Jari-Matti Latvala took his second consecutive win in France last weekend on the 2015 Tour de Corse as the WRC returned to the island for the first time in 7 years, with team mate Sebastien Ogier languishing in 15th place after a deflated tyre and a gear selection issue. M-Sport's Elfyn Evans took an incredible and much needed 2nd place ahead of Norway's Andreas Mikkelsen, who claims he doesn't like driving on tarmac compared with gravel and snow, although this season he has finished on the podium on both sealed surface events. Photo Credit: Volkswagen Motorsport The rally route comprised of 9 special stages, but only 7 were run due to substantial flood and water damage on the wayto SS2 and 4 Casamozza - Ponte Leccia, and reported landslides in the stage itself forced the event organisers to cancel the test. Corsica was under intense rainfall of up to 200mm for 24 hours as a weather phenomenon similar to a tropical storm known as a medicane hit the island. This made conditions exceptionally tricky, being described at one point like "driving on [cling] film." However, that brief introduction doesn't really paint the weekend out as a whole, and I'd like to take you through a few of the weekend's talking points I feel are definitely worth mentioning. Latvala On TargetBefore round 11 of the 2015 World Rally Championship got underway, Jari-Matti Latvala - who has recently lost the chance of winning the title - declared he wanted to win the final three rallies of the season in Corsica, Spain and Wales. And thanks to his victory on the Mediterranean island, his 15th career win, he is a third of the way there! Many expected the event to be a battle between Volkswagen team mates Latvala and newly crowned triple champion Sebastien Ogier, and sure enough after the first special stage it was the World Champion who was leading the way. The event was meant to be something of a homecoming for the Frenchman, returning to race in his home country after recently winning the title. However, much like the England Rugby Team (being Scottish I couldn't resist!) there was no home advantage for Ogier, who first picked up a puncture and then retired with a gearbox related problem on the road section back to the service park in Corte. That left Latvala the firm favourite, and in the end he won by 43 seconds, to become the second Finn to win in Corsica after Markku Alen did so in 1983 and 84. Andreas Mikkelsen came home in his customary position of third. However, there was absolutely no doubt as to who the man of the rally was... Photo Credit: M-Sport Elfyn Evans - Star Of The ShowIt's hard to think of the most appropriate word to sum up Elfyn Evans' performance on the 2015 Tour de Corse, I think 'sublime' is closest to the mark. Certainly nothing short of that. Nobody could have expected him to finish 2nd, especially after his frankly diabolical performance in Australia. The result is not only then massive for his confidence, but came at the perfect time. It was on the second stage of the weekend - SS3 - where the young Welshman really made his mark, blitzing his opposition by 30 seconds to storm into the overnight lead. The conditions were as challenging as the drivers are likely to face all year, which made the drive even more impressive. Perhaps the strongest part of Elfyn's weekend is that he managed to stay in touch with Latvala on day 2, and when the conditions dried out on day 3, hold off the other VW (which is let's be honest the superior car in the championship by a good distance) of Andreas Mikkelsen for the second step on the podium. It was a stand out performance that made everybody stand up and take notice, and drew praise from rally winner Latvala. And on a personal level, I always love to see British drivers come through, especially ones I have seen rally in the UK like Evans. And with Kris Meeke on the scene this year and potentially next year too, we may now have 2 good British drivers who can fight for top honours like the glory days of Colin McRae and Richard Burns! Although I may be getting ahead of myself on that one... Photo Credit: Citroen Racing | Hyundai Motorsport Citroen vs HyundaiCorsica vs AlsaceThe final talking point I want to touch on is really a debate. Which rally should be the French round of the championship: the historic Tour de Corse or the Alsace event. Team principals, in particular VW's Jost Capito, were critical of the organisation of this year's Corsican rally, saying it was ridiculous that they should have to have team members staying in a number of various hotels. Malcolm Wilson slated the service park, claiming they'd gone from the best in Alsace to something nowhere near as good in Corsica. Drivers were also not fond of the itinerary, which featured a lot of road section and only 9 special stages. They also expressed fears over lack of spectators. Not being involved in the rally itself but just observing from the comfort of my student accommodation on WRC+, I can't really weigh in with much insight here, but do understand where the drivers at least are coming from with the lack of stages. I don't see why they couldn't run a stage in between some of the stages to cut down on the normal road miles. Spectator wise, I suppose it's natural that there were less because the rally is based on an island which is less accessible than mainland France, but conversely I suspect TV audiences may be higher with Corisca being such a beautiful and historic round of the championship. I was a fan of the Alsace event don't get me wrong, but it was in a way quite similar to Germany. Corsica is unique, and in my opinion having such historic events is crucial. But organisers if by the off chance you are reading, maybe work on the itinerary? Thanks for reading. Let's see if Latvala can continue his run of form into the mixed surface Spanish event... One of the most intriguing battles of the second half of this season has been the race for 2nd place in the manufacturers standings between Citroen Racing and Hyundai Motorsport.
It was Hyundai who held onto the position heading to the serene French island, and who in my opinion at least looked to be fielding the strongest line up. In their main squad was 2011 and 2012 winners of the Corsican event Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo, whilst Citroen had Kris Meeke who first and foremost was aiming on finishing and Mads Ostberg who is by no means a tarmac ace, and was recovering from broken ribs sustained in a recce crash in Australia last month. However, after just 1.2km of competitive action, the #7 Hyundai i20 WRC had clouted the right rear on the side of a bridge, damaged its suspension and had to retire from proceedings. Thierry Neuville had made a blunder. And it's not the first time of late he has disappointed. After a sensational start to the season (think back to that epic battle for victory in Sweden in which he was involved) results have curtailed at near exactly the same time Hayden Paddon grabbed his Sardinian podium and improved. Coincidence? Not to me. Thierry drastically needs to improve, as his mistake in part cost Hyundai their 2nd place in the championship. It was in fact the drivers from the second Hyundai team that had the strongest rally. Kevin Abbring was running as high as 2nd after day 1, impressing in the filthy conditions on only his 4th event in a WRC car. He fell to 5th after day 2, but sadly didn't make the finish after sliding off the road on a left hand bend, due to a pace note that "made no sense." That left Hayden Paddon (the weakest of all the Hyundai drivers on tarmac) to fly the flag for the Korean marquee. And he didn't disappoint. A solid 5th place, taking points off Citroen after demoting Mads Ostberg to 6th and in my opinion he deserves a seat in the main squad for 2016. Question is, who should he be lining up alongside? Neuville has the youth, but right now is a mere shadow of his old self. Sordo had a strong Corsica, and would I believe have been on the podium were it not for a puncture. As for Citroen, they now lie 1 point ahead of Hyundai after steady drivers from both Meeke and Ostberg took them to 4th and 6th respectively. I predict the French team will come out on top in this battle for second, but only just! I imagine Hyundai will regain the initiative after Sordo's home event in Spain, but Citroen will snatch it back on Rally GB, Meeke's home event. However, in rallying nothing is ever that certain.
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