Photo Credit: Hyundai Motorsport The WRC's European season is in full swing, and after the roller coaster ride in the hills of Portugal the WRC heads to Italy and the isle of Sardinia for round 6 of the 2016 championship.
After a thrilling event in Portugal which saw differing fortunes for several of the WRC's major players, Sardinia looks set to be a classic, with the windy, narrow and technical gravel tracks adding more spice to the mixture. Sebastien Ogier has not won a world rally since February, which for him is something of an eternity. This means the Frenchman will be all guns blazing next weekend to try and defy his road position and take a fourth consecutive Sardinian win. However, across the VW garage there should be stiff competition. Jari-Matti Latvala has been dogged with bad luck this season, and will be hoping that finally his fortunes may change on the Italian gravel. If he is in the groove, he will be hard to stop as he starts 6th on the road. Volkswagen Motorsport II ace Andreas Mikkelsen is in buoyant mood as he talks up a title challenge to Ogier. He'll be looking to continue the fine form he showed on Saturday and Sunday in Portugal. Rivals Hyundai will also be looking for a strong Sardinia after claiming a double podium in 2015. Hayden Paddon returns to the scene of his maiden WRC podium 12 months ago, and will be after a strong rally after his car burnt out in the Portuguese undergrowth. The team have incredibly managed to build the Kiwi a new car for the rally after the old one was completely destroyed. Driving Hyundai #4 will once again be Dani Sordo, who has claimed 3 consecutive 4th place finishes on the last 3 rallies. He will be looking to go one, two or even three steps better when the rally kicks off next week. Like Latvala, Thierry Neuville has had a tough season after a strong opening round in Monte-Carlo. Dogged by a lot of mechanical gremlins and driver error in Mexico, Neuville sits almost 100 points behind championship leader Ogier after just 5 rallies, making a top result in Sardinia essential. The fourth and final Hyundai starting the event will belong to Kevin Abbring and Seb Marshall. Abbring will be looking to pick up his pace and avoid silly mistakes like he did in Portugal last time out. Flying the flag for the blue oval will once again be Mads Ostberg and Eric Camilli. Ostberg had a poor rally in Portgual suffering various issues, which came on the back of a lacklustre Argentina. Mads will be hopeful he and the team will change their fortunes and rediscover their pace. By contrast, team mate Eric Camilli has had a stellar couple of rallies. A maiden points finish in South America was bettered last time out with a fifth place finish in Portugal. Maintaining this form will be the goal for Camilli. Rally d'Italia Sardegna 2016 gets underway next week. Who do you think will win?
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January 2018
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