall.

Also setting a great pace in his Fiesta was Mads, although in the final stage of the day the heater in his car got stuck on! What with the high temperatures outside, plus the heater on, it quickly became unbearably hot inside the Fiesta WRC. The two Norwegians therefore did well to make in to the end of the stage, just five seconds from the lead.

The first retirement of the event was Jari-Matti in his Toyota. After a very solid start in the morning, he won the first stage of the afternoon, but later in stage five he noticed that the car was starting to lose oil. This was the result of a strong impact under the car which made the lubrication system fail. He would not start the final stage of the day, and the damage to the engine would prove to be too severe. The team would be looking to Juho and Esapekka to bring the team some good results.

Elfyn Evans, running on D-Mack tyres, would start well, but after struggling in the afternoon, it was a case of get around and see what he could do on Saturday.

Here’s the driver quotes for day one.

Andreas Mikkelsen said: (1^st)

“We could not have asked for a better start to our Hyundai Motorsport career. It has been a good day and I have been pleased with our approach. We started this morning carefully, to understand the car’s behaviour and generally just finding our feet.”

“A few changes to the settings allowed us to gain some time through the first Terra Alta run. The car felt very stable and there were no surprises. In the afternoon, we became more and more confident in the car. The final stage wasn’t ideal; we thought we had a puncture so took it a bit easier. We made it to the end safely and it’s nice to be fighting at the very top. It’s really close but it has definitely been a positive start for Anders and myself.”

Sébastien Ogier (2^nd) said:

“I’m really happy with our day. It wasn’t easy, but our position this evening is really amazing. Being so close to the lead after a full day opening the road is not something we expected, but it’s a very nice surprise.

“The gaps are all so close so we’re all going to have to keep pushing tomorrow. For sure Andreas [Mikkelsen] and Kris [Meeke] will push hard, but I’ve always had a good feeling with the Fiesta on Tarmac so hopefully we can stay in the fight for the victory.

“But the most important thing for us was to stay ahead of Ott [Tänak] and Thierry [Neuville], which we have managed to do so far. Our target is clear, and we will keep our main focus on Ott, Thierry and the Championship fight.”

Kris Meeke (3^rd) said:

“This morning, we didn’t make the right tyre choice. The soft tyres went off on Terra Alta, so I had to manage my pace a little and drop some time. It didn’t matter that much, because the gaps remained pretty small. On hard tyres, I was able to push almost from start to finish and I really enjoyed driving the C3 WRC. It’s a bit frustrating to have made a mistake on SS4; if it weren’t for that, I’d be leading. But in any case, I’m in a good position and am pleased with the day.”

Ott Tänak (4^th) said:

“Overall I think the performance has been very good today. We expected to lose quite a lot with the loose gravel but actually the gaps are very small at the end of the day.

“It will definitely still be interesting tomorrow. It looks promising for the moment so let’s see how it goes in the morning and if we can find a good rhythm. These Tarmac roads are very unique but also very enjoyable, so we’ll try to find a good set-up with the car and see what we can do.”

Mads Østberg (5^th) said:

“Really disappointing with the heater, and extremely hot and uncomfortable for us both with nearly 100 degrees Celsius inside the car. It`s hot enough inside these cars without hot air blowing into it, but we didn`t manage to turn it off.”

“As it was a very long stage we lost a bit of concentration and focus and of course we lost some time. Still I am happy with our performance this Friday, without the problems on the last stage we could have been in the lead. We also had some issues with dust coming into the, but that we could cope with.”

“In the preparation for the rally we have concentrated mainly on the tarmac set-up and driving. This will be the first time I drive the Fiesta “in anger” on tarmac, and we have much less experience with this than our competitors. A special challenge for me will be the much more advanced aerodynamics on the 2017-car than the car I have driven before. The aerodynamics plays a much bigger role on fast tarmac roads than on the loose.”

Dani Sordo (6^th) said:

“It is great being back rallying at home, and I am so thrilled with the support of the fantastic spectators. We had a solid start today. The morning loop was tough for tyre selection, as the softs were a bit too soft, and the hard compounds were a bit too hard. However, we found a good compromise and it was a very close fight at the front. The grip levels were better in the opening afternoon stages, and I was pretty happy with the car. The repeat of Terra Alta was more slippery with not much traction, but we made it through the opening day in a respectable position – and with only ten seconds to the lead, I think it will be an exciting battle this weekend.”

Thierry Neuville (7^th) said:

“We know what we need to do this weekend, and our sights are firmly set on achieving that. It wasn’t the easiest of starts after we opted for soft tyres on the opening loop. The temperatures were higher than we expected compared to our data from testing. We started to lose grip quite early in the long Terra Alta stage. It was a real pity because we had a good feeling in the car and we were pushing hard. In the afternoon, we were carrying six tyres, which slowed us a bit too much, particularly in the repeat of the long stage. It is very close on the timesheets, so although we are not in the position we would want to be, we are definitely in striking distance.”

Jari-Matti Latvala (ret) said:

“In the morning it was difficult and the car was oversteering a lot, but we made some changes and things were starting to get better. We won stage four. I made a couple of mistakes in stage five and then we noticed we were losing oil, and before we got to stage six the engine stopped and wouldn’t start again. At the time we didn’t know whether anything was damaged but sadly it will not be possible to restart tomorrow.”

Juho Hänninen (8^th) said:

“Today was not as good as I had hoped; I lost too much time to the top guys. I wasn’t fully confident, I was hesitating in some places, and you can easily start to lose time with that. I was struggling a little with the rhythm when the grip was changing. Tomorrow we need to make it better. There are some really nice stages coming up so I’m looking forward to that.”

Esapekka Lappi (10^th) said:

“This morning I was happy with the balance of the car but then on the last stage I overheated the brakes and lost them completely towards the end. In service we made some changes to the suspension and on the first stage this afternoon, which was really smooth, it helped us to set a good time. But I really struggled on the last one with the dampers in these settings. We were a bit unlucky today but at least we have done the stages twice, which is good experience, and tomorrow will be a new start for everybody on asphalt.”

Stéphane Lefebvre (9^th) said:

“After a long break, it was difficult to come back and compete at event that is almost unknown to me. I took it easy in the trickier sections and pushed when I felt more confident. We didn’t make any mistakes and I managed to add to my experience. The two passes on Terra Alta showed that you really need time to understand this type of stage. We’ll have to reset in order to tackle tomorrow’s leg on tarmac in the best possible shape.”

Elfyn Evans (11th) said:

“The feeling in the first two stages was okay but it’s fair to say that we struggled after that. This just wasn’t our day, but we made it through and tomorrow is a completely new day with a completely new surface so let’s see what we can do.

Khalid Al Qassimi (19^th) said:

“I had a good feeling this morning, although I felt the car lacked precision on occasions. I was cautious, especially on the tarmac section on Terra Alta. We made quite a lot of progress with the set-up during service and I was happy with the handling. I think the upgrades on the dampers are a definite improvement.”

Saturday morning dawned warm and sunny. The cars had been switched into tarmac spec and were ready for the day’s action.

Kris Meeke took the lead from overnight leader, Andreas, in the first stage of the day and then proceeded to pull away from his closest challengers.

The Hyundai’s all experienced problems throughout the day with Andreas and Dani both hitting rocks hidden at the edge of the road in stage 12. Thierry’s rally wasn’t going so well either, suffering hydraulics problems which affected his handling of the car. This lead to a spin before stage nine which resulted in damage to the rear of the car. The team did a good job to get the car fixed before the afternoon stages and this lead to a better afternoon for the Belgian driver.

M-Sport duo Seb and Ott were both driving well, with just minor issues holding them back through the morning, mainly being setup. With some tweaks, they Seb was able to push much harder and won all three afternoon stages. Ott heard a strange noise from the gearbox, so the team decided to change it during the midday service break.

The remaining Toyota drivers, Juho and Esapekka both enjoyed a very good day on the unique Spanish roads. Juho was third fastest on the opening stage before winning stage eight and nine. Lappi was focused on understanding the level of grip available, and with an imperfect setup on the car, struggled for confidence. However, after making a few changes in the service break, he felt more confident and this lead to a better afternoon.

Mads Østberg had a good day too. Despite hitting the same rock in stage twelve, that had put Andreas and Dani out, he got some luck and was able to finish. There were further technical issues with the car, but Mads made great progress throughout Saturday and completed the day in sixth.

Let’s hear from the drivers then.

Kris Meeke (1^st) said:

“Today couldn’t have gone any better, to be honest. We’ve known about the potential of the C3 WRC on tarmac since the rounds in Corsica and Germany, but I was nonetheless a bit apprehensive because we hadn’t done any pre-event testing on this surface. The first stage looked like it would be tricky with the rain, but everything went well. The rest of day went much the same way, although it was pretty close with the other drivers. I’m very pleased to be leading and I obviously want to convert this first place into a win tomorrow. There are still six stages to go before we get there, the first of which will be contested in the dark. So, we won’t get ahead of ourselves: one step at a time!”

Sébastien Ogier (2^nd) said:

“The general picture is a positive one for us at the moment and, if we can secure this podium at the end of tomorrow, it will be another good step towards the championship.

“Of course, I always want to fight for the victory but, realistically, I think Kris [Meeke] is probably a bit too far ahead. We lost quite a lot of time to him this morning when I wasn’t super confident with the car. When you’re not perfectly committed you lose tenths everywhere and that can easily amount to ten seconds at the end of the stage.

“We worked hard on the set-up throughout the day and I had a much better feeling this afternoon. Hopefully we can start tomorrow morning with that same feeling as we will for sure still have to push.”

Ott Tänak (3^rd) said:

“The podium is always the target, and we’re in a good position to secure that at the moment so it has been a good day. We weren’t so happy with the feeling in the car first thing [this morning], but we soon found a good balance and improved the times after that.

“The goal is to secure as many points as possible but, as we have already seen, everyone is pushing very hard and it’s difficult to make the difference. Even if you have the perfect stage, you can still miss out on the fastest time by a couple of tenths.

“Kris is very strong so it’s going to be hard to compete with him, but we’re still in a very competitive position and it will be important to get to the end and secure these points for the team and for ourselves. We’ll certainly keep the pressure on, so let’s keep it going and see what happens.”

Juho Hänninen (4^th)

“It has been a really good day. I was a bit disappointed after yesterday but I knew that the asphalt would be better for me. Even still, I was a bit surprised with how good the stage times were this morning. I was really, really happy with the car and I didn’t need to change anything in service. I drove the afternoon the same as in the morning and it felt good. I haven’t really been looking at the overall classification and it could be difficult to catch the guys ahead, but I haven’t given up and I will push tomorrow for sure.”

Thierry Neuville (5^th) said:

“I honestly think we deserved far better than we got today. We experienced hydraulic problems at the end of SS8, which we worked on at stage-end to keep the car going. Suddenly, the car wouldn’t start, and when we finally got going we had to move quickly to get to the next stage. Without hydraulics under braking we spun the car, which caused some rear damage. We checked into SS9 three minutes late, so we were given a time penalty. The team did an incredible job to get the car repaired at service in time for the repeat loop, where we were able to show good pace again. The rally is not over but it was another frustrating day and not representative of what we know we can achieve. We set some of the quickest times in the afternoon stages, and were much happier and confident with the car. It’s hard to keep up the fight when you lose so much time, but others can have problems, especially with a longer than usual Sunday with six stages. We won’t give up.”

2017 FIA World Rally Championship
Round 11, Rally de Espaa
05 – 08 October 2017
Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
Photographer: Sarah Vessely
Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH

Esapekka Lappi (6^th) said:

“On the first stage this morning I was not confident enough, as the grip was much higher than in my test, but step-by-step during the morning I found the confidence. I wasn’t completely happy with the set-up but we managed to improve it during service and the car felt even better in the afternoon, especially on the penultimate stage: it was the best that the car has ever been on asphalt. So I’m really looking forward to tomorrow. We will try to carry on in the same way and maybe get some points on the Power Stage.”

Mads Østberg (7^th) said:

“It really has been the best day at school ever! This is my first proper tarmac experience with the 2017 spec car, and I was very uncertain how we would manage and how fast we could expect to be. Yesterday we led the rally after four stages, but that was on gravel. Today we have lost some time to the leaders, but that was expected. I am learning on every stage and the progression from the start of the day, not to mention my understanding of the car, has been enormous. We started the day 1 second per km slower than the fastest guys, now we are down to 0.3 seconds”.

Speaking about the rock that he hit…

“There was a massive rock right on the driving line in a corner where we were cutting. I hit it hard, but for once I had some luck. The steering and a wheel was damaged, but I could continue and finish the stage without much loss.”

In the final stage, Mads suffered an additional problem with the hydraulics.

“The car became nearly impossible in the very tight corners. It was frustrating, but as it was a short stage the time loss wasn`t extensive.”

Finally, he explained how much fun the car was to drive on these roads.

“I feel we are getting more and more competitive, which hasn`t really been the case for some time on tarmac. The split-times on several stages shows that I am closing in on the fastest tarmac guys. I am also enjoying every moment as the driving experience with the 2017 Fiesta on these roads really is awesome.”

Stéphane Lefebvre (8^th) said:

“The switch from gravel to tarmac between the first and second day is not easy at all, especially as this is the first time I have experienced this situation. I feel like I made progress throughout the day, without making any mistakes. The handling of the C3 WRC helped to give me confidence. On SS10, for example, I pushed and my time was about 2/10ths per kilometre off the pace of the stage-winning driver. I’ll be able to build on this experience to try and finish on positive note tomorrow.”

Elfyn Evans (9^th) said:

“It’s been another pretty tough day for us. The pace isn’t there and we’ve just been struggling for grip. That’s the way it is and we need to focus on getting all the kilometres under our belts and collecting as much information as we can for the future.”

Khalid Al Qassimi (18^th) said:

“This was my first competitive outing with the C3 WRC on tarmac. And I hadn’t driven on this surface for a year! I’m pleased with the day, I had a good feeling in the car. However, I opted to take it easier on the second pass, because the roads were very dirty. I preferred to stick to the lines.”

Sunday morning was much like Saturday- warm and sunny.

Could Kris take his and Citroen’s second victory of the year? Could Thierry score some points to stop Seb opening a big lead in the championship?

Six stages awaited the crews and no service break either. They all took spare tyres in their cars. One puncture could destroy all the hard work.

The first stage was held in darkness, but it didn’t trouble Kris. He took the first stage of the day and then added the other two, thus increasing his lead to almost 25 seconds over the M-Sport duo of Seb and Ott.

Stephane Lefebvre was also pushing hard through these stages, bringing him closer to Mads. Stage 16 would see Thierry retire from the event after hitting something out of sight and damaging his right front suspension. Esapekka would also retire after sliding on some slippery tarmac and hitting a barrier.

Setting some good times as usual were Seb and Ott, ultimately bringing their Fiesta’s to a double podium behind Spanish master Kris. Juho would also have a very Sunday morning, guiding his Yaris into fourth place overall- pretty impressive given that he’d not driven this event for six years!

Fifth place fell to privateer Mads in his Adapta Motorsport Fiesta. With Torstein Eriksen alongside him through the weekend, they found good consistency, even leading on Friday for a short while. The pre- event testing, they did on the tarmac clearly paid in off in spades.

Dani Sordo and Andreas Mikkelsen both had an up and down event, but Dani came through and won the power stage. Andreas would suffer a broken windscreen after his bonnet came loose and flipped up in front of him! It was all good learning for next year though, having never driven the i20 on these surfaces.

Elfyn Evans in his D-Mack shod Fiesta drove as best he could to seventh place, as his tyres couldn’t give him the consistent grip on the tarmac he needed. However, there were positives and it was the best result he’d scored in this event.

Rally Spain 2017 result

1 Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle (Citroen C3 WRC) 3h01m21.1s

2 Sebastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC) +28.0s

3 Ott Tanak/Martin Jarveoja (Ford Fiesta WRC) +33.0s

4 Juho Hänninen/Kaj Lindström (Toyota Yaris WRC) +54.1s

5 Mads Ostberg/Torstein Eriksen (Ford Fiesta WRC) +2m26.2s

6 Stephane Lefebvre/Gabin Moreau (Citroen C3 WRC): +2m43.0s

7 Elfyn Evans/Daniel Barritt (Ford Fiesta WRC) +4m37.4s

8 Teemu Suninen/Mikko Markkula (Ford Fiesta R5) +8m22.7s

9 Jan Kopecky/Pavel Dresler (Skoda Fabia R5) +8m54.5s

10 Ole Christian Veiby/Stig Rune Skjaermoen (Skoda Fabia R5) +9m04.8s

Here’s what the drivers had to say.

Kris Meeke (1^st) said:

“This completes an exceptional weekend for me. Since our win at Rally Mexico, we’ve had some tough moments, but we’ve picked ourselves up each time by working hard. We always knew this car was terrific on asphalt and I think that we have demonstrated that since yesterday! This win shows the quality of the work done by the entire team and it gives us all a huge confidence boost for the rest of the season.”

Kris and Paul take their fifth WRC victory.

Sébastien Ogier (2^nd) said:

“We’ve taken a really positive step towards the championship this weekend. I think we were on course to extend the lead anyway, but with Thierry’s mistake that changed the picture completely and we’ve been able to extend the gap even more.

“We were never really in a position where we had to take all the risks, but we still had to keep a good rhythm. There was no chance to fight with Kris [Meeke] as he was just on another level on the Tarmac, but we had a clean drive and it’s definitely been a positive weekend.

“It’s been good news for the team too as the manufacturers’ championship is now pretty much done and we can start to plan a bit of a party for their home event in a couple of weeks’ time.”

Ott Tänak (3^rd) said:

“We feel good at the end of this one. This result was more or less the maximum we could do this weekend so a great result overall.

“I think our first day was particularly good. We were quite early in the running order and still managed to stay close to the lead. Then on Tarmac we had a couple of small issues but generally a good run and a good feeling with the car.

“For sure there will be a big fight for second place in the drivers’ championship now. Sébastien is pretty safe, but there is still something to fight for and two more exciting events ahead.”

Juho Hänninen (4^th) said:

“I’m very happy with this result. Yesterday and today have been two of the most enjoyable days of rallying I’ve ever had. Yesterday was really good and today I tried to keep it quite steady because there was a big gap behind. On asphalt we have had a really, really good car. I have felt really confident with it and I haven’t had to take any big risks. It’s really important for me to see that I am able to fight for the leading positions even though I haven’t been here for a long time.”

Mads Østberg (5^th) said:

“The team performed brilliantly. Its five years since we did a WRC rally with our own Adapta Motorsport crew, but it`s like they haven`t been away at all. I would also like to thank Torstein Eriksen, who did only his second WRC-event and really did a professional and great job.”

“The tarmac experience from Spain will be put to good use later, but not until next season as the championship finishes with gravel events. Already in less than three weeks the stage is set for fog, mud and possibly sleet and snow in Wales.”

“It`s one of my favourite rallies where I have been very competitive before. The gravel stages here in Spain gave us the answer that we are right on the mark on the loose stuff. My goal for Wales is to fight for a possible victory.”

Stéphane Lefebvre (6^th) said:

“We tried to push and managed to claw back some time on Mads Østberg in the first loop. After that, it became more difficult with some hydraulics problems and then we lost the intercom. From that point onwards, I was just making sure I held position. Sixth place is pretty good, considering my limited knowledge of this event. I would say this result was more or less comparable with my top-five finish in Poland. Little by little, as I gain more experience, I’m improving and I hope to be able to confirm my progress in the future. Congratulations to Kris and Paul on winning again – it’s a morale-boosting result for everyone in the team!”

Elfyn Evans (7^th) said:

“Everyone knows that this was a tough weekend for us, but we kept our heads down and got the job done. It’s not been easy, but we managed to get a lot of information from all of the kilometres and now we can start to focus on Wales Rally GB.”

Teemu Suninen (Fiesta R5) (8^th) said:

“This has been a really good weekend for us and I think we have made a big improvement on Tarmac. We’ve had good pace on both surfaces and I think I can be really happy with the rally and what we have done.”

Khalid Al Qassimi (17^th) said:

“It was a very good day. As the day wore on, I enjoyed driving the car more and more and I’m very pleased with the progress made by the Citroën C3 WRC. But I’m most pleased of all about Kris Meeke winning the rally. He had a fantastic race this weekend, it’s a great moment for us all and I’m very proud to see Abu Dhabi promoted by these performances.”

Well, there you go…. Two rounds left and M-Sport have almost secured the manufacturers championship. Also, it’s looking very likely that Seb will win the drivers crown after Thierry failed to score any points in Spain.

A great drive from Kris and Paul in the number 7 C3 WRC for Citroen’s 98 WRC victory and his fifth as well, puts to bed any worries about his abilities behind the wheel.

2017 FIA World Rally Championship for drivers after round 11:

1 Sebastien Ogier 198

2 Ott Tanak 161

3 Thierry Neuville 160

4 Jari-Matti Latvala 123

5 Dani Sordo 94

6 Elfyn Evans 93

7 Juho Hänninen 71

8 Craig Breen 64

9 Kris Meeke 60

10 Hayden Paddon 55

11 Esapekka Lappi 49

2017 FIA World Rally Championship for manufacturers after round 11:

1 M-Sport World Rally Team 358

2 Hyundai Motorsport 275

3 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing WRT 225

4 Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team 198

4th October 20174th October 2017

Rally Spain Preview 2017- The battle for the WRC crown continues

We are getting closer to the end of the season, and M-Sport driver Seb is 17 points ahead of Thierry and there are just three rounds left. Rally Spain takes place from the 5^th to the 8^th of October.

It’s the only round to feature gravel and tarmac stages as well, with Friday being all gravel, with the teams getting extra service time to convert the cars into tarmac spec for the smooth fast stages that follow on Saturday and Sunday. A total of 19 stages, covering 312km makes Rally Catalunya a very tricky event.

Here’s the stage information for you.

RALLY DE ESPAÑA SCHEDULE (GMT+2)

THURSDAY 5 OCTOBER

8.00am: Shakedown – Salou (2.97km)

8.00pm: Ceremonial start (Salou)

FRIDAY 6 OCTOBER

8.15am: Start

9.53am: SS1 – Caseres 1 (12.50km)

10.21am: SS2 – Bot 1 (6.50km)

10.56am: SS3 – Terra Alta 1 (38.95km)

1.11pm: Service A (PortAventura – 30 mins)

3.19pm: SS4 – Caseres 2 (12.50km)

3.47pm: SS5 – Bot 2 (6.50km)

4.22pm: SS6 – Terra Alta 2 (38.95km)

6.32pm: Flexi Service B (PortAventura – 75 mins)

SATURDAY 7 OCTOBER

6.45am: Service C (PortAventura – 15 mins)

8.00am: SS7 – El Montmell 1 (24..40km)

9.07am: SS8 – El Pont d’Armentera 1 (21.29km)

9.54am: SS9 – Savalla 1 (14.12km)

11.35am: Service D (PortAventura – 30 mins)

1.08pm: SS10 – El Montmell 2 (24.40km)

2.15pm: SS11 – El Pont d’Armentera 2 (21.29km)

3.02pm: SS12 – Savalla 2 (14.12km)

5.00pm: SS13 – Salou (2.24km)

5.30pm: Flexi Service E (PortAventura – 45 mins)

SUNDAY 8 OCTOBER

6.00am: Service F (PortAventura – 15 mins)

7.00am: SS14 – L’Albiol 1 (6.28km)

7.38am: SS15 – Riudecanyes 1 (16.35km)

8.38am: SS16 – Santa Marina 1 (14.50km)

10.14am: SS17 – L’Albiol 2 (6.28km)

10.53am: SS18 – Riudecanyes 2 (16.35km)

12.18pm: SS19 – Santa Marina 2 – Power Stage (14.50km)

1.41pm: Service G (PortAventura – 10 mins)

3.00pm: Podium (Salou)

Let’s hear from the top two in the championship.

Sébastien Ogier said:

“We’re feeling fully refreshed after the break and ready to get back to business. Spain is always an enjoyable event. Its mixed surface makes it truly unique and the fans are so enthusiastic. I have a lot of special memories here, and it would be nice to add to them next week.

“Opening the road is a good thing in one sense as it means that we are back in the lead of the championship. But if it’s dry the championship lead also comes with its challenges and we’ll need to work hard to minimise the time loss through the opening gravel stages.

“Then, it’s onto the fast, smooth asphalt that this event is famed for. We had a one-day test to get used to this circuit-like asphalt and the car felt pretty good. We completed a lot of kilometres for a one-day test, and that sees us well prepared to deliver our best.

“With the championships so close, that’s exactly what we will have to deliver. We have a 17 point lead, but with 90 points still available there remains all to play for and we all need to work together to maximise our potential – starting with Rally Spain.”

Thierry Neuville said:

“Entering this crucial part of the season for the championship, we must stay focused and look to target the podium, if not victory, in all rounds. Things are delicately positioned in the Drivers’ Championship between Ogier, myself and Tanak, so anything can still happen.”

“Spain is going to be a huge challenge, as it always is with the change of surface. It is a rally that all crews enjoy, with a good atmosphere and, usually, great weather. We are rested after the long break and determined to put in our strongest fight for the title.”

Here’s the thoughts of the rest of the drivers.

Andreas Mikkelsen signed to Hyundai Motorsport for the next two years during this past week. He took his first WRC victory in this event two years ago when Seb crashed out in the final stage.

Here’s his thought’s….

“I am really pleased to be making my debut as a Hyundai Motorsport driver. Since the announcement, Anders and I have had the opportunity to test the car on both tarmac and gravel; I have been very impressed with what we’ve experienced.”

“The car has already shown itself to be versatile, and there’s nowhere better than Spain to showcase those characteristics. It’s a special rally for me, as I took my first win in Spain in 2015, so it has fantastic memories. The changes in surface can be demanding, particularly with the quick switch from gravel to tarmac. It is a challenging, but highly enjoyable event, and I hope to be able to fight at the front in my first WRC event with the team.”

Dani Sordo said:

“It is always a pleasure to return to Spain for my home rally, and to have the chance to compete in front of so many enthusiastic supporters. We definitely want to give them something to cheer. I think our road position will be beneficial on the opening gravel stages on Friday. We then move onto tarmac for the final two days, where we push to secure our third podium of the season – and our third in a row in Catalunya for Hyundai Motorsport. That’s the aim.”

M-Sport WRT

Ott Tänak said:

“I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel. It was really nice to have some time at home with the family, but I have to admit that I was also starting to miss the thrill of competition!

“We’ve proved that we can be competitive on both gravel and asphalt, so I’m not daunted by the mixed surface of Spain. Going from one surface to the next in the same weekend can be a little strange at first, but we all get up to speed pretty quickly.

“The gravel roads are really nice with a mix of fast and technical sections and we had a Tarmac test in Spain last week which reminded me just how amazing those roads are. They’re so smooth and it really is like driving on a circuit in some places.

“With both championships so close at the moment, I think we’re in for an interesting weekend and we’ll certainly be aiming to deliver our best for both the manufacturers’ and the drivers’.”

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Tour de Corse (FRA) – WRC 06/04/2017 to 09/04/2017 – PHOTO : @World

Elfyn Evans said:

“As the only mixed-surface event on the calendar, Rally Spain is really unique. I’ve not had the best of luck there in the past, but we’ll be hoping to put that right this year.

“The gravel stages can be quite technical and on the Terra Alta stage we have long sections of asphalt in amongst the gravel. That can make the car move around quite a lot and you have to drive with the whole stage in mind.

“It’s quite a strategic rally in that sense and you have to think about the long game with a day and a half of pure Tarmac to follow the gravel. The weather could also prove a deciding factor so it’ll be interesting to see what the Spanish forecasts have to offer us this year.

“With the championship so close, this event could be really crucial and we’re all determined to deliver our best.”

Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT

Kris Meeke said:

“We had a good test session and it was interesting to work with Seb [Loeb]. There is always room for improvement, but I think we are moving in the right direction. I’m looking forward to being back in a competitive environment again after a frustrating Rallye Deutschland and this long break. I have to say, though, that I can’t quite believe that this is going to be my tenth appearance in Catalonia! Potentially, we have a good starting position, but that’ll depend on the level of dust or whether it rains. For the last two legs, we know all about performance level of the C3 on tarmac. The main thing is that I want to enjoy myself in the car. If I do that, then we can aim for a good result and that’d be good news for the entire team.”

Stephane Lefebvre said:

“I’m very pleased to be back behind the wheel of the Citroën C3 WRC. It has been three months since we finished fifth overall in Poland and I’m going to have to find the right pace on stages that I am relatively unfamiliar with. We have to bear in mind that I am undoubtedly the least experienced driver in the field at this event. I’m pleased with how testing went last week. I had the opportunity to try the new front-to-rear wheel torque distribution for the first time. This upgrade matches my driving style really well and it was therefore a very positive experience. If the conditions are favourable, we’ll try to make the most of our position in the running order on day one.”

Kalid Al Qassimi said:

“This will be my tenth appearance in Spain! This round is one of my favourites on the WRC calendar. I love the challenge provided by the mixed surface route, and especially the fact that switching from gravel to tarmac during a stage encourages you to drive more quickly. I really like the atmosphere here; the supporters are incredible and the organisation is absolutely fantastic. That’s why I like to keep coming back to compete in Catalonia every year. We’ll try to find a good pace depending on the stages, pushing whenever I feel comfortable. I wish Kris and Stéphane all the best.”

Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT

Jari-Matti Latvala said:

“I like the combination in Spain of having the first day on gravel and then two days on asphalt. They are the best asphalt roads in the championship – as close to a race circuit as is possible – and the gravel stages are also quite good. I did two days of testing for Spain this week: on the asphalt, we were focused on the suspension, and on gravel we concentrated on the differential. The change of surface creates extra work for the mechanics and the engineers, and as drivers we need to adapt our driving style overnight. Our car showed winning speed on gravel in Finland and the performance was also there on asphalt in Germany, so I believe we should be very competitive.”

Juho Hänninen said:

“The car has felt good in testing, just like it did in Germany. We plan to continue in the same way in Spain. Friday will be challenging for me because the stages are exactly the same as recent years and I haven’t done this rally for a while, so I will need to push a lot on Friday in order to be in the fight. But unless it rains like last year, I don’t think the time differences will be too big. Then there will be some new stages on Saturday and Sunday, which should help.”

Esapekka Lappi said:

“Spain is a really challenging rally with the mix of gravel and asphalt. It’s a completely different type of rally to what we are used to. The gravel part is similar to Portugal in my opinion, and then the asphalt stages are quite unique: I think they’re the best stages on asphalt in the world. They are pretty clean and smooth, and are not as twisty as Corsica and not as narrow as Germany, so really enjoyable to drive. I’m really looking forward to it. There were some ups and downs in Germany but in the end, we could match the speed of the others and our performance should be good on both surfaces.”

Onebet Adapta WRT

Mads Østberg is back after missing Rally Germany. His co-driver will be Torstein Eriksen. He’s been keeping busy though. Its two months since the last WRC event for Mads, but he has had competitive outings in the meantime. Three weeks ago, he did a couple of races as a guest driver in the Swedish Porsche Carrera Championship, and with good results. Last weekend he drove the last round of the Norwegian Championship with his Fiesta WRC and Emil Axelsson as codriver. As expected he won the rally with a clear margin.

Mads explains, “The Porsche drive in Sweden obviously couldn`t compare with rallying, but it was valuable driving experience on tarmac. And I wasn`t too bad as a tarmac racer, really! The rally in Norway was used as a gravel test, and we had very good progression trying different set-ups during the day. The rally also gave me the chance to have Emil Axelsson in the car with me, as we are still evaluating different co-driver choices for next year”

Final words to the Team Principal’s.

M-Sport WRT Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:

“We’ve had a fantastic season to date, and we’re now entering the decisive final phase. The competition could not be closer and the next three rallies will be crucial – Rally Spain in particular.

“With its mix of gravel and asphalt, this event is truly unique and the teams will have to master both surfaces in their pursuit of victory. Having secured a podium on every event this season, the Fiesta has proven competitive on every surface and we hope to see that continue next week.

“Sébastien certainly knows what it takes to win here, and Ott and Elfyn will both be determined to settle a few scores. A strong result will be imperative to the outcome of the championship, and that is exactly what we aim to deliver.

“It won’t be easy by any stretch of the imagination, and the competition will be extremely tough, but I have confidence in the team who are working their hardest to deliver our best.”

Hyundai Team Principal Michel Nandan said:

“We have had a long summer break but we have used the time wisely to try and turn around our recent misfortunes. Finland and Germany were both frustrating, and saw us lose ground in the championship. From Spain, and in the final rounds of the season, we are determined to do all we can to catch up. We welcome Andreas and Anders into the team from Spain, an event they won memorably in 2015, alongside Thierry and Dani, who have both had podiums at this rally. For Dani, it will be extra special, as his home event, so we are in optimistic and hopeful mood. With an upgraded Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, our primary target is to get back onto the podium.”

Enjoy the event, and let’s see who comes out our winner!

5th September 20175th September 2017

Fans plan to celebrate Elfyn Evans’ brilliant year at Rally Wales GB with #ELFYNSCORNER

A group of fans have come together through Twitter and Facebook to cheer on D-Mack driver and Welsh Wizard during Rally Wales GB this coming October. The rally takes place from the 26^th to the 29^th of October.

They’re going to gather together in Myherin, a stage that is very well known in the rally world. The stage is just under 20km’s in length and will be run twice on Friday.

Those currently joining the fun at the moment are, Phil, Kevin, Sam, Lee and Andrew. I asked them what for their hopes were for Elfyn. Here’s what they said to me.

Phil Duke said:

“To show our support for Elfyn, Daniel and D-Mack as they don’t get the acknowledgement they deserve. Hopefully #ELFYNSCORNER will bring the attention to ELFYN and co and to have a laugh and meet new and old friends. This is going to be the first time the whole group has got together so will great to meet them all in person and show our support. Hoping Elfyn and Daniel will have a full time full works backing for 2018 and to be fighting for the win at Wales Rally GB 2017 it’s what he has proved this year that can fight at the front and a win is just around the 6 left!”

Sam Walker adds:

“I for one, think the lad has done amazing to get where he is, he has worked his backside off and done everything asked of him within the BRC and WRC. I think next year, having gained experience with the car and knowing how it works, there is every chance he will be on the podium more often than not. Not sure he is capable of winning just yet, but give him a couple more years and I have high hopes for our very own Welsh lad.”

Kevin Pascoe said:

“My hopes are for a top 2 finish for Elfyn, but a wet Wales Rally GB, with the current tyres, doesn’t inspire confidence for supporters or for him. Taking a longer-term perspective, hopefully good results in Spain and Australia should secure a competitive car and critically tyres for next season. Probably still with Ford, but would not rule out any of the three factory teams. Team managers know the challenges he has faced this year – but he has delivered anyway on most events.”

Lee said:

“I hope Elfyn becomes a world champ and keeps flying our flag with pride” and he added, “he is a national hero to us and he deserves to be a champ.”

Peter Jones said:

“Followed him from his first rally, and seen him grow into what I believe is a driver who can now compete at the very top. Thankful to D-MACK for giving him the opportunity this year, but that has also brought with it some frustrations i.e. Tyres have in most rallies been a handicap, and have beyond doubt held him back from exhibiting his full potential. Hope tyres work well on GB and that he can give it a real go. Hopes for next year is for him to be on Michelins, in a strong car, and getting that first important win.”

“Elfyns’ corner, an opportunity for his fans to get together and show the support he has got, and a chance to meet the idiots I have been tweeting over the past 12 months, and have some fun. Here endeth the lesson.”

Elfyn Evans and Dan Barritt during Rally Finland. They finished second overall.

Now, let me take you back to last year.

Ott Tanak pushed Seb very closely for the win last year with the D-Mack tyres on his Fiesta WRC winning a number of stages and finishing second in the end. Well, Elfyn will be using D-Mack tyres this year. I’m not going to speculate, but my feelings are that he will certainly be running near the front and will definitely take some stage victories.

The conditions in the stages will largely dictate the overall finishing position, and at this point it’s impossible to say what the drivers will face at this point.

However, these fans will hope that their efforts to support Elfyn and Dan will spur the crew to a top result.

All I will say is you won’t miss this banner. It’s huge! Emma Duke, Phil’s wife did most of the work to get it looking so great! Look out for it!

People featured in this article

@rallymadphil @welshroadhog @samwalker170875 @pjhj51 @KevinPascoe @madmumov3 @ELFYNSCORNER

25th August 2017

WRC Rally Deutschland – Tanak takes win as Ogier builds title lead

M-Sport ended their Rally Germany hoodoo as Ott Tanak secured his second win of his career, as Sebastien Ogier took a huge leap towards the title.

Title rivals Ogier and Thierry Neuville of Hyundai were level on points coming into the asphalt event. However with Neuville breaking his suspension on the Panzerplatte stage.

Friday saw the debut of the ‘monsoon’ tyre after torrential downpour. Tanak responded best to hold the lead. Neuville sat third with Ogier fourth going into Saturdays action.

However with Neuville breaking his suspension and being unable to return until Sunday, Ogier seized the initiative and took it easy, sitting behind Andreas Mikkelsen in second and Tanak comfortably out front.

Mikkelsen, who was flying the flag for Citroën after Kris Meeke’s Thursday superspecial crash less than a mile into the event, helped boost his chances of a further drive with the team. His 2017 season looks uncertain and his second place did his chances no harm.

FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2017 -WRC Deutschland (DEU) – WRC 16/08/2017 to 20/08/2017 – PHOTO : @World

He led for much of Friday but just couldn’t catch Tanak, who took the win by 16.4 seconds. Ogier couldn’t catch Mikkelsen and settled for third, knowing he’d be leading the championship.

Neuville re-joined the rally under Rally2, but couldn’t regain his confidence and finished outside the top ten.

Elfyn Evans had a rally to forget after being in the top five for most of the rally, only to lose fifth place to Citroen’s Craig Breen on the last stage. His DMACK tyres weren’t as competitive when the weather improved on Saturday, meaning he lost fourth to Toyota’s Juno Hanninen and fifth to Breen.

Toyota were enjoying a positive Rally Germany and were fighting for the top five, until Jari-Matti Latvala’s Yaris had a misfire and fell down the order, ending the rally seventh. Team mate Esapekka Lappi crashed, finishing outside the top ten after returning through Rally2.

Hyundai’s only hope was Hayden Paddon, who took eighth after an early puncture scuppered his chances.

Veteran driver Armin Kremer in an M-Sport entered Ford, took ninth with Eric Camilli taking the WRC2 class win with tenth place in the rally.

Hyundai’s Dani Sordo took the powerstage win, with Lappi, Latvala, Ogier and Breen taking the top five and the extra points it provided.

This saw Ogier take his title lead to 17 points, with Neuville needing to pull off some impressive results in the remaining rounds of the season.

M-Sport Team Principal Malcolm Wilson said: “Everyone in the team is extremely happy as you can imagine. After all the work that went on behind the scenes, we knew that we could challenge for a strong result but never dreamt of achieving anything quite like this.”

17th August 2017

WRC Rallye Deutschland preview – Ogier and Neuville face off in Germany

The World Rally Championship heads to Germany as we enter round ten of one of the most exciting seasons in years.

Title protagonists Sebastian Ogier and Thierry Neuville are level on 160 points heading into Germany, a happy hunting ground for both drivers. Neuville took his maiden WRC win here in 2014, while Ogier has won here three times, including the last two years.

The German round of the championship always provides a stern test for the teams. Regarded as three rallies in one, Rallye Deutschland is renowned for its twisty vineyard stages, countryside routes and the dangerous military complex. Held mainly on asphalt, Rallye Deutschland is not one to be missed.

M-Sport will be hoping Ogier can help them deliver their first ever win here, the only rally on the calendar the famous team have never conquered. Team boss Malcolm Wilson said: “Rallye Deutschland hasn’t been so kind to us in the past. It’s the only event that we are yet to win, but this year we have our best chance of putting that right.

“We feel that we have a good package for Tarmac and we have been building on that during our pre-event testing. “The competition will be extremely strong and I expect a hard-fought battle. The great thing about this year’s championship is that it’s anybody’s game – but we aim to be in the fight and hope to come out on top,” Wilson added.

Reigning champion Ogier said: “Every year I look forward to Rallye Deutschland, and this year’s event will be really exciting with the championship battle so close. Naturally, we aim to deliver our best and get our championship defence back on track.”

2016 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 09, Rallye Deutschland 2016 / August 18-21, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: Hyundai Motorsport

Hyundai consider this their home event, with their base in Alzenau just two hours away from the service park. Title challenger Neuville said: “Germany is usually a really good event for us, as a crew and as a team. We have great experience and memories from there, particularly from our first WRC win in 2014 with Hyundai Motorsport.

“Heading into this year’s edition leading the Championship is something new, but I am really looking forward to opening the road. Hopefully, we can enjoy another strong performance, and try to increase our lead in the classification. It won’t be easy, but we know we can be fighting at the front.”

One team who know how to win the Rallye Deutschland is Citroën. The French manufacturer have 12 wins here, with Sebastian Loeb winning the first of those in 2002, Germany’s first WRC rally. Loeb participated in one of the team’s most incentive testing sessions yet. He and Daniel Elena ran on the final day following work from the three works drivers.

Team principal Yves Matton said: Everything appears to be following on consistently after the Tour de Corse, where we showed how competitive the C3 WRC is on tarmac. As has often been the case this season, the race is bound to be very tight. We aim to be among the frontrunners but it’s difficult to make any predictions, especially as the weather is likely to significantly influence the way that the race plays out.”

Toyota will want to continue their impressive debut season and after a win last time out in Finland, the likes of Latvala, Hanninen and Lappi will be keen for more success.