H&H-155 by HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS

s e k a r b d Han s n i p r i a H & ld of rallying r o w e h t o t in t h ig your ins

Cover

Enzo Kuun crowned 2010 Champion!

Issue 155 â&#x20AC;˘ 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Features

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News

Toyota fights hard, P7 Barry/Brady 10th in IRC, P6

Events

BRC and Irish rally news USA rallying news SSARC, AARC P8 and updates IIRC, R P10

WRC and IRC W nnews updates

Contents / Issue 155 Editorial Information

News

Editor Evan Rothman Photojournalist Eva Kovkova Contributors RallyBuzz, Motorpics, Liga Stirna.

Features

06 07

Barry and Brady in Scotland Toyota fights bravely in Gauteng

Events

08 10 12 13

Toyota Dealer Gauteng Rally IRC Rally of Scotland WRC Rally Spain Human Auto 400

All content copyrighted property of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, 200710. This publication is fully protected by copyright and nothing may be reprinted in whole or in part without written permission from the editor. While reasonable precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of information from sources and given to readers, the editor cannot accept responsibility for any inconvenience or damage that may arise therefrom.

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Welcome to issue 155 of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, your FREE weekly insight into the world of rallying. As always, I hope you enjoy this weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s exciting edition. Yours in Rallying, Evan Rothman

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Team & Event News WRC IRC South African Rallying DAILY ONLINE UPDATES

For your convenience, here are the news items in this easy-toclick menu page: WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP Three questions to Sébastien Loeb: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24n Ford drivers test Fiests RS WRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24p New challenge for Ford duo in Spain: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24f Dani Sordo’s home event: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24l Wilson ready to battle on the Costa: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24t Villagra aims to end season on high: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24v Citroën Junior Team in Spain: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24x Pirelli ready for mixed-surface rally: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25l Win: a ride in rally car with Wilson: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25j WRC new TV programs: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24H Solberg and Kuipers ready for Spain: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24r ‘WRC the game’ goes on sale: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24D Petter Solberg ready for Spain: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25o Kimi ready for some Spanish lessons: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25E World Rally Radio in Spain: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25v Wales Rally GB brings Rallyfest: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25T EUROPEAN AND INTERCONTINENTAL RALLY CHALLENGE Hanninen conquers Scottish stages: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24Q PROTON’s Rally of Scotland report: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24N Campana gears up for Italian outing: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25Q BRITISH AND IRISH RALLYING Roger Albert Clark Rally news: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24h UK Pirelli Star Driver prize: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24j Pryce takes podium on Cambrian: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25f

UK Pirelli Star Driver Shootout Final: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24F Becky takes Ladies title: http://wp.me/ppkXc-254 Campbell: Let’s rally in the dark: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25O AFRICAN AND SOUTH AFRICAN RALLYING Production Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24b BP Volkswagen event report: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24J Team Castrol Toyota event report: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24L Basil Read/bizhub Ford Team report: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24V Trott/Coetzee win 1600cc title: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24T Horsey hampered on home rally: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24Y Special Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24d All eyes on the RFS team: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25d Barden Tyre Services Racing preview: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25a Castrol Team Toyota preview: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25B Fire Stryker gets thumbs up: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25L INTERNATIONAL RALLYING AND OFF-ROAD RACING Tagirov wins Novorossiysk Rally: http://wp.me/ppkXc-257 FIA head makes visit to South Africa: http://wp.me/ppkXc-24B Rally of Morocco hits sandstorms: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25t Peterhansel and Despres on the ball: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25r USA AND RALLYCAR RALLY NEWS AND EVENTS Regional rallies for 2011 RallyCar: http://wp.me/ppkXc-25z

THIS WEEK’S BEST VIDEOS << With the World Rally Championship fast heading towards its exciting 2010 climxax in Wales, this video preview of the 2010 event will help you in making up your mind as to whether you are in doubts about travelling to this unique event: http://wp.me/ppkXc-21J At the top of each page, a tabbed section contains video clicks we recommend viewing. In other tabbed sections, we have linked articles posted on our website that will add more perspective and insight into the article it accompanies. Together with the videos, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS aims to offer readers a fully-interactive reading experience. Send evanrothman@gmail.com your favourite rally-related videos to to be featured in this section. Or, send us a twitter to @Evan_Rothman or a message on Facebook.

THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF RALLYING

RallyBuzz.com features European rally championships, British rallying, RallyCar events, international rally results and videos, as well as S2000 and WRC news.

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NEWS

Features

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Events

Watch highlights of the 2010 BRC Intl Rally Yorkshire: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRXc-VtlWS0

Download the iRally app for your iPhone here for FREE!

Matthew Wilson tires out the new WRC video game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYoo7WYNqwg

HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS NOW AVAILABLE IN SEVEN LANGUAGES! The power and universal appeal of both the Internet and rallying around the world has prompted me to offer H&H’s website in seven different languages. Simply visit the website, scroll down to find you favoured language (represented by a country’s flag) and select. It is that easy!

The iRally App is produced by Crown House Media, the wellknown UK TV and radio agency which created, owns and operates the popular World Rally Radio internet radio station. It is supported by Ford and is available to download FREE of charge via iTunes at http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/irally-2010wrc-irc/id347126364?mt=8 from the App Store on the iPhone.

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Rally cartoon launched: RUSTY RIMS by Evan Rothman

With the recent news that MINI and Prodrive had signed with WRCs bosses to enter the World Rally Championship for 20111, the hnt for suitable drivers began minutes after the announcement was made. Marcus Gronholm, Kris Meeke, Kevin Abbring jr, P-G. Andersson and even Petter Solberg’s name has been mentioned in the press. With Kris Meeke at the forefront of this supposed race for the seat, RUSTY RIMS was created. View and read this cartoon on H&H’s website at: http://wp.me/ppkXc-1Ky

With the ever-increasing number of events and news items being published on a daily basis, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS has published relevant news items to its website and Facebook Page, and we also feature breath-taking videos from YouTube!

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Features

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

BARRY AND BRADY SCORE TENTH IN SCOTLAND Words: Staff Writer Picture: IRC Series IRC regulars, Daniel Barry & Martin Brady finished their 2010 IRC campaign with this weekends Rally Scotland, based in the cities of Perth and Stirling. Barry was the International 4WD debut for the revolutionary DMACK Grippa tyre. It was a tough event for the new tyre, with notoriously rocky stages. “The tyre is great” says Daniel. “It’s a strong tyre, which gives great confidence under braking. Yes we suffered a puncture, but so did almost every other competitor on the event, so I don’t think its anything we need to worry about; I’m very happy with the tyre and look forward to continuing using them.” Barry and Brady had a fraught weekend in Scotland, with a split in the turbo hose causing a lack of power over the first five stages, and some ECU problem that caused the throttle to

stick open. Co-driver Martin Brady said: “It was a bit difficult with the throttle stuck open. The car was pushing us into corners harder than we wanted to go, but we managed to keep it together and stay on the road. All we wanted to do was come here and have a good clean run, but its not turned out that way. Its been another hard slog, but we are not for giving up and will always do as we can to get to the end of each event we start.” The Irish duo finished the second running of the event in tenth position, after spending Saturday in the forests of the Tay National Park, and Sunday in the Trossachs. Team Manager, Danny Barry Snr said: “We have had a tough year, but we have loved the experience – we need to look forward now, and concentrate on getting a budget together for next year as well as putting our other plans in place.”

The team plans to return to Monte Carlo in January, but further than that are still planning the rest of the 2011 season. Furthermore, sponsor Dance To Tipperary has launched a new single this week from their “Return To Me” album, called “I’m Sorry.” A video can be seen on the group’s website: www.dancetotipperary.com. Further updates and photos will be available on the team website (www.barrymotorsport.com) and Facebook users can keep up-to-date with the team’s plans on the “Barry Motorsport” page. You can also follow us on Twitter under BarryMotorsport. Also, see in-car video clips here: http://www.youtube.com/user/ redmistproductions H&H

News

FEATURES

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Events

Here’s the official WRC video game trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llHBwWe85Bk

Video of the new Ford Fiesta RS WRC testing in Cambria: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI6YECGJAlM

CASTROL TEAM TOYOTAS FIGHT BRAVELY IN GAUTENG Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Motorpics Team Castrol Toyota came within four points of championship glory in the Toyota Dealers Gauteng Rally over the weekend. Going into the event Johnny Gemmell and co-driver Drew Sturrock knew they faced a tough task with a 21-point deficit to Enzo Kuun and 25 points available for a win. The mathematics of the scoring of the Sasol South African Rally Championship dangled a carrot for the Toyota pair in their Auris S2000 rally car. The championship could be theirs with a win if Enzo Kuun faltered and failed to score at least three points in this final event. With a seemingly comfortable position to defend, Kuun did in fact falter, in a terminal way, when he rolled his Polo S2000 out of the event in just the third stage at the Gerotek vehicle testing facility. This opened a door for Gemmell, but he still needed to win the event. The event itself however played a wild card to mix up the order at the front of the field. Event organisers, the Pretoria Motor Club, opted for a unique format for this season finale with more

than 50% of the event run on tar stages on the first day before crossing over to dirt for the second part of the event on Saturday. This format would end up favouring the imported Ford Fiestas of Charl Wilken and Conrad Rautenbach. These two cars, with their European heritage, made use of a full tarmac suspension setup to up their pace on the hard surfaces of the first day and build up a significant time advantage on the first leg of the event. “We knew it was all or nothing – we simply had to win the event to take the championship,” said Johnny Gemmell after the event. “Enzo rolling out of the event didn’t alter our situation – we still had to win to overtake him in the points total. “Our situation was made a bit more challenging by the fact that the rally format allowed the Ford’s to use a full tarmac setup on day one and then do a complete suspension change for the gravel stages on the second leg. Our times on the gravel were a match for the Fords but they had built up too much of an advantage on the tar. In the end we settled for fourth place behind our team mates Leeroy Poulter and Robert Paisley.” “We knew we faced a supreme

challenge going into this event – Johnny simply had to win,” said Castrol Team Toyota team principal, Glyn Hall. “In the end that didn’t go our way and we were left an agonising five points short of the championship as runners up. “The championship has been a really close fought one with the gap between the top places seldom more than a few seconds and often down to fractions of a second. In fact the time differential between Johnny Gemmell and Enzo Kuun over the full season was just 0.4 seconds per kilometre with the advantage alternating between these two by event. “Aside from Johnny’s chase for the win, a highlight of this event for Castrol Team Toyota and our partners Imperial and The Innovation Group, was the performance of Leeroy Poulter. His third place overall, just six seconds off second place, in only his second outing in the top class in South African rallying was a very satisfying result for us and bodes well for the strength of the team going forwards. “A consolation for the team and Toyota was the resounding win in the Manufacturers’ Championship – Toyota’s H&H 20th manufacturers’ title.”

Events

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

WILKENS WINS FAST RALLY, KUUN SEALS CHAMPIONSHIP Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Motorpics Enzo Kuun and Guy Hodgson claimed the 2010 Sasol South African Rally Championship in spite of parking their BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 in the trees as early as 800 metres in SS3, their second ever accident in 100 rallies as a works driver. Kuun started the Toyota Dealer Gauteng Rally with a 21-point advantage over his only rivals Johnny Gemmell/ Drew Sturrock (Castrol Team Toyota Auris S2000); Gemmell had to win whatever happened to Kuun, but could do no better than fourth place in a rally dominated by Charl Wilken/Greg Godrich (Basil Read/Bizhub Ford Fiesta S2000). “I’m very happy. We’ve worked hard all year and taken our risks during the season,” said Kuun. “We had no incidents or punctures all year. I went into a left 7 two gears too fast. The car got airborne and touched down already off the road. It’s been harder than ever to win rallies this season, so this championship means it’s a significant achievement.” Wilken/Godrich made the event their own, winning six of the 12 stages to open a commanding lead of over a minute by the end of Friday’s all-tarmac surfaced stages in spite of a spin and stall in SS2. It was an easily defendable lead over Saturday’s 78km of seven gravel stages in spite of a hard-charging Conrad Rautenbach/Peter Marsh (Ford Fiesta S2000). Wilken/Godrich won two gravel stages and were in the top three on all the others to storm to their

maiden national rally win. Rautenbach tried hard to close the gap to Wilken by winning four stages, but after two punctures, including one on the very last stage, eventually ended 01min 24,8sec behind Wilken. This team did, however, clinch the inaugural Privateer’s Championship. The drive of the rally came from Castrol Team Toyota’s Leeroy Poulter/ Robert Paisley in their Auris S2000. In the driver’s second-ever rally in a S2000 machine, Poulter - the 2010 Class A6 champion ended third overall to claim his first podium and capping a remarkable debut rally season. Johnny Gemmell, the Championship runner-up for the second year, and co-driver Scotsman Drew Sturrock, pushed their Castrol Toyota Auris S2000 as hard as they could, but after ending the first day 01min 27sec behind the leader and it was game over as far as the Championship was concerned. This weekend Toyota clinched their 20th Manufacturer’s Championship title. “The tarmac didn’t go well for us, said Gemmell. “Although we approached the rally in a positive frame of mind, realistically, we knew it was unlikely that we could win the title as Enzo needed only a 17th place finish.” The outgoing champions Hergen Fekken/Pierre Arries (BP Volkswagen Polo S2000) had a subdued rally ending fifth overall. Hein Lategan/Johan van der Merwe brought their Pirtek/Sasol Toyota Auris S2000 home sixth overall after starting with the second fastest time

on the opening test and holding his own over the remaining stages of the day. Traction and gearbox problems left the Auris driver unable to defend their position and dropped down the order as the day wore on. Japie van Niekerk/Robin Houghton ended the rally in seventh place in their New Africa Developments Toyota Auris S2000. Jan Habig/Ralph Pitchford brought their BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 home eighth overall after completing two extra laps of the Zwartkops stage on Friday that left them 13th overall on the overnight leaderboard. A hard charge on Saturday saw them move quickly into ninth place and they inherited their final position after the Team Total Toyota RunX S2000 of JP Damseaux/Carolyn Swan retired on the penultimate stage with a blown motor. Namibian Jaco van Dyk and Des de Fortier brought their S2000 Volkswagen Polo home ninth overall after a hard drive. Theuns Joubert and Carl Peskin (Salom Group VW Polo) took a cautious approach to the mountain and tarmac stages, ending Friday’s stages 12th overall, some four minutes off the lead. A steady run on the gravel stages saw the Mokopane businessman edge up the order by a minute to end tenth overall. Nicholas Ryan/Geoff Tyrer (Jonnesway/RCF Volkswagen Polo S2000) came home 11th overall, just one second behind Joubert. Team Total’s Mohammed Moosa/Grant Martin ended 12th overall, losing two places on the final stage after

News

Features

EVENTS

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Watch footage of the 2010 Saarema Rally here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pqx-jDik_Wo

clipping a bank which caused a right rear puncture. He hated the tarmac stages, but returned to his element in the gravel and quickly rose up the order from an overnight 11th to ninth. Fernando Rueda/Dave Lewkowicz (Team Total Toyota RunX S2000) ended their last rally 13th after a quiet run, savouring the last outing before the flamboyant Capetonian heads into retirement. Evan Hutchison/Elvene Coetzee brought their Motorite Volkswagen Polo S2000 home 14th after incurring a 5min penalty to change the steering rack on Day One. The Motorite team completed the repair in the last minute of allowable time before being time barred. Without the penalty, the Motorite car would have finished seventh overall. Visser du Plessis/Cobus Vrey retired their Pirtek/Sasol Toyota Auris S2000 in SS2 with another broken Sadev gearbox. Heading the two-wheel drive contingent was Gugu Zulu/Cindi Harding (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo A7). Already the 2010 Class A7 Champions, the pair had a down-on-power engine on Friday but came back strongly on Saturday’s dirt stages to take their third class win of the year. Rivals Chris de Wit/Dean Redelinghuys (A7 Automark Toyota RunX) ended 22nd overall after De Wit suffered motion sickness in SS3 and cruised around the remaining stages after taking lateness to sleep off the effects. Gavin Cronje/Henry Dearlove ended their season in the first stage when the Easy Life Kitchens Volkswagen Polo A7 stopped with a shock absorber that punched through the turret top, the second such incident in two events.

Myachin/Fuzik powered through the Saarema Rally: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXQHyGgkWyk

Craig Trott/Robbie Coetzee (Team Total Toyota RunX A6) claimed the Class A6 win, taking the new-for-2010 1600cc Championship in the process. Trott was shadowed all the way by teenager and 2010 Class A5 champion, Ashley Haigh Smith and co-driver Hilton Auffray (React Toyota Corolla A6). The pair traded fastest class stage times on Saturday, but with Trott’s 3min overnight lead, Trott was never under real pressure. Morne Janse Van Rensburg/ Rikus Fourie brought their Class A5 Volkswagen Polo Vivo home to its second class win in succession. The new junior class challenger from Volkswagen stopped in the first stage for 2min with a stuck throttle and suffered intermittent power steering failure. The pair took a minute off the overnight class leaders Piet Bakkes/Johan Aucamp (Sasol Komatipoort Volkswagen CitiGolf A5) in Saturday’s opening pair of stages and continued to erode their deficit until the penultimate stage when they took the lead with time to spare. The Class N3 title fight between Megan/Oliver Verlaque (Toyota RunX N3) and the points leaders Robson Maganezi/ Shaun Visser (Linking Africa Ford Fiesta ST N3) ended in a tie, with the title going to the Verlaques on a count back of wins. Verlaque ended the opening day with a solid 2min 30sec lead over her rival Stefanie/Willem Hugo (Wiel Toyota RunX N3), who lost 4min after completing two extra laps of SS3. Verlaque, content to cruise to secure her title, saw the Hugos quickly eat into the deficit and take the class win by 25sec. Maganezi ended third in class and second in the Championship. The 50th year of South African rallying was the most competitive ever

with no less than 17 Class S2000 cars competing and a pool of eight potential winners on each event and saw the closest ever win, Johnny Gemmell’s 0.7sec victory over Jan Habig on the Rally of South Africa; on the same event, Drew Sturrock, Gemmell’s co-driver, became the youngest ever rally winner, while Ashley Haigh-Smith, at 18 years and 8 days, became the youngest ever Class Champion and Megan Verlaque became the first ever female Class H&H Drivers’ Champion. OVERALL CLASSIFICATION 01) C. Wilken/G. Godrich Ford Fiesta S2000 - 01h 47m 25.6s 02) C. Rautenbach/P. Marsh Ford Fiesta S2000 + 01m 24.8s 03) L. Poulter/R. Paisley Toyota Auris S2000 + 01m 31.1s 04) J. Gemmell/D. Sturrock Toyota Auris S2000 + 01m 46.2s 05) H. Fekken/P. Arries Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 02m 32.1s 06) H. Lategan/J. Van der Merwe Toyota Auris S2000 + 03m 59.2s 07) J. Van Niekerk/R. Houghton Toyota Auris S2000 + 4m 12.6s 08) J. Habig/R. Pitchford Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 04m 34.4s 09) J. Van Dyk/D. De Fortier Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 05m 15.0s 10) T. Joubert/C. Peskin Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 05m 19.4s 2010 Champions: Driver’s Champion: Enzo Kuun Co-Driver’s Champion: Guy Hodgson Privateer Driver’s Champion: Conrad Rautenbach Privateer Co-Driver’s Champion: Peter Marsh 1600cc Driver’s Champion: Craig Trott 1600cc Co-Driver’s Champion: Robbie Coetzee Class S2000 Driver’s Champion: Enzo Kuun Class S2000 Co-Driver’s Champion: Guy Hodgson Class A7 Driver’s Champion: Gugu Zulu Class A7 Co-Driver’s Champion: Cindi Harding Class A6 Driver’s Champion: Leeroy Poulter Class A6 Co-Driver’s Champion: Henry Dearlove Class A5 Driver’s Champion: Ashley Haigh Smith Class A5 Co-Driver’s Champion: Hilton Auffrey Class N4 Driver’s Champion: Joos Stassen Class N4 Co-Driver’s Champion: Danie Stassen Class N3 Driver’s Champion: Megan Verlaque Class N3 Co-Driver’s Champion: Oliver Verlaque Manufacturer’s Champion: Toyota

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

News

High-speed sideways moment in a rally: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyWEOEA1NMs

Features

EVENTS

Evgeniy Novikov knows how to take a WRC corner: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGeM8CLGJ-k

HANNINEN CONQUERS SCOTTISH STAGES Story: Staff Writer Pictures: IRC Series Juho Hänninen claimed his third victory of the year in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge after beating Andreas Mikkelsen in arduous conditions on the RACMSA Rally of Scotland. The win earned him enough points to put him out of reach of any of his rivals for this year’s drivers’ title. He will be crowned officially after the next round, the FxPro Rally Cyprus. Only nine drivers were classified at the finish as the fast pace of the rally took a brutal toll on the drivers and their machines. Guy Wilks returned to the fray after being forced out of Saturday’s last two stages by mechanical failure to record the fastest times in three of today’s four stages, a feat which was recognised when he was awarded the Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy by Jimmy McRae. Kris Meeke finished third for Peugeot although mechanical maladies had left him trailing by nearly two minutes as the day began. As Hänninen looked to consolidate his lead over

Mikkelsen without taking too many risks, Meeke was determined to get on the podium by overhauling the third-placed 207 of Thierry Neuville. Mikkelsen, meanwhile, was torn between a desire to push for the win and a duty to claim his team’s first podium of the year. Mikkelsen tested Hänninen’s resolve by remaining within striking distance throughout the morning, while Neuville dropped back with a puncture and then made a mistake on the first 29.04km loop around Loch Ard, rolling down a steep incline. Hänninen won the penultimate stage to put nearly 20 seconds of clear air between himself and Mikkelsen, persuading the young Norwegian to opt for duty over valour in the final test. Local hero Alister McRae thrilled the home crowd with some impressive times in his Proton Satria Neo, but he was also ineligible for the final score having missed most of Saturday through an alternator failure. Team-mate Keith Cronin also restarted the event this morning but he slid wide, hit a stack of logs and broke a wishbone on the first stage. Tom Cave, the sole remaining Proton driver eligible for points,

struggled with decreasing grip levels as the rain intensified and crashed nosefirst in to a ditch on the last stage. The three-way Group N battle between the Lancers of David Bogie, Euan Thornburn and Jonathan Greer that had raged throughout Saturday fizzled out as first Thorburn and then Greer ran off the road, both on the Loch Ard stages that were broadcast live on Eurosport. Their retirement enabled Daniel Barry to finish in the top 10, a well deserved achievement after the Irishman had struggled throughout the event with a litany of technical problems. Burcu Çetinkaya became the first female driver to finish an IRC event in the points although her Peugeot Türkiye 207’s gearbox became recalcitrant in the final stage. Both the remaining 2WD Cup entries finished in the overall points. Siim Plangi finished his second IRC outing of the year in fifth place, even though his Honda Civic Type R had dropped on to three cylinders briefly during the morning. Harry Hunt discovered that his Fiesta R2 had a cracked sump on the opening stage of the day but nursed it through to eighth

News

Features

EVENTS

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Rally Latvija 2010 was fast and furious. Watch this clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUrP6A-6ycY

overall. Hunt now shares the lead in the 2WD Cup drivers’ title with one round to go. Juho Hänninen (Finland), Škoda Fabia S2000, first overall: “It was a fantastic finish to the season, a great weekend. It’s been almost a perfect year and I’d like to thank the team for everything they’ve done. Yesterday morning I was about 30 seconds behind the boys and not feeling like a champion, but it was like I started the rally again. I set some good times and the boys were a bit unlucky with the problems they had, but for us that made it much better.” Andreas Mikkelsen (Norway), Ford Fiesta S2000, second overall: “This result means a lot for me. I came here hoping that we could make it to the podium; I’d never finished on the podium in the IRC before so that was the main target. We’re very pleased to finish second, and also happy with the progress we’re making with our tyres. We were trying out a new type of tyre and were very encouraged to see it perform so well.” Kris Meeke (United Kingdom), Peugeot 207 S2000, third overall:

The WRC cars took on those of the Group N in Rally Latvija. and it was a close contest! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQhimA2VKLM

“This rally has sort of summed up our year. We’ve been able to punch it when circumstances have allowed us to. Today obviously we had another puncture but there was enough of a gap behind us for it not to be a problem. Third place allows us third in the championship – it’s been an incredible two years with Peugeot UK and to finish with a bit of silverware is some consolation for not winning the championship again.” H&H

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION 01) J. Hänninen/M. Markkula Škoda Fabia S2000 - 02h 01m 07.4s 02) A. Mikkelsen/O. Fløene Ford Fiesta S2000 + 25.5s 03) K. Meeke/P. Nagle Peugeot 207 S2000 + 03m 24.2s 04) D. Bogie/K. Rae Ralliart Lancer Evo IX + 12m 01.3s 05) K. Kruuda/M. Jarveoja Suzuki Swift + 14m 07.6s 06) S. Plangi/M. Sarapuu Honda Civic Type R + 14m 39.0s 07) E. Boland/MJ. Morrissey Beaton Ralliart Lancer Evo X + 16m 38.8s 08) B. Çetinkaya/Ç. Güney Peugeot 207 S2000 + 16m 56.1s 09) H. Hunt/S. Marshall Ford Fiesta R2 + 21m 39.5s 10) D. Barry/M. Brady Ralliart Lancer Evo IX + 23m 46.5s Drivers’ Standings: 01) Juho Hänninen - 62pts 02) Jan Kopecký - 47pts 03) Kris Meeke - 39pts 04) Freddy Loix - 36pts 05) Bruno Magalhães - 30pts 06) Guy Wilks - 27pts 07) Andreas Mikkelsen - 21pts 08) Paolo Andreucci - 18pts 09) Thierry Neuville - 12pts 10) Mikko Hirvonen - 10pts Manufacturers’ Standings: 01) Škoda - 120pts 02) Peugeot - 87pts 03) M-Sport - 40pts 04) Ralliart - 30pts 05) Subaru - 11pts

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

News

High-speed sideways moment in a rally: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyWEOEA1NMs

Features

EVENTS

Evgeniy Novikov knows how to take a WRC corner: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGeM8CLGJ-k

SORDO PERFECTLY POISED FOR VICTORY IN SPAIN Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: WorldRallyPics, Citroen Racing At the top of rallying’s hierarchy is the World Rally Championship (WRC). It not only draws the best rally drivers, co-drivers and technicians, but also of the world’s most dedicated and loyal supporters. This weekend’s WRC round takes place in the north east of Spain for what is an eagerly anticipated white-knuckle rally. For 2010 the WRC Rally Spain’s organisers have staged set the demanding route over 16 stages, 355.30km and three days of competition. Opening this event’s proper stages on Friday will be mixed-surface speed tests, while traditional all-asphalt stages on Days Two and Three are familiar to the crews. With Sebastien Loeb and codriver Daniel Elena earlier this month having wrapped up the 2010 Drivers’ and Co-drivers World Rally Championship titles for a record-breaking seventh time, and with the assistance of Dani Sordo/ Diego Vallejo and Sebastien Ogier/ Julien Ingrassi (both piloting factorybacked Citroen C4 WRCs) Citroen also claimed the Manufacturers’ title in France too. This removes all pressure

off the shoulders of their drivers and with a resurgent Dani Sordo gaining in confidence it is expected that he will set the pace all weekend on his home event. Aiming to clinch another WRC victory this season is youngster Ogier. With the speed and courage, this The Other Frenchman has been able to challenge and defeat Loeb in a straight fight. His determination will see him hunting for a podium position, at the least. Petter Solberg has proved his 2003 World Rally Champion status this year, pushing his privateer Citroen C4 WRC to its limits and beyond in a bid to leapfrog his factory rivals. He is not known for his asphalt prowess, but with this being the penultimate round of the 2010 calendar, he is hoping for another podium placing. His driving skills are better suited to the WRC Rally Wales GB, the final round of the season next month, and one wonders whether he will be considering driving for a strong points finish in Spain and going hell-for-leather for a win in Wales… As was evidenced in WRC Rally Bulgaria and WRC Rally Germany this year, the Ford Focus RS WRC crews are not up to the speed of their Citroen rivals. This, however, will not hold back Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala

from trying. The factory Ford Finns will never throw the towel in, and with Loeb already Champion they might attempt to capitalize on the Citroen driver’s more cautious pace now. Former Formula One champ Kimi Raikkonen’s first season of rallying has shown some promise, but he has not been able to keep his Citroen C4 WRCs wheels on the road enough to convert his speed into points. After a disheartening WRC Rally France, in which he did not restartH&H on Day Three of the event, it will be interesting to see if his asphalt pace in Spain will worry the top eight WRC crews this weekend. Also, this event marks the final round of the Junior World Rally Championship (JWRC), so expect a flurry of activity on the leaderboard as these youngsters jostle for the JWRC crown. The rally stages are traditionally sweeping and high-speed affairs. This is the closest rallying comes to circuit racing, and the driver who hits the brakes the latest into a corner will climb onto the top step of the podium come H&H Sunday afternoon.

News

Features

EVENTS

Issue 155 • 21 - 27 Oct 2010

Rally Latvija 2010 was fast and furious. Watch this clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUrP6A-6ycY

The WRC cars took on those of the Group N in Rally Latvija. and it was a close contest! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQhimA2VKLM

NEW CHALLENGE FOR OFF-ROAD CREWS Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Motorpics This weekend’s Human Auto 400, the penultimate round of the South African Off-Road Racing Championship, will be another closely fought affair as top crews in both the Production and Special Vehicle categories still need to lay claim to their respective Championship titles. Only 12 points separate the three title contenders in the Production Vehicle category. Championship leaders Chris Visser/Japie Badenhorst (RFS Toyota Hilux) go to the Free State with an 11 point lead over reigning South African Drivers’ Champion Duncan Vos/ Rob Howie in the Team Castrol Toyota Hilux, with Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1000 Desert Race winners Hannes Grobler/Hennie ter Stege (RFS BMW X3) a further point adrift. Two other crews in Terence Marsh/Buks Carolin (Regent Racing Nissan Navara) and Gary Bertholdt/Andre Vermeulen (Atlas Copco Toyota Hilux) are mathematically still in the title race – but it would need major burnout from the leading trio for them to sneak in via the back door. The running order in the premier SP Class championship is the same. Here, however, only eight points separate the three crews. One factor taken out of the championship equation is that none of the top contenders need drop a result at the end of the season. All have a DNF to their names, but all that does is add to the pressure. The Team Ford Ranger TDCi of Neil Woolridge/Kenny Skjoldhammer is also a contender for an overall win, with support from Kobus van Tonder/Freddie Kriel in the Uni Freight Ford Ranger. Woolridge/Skjoldhammer would like to put behind them two disappointing

events in a row, while van Tonder/Kriel would love to make an impression on what for them is a ‘home’ event. Three other Free State crews – Pieter Ruthven/Rudi Britz (Ruwacon Toyota Hilux), Louw de Bruin/Riaan Greyling (Ruwacon Ford Ranger) and George Barkhuizen/David van Wyck (AIM Toyota Hilux – would also like to leave their mark on the race. An interesting situation has developed in Class D. After missing the Botswana race, championship leaders Dewald van Breda/Johann du Toit (Northam Toyota Hilux) are now just three points clear of Deon Venter/Ian Palmer in the 4x4 Mega World Toyota Hilux. Class E also has a highly competitive look about it. With their win on the Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1000 Desert Race Lance Woolridge/ Ward Huxtable (Team Ford Ranger) have clamped a tight grip on the championship, but the Free State race has drawn a quality entry. Its a tad ironic that the Human Auto 400, a new event in the Free State on the Absa Off Road Championship calendar, could settle a tight battle in the Special Vehicle championship. As matters stand current championship leaders Shameer Variawa/ Siegfried Rousseau (Team Total Porter) hold a tenuous 12 point lead over 2007 champions Kallie and Quintin Sullwald in the Elegant Fuel BAT. Class P leaders Johan van Staden/Johan Rossouw are a further 11 points in arrears with Herman and Wichard Sullwald (Sullwald Racing SVR) just one point behind the Pretoria based crew. The situation in Class A, however, is a little different. Anomalies in off-road championship scoring see Kallie and Quintin Sullwald three points ahead of Variawa/Rousseau with the second Sullwald crew, Herman and

Wichard, in third place another eight points off the pace. While Variawa/Rousseau and Kallie and Quintin Sullwald have the inside track just 24 points separate first from fourth. With 50 points to play for over the final events in the overall classification, Variawa and Rousseau are far from out of the woods. The Team Total crew and the Sullwald teams have dominated the latter part of the season, but there are other teams who could throw spanners in the works. Veteran drivers dominated Class B on the Toyota Kalahari Botswana 1000 Desert Race with Coetzee Labuscagne/Giel Nel, in the Raysonics Zarco sister cars, outlasting the rest of the opposition. Championship leaders Bes and Lindie Bezuidenhout (Adenco BAT) were among those who fell by the wayside but still have a handy championship lead. The battle in Class P also looks to be highly competitive and could serve up some interesting battles. Van Staden and Rossouw, in the Atlas Copco BAT, still have a handy lead in the championship but were well beaten by Johan and Deon Bezuidenhout (Adenco BAT) who came up with a well nigh faultless Botswana performance. The Human Auto 400 will be based at the Windmill Casino on the outskirts of Bloemfontein with race headquarters, the start/finish and designated service point all located within the complex. The Donaldson Prologue will start at 12:00 on 22 October and the race at 08:30 on 23 October. The route will be spectator friendly with numerous vantage points. Public entry to the start/finish, the designated service point and spectator H&H points is free of charge.

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