Photo Credit: Nick Bradshaw / Floor It Photography With the superb performance of home heroes Elfyn Evans and Daniel Barritt on last weekend's Wales Rally GB, you could be forgiven for not looking beyond the headlines. The event is one of the trickiest rallies in the world, with such changeable grip and unpredictable weather making it a real test of a driver's endurance and skill behind the wheel. Hard enough then for a seasoned-pro, but even harder for somebody making their first competitive outing of the year. I hear you call Elfyn Evans and Tom Cave forward (who took third in WRC2) for performances of the rally. I'll raise you: John MacCrone. The Scotsman kept himself out of trouble, steering his Ford Fiesta R5 to 21st overall and second privateer home, without having a driven a special stage in anger in 2017 before Tir Prince on Thursday 26th October. "A couple of things fell through when trying to get a championship run together at the start of the year," MacCrone explains, "so we decided that GB was attainable as there was still time left to secure the required budget. It's been something that we have worked towards all year. "Our preparation mainly consisted of watching onboards from previous years. Prior to this year I'd only done GB once back in 2011 and none of the stages were run in the same format back then so this was the best way for me to familiarise myself. We had a test on the Sunday before recce where I did around 50 miles, but that was it." After spending the best part of a year on the sidelines, MacCrone's expectations were realistic ahead of the British round of the World Championship. "My aim before the event was just to make sure I got to the end," he admits. "After waiting all year for the rally the last thing I wanted was to be sitting in a ditch on the Friday afternoon! "Generally I'm fairly happy with how it all went. I still feel like I'm learning in this car as I've not done too many stage miles in it despite winning events, especially when you look at how much experience my competition had with the R5's." The advantage of diving into the deep end with such a tough rally however is it's easier to identify what areas you need to work on. "I hadn't ever made pace notes with a four wheel drive car before on gravel and it's something I definitely need to improve on. Through rustiness I made too many mistakes, sliding wide here and there, which all adds up over the course of a stage and at this level you can't get away with those mistakes if you want to be at the front. "We had a bad run on Saturday night in the fog too, but so did plenty of others! These are all things that can be ironed out with more time in the car. "We really enjoyed the stages, especially the challenge of the longer ones and the buzz of it being a WRC event. Saturday was a big day and I think between leaving parc ferme in the morning and returning to service at night we were out there for 17 hours! I enjoyed every second of it." Photo Credit: Bex Hinton / MCR Motorsport Media MacCrone's M-Sport built Fiesta was being looked after by preparation specialists Dom Buckley RSC on the event. Their experience helped him as despite having some experience with the Fiesta R5, GB was MacCrone's first time in the car with the Evo 2 upgrade package equipped.
"Dom Buckley RSC prepared the car to highest standard and it certainly drove that way," he said. "There was a noticeable difference in the engine upgrade and it just felt magic. It took my brain a fair few miles to catch up with how fast everything was happening!" MacCrone's career has followed a difficult trajectory. Bursting onto the scene of the British Rally Championship at the turn of the decade, the 28 year old was forced to progress sideways rather than forwards with the demise of the series and his own budget constrains. A proud Tobermory boy, the Mull Rally is an event close to his heart. Twice a winner in 2013 and 2016, his performance last year was particularly special. 2015 had ended tragically with the death of his co-driver Andrew Mort, so to fight back the emotions and win on Mull the following year showed great strength of character and was the perfect tribute to Mort. You're unlikely to meet a more humble person around the service park than John MacCrone. It's an infectious trait that rubs off on those around him and you can't help but wish him well. He commented on his Facebook page after the event: "Still smiling after an outing in such an awesome machine at the weekend! After a long day off I truly realise how lucky and privileged I am to get to enjoy such a buzz. This drug is the best sh*t going! As with every rally I do, a tip of the cap to the big fella looking over upstairs!" But what does the future hold? Will his successful run on Wales Rally GB lead to further opportunities? "I really hope it does," MacCrone replied, "because the bug has bitten hard again! "It never goes away but after having not managed to make anything happen this year all I've concentrated on is keeping my head down and waiting patiently for Wales. I'll be trying hard to get a campaign of some description sorted and would love to be given the chance to increase my speed in the R5!" We would love that too, John.
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Photo Credit: At World Five world titles is nothing new in the World Rally Championship. Sebastien Loeb saw Tommi Makinen and Juha Kankkunen's previous record of four and raised it, notching up more for himself than the two illustrious Finns have between them. The balance of power has swung away from Finland and towards France, with Sebastiens Loeb and Ogier hogging the WRC title ever since 2004. The quest to become 2017 World Rally Champion was one of the most intriguing and dogged pursuits in recent memory. Ogier's determination to succeed in many ways against the odds marks him out from the rest, and is why I think he may just be the greatest rally driver the sport has ever seen. Ogier headed into the 2017 season on the back of four domineering years with Volkswagen Motorsport where he swept all before him. Ever since the Polo R WRC was unleashed onto the stages it was a winner, beating its opposition to the first scratch time of the 2013 season in the hands of Ogier. 31 rally victories and four drivers titles quickly followed from a culmination of car and driver complimenting each other in perfect harmony. The golden age came to an abrupt end towards the end of the 2016 season when the German marque pulled the plug on its rallying programme in the wake of it diesel emissions scandal. Weeks before Volkswagen's withdrawal Ogier had commented that he wanted to work with Malcolm Wilson in his career, but few would have predicted that a move to M-Sport would soon be on the cards. With limited testing and a minuscule budget compared to manufacturer supported rivals Hyundai, Citroen and Toyota, Ogier and M-Sport headed into the new era of the WRC seemingly on the back foot. But pre-season perception can often prove to be unfounded. Had the hype proved true Kris Meeke would've cruised to the title in his C3 WRC. 2017 was always going to be about reliability said Malcolm Wilson. Outright pace was undoubtedly important, but with everybody running new cars to new technical regulations, how each car would cope with the challenges of the WRC would be key. And that's where M-Sport came good. The Toyota Yaris and Citroen C3 were quick on specific surfaces, the Hyundai i20 Coupe perhaps the all round fastest package, but it was the Ford Fiesta that was quick everywhere. After 12 of 13 rallies, the Fiesta is yet to finish off the podium. The key thing to be noted here is unlike the last four years were the Polo was a cut above, there was no clear winner in the championship. Heading to every rally, there was no guarantee of a certain driver and team achieving a certain result. This season has witnessed at least two wins for every team and seven different drivers reaching the top. It has been one of the most competitive seasons in the history of the World Rally Championship. And that's why 2017 has been Ogier's most impressive yet. His season got off to the best possible start with another win on one of his favourite events in Monte-Carlo, but on his journey to clinching the title in Wales he would only grace the top step of the podium one further time at round six in Portugal. Meanwhile across the service park Hyundai's Thierry Neuville was making a case for himself as the new top dog. Two high key blunders in Monte-Carlo and Sweden while leading may well have cost the Belgian his first world title, but the precedent was set with the pace the Belgian showed. The first win of his campaign came in Corsica, before winning again next time out in Argentina and backing that up with another victory in Poland. A non finish for Ogier in Finland brought Neuville level with the Frenchman in the championship. Two dreadful rallies in Germany and Spain obliterated Neuville's title dream, but this battle was about more than just the Belgian's misfortune. Much like his former Citroen team mate Loeb, Ogier is a genius. He knows how to play the long game, how to win a championship. There were signs of this during his spell with Volkswagen Motorsport but it has never been more evident than this year in a Red Bull backed Fiesta. Photo Credit: At World Sebastien Ogier has not been the quickest driver throughout 2017, or the second quickest. Maybe not even the third quickest. Ogier won the 2017 title with the perfect blend of his head and his right foot. With a car that wasn't far superior to its opposition and that was also unfamiliar to him at the start of the season, a different set of Ogier's skill came to the fore. To prove Ogier's guile we must cite another of the sport's all time greats: Colin McRae. The flying Scot is world famous for his never say die attitude. McRae was obsessed with being the fastest everywhere, winning every split, every stage, every rally. This won him several world rallies in one of the most competitive eras ever in the late '90s and early 2000's, but throughout his decade at the top he only ever won world title. Sebastien Ogier adopted the opposite approach. Aware that he wasn't able to win everywhere, he chose to not give it all in a bid for glory and instead scoop up as many points as he could from each weekend. Maximum efficiency. Remember what I was saying about Neuville being fast but throwing points away? There's a reason the Hyundai star wasn't the one celebrating in Wales on Sunday. Ogier's five star campaign sees him join an elusive club. An array of drivers have won rallies for more than one team, but only two men had previously won championships in different machinery. Walter Rohrl and Juha Kankkunen now welcome Ogier in this club, with the Frenchman's performance in an M-Sport Fiesta even more remarkable given the context in which it was achieved. I mentioned before about how the team's budget and resources can't match its neighbours in the service park, but the team's fortunes were also on a negative spiral. The last driver in a Ford to have won a rally was Jari-Matti Latvala in 2012. Ogier returned M-Sport to the winners circle in his first attempt. The team had never won a drivers title before. Ogier duly delivered. The risks were huge for both parties ahead of what will be remembered as a fairy-tale season. Wilson almost broke the bank to sign the champion while Ogier himself had no real idea of how the year and the development of the car would pan out. That will make this even sweeter for him, and the fact he fought so hard for it not from the very front makes this his most impressive achievement yet in the WRC. It was always the one chink in Loeb's armour. Could he have done it elsewhere? All of Loeb's 78 rally wins and nine world titles were achieved with Citroen. But his compatriot has won rallies for Citroen, VW and M-Sport and now championships for the latter two outfits. He arguably remains the only real man to have properly rattled Loeb and let's not forget, he won his first ever stage behind the wheel of a World Rally Car. Loeb will always hold the novelty trump card. Ogier's achivements can be perceived as less special as they have been seen before, and recently too. Even with this fifth title, Ogier is four championships behind Loeb. But don't let that fool you. Many will be quick to call McRae as the greatest of them all, and I would go along with that if we were discussing the fastest, most naturally gifted and spectacular driver in history. Nobody will ever hold the legacy that the Scot did and still does 10 years on from his death. But rallying is all about adaptability. When considering who is the greatest, you must examine who is the most complete driver. Looking past Sebastien Ogier is nigh on impossible. He's always been quick, but 2017 has proved he can do it in two very different environments in two very different ways in very different circumstances. This season was a true underdog story, and everybody loves an underdog. Photo Credit: M-Sport
Photo Credit: M-Sport Do weekends get any better? Round 12 of the 2017 World Rally Championship, Wales Rally GB, will live long in the memory in WRC folklore, but will be particularly special for Malcolm Wilson and his M-Sport team.
The rally was all about the British team, with the squad taking the manufacturers championship, Sebastien Ogier claiming the 2017 World Rally Championship title and Welshman Elfyn Evans winning at home, grabbing his first World Rally Championship win in the process. Evans was utterly dominant. His DMACK rubber was widely expected to give him a small advantage on the muddy and slippery tracks in the Welsh forests, but nobody ever looked like denying Evans his shot at victory. He and co-driver Daniel Barritt were quickest on shakedown and continued that form into the rally, taking chunks out of their rivals even when they didn't need to. The pair's win broke Michelin's streak of 92 consecutive victories, crowned the seventh different winner of the season and the third debut victor of 2017. And if that wasn't enough, Evans' win was the first win for a British driver at Rally GB since Richard Burns for Subaru in 2000 and topped off M-Sport's perfect weekend. The win will taste that bit sweeter for the Welshman who lost out by 0.7 seconds in Argentina earlier this year, and wasn't even able to compete on his home event 12 months ago, something he described as one of the lowest moments of his rallying career. This result is fantastic for British rallying, and after Kris Meeke's win in Spain, is the first time Britain have won back to back events in the WRC since Richard Burns and Colin McRae run of five wins between them in 2000. British rallying has never been in a stronger place on the world stage. Behind Evans celebrations, Sebastien Ogier was in the box seat to take the world title, but at points during the event it looked as if the pendulum was swinging against him. The two night stages at the end of the marathon leg on Saturday were the deciders. Thick fog made the driving conditions incredibly difficult, with Tanak falling out of contention as he slipped from second to sixth on one stage. Neuville had been quick all day and was sitting in second place before losing out to Ogier in the darkness. The Belgian quickly disposed of his rival as action resumed on Sunday, but second place and a Power Stage win ahead of Ogier who grabbed a couple of extra points to supplement his third position wasn't enough to delay the inevitable. Sebastien Ogier is now a five time World Champion, writing a new chapter in the history books. Check This Is Rally later this week for my thoughts on just what this title means for Ogier. On the event itself, the battle for second place was fierce between Ogier, Neuville, Tanak, Jari-Matti Latvala and Andreas Mikkelsen. Just 12 seconds separated the five drivers before the Power Stage. Fourth place went to Mikkelsen at the expense of Latvala, who had driven superbly all weekend but struggled for confidence on certain stages and surfaces in an ill-handling Yaris WRC. Mikkelsen's Hyundai finished the event a mere 0.5 seconds ahead of the Finn's Toyota. Tanak dropped back in the closing loop. There was no need for the Estonian to push as his championship hopes were all but over. He even slowed in the final corner of the Power Stage to avoid interfering with the bonus points situation which would help his team mate cement the crown. Kris Meeke took seventh for Citroen after a lonely rally. The Ulsterman was in the scrap early on but a misjudgment of a chicane on Saturday and then a chunk of his rear wing mysteriously going missing dropped him back, meaning he was forced to settle for seventh. Hayden Paddon's return to WRC action didn't go to plan in eighth, with a few mechanical issues and a puncture blighting his progress. He finished ahead of Esapekka Lappi who was frustrated all weekend and team mate Dani Sordo who slipped back in the treacherous conditions on Saturday night. Craig Breen retired at the end of Friday after an innocuous half spin saw his C3 beached over a small ditch, while Mads Ostberg struggled with the active central differential on his Fiesta WRC, retiring from Saturday as he felt it was making his car "dangerous" to drive. Juho Hanninen waved goodbye to the WRC in the worst possible fashion. With Tanak moving to Tommi Makinen's team in 2018 and Toyota only taking two Yaris' to Australia, Wales Rally GB is likely to be Hanninen's last rally in the WRC. The Finn was running in the lower realms of the top 10 before being caught out in the most embarrassing of circumstances. He collided with two hail bales at speed on the spectator stage in the grounds of Cholmondeley Castle and broke the suspension of his Toyota. Such contrasting emotions for Elfyn Evans. Having come so near in Argentina he has finally done it, and done it in the area he grew up in. M-Sport have done the triple, winning the manufacturers title for the first time since 2007 and taking their first ever drivers championship. And they too have done it at home as the first privateer outfit to win the WRC. A truly incredible achievement. Any guesses as to where the party is at tonight? As for the World Rally Championship, Rally Australia still beckons. With nothing left up for grabs, it will be an all out attack for glory which is a truly appetising spectacle. What's more for the series' kudos and current health, today's result was truly special. Every single driver inside the top 10 on Wales Rally GB is now a World Rally winner. How many other championships can boast that? Photo Credit: Volkswagen Motorsport It's the big one. Wales Rally GB is next on the 2017 World Rally Championship calendar. A classic around the world, but extra special for British rally fans. And we have the prospect of a British team claiming its first manufacturers championship in a decade and first drivers title ever. The "Rally of Legends" awaits. The penultimate rally of the year is like no other in the championship. The weather is one of the major factors, with the fog and the rain frequent occurrences on Rally GB. You'll seldom witness a bone dry event, and this often means the first man on the road has the advantage for once on a gravel round. But more than anything else, the history of Rally GB is almost unrivaled with loads of titles being decided in the British countryside down the years. It's no coincidence that the last non World Champion to win the event bar Jari-Matti Latvala in 2011 and 2012 was Pentti Airikkala in 1989. Adding to the challenge this year is the return of night stages. This is an interesting complexion for the drivers to overcome but more importantly is a small nod to the sport's past which will be welcomed with open arms. Over the last few years the event has been dominated by the man that has dominated the WRC: Sebastien Ogier. The Frenchman has won the event four years on the bounce, and in that time driving a VW Polo R WRC he has never not been leading the rally, winning the first stage in 2013 and leading every single test since. He heads to Wales this year in M-Sport colours and for the first time since 2012 he makes the trip not already confirmed as World Champion. But he could very easily do the business next weekend, only needing to beat rivals Ott Tanak and Thierry Neuville to crown himself a five times World Rally Champion. The championship is looking to be all but over, but Tanak is already looking ahead to the future having put pen to paper on a deal that will see him trade his Fiesta WRC for a Yaris in 2018. It's a big loss for M-Sport, particularly considering how many chances the squad handed the Estonian, but their loss will most certainly be Toyota's gain. Tanak pushed Ogier very hard in Wales last year so is a real contender for victory. Neuville meanwhile is in need of a return to form, even if his title aspirations are looking rather bleak. Morale and confidence have haunted the Belgian in the past, so he'll need to rediscover his blistering pace to both keep his championship dream alive and to aid him with next season's push. His employer Hyundai are going big guns in Wales. Stealing the manufacturers championship from M-Sport is looking rather improbable with Malcolm Wilson's outfit only needing four points in Wales to crown themselves champions, but the Korean manufacturer are certainly throwing all they have at the event with i20 Coupe's for Neuville, Andreas Mikkelsen, Dani Sordo and Hayden Paddon who returns from the substitute bench in Spain. It will be interesting to see how the Kiwi responds. There'll be an extra large cheer for home heroes Elfyn Evans who missed this event last year and Kris Meeke who is on the back of a second win of the year in his Citroen C3 WRC. The Northern Irishman has poured cold water on the prospect of a first home win since Richard Burns in 2000, but he'll certainly be hoping to use his Spanish victory as a positive springboard for the rest of this season heading into 2018. Meeke will be joined by Khalid Al-Qassimi and Craig Breen who also returns after missing the WRC's mixed surface encounter earlier in the month. Finnish trio Jari-Matti Latvala, Esapekka Lappi and Juho Hanninen also head to Wales fancying their chance at glory. Latvala's season has unraveled somewhat with a string of reliability issues but as a two time winner of Rally GB cannot be discounted. Nor can Lappi, who did well last year in an R5 Skoda and is already a proven winner at this level. Hanninen will arguably be the most hungry however. With the news that Tanak will join Tommi Makinen's outfit next year also came the announcement that co-driver Kaj Lindstrom will step up to the sporting director role Jarmo Lehtinen vacated after Rally Germany. This means that Juho not only misses out on a drive next season but could also lose the chance to compete on Rally Australia, meaning Wales Rally GB will be his last event for the team. It is actually a huge shame, as ever since his maiden podium at home in Finland, Hanninen has been a man possessed. After looking lacklustre at the beginning of the season, the experienced Finn has certainly turned it around and can feel hard done by to lose out on a drive in the WRC. Outside the manufacturer entries, Norwegians Mads Ostberg and Henning Solberg join the party in Fiesta WRC's in what is a record 15 new generation WRC cars on the entry list. Photo Credit: Skoda Motorsport The WRC-2 support series doesn't often get a look-in on This Is Rally, and that is something I am seeking to change going forward, but I really couldn't leave it out ahead of Wales Rally GB with so many British hopefuls joining the fray*.
British Rally Championship front-runners Tom Cave, David Bogie, Matt Edwards and Rhys Yates all start as outsiders to sneak a podium finish or maybe even a win in the Welsh mud. They are joined by WRC-2 regular Gus Greensmith and WRC returnee Matthew Wilson, who swaps his role in front of the camera for Red Bull TV for the cockpit of a Fiesta R5, teaming up with Stuart Loudon in a Tunnock's backed machine. Scottish Rally Champion Euan Thorburn, BTRDA runner-up Callum Black and multiple rally winner John MacCrone all enter too in their R5 Fiesta's. Outside of the British contingent, both Skoda Motorsport and M-Sport field incredibly strong teams. In the green corner, you have WRC-2 Champion Pontus Tidemand who will be joined in the team by Ole Christian Veiby for the first time. This is causing plenty of intrigue, but not as much as M-Sport's line-up. Frenchman Eric Camilli and Teemu Suninen lead the squad's charge, but also driving a Fiesta albeit not in M-Sport colours is teenage sensation Kalle Rovanpera. The son of 2001 Rally Sweden winner Harri has long been touted the "Max Verstappen of rallying", and Wales Rally GB is his first big chance to prove himself. The young Finn finished second on the recent Latvian round of the European Rally Championship on his debut in a Fiesta R5, and has the guarantee of another run out in Australia. Another young Finn looking to impress is Jari Huttunen, who will be looking to put the disappointment of missing out on the ERC Junior U27 title behind him on his competitive debut in a Hyundai i20 R5. Huttunen's one and only WRC-2 outing this year was in a Fabia R5 in Finland and that culminated in a victory, so he can't be ruled out either. He is using Wales as a chance to bed himself into the i20 ahead of his prize drive next year with Hyundai Motorsport. I think that leaves everything covered. The best weekend of the year is now a matter of days away, and the anticipation and fever has already been turned up to 11. Unfortunately I am not able to make the event this year as I've had to be sensible and prioritise my uni work, but we are sure to be treated to an almighty spectacle once again. * If you are reading this abroad I apologise for my national bias Photo Credit: M-Sport Malcolm Wilson M-Sport’s division are one of the cornerstones of the FIA World Rally Championship. They have been around since 1997 when they teamed up with Ford to create the Escort WRC, three variants of the Focus and now two contrasting Fiesta World Rally Cars and are still going strong. Stronger than ever in fact.
After 11 of the 13 rounds of the 2017 championship that has seen exciting new technical regulations introduced, the M-Sport World Rally Team are on the brink of winning both the drivers and manufacturers championship next month with one round to spare. The icing on the cake? The penultimate round happens to be Wales Rally GB, the team’s home rally. What makes this even more incredible is the squad are operating without a major title sponsor or full manufacturer support from Ford. The blue oval does chip in with technical support and a small wad of cash, but it’s nowhere near the levels of cash injection M-Sport’s rivals Hyundai, Citroen and Toyota are receiving. All the team have to do is see one of their three cars finish inside the top 10 in Wales for them to grab their first manufacturers success since Marcus Gronholm and Mikko Hirvonen steered them to glory in 2006 and 2007. This title is the ultimate sign of a team’s success but despite its importance, the one team principal Malcolm Wilson will have a keen eye on is the drivers prize. That’s because his Cumbrian division have never won a drivers’ championship. They’ve come close on a number of occasions – just ask Colin McRae who missed out by two points (2001) and Marcus Gronholm (2007) and Mikko Hirvonen (2009) who were just one point shy – but have yet to seal it. In fact the last driver to win the drivers crown in a Ford was Ari Vatanen all the way back in 1981. The sensational signing of Sebastien Ogier in the off-season represented the team’s best chance, and the Frenchman hasn’t disappointed. The four-time World Champion has been pushed harder in 2017 than in previous years where he dominated for Volkswagen between 2013-2016, but all he has to do to wrap up a fifth consecutive world title is finish ahead of Thierry Neuville (Hyundai) and his team mate Ott Tanak. Even if he doesn’t, Tanak and Neuville would need to outscore Ogier by eight and seven points respectively to take the title battle to the final round in Australia. A historic double championship winning weekend beckons then for M-Sport, and it certainly validates the move to sign Ogier to a one year contract; a move that was funded entirely by Malcolm Wilson’s pocket. Securing his services for 2018 is of course a priority, but Wilson is unwilling to go to the same lengths he did 12 months ago as he needs to protect the strength of his company, meaning Ford need to return to support the team full time or a title sponsor needs to be found to keep the 40-time rally winner. As for Ogier, he’s about to do something few others have managed: win world titles for different teams. Sebastien Loeb holds all the records in world rallying with 78 rally wins and nine consecutive championships, but all of his success came with Citroen. Ogier has won rallies for Citroen, Volkswagen and M-Sport/Ford and has won championships for Volkswagen and most likely M-Sport/Ford now too. The 2017 title could well mean more to him too, given the lack of pre-season preparation he had and that out and out, he and the Fiesta WRC haven’t been the ultimate pace setters this year. That honour has fallen to Belgian Neuville and his Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, but Ogier has been the more consistent, and his car the more durable. Across the 11 rallies, the Fiesta has yet to finish off the podium such has been the car’s reliability. Winning a championship takes more than just being the fastest. It takes guile, calculated driving and a measured approach. Sebastien Ogier has all this in abundance, and despite his own mid-season blip in Poland and Finland, is fully deserving of what he is surely about to win. As for M-Sport, it really is a job well done. After having not won a rally since 2012 prior to this year, two World Rally Championship titles will taste even sweeter. To do it at home is something extra special. Photo Credit: Citroen Racing Round 11 of 13 of the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship was just as exciting as the previous ten, with the battle for the drivers title taking another dramatic twist on the mixed surface challenge thrown up by Catalunya.
Rally RACC Rally de Espana is the only mixed surface event of the WRC season, with the first leg on gravel and the proceeding two on tarmac: stages the drivers frequently liken to a racing circuit. The competition in 2017 has been incredibly close and that again proved to be the case on the championship's return since Germany in mid-August. Sensationally, it was Andreas Mikkelsen that led after Friday on his debut behind the wheel of a Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, but only just, with Sebastien Ogier less than two seconds back after superb tyre management on the 8km tarmac section in the day's longest stage. Ott Tanak, Kris Meeke, and Dani Sordo were all in the leading gaggle, as was Mads Ostberg who led at one point, but Neuville was the biggest loser as his soft tyres wilted in the heat and meant he lost crucial ground to title rival Ogier. There would be one clear winner once the cars were lowered and beefed up for the final two days on the Spanish tar. While others slipped up and others couldn't match him, Citroen's Kris Meeke began to pull clear as early as Saturday's opening test. The C3 WRC is known to be a real force to be reckoned with on sealed surfaces, but the Briton still had to do the job, and that he did. His advantage after Saturday was 13 seconds, at the end of Sunday it was 28 seconds as he won all but the event closing Power Stage on day three to take a fifth career WRC win and his first on tarmac. It couldn't have come at a better time with Rally GB on the horizon, and will serve as a much needed confidence boost for the man that was dropped for Rally Poland in June. Behind Meeke, the destiny of the 2017 World Rally Championship was being all but decided. 2013, 14, 15 and 16 champion Ogier grabbed second place in his Fiesta RS WRC after an intense battle with his M-Sport team mate Ott Tanak. That in itself is a decisive swipe for Mr Ogier, but Neuville's experience in Spain was a nightmare and leaves him with an almighty task to become the first World Rally Champion not from France since Petter Solberg in 2003. The Belgian's rally was first compounded with his incorrect tyre selection on Friday which saw him fall back from the leading group. On Saturday he had no choice but to push, already 17 points behind his rival in the championship standings. A somewhat sluggish start to the morning from Ogier and a good one for Neuville saw the Hyundai pilot close to within a few seconds of his target, but from there it began to unravel. Hydraulic issues blighted his i20, and in a panic to make the following test on time, Neuville spun his car on the road section as with no hydraulic pressure the rear of the car locked up. He made it to the start of SS9 but incurred a 30 second time penalty and was sporting some heavy rear-end damage on his Alzenau-built machine. Then, his two wingmen both retired at the same spot on the same stage with the same problem in the afternoon. Both Dani Sordo and Mikkelsen cut a corner and ran over an innocuous looking drain cover that caused no crews any bother in the morning, but damaged the steering on both their i20's. Home hero Sorod was understandably the more gutted, and proved what could've been by winning the Power Stage on Sunday. But Neuville's hopes of his team mates taking points off the Fiestas were now gone. To round off a torrid weekend, the suspension on Neuville's i20 broke on Sunday after a cut, just like it did in Germany, meaning he now finds himself 38 points adrift of Ogier and third in the championship behind Tanak with just Wales Rally GB and Rally Australia left on the calendar. Hyundai's number one needs to out-score Ogier by 14 points or more to prevent the Frenchman claiming a fifth successive title in Wales at the end of the month. Juho Hanninen and Kaj Lindstrom took fourth overall in Spain behind the wheel of their Toyota Yaris WRC. The Finnish dairy farmer was the only Toyota pilot that made the finish of round 11, and he did so within a minute of winner Kris Meeke's overall time. Talk about a transformation in form, Tommi Makinen's decision regarding who drives for the team just got that bit harder. Team mates Esapekka Lappi and Jari-Matti Latvala had indifferent rallies. Lappi hit the armco barriers on the final day to end his day early, while Latvala never made it beyond Friday as an oil leak after the rough gravel tests damaged his Yaris to an extent that was too great for it to continue on Saturday and Sunday. Ostberg claimed fifth with Torstein Erisken alongisde, ahead of Stephane Lefebvre and Gabin Moreau who had a quiet rally and Elfyn Evans and Daniel Barritt who were nowhere near the pace all weekend in seventh. The Welshman will now be looking ahead to his home event in three weeks. WRC2 winner Teemu Suninen finished eight at the wheel of a Fiesta R5, ahead of Jan Kopecky who had the pace to beat Suninen but not the luck in his Fabia R5. Ole Christian Veiby completed the top ten. Attention now swings to one of the classics on the World Rally Championship calendar, that is special to all British rally fans: Wales Rally GB. Keep an eye on This Is Rally as as well as the usual preview and review pieces from the WRC, there may be some additional interviews and features from Brits up and down the field! Photo Credit: Hyundai Motorsport The month of September has been a long one for fans of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC). The last time we were treated to the world's best drivers battling each other in the world's best cars was in Germany in the middle of August which now feels like an eternity ago. All that changes next weekend as the WRC returns with its only mixed surface event: Rally de Espana.
One rally, two personalities. The Spanish round of the World Championship is like no other. Day one is contested on gravel roads before a total switch in car set-up and driver mind-set with two hard charging days on tarmac often likened to as a racing circuit by the drivers. This year this tricky event is yet another battleground for the most exciting championship battle in years. Sebastien Ogier took a potentially decisive leap ahead in Germany with a third place finish in his M-Sport Fiesta RS WRC. The suspension broke on Thierry Neuville's Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC which left him stranded early on Saturday but crucially no points were to be added to his tally. Ott Tanak reminded us and the two title protagonists that this may yet be a three horse race with a stunning victory on the German asphalt, that both closed him to within 16 points of Neuville but more importantly gave M-Sport some breathing space in its manufacturers squabble with Hyundai Motorsport. Hyundai has responded however with the addition of Neuville's good friend and Ogier's former team mate Andreas Mikkelsen. The Norwegian has been drafted in to pilot an i20 on each of the final three rounds of the 2017 season, with it later being confirmed that the three-time winner will drive for the Alzenau based squad in 2018 and '19, putting an end to his relationship with Citroen Racing and the scandal that surrounded him after he was left without a permanent drive in the wake of Volkswagen's shock departure 11 months ago. Mikkelsen's presence in the WRC's most impressive service structure can't be underestimated with his sublime pace and consistent nature. Neuville now has his wingman, who has a far superior road position than Ogier's, Ott Tanak, on Friday. That is if the rain stays away. Dani Sordo is Hyundai's hidden gem. Who can forget the Spaniard's scintillating performance on his home event last year? As for Hayden Paddon, he'll be back later in the year. The noise from the red corner of the service park has all been about the two most successful drivers in the sport's history. It's no secret that Citroen team principal Yves Matton's number one priority is securing Sebastien Ogier's signature for 2018 and beyond, which appears to hinge on how involved Ford become in M-Sport's operation. But arguably the bigger news surrounds Sebastien Loeb, who is edging closer to a semi-return next year at the wheel of a C3 WRC on selected rounds. Emerging from those shadows: Kris Meeke. The Ulsterman is beginning to slip under the radar which could actually do him the world of good, and with Mikkelsen no longer in the team, Meeke's place is now all but secure both for this year and next. Stephane Lefebvre and Khalid Al-Qassimi join him in Spain as Craig Breen misses out. Toyota Gazoo Racing hold the wildcards. Jari-Matti Latvala is a strong contender for victory, and by rights should still be in the title equation. As it is, two devastating mechanical retirements have damaged his championship bid for another year at least, but the Finn is driving better than ever. As a serial second placed finisher in Spain, don't bet against him going one better in 2017. Esapekka Lappi, the WRC's newest winner, could also spring a surprise, while Juho Hanninen will be looking to continue his sudden upward trajectory of form in his fight to keep his drive next season. Spain has witnessed some brilliant battles down the year and played its part in the way championships have swung. Carlos Sainz vs Colin McRae in 1995 anyone? A Sebastien Ogier win this time next week could be the penultimate nail in Thierry Neuville's coffin. Photo Credit: Hyundai Motorsport The FIA World Rally Championship has exploded after news and speculation broke on Tuesday in the gap between Rallye Deutschland and Rally de Espana next month, with the "silly-season" merry-go-round gathering more pace with every passing day. So what do we know? And what we can expect to hear in the coming months in the lead up to Rallye Monte-Carlo 2018?
The big news surrounds the man that has been the source of the majority of all driver speculation this year: Andreas Mikkelsen. Following Volkswagen's departure from the WRC, the Norwegian was left without a drive for 2017 despite dominating the closing round of the 2016 season. He was therefore forced to drop a category and compete in WRC2 at the beginning of the year, driving a Fabia R5 for Skoda Motorsport. After speculation that Skoda may be building a WRC car and that one of the 2017 spec Polo R's would be wheeled out with Andreas' name on the door was rubbished, Mikkelsen was brought into the Citroen Racing fold for Rally Sardinia, and would compete in Poland and Germany afterwards to help out the struggling outfit. After a fine second place in Germany, Mikkelsen seemed upbeat about both his immediate future this year and his long-term plans for next year where he is aiming to become World Rally Champion. It has now been revealed why, with Andreas joining his good friend Thierry Neuville at Hyundai Motorsport for the remainder of the season. All we know in concrete is that both Mikkelsen and Neuville will compete in Spain, GB and Australia, with the third car being driven by either Dani Sordo or Hayden Paddon on those three rallies. It is widely expected that Sordo will pilot the i20 on his home event next month. Hyundai's press release did not mention anything about 2018 however. The 2018 season itself is a source of speculation, with the World Motorsport Council expecting to hear a proposal for teams to up their car tally to four and thus have three point scoring cars per event. If that is the case, are Hyundai simply striking early in order to put themselves in the best possible situation for next season, or are either Sordo or Paddon under pressure to perform? That we don't know, but what is clear is this news is a big coup for not just Mikkelsen himself and Hyundai Motorsport but also Thierry Neuville. The Belgian has been the team's main point scorer this season, which has meant whenever he has struggled he hasn't had the same support network, for one reason or another, that rivals M-Sport have had. Bringing Mikkelsen in means Thierry now has a wingman who can take points off M-Sport and Sebastien Ogier, and for the team it means they are bagging a wealth of experience with Andreas' knowledge of the defunct Polo R and the C3 WRC - two cars he has spent time developing. You would expect EVEN Management to be trying hard to make Mikkelsen's Hyundai switch a permanent one if they haven't done so already, but for the team to bring in him now is a no-brainer for their championship aspirations. It has also done Kris Meeke the favour of all favours. Shortly after Hyundai's news, Citroen revealed who would be behind the wheel of their C3 WRC's for Rally Spain. Mikkelsen was, on paper, an obvious bet after his development work and podium place on the German asphalt, but with the Norwegian changing into blue the somewhat outcast Kris Meeke has been handed a lifeline. Meeke's season has been one of massive disappointment, particularly when you think back to the pre-2017 hype where the Northern Irishman was tipped by many as a shoo-in for the drivers title. Citroen scaled back their WRC involvement in 2016 in order to focus ahead on 2017 and develop the C3, with Meeke subsequently making sporadic and sublime appearances in a PH Sport run DS3 WRC. But the expectation never materialised; partly because the C3 WRC turned out to be a rather nervous and unstable beast to tame, and partly because Meeke was struggling to keep the car on the road. Even when he won in Mexico, he flew off a left hander on the final stage, nearly ruining his weekend. Clipping a bollard on Thursday night's superspecial in Germany after being benched in Poland was the tip of a disastrous iceberg for Meeke, with the Brit nervously awaiting his fate before Citroen's announcement this week. Only the Spanish entries have been revealed thus far, with Stephane Lefebvre and Khalid Al-Qassimi partnering Meeke in red with Craig Breen returning for Wales Rally GB and Rally Australia. Has Andreas Mikkelsen's move across the service park saved Meeke's bacon? I certainly think so. He should be safe for the rest of the year and for 2018 now; a little more on that below. And that leads us on to the second part of this article. What news can we expect over the coming weeks and months? Mikkelsen to Hyundai has certainly got the ball rolling, prompting a rather intriguing tweet from Citroen Racing team principal Yves Matton. The Belgian wished Mikkelsen good luck with his move to Alzenau, before saying that Citroen "were chasing other priorities." Who could that be in reference to I wonder? The obvious and most logical answer is former Citroen man Sebastien Ogier. The multiple World Champion is having a stellar debut year with Malcolm Wilson's M-Sport division, powering his Ford Fiesta WRC into a 17 point championship lead with just three rallies left. But a bug-bear of the Frenchman's is M-Sport's lack of manufacturer support. Yes, Ford supply M-Sport with parts and technical support, but the blue oval is not fully backing M-Sport's push and with the team's ongoing success it appears unlikely that they will. When either Ogier, Tanak or Evans do well it is a Ford they are driving and a Ford that is being lauded in the public eye. This means great exposure is coming for free for those in Detroit, and as they say, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." If Ford don't swoop in fairly soon however they are in serious risk of losing the best rally driver in the world. Ogier is happy at M-Sport, but has made it clear he wants to be in a manufacturer backed team going forward. Citroen would appear the most logical option. Many believe that Hyundai were never really in the running, but Mikkelsen's semi-permanent move waters down any wild suggestions. Toyota are a promising and improving team, but is Tommi Makinen going to risk upsetting team leader Jari-Matti Latvala who is relishing his current working environment? You would think not. Ogier famously fell out with Citroen during his final year with the team in 2011, feeling the Versailles outfit were favouring illustrious team mate Sebastien Loeb. Ogier left for VW, and the rest is history. Could he go back to Paris? Absolutely. Many of the key members in the relationship breakdown six years ago have left, and crucially Ogier would unquestionably get whatever he desired. He has earned that right. Kris Meeke has perhaps struggled as team leader, so could flourish as a more than capable number two, with the improving and solid Craig Breen piloting a third C3. That sounds like championships to me, and Citroen will be keen to make this happen. The other big rumours are surrounding Ott Tanak and Elfyn Evans. Tanak has hit the form of his life this year for M-Sport, with a move to Toyota being murmured around the service park. Realistically, this is another that depends on M-Sport's ability to keep up with the manufacturer supported Hyundai Motorsport, Citroen Racing and Toyota Gazoo Racing. The Estonian driver looks serenely comfortable in a Fiesta, so would maybe be taking a risk to leave. Evans has also been linked with a drive behind the wheel of a Yaris, but he is expected to stay at M-Sport. It's all a little bit up in the air, but what we do know is Andreas Mikkelsen will be in a Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC for the rest of the 2017 season. This year is continuing to deliver and we haven't got any cars out there on the stages! Photo Credit: M-Sport Ott Tanak and Martin Jarveoja bagged their second WRC career victory on the tricky sealed surface challenge of ADAC Rallye Deutschland ahead of Andreas Mikkelsen / Anders Jaeger and Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia.
The event moved west from Trier to Bostalsee and seemingly the form book was left behind in the ancient city. Torrential rain made conditions treacherous at best on Friday's opening leg, with Dani Sordo, Andreas Mikkelsen and then Ott Tanak taking the rally lead. Once inheriting the advantage, Tanak would never look back to claim a surprise and emphatic victory on the tenth round of the World Rally Championship. The Estonian had it all under control. His performance bagged M-Sport their first ever win on the German round of the championship and underlines him as a serious championship threat in the future and present with a win on gravel and now tarmac. The result moves him to within 16 points of second place Thierry Neuville and 33 off his team mate Sebastien Ogier. This also helped M-Sport extend their gap in the manufacturers standings to 64 points. Mikkelsen's second place for Citroen Racing was equally as impressive. The Norwegian was well in the mix before a spin and a stall on Saturday, and on just his third rally with the French team, took the C3 WRC's second podium finish. Former team mate Sebastien Ogier came third to re-open his championship lead. The talk pre-event was all about the title fight between Ogier and Thierry Neuville. The battling duo headed to Germany level on points, but a third place finish and a further two Power Stages points to boot let the defending champion establish a 17 point lead with just three rallies in Spain, the United Kingdom and Australia to come. Neuville was dealt a cruel blow. On Saturday's opening test around the Panzerplatte spectator test, an abrasive cut wrecked the rear left suspension on his Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, leaving the wheel dragging at a 45 degree angle and forcing his retirement. The Belgian restarted on Sunday under Rally2 with the aim of securing Power Stage points, but could only manage sixth fastest meaning he left his home event empty handed. He now has it all to do in the remaining rallies to topple the master from his perch. 14 seconds was all that separated the fourth, fifth and sixth placed drivers in Germany with Juho Hanninen finishing ahead of Craig Breen and Elfyn Evans. The Finn clearly got the memo from Toyota Gazoo Racing and the worldwide press that he needed to up his game, with an incredible performance in Germany. Hot off the back of his maiden WRC podium at home in Finland, Hanninen was more impressive here. Winning the mammoth Panzerplatte test the first time round, he overcame a broken damper to then re-haul Elfyn Evans for fourth spot. Craig Breen deposed Evans in the final test to grab his usual position of fifth, after struggling in the wet conditions on Friday. Evans had a slightly disappointing event for his now high standards. Dan Barritt's door was flapping open in Panzerplatte which hampered him, as did his DMACK rubber which wasn't quite up to scratch on the final leg. Jari-Matti Latvala took seventh on another weekend that promised much more, with yet another electrical issue occurring aboard his Yaris WRC. In Germany it wasn't as serious as in Poland or Finland, allowing the Finn to continue and seal a points finish. Enduring another tough weekend were Hayden Paddon and Seb Marshall. Asphalt has never been the Kiwi's happiest hunting ground, but punctures all but ruined any chance of a decent result. The extended break between Germany and the next round in Spain will give Paddon the chance to re-set and hopefully come back stronger. Armin Kremer, trying out a 2017 spec Fiesta RS WRC, finished ninth ahead of WRC2 winner Eric Camilli in an R5 Fiesta. Pontus Tidemand claimed third in the category behind Skoda Motorsport stable mate Jan Kopekcy to clinch the WRC2 title with three rounds remaining. The Swede has been dominant in his Fabia R5 this year, and will be hoping his crushing performances, including beating Andreas Mikkelsen in a straight fight, will be enough to secure him a 2018 WRC seat. But he faces stiff competition for one of those.. When was the last time Kris Meeke wasn't mentioned this far down in one of my This Is Rally reviews? The honest answer: I can't remember. And I genuinely don't think the Ulsterman has had a weekend as bad as this one. His event was over on Thursday evening when on the tricky superspecial city stage, he clipped a concrete barrier and wrecked his steering. He retired a second time on Saturday with mechanical issues and wouldn't restart on Sunday. Dani Sordo had the pace to win the event he won four years ago, leading the rally and winning the Power Stage to prove it. But he outbraked himself on Friday morning and ended up 40m from the road in a bank. Esapekka Lappi meanwhile couldn't repeat his Finland heroics, clipping a wall and retiring from Friday's action. With ten rounds gone and three remaining, the 2017 title race continues to excite. Touted as a clash of the titans between Ogier and Neuville yes, but this is becomingly increasingly inaccurate. Tanak's points haul and performance makes him a real threat and outside bet, but M-Sport's number two is relying on trouble befalling the others. And don't forget if Latvala's Toyota hadn't packed up in Poland and Finland he would have been right there too. Isn't it great to have such a fiercely competitive, and better still, genuinely unpredictable championship...? Photo Credit: M-Sport The fight to become the 2017 FIA World Rally Champion has been turned up to 11, with title protagonists Sebastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville heading into the tenth round of the 13 round season level on championship points. Germany will host this epic encounter, and is arguably the perfect battleground to separate the Frenchman and the Belgian.
Rallye Deutschland is like no other asphalt rally in the world championship. The event is often likened to as "three rallies in one", with tight and junction-littered vineyard tests, faster and more open country roads and the infamous concrete Baumholder tank region (with the dreaded hinkelsteins lining the route) facing the crews across the three days of competition. With such a diverse skill-set needed to succeed, it's no surprise that only the best win here. Nine time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb was unbeaten all the way from the event's inception in 2002 until 2010, with only a puncture in what was a hugely controversial event in 2011 preventing him from extending his remarkable winning streak. Compatriot Ogier took the win, before Loeb retook glory the following year. Dani Sordo and Thierry Neuville took their maiden WRC victories in 2013 and 2014 respectively. Ogier suffered a troubled event for Volkswagen in these years, but returned to the winners' circle in 2015 and 16, aiming for the hattrick this year for M-Sport who have yet to win in Germany. Both the championship chasers stand in good stead heading into the weekend. Neuville will lead the crews away on Friday morning for the first time in his career, which if it's wet could be a serious advantage. Ogier is a three time winner but is on shaky form having had a poor couple of rallies in Poland and Finland. Neuville has the most wins in the new generation of World Rally Car and won the only pure asphalt rally we've done in Corsica, so Germany could be an opportunity for him to assert his dominance and stretch his legs. But both men also have an important role to play in the WRC's other major championship: the manufacturers battle. M-Sport and Hyundai are in a ding-dong battle for the title, with the latter looking strong on paper to take a chunk out of M-Sport's lead with Dani Sordo in their ranks. Hayden Paddon is the elephant in the room. His season was basically over before it began with a freak accident on the very first stage of Rallye Monte-Carlo. From then on he has been building his confidence back up and undergone a change in the car with Sebastian Marshall coming in to replace John Kennard. The pace looks to be back with a second in Poland underlining this, but the luck still isn't there. Tarmac isn't Paddon's cup of tea but he could spring a surprise if he keeps his head down. Over in the Cumbrian corner, they will be quietly confident. Not only do they have Sebastien Ogier whose record speaks for itself, they have one of the quickest out and out men in the championship in Ott Tanak. The Estonian is more confident on the rocky tests of the WRC, but has come on leaps and bounds this year so can't be discounted. But it's the man in the DMACK liveried Fiesta that could be Malcolm Wilson's real star this weekend. Elfyn Evans has long been touted as a future WRC winner. His incredible yet agonising brush with success in Argentina was the indicator, his sublime rise to second place in the Finns' backyard last month was the proof. Both those stand out performances were on gravel, but the Welshman is arguably a more accomplished tarmac driver. Remember his incredible run on Corsica two years ago? He took his first ever stage win in Germany in 2014, so if conditions play to him he could be a real dark horse. Fresh on the back of their best ever result, Tommi Makinen's Toyota Gazoo Racing will have their eyes set on further success in the German countryside. But will the Yaris WRC be bulletproof? Jari-Matti Latvala will be hoping so, after a loss of at least 30 points from the last two rallies with mechanical issues aboard his example. It was particularly heartbreaking in Finland where he retired from the lead and was set to make huge gains on Ogier and Neuville who endured tough events. Still, all being well, Latvala has an enviable asphalt record so if the car is up to scratch he'll be the man to propel it to glory. Man of the moment Esapekka Lappi won this rally at the wheel of a Skoda Fabia R5 in WRC2 last year, but is widely expected to not be right at the top of the pyramid this weekend. But I could easily be wrong, such has been the Finn's rate of progression. Juho Hanninen bagged his first career podium at home, but talk is still of the experienced Finn being replaced next year at Toyota. He needs to use his podium result as a springboard for better things. Citroen Racing are dreaming of better things. Recently having the all conquering Sebastien Loeb testing their car will surely have been put to good use, and Germany could finally see a decent result for the struggling outfit. The C3 WRC was blistering on Corsica before Kris Meeke's engine lost oil, so the French car could well be the one to beat near Trier. Meeke himself has only finished in the points twice this year, so his approach could be erring on the side of caution. Andreas Mikkelsen returns to the team after completing Sardinia and Poland, with Craig Breen in the third car. The battle for WRC2 is also worth keeping an eye on with a titanic works battle between M-Sport Ford and Skoda. In the blue corner, step forward the forgotten man Eric Camilli. Camilli had a shocker on this event 12 months ago in a WRC Fiesta but is known for his asphalt speed. Teemu Suninen returns to the R5 after his WRC exploits, where he very nearly took a podium place on just his second event in the top flight. Representing the green team is runaway championship leader Pontus Tidemand who will be aware of how much he needs to impress given the amount of talent on the periphery of the WRC these days. Jan Kopecky joins the Swede in a very strong line-up. Others to look out for are Jon Armstrong in the first of his DMACK prize drives and fellow Brit Gus Greensmith whose pace in Finland took everyone by surprise. As for the main class, I'm going to save my own blushes and not make a pre-event prediction. Except I will, and say Ogier. |
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January 2018
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