H&H-159

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

The Loeb Show wows in Wales

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov 2010

Features

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Ford Focus RS WRC, P6 Pirelli PPi irelli lli bbows outt of WRC, P7 BRC changes for 2011, P8

News

Events

BRC and Irish rally news USA rallying news WRC P10 and updates W WRC, OORC, R P12

WRC and IRC W ne news updates

Contents / Issue 159 Editorial Information

04

News

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

06

Features

06 07 07 08

Ford bids farewell to Focus RS WRC Pirelli bows out of WRC Mikkelsen joins Skoda UK for IRC 2011 Exciting changes for 2011 BRC

10

Events

10 12 13 13

WRC Wales Rally GB RFS Magalies 400 Race Rally of the Tall Pines New York Winter Rally

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 159 of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, your FREE weekly insight into the world of rallying.

As always, I hope you enjoy this week’s exciting edition.

Yours in Rallying, Evan Rothman

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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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:

Gardemeister plans more IRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2eq

WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP P. Solberg in Rally Argentina 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2bZ Mikkelsen wins class with Skoda: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2d8 Stig Blomqvist in Audi Quattro S1: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2bX M. Prokop in Citroen C4 WRC 2008: http://wp.me/ppkXc-29d Loeb claims win in Wales: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cM Loeb pushes to the finish: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cI Thrilling duel set for Day Three: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cF Loeb in charge on Day Two in Wales: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cB End of Day One in Wales: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cy Overall Standings after SS4 in Wales: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cw Hirvonen’s bonnet problems in 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cf Sandell clinches SWRC Cup!: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dl Pirelli widely praised on WRC finale: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2do Ostberg gets Fiesta RS WRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2eg 2010 WRC Wales Rally GB video: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ek WRC Rally Sweden 2010 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-29X Best of WRC 2008 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c5 P. Solberg on Wales Rally GB 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c7 WRC Rally Germany 2008 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c9

BRITISH AND IRISH RALLYING Breen excels in Wales Rally GB: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dT Williams fourth on Rally GB Nat: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dW Horsey ends Wales Rally GB on high: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dZ Pryce dominates on WRC debut: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2e6 Save WRC on Dave: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk= group_145640512150482&ap=1 Jason takes PWRC points: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ed 2011 British Rally Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ei

EUROPEAN AND INTERCONTINENTAL RALLY CHALLENGE Wilks joins RBF: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2d5 Michael Park “Beef” Trophy: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2d3 Nagle to miss Monte-Carlo: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cZ Thomas wants future IRC outings: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cX Mikkelsen joins Skoda UK for 2011: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cU IRC Belgium Ypres Rally 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c1

USA AND RALLYCAR RALLY NEWS AND EVENTS Subaru Rally Team USA: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2d1 Subaru bids farewell to Pastrana: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cu Entry open: NY Winter Rally 2011: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dR L’Estage aims for “Triple Crown”: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2en

INTERNATIONAL RALLYING AND OFF-ROAD RACING Barden Tyre Services Racing: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2de Special Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dc Production Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2da In memory of Bevan Bertholdt: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dg FIA Cross Country Rally Commission: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cP In-Car on SS6 of Rally Talsi 2010: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c3 RFS team to end season on high: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2e9 Hutchison on mission in finale: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2e4

THIS WEEK’S BEST VIDEOS << The end of the 2010 World Rally Championship season is here, with the Wales Rally GB completed this past weekend. Here is a great video for your viewing pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk7xitr2TgU 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.

www.RallyBuzz.com

NEWS

Features

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

Events

WRC Wales Rally GB preparations: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2bC

Video tribute to Skoda Fabia S2000: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2aC

RED BULL WINS 2010 SWRC CUP at the wheel of his Skoda Fabia S2000 run by the experienced Baumschlager Rally Racing team.

The Red Bull Rally Team has won the 2010 FIA WRC Sandell, the 2006 Junior World Rally Champion, Cup for S2000 teams after a great performance from put in a heroic drive on the final round of the Super 2000 Patrik Sandell on the final round of the World Rally Championship, which saw him compete in Sweden, Jordan, Championship in Britain.

New Zealand, Finland, Germany, France and Britain this year, Red Bull was the first of six teams that entered the claiming victories in Germany and France. inaugural S2000 World Rally Championship this year, with The 28-year-old was among the frontrunners once Sandell finishing third in the class on Rally Great Britain. The more in Rally GB. But after winning a stage on the opening Swede has also ended up second in the final drivers’ rankings, morning of the rally, Sandell was hit by a power steering pump problem, traced to a broken pipe, which cost him five minutes over the course of Friday afternoon and the chance to win the rally.

Sandell fought back brilliantly over the nine stages of Day Two, climbing back to fifth from a starting position of eighth despite tricky conditions with inconsistent grip.

With the ever-increasing number of events and news items On the final day, Sandell stepped his pace up another being published on a daily basis, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS has gear, taking another place on the opening stage and then published relevant news items to its website and Facebook Page, winning the following stage to home in on the third-placed and we also feature breath-taking videos from YouTube! competitor in a tense finale.

Sandell stormed the final two stages to end up third in the S2000 category at the end of the rally, but without the problem on the opening day he would have been in strong contention for the class victory. “I’m very happy with our rally and this result; it’s a great honour for me to clinch the FIA WRC S2000 Cup for Red Bull,” he said.

BRR team principal Raimund Baumschlager commented: “I’d like to congratulate Patrik, his co-driver Emil Axelsson, and Red Bull for a great season and a great rally. H&H Words: Staff Writer

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Features

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

FORD BIDS FAREWELL TO FOCUS RS WRC Words: Staff Writer Pictures: WorldRallyPics Ford’s world rally drivers from the last 12 years said an emotional farewell to the record-breaking Focus RS World Rally Car at a historic celebration event in Wales this past weekend.

After 173 event starts, the Focus made its final appearance as Ford’s team entry in the FIA World Rally Championship at Rally GB. A new formula will be introduced into the WRC in 2011 and the Focus will be replaced by the all-new Fiesta RS WRC for next season.

Drivers Marcus Grönholm, Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen headlined a long list of drivers and codrivers attending the special function at Cardiff’s Millennium Centre. The trio claimed back-to-back manufacturers’ world titles for Ford in 2006 and 2007 in Focus RS WRCs. Timo Rautiainen, the fourth member of the winning quartet, was unable to attend.

Grönholm won 12 world rallies in the Focus while Hirvonen and codriver Lehtinen also have 12 wins to their credit.

Other winning Ford Focus RS WRC drivers and co-drivers in attendance in Cardiff were Nicky Grist (nine wins with the late Colin McRae), Markko Märtin (five wins), Jari-Matti

Latvala (four wins), Miikka Anttila (four wins) and Luis Moya (two wins). Colin McRae was represented by his father, Jimmy.

The Focus made its debut in the 1999 Monte Carlo Rally. Since then M-Sport, Ford of Europe’s rally partner, has built 97 different cars for testing and competition in the WRC. It has won on 44 occasions, finished second in 43 rallies and taken third in 55 events. The car has scored points on a remarkable 132 consecutive world rallies, a record unmatched in WRC history and one which dates back to the first round of the 2002 season.

The Focus RS WRC which McRae and Grist drove to victory on only its third appearance in Kenya’s Safari Rally in 1999 was on display at the Cardiff event. This historic car is still owned by M-Sport and is usually on display at the company’s Dovenby Hall base in northwest England.

“The Ford Focus RS WRC will be remembered as one of the sport’s great rally cars,” said Ian Slater, Ford of Europe’s Vice-President of Communications and Public Affairs. “It was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in 1998, exactly at the same time as the Focus road car was launched. The successes of the road and rally models have run in parallel since then.

“The affection in which the car is held can be seen today. Drivers and

co-drivers have travelled from as far away as the Caribbean to be here, and another even cancelled his holiday to be present! It’s unusual to reminisce with such emotion about a car, but we’ve heard many, many people fondly relating their own favourite memories and stories about the Focus RS WRC at this event.”

M-Sport managing director and BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team director Malcolm Wilson has overseen the build of every Focus rally car. “I have some wonderful recollections of the car from the past 12 seasons. The first win in Kenya was special, because the Safari Rally was the toughest in the championship and the Focus was still so new,” he said.

“But the moment that we clinched the manufacturers’ world championship with the car in New Zealand in 2006 will stay with me for the rest of my life.

“The car has evolved greatly since its debut in 1999, thanks to the work of our technical director, Christian Loriaux, and his engineering team. The 2003 and 2005 models were the most technically advanced rally cars of their time,” added Wilson.

The all-new Ford Fiesta RS World Rally Car will debut at the opening round of the FIA World Rally Championship in Sweden next February.

H&H

News

FEATURES

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

Events

History of WRC - 1950s to 1980s: http://wp.me/ppkXc-29U

Mikko Hirvonen in Ford Anglia: http://wp.me/ppkXc-29b

PIRELLI BOWS OUT OF WRC Words: Staff Writer Pirelli completed its three-year tenure as the official tyre supplier to the FIA World Rally Championship under an exclusive agreement with the FIA on Wales Rally GB this weekend.

During that time Pirelli attracted significant praise from WRC drivers and teams for producing reliable tyres that have been required to perform on different surfaces in varying weather conditions and withstand punishing terrain without the use of run-flat mousse technology, which was outlawed to save costs in 2008. Pirelli has also provided an exemplary level of customer service from its headquarters in Milan and on the ground at all WRC events through its dedicated team of expert engineers and technicians.

Since 2008, Pirelli has supplied a total of 26,960 versions of its PZero, Scorpion and Sottozero tyres, celebrated three drivers’ and manufacturers’ champions and covered almost 14,000km of special stages over 39 world championship rallies on snow, ice, asphalt and gravel.

Under the terms of its agreement with the FIA, Pirelli was challenged to focus on durability rather than outright performance when developing its WRC tyre range, albeit without using mousse inserts.

It is therefore great testament to the advance design and meticulous production processes employed by Pirelli that of those 26,960 tyres supplied, only 42 have suffered failures on the punishing terrain encountered on world championship rallies, a percentage of 0.016.

Sébastien Loeb, who has won his last three world drivers’ titles using Pirelli tyres, added: “At the start of the agreement it was expected there would be some troubles because of the regulations meant you could only have two types of tyre and no mousse. But there were no punctures and lots of grip so no problems.”

Ford team boss Malcolm Wilson said: “Pirelli have done a terrific job.

Their product has worked very well with no problems on any of the rallies.

They’ve also put in a major amount of investment into the Star Driver programme.”

Pirelli will continue its commitment to rallying in 2011 by supporting the new WRC Academy, which replaces the Junior World Rally

Championship as the first port of call for drivers aspiring to one day become world champion. Pirelli will also provide the opportunity for six young drivers, Fredrik Ahlin (Sweden), Craig Breen (Ireland), Jan Cerny (Czech Republic), Andrea Crugnola (Italy), Brendan Reeves (Australia) and Molly Taylor (Australia), to contest the series as part of the Pirelli Star Driver programme, which it has supported for the last two seasons. Pirelli has underlined its commitment to rallying and unearthing the sport‟s future stars by supporting the new WRC Academy as the Official Tyre Supplier from 2011.

Conceived as the replacement for the existing FIA Junior World Rally Championship, the WRC Academy will be contested by aspiring drivers on six rounds of next season‟s World Rally Championship, which Pirelli has supplied tyres to on an exclusive basis from 2008-2010.

Academy participants will compete in identical Ford Fiestas, which will conform to the R2 regulations to control performance and restrict the financial outlay to approximately 135,000 Euros for a season. In order to ensure a level playing field, all cars will be prepared by M-Sport based in the United Kingdom.

Said Paul Hembry of Pirelli: “For years Pirelli has competed at the highest level of rallying, winning a total of 179 world championship events to date, but has never lost sight of the importance of helping young drivers in order to help bring forward the next generation of talent to ensure the sport continues to prosper in the future. The WRC Academy will provide an affordable opportunity for young drivers from across the globe to compete on six rounds of the prestigious World Rally Championship in a level playing field where the most talented will shine through due to the fact they will be at the wheel of equal machinery.”

Pirelli will supply asphalt and gravel specification tyres to the WRC Academy, which will be contested on both surfaces. A calendar for 2011 and regulations regarding tyre quantities and approved modifications will be announced in due course. H&H

MIKKELSEN JOINS SKODA UK FOR 2011 IRC SEASON Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Newspress Andreas Mikkelsen will drive for Skoda UK Motorsport in the 2011 Intercontinental Rally Challenge.

Mikkelsen, from Norway, finished seventh in this season’s IRC drivers’ rankings at the wheel of an M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000, six points behind outgoing Skoda UK pilot Guy Wilks, who will switch to the rival Peugeot UK operation for 2011. Aged 21, Mikkelsen is regarded as one of the rallying’s brightest prospects. He underlined his potential by finishing second on RACMSA Rally of Scotland in mid-October before winning the inaugural Love Cyprus Golden Stage Rally earlier this month.

“I am very happy to be asked to join the Skoda family and to be given this opportunity from Skoda UK to do the 2011 IRC,” said Mikkelsen, who was unveiled as a Skoda UK driver at the White Dove Motor Group dealership in Cardiff, UK, earlier today (Thursday). “It is a fantastic new step in my rally career and to be in a Skoda seat with all the experience from Skoda Motorsport. My goal will be in to win the championship in 2011 no more, no less.”

Ola Floene will continue to co-drive Mikkelsen when the 2011 IRC season gets underway with Rallye Monte-Carlo from 18-22 January. H&H

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

News

IRC Belgium Ypres Rally 2009 highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jsrdn9_7QA

FEATURES

Events

In-Car on Rally Talsi 2010: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDYZLEndUs4

EXCITING CHANGES FOR 2011 BRC Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Jakob Ebrey Photography The Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship has several new features for 2011, while maintaining the best elements of the British Isles’ premier rally series.

In a move designed to give more prominence to the two wheel drive competitors, teams and manufacturers in 2011, two of the three British titles in the Championship will be allocated to these classes of cars, a two wheel drive only and Teams’ Championship. The battle for the overall Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship driver and co-driver titles will almost certainly still be fought out in the Rally 4 class where lurk Group N Subaru, Mitsubishi and of course the Super 2000 screamers.

New for 2011, the Dulux Trade MSA Formula 2 Rally Championship* will be open to all two wheel drive cars and use the same scoring system as for the overall series but significantly all of these two wheel drive cars will get to run at the front of the four wheel drive field on each of the four gravel events.

The four wheel drive cars will stay at the front for asphalt.

The Dulux Trade MSA British Teams Rally Championship which has been fiercely fought will be open to manufacturers and professional motorsport teams competing with two wheel drive cars only. All seven events (eight rounds) will count towards the final championship classification and the registration fee will be drastically reduced to encourage smaller teams.

Prime space in the team’s service area, featured team bio on the championship website and increased televised coverage will all add to the profile of the teams’ participation.

Pirelli will continue to support the Star Driver competition in 2011, but the event nominations, one from each of the seven rallies will come from the two wheel drive cars only. The four wheel drive runners will not miss out though, as two drivers will be chosen to take part in the final, one from the gravel events and one from asphalt.

Sky Sports will continue to show its excellent Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship programme, but the coverage will be spilt 50/50 between two and four wheel drive crews, essentially giving equal prominence to both overall and the two wheel drive

championships.

“There are several factors driving this change. We are having new dialog with UK car importers and manufacturers most of whom either have or are planning to homologate a two wheel drive rally cars and therefore we have a unique opportunity to engage with them and provide the right arena for them to participate in. These cars, driven on the limit, provide a spectacle which is exciting to watch and compared to current front running four wheel drive cars Group N4 cars, these cars are reasonably cost affective to run.

They provide an excellent grounding for learning and developing skills working in unison with the new FIA WRC Academy and junior series which now focuses on these types of cars.” said Mark Taylor.

For more information on the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship visit rallybrc.co.uk. H&H

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Events

Interviews Exclusive columnists In-depth articles

THRILLING FINALE IN WALES FOR WRC 2010 Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Citroen Racing, WorldRallyPics, Tony Whelan.

Anttila (BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team) that lead the way in the WRC Wales Rally GB.

The 2010 World Rally Championship season finished on a thrilling note this past weekend, as has been par for the course for the WRC this year. Rally fans worldwide have been enthralled by the high-speed sideways antics of these master drivers in 2010, and the Wales Rally GB’s classic rally stages present crews with one final challenge.

This article will attempt to paint the picture of the excitement of this weekend, following the event’s highs and lows.

SS5 to SS7 (Day One): With torrential rain playing a telling part in the pace of the repeat of stages on Day One, it was the BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC of Latvala/Anttila who increased their slim advantage over their rivals only to have their perfect start to this event suffer a dramatic blow.

The 2010 World Rally Champions Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena (Citroen Total World Rally Team) were first on the roads, but the heavy rain dampened the disadvantage of the road sweeping phenomena. The top six crews, running on large doses of adrenalin coursing through their veins, pushed the limits of physics through SS5, SS6 (the famous Sweet Lamb stage) and SS7,

SS1 to SS4 (Day One): After the opening day’s morning loop of stages, it was Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika

were separated by a little over a minute.

Dani Sordo/Diego Vallejo (Citroen Junior Team) experienced a heart-in-throat-moment on SS5 when they miraculously emerged unscathed (but breathless) after a sixth gear right-hand corner spin. The Spanish duo spun uncontrollably and luckily stopped spinning facing in the right direction.

Latvala took advantage of the brewing battle between Loeb and Citroen privateers Petter Solberg/Chris Patterson (Petter Solberg World Rally Team), with Solberg leapfrogging Loeb into second place overall to finish SS5 5.2sec behind Latvala.

Through the famous Sweet Lamb stage Loeb attacked not only for second place but also for the rally lead.

He managed to reel in Solberg, but only closed in 0.7sec to Latvala.

The heavy rain persisted

News • • • • • • •

Features

EVENTS

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

Mikkelsen wins class with Skoda: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2d8 Stig Blomqvist in Audi Quattro S1: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2bX M. Prokop in Citroen C4 WRC 2008: http://wp.me/ppkXc-29d Hirvonen’s bonnet mishap in 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cf Sandell clinches SWRC Cup!: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dl Pirelli widely praised on WRC finale: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2do Ostberg gets Fiesta RS WRC: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2eg

through SS7, making the going tough.

Rally leader Latvala lost his lead in the most unkind way when his first place position exploded with his tyre as it ripped off his car’s rim. The Flying Finn lost over a minute as he battled to keep his Ford Focus RS WRC on the road to bring his car to the end of the 27.88km Myherin 2 stage.

Latvala’s misfortune handed Loeb the lead, and he will start Day Two first on the road once more.

SS8 to SS11 (Day Two): A morning’s intense rally action sees the mighty duo of Loeb/Elena top the timesheets once more. Day Two’s morning loop of stages for WRC Wales Rally GB, however, have not been as clear-cut as this, as the lead has changed twice.

It emerged at the end of Day One that Solberg/Patterson suffered gearbox problems on Day One to hamper their overall speed. The Norwegian ace picked up where he left off at the end of Day One to charge to the top of the leaderboard after SS9, demoting Loeb to second place.

Loeb’s team-mate, the young Sebastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia, crashed heavily out of the rally in the morning’s opening speed test. The crew was uninjured, but their Citroen C4 WRC was unable to restart under SupeRally regulations to damaged roof and rollcage.

In true “The Loeb Show” fashion, the seven-times World Rally Champion struck back at Solberg to blitz through SS10 to retake the overall lead and open up a 5.3sec lead. A harmless spin in SS11 saw Loeb lose a handful of seconds to the hard-charging Solberg, and a true battle was set for the afternoon’s stages as Loeb and Solberg fight over the 2.5sec margin separating them from each other.

SS12 to SS16 (Day Two): Over the afternoon loop of stages, the Sebastien Loeb versus Petter Solberg battle gained even more momentum as the two drivers were locked in a dingdong fight for the overall lead.

Through SS12, Solberg made a mistake to run wide into a corner and dropping a handful of seconds.

This allowed Loeb to stretch his lead to 3.8sec.

Ford’s leading driver Mikko Hirvonen was increasingly coming under pressure from his team-mate Latvala, but both were well over a minute behind the Loeb vs Solberg fight. At the end of Day Two, Hirvonen is a slender 9.3sec ahead of the hard-charging Latvala who is fighting back from a puncture on Day One. Saturday’s stages were not

• • • • •

2010 WRC Wales Rally GB video: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2ek WRC Rally Sweden 2010 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-29X Best of WRC 2008 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c5 P. Solberg on Wales Rally GB 2009: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c7 WRC Rally Germany 2008 (VIDEO): http://wp.me/ppkXc-2c9

kind to Ken Block (Monster World Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC) and Kimi Raikkonen (Red Bull Citroen Junior Team C4 WRC), as they both suffered mechanical gremlins in the afternoon to drop valuable time.

In SS13 Loeb managed to pull out 0.2sec out from Solberg but the Norwegian ace didn’t give in. All leading crews reported that conditions through the afternoon stages were not only slippery, but also treacherous. This is what rally drivers have come to expect from this iconic event.

The adverse weather conditions didn’t stop Loeb from increasing his lead to 6.7sec over Solberg after SS14, as Solberg spun his car in the stage. In fact, Solberg only lost 2.7sec to Loeb (the stage winner) and this highlighted Solberg’s electrifying pace.

Petter “Hollywood” Solberg grabbed the bull by the horns in SS15 to set the fastest stage time, and closed the gap to Loeb to 4.6sec after 281.6km of rallying.

Through the day’s final 1.7km making up the Cardiff Bay Spectator Super Special Stage, the final of Day Two, the overall standings remained unchanged.

Overall Standings after SS16: 01) S. Loeb – 2h 32m 24.0s 02) P. Solberg + 4.8s 03) M. Hirvonen + 1m 28.0s 04) J-M. Latvala + 1m 36.6s 05) D. Sordo + 1m 52.0s 06) H. Solberg + 5m 01.4s 07) M. Wilson + 6m 49.5s 08) K. Raikkonen + 8m 30.9s 09) M. Ostberg + 11m 02.3s 10) A. Mikkelsen + 11m 04.4s SS17 to SS18 (Day Three): The battle for the overall victory saw Sebastien Loeb (Citroen Total C4 WRC) jump into the lead with an 11.5sec lead over Petter Solberg (Citroen C4 WRC) in the final day’s opening speed test.

In SS18, the following stage, Loeb was able to edge out an extra 2.8sec over Solberg, with the tide now firmly in favour of Loeb winning this event.

Mikko Hirvonen’s battle with BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC teammate Jari-Matti Latvala intensified with Latvala edging closer to Hirvonen in SS17. After SS18, Hirvonen’s lead over Latvala was only 5.4sec.

SS19 to SS20 (Day Three): Try as Petter Solberg might, reeling in the seven-times World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb (Citroen Total C4 WRC) proved too great a challenge on the final loop of stages on Day Three.

Loeb claimed both stage wins in the afternoon, stamping his authority on

the rally and putting the rally lead (even though it was less than 20sec separating the two dueling Citroen C4 WRCs) out of Solberg’s reach. This handed Loeb his third WRC Wales Rally GB victory and the 62nd of his WRC career.

This weekend’s rally also marked the end of the line for the current crop of two-litre World Rally Cars, with the Citroen C4 WRC claiming its 36th victory.

The BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team’s Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen and Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Anttila pushed as hard as they could throughout the rally weekend, but were not able to close to within 1min of the leading Citroens. Latvala leapfrogged his team-mate this afternoon and opened an 18sec gap, to claim the runner-up spot in the World Rally Drivers’ Championship standings.

Dani Sordo (Citroen Junior Team C4 WRC) claimed fifth overall, 18sec behind Hirvonen. Henning Solberg (Ford Focus RS WRC) came home in sixth place overall, ahead of Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin (Stobart Ford M-Sport Rally Team Focus RS WRC) in seventh and Citroen’s Kimi Raikkonen in eighth.

The WRC Wales Rally GB delivered on its promises of exciting rally action this weekend, and even the unpredictable Welsh weather played along with the event’s organisers wishes.

Roll on 2011! H&H

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION 01) S. Loeb/D. Elena Citroen C4 WRC – 3h 14m 54.0s 02) P. Solberg/C. Patterson Citroen C4 WRC + 19.1s 03) J-M. Latvala/M. Anttila Ford Focus RS WRC + 1m 35.3s 04) M. Hirvonen/J. Lehtinen Ford Focus RS WRC + 1m 53.3s 05) D. Sordo/D. Vallejo Citroen C4 WRC + 2m 12.2s 06) H. Solberg/S. Prevot Ford Focus RS WRC + 6m 26.5s 07) M. Wilson/S. Martin Ford Focus RS WRC + 8m 37.8s 08) K. Raikkonen/K. Lindstrom Citroen C4 WRC + 10m 27.9s 09) M. Ostberg/J. Andersson Subaru Impreza WRC + 12m 13.7s 10) A. Mikkelsen/O. Floene Skoda Fabia S2000 + 14m 01.0s DRIVERS’ STANDINGS: 01) S. Loeb - 276pts 02) J-M. Latvala - 171pts 03) P. Solberg - 169pts 04) S. Ogier - 167pts 05) D. Sordo - 150pts 06) M. Hirvonen - 126pts 07) M. Wilson - 74pts 08) H. Solberg - 45pts 09) F. Villagra - 36pts 10) K. Raikkonen - 25pts MANUFACTURERS’ STANDINGS: 01) Citroen Total WRT - 456pts 02) BP Ford Abu Dhabi WRT - 337pts 03) Citroen Junior Team - 217pts 04) Stobart M-Sport Ford RT - 176pts 05) Munchi’s Ford RT - 58pts

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

News

Features

EVENTS

• Barden Tyre Services Racing: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2de • Special Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dc

• FIA Cross Country Rally: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2cP

• Production Vehicle Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2da

• RFS team to end season on high: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2e9

• In memory of Bevan Bertholdt: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2dg

• Hutchison on mission in finale: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2e4

SEASON FINALE SET FOR THRILLING CLIMAX Words: Staff Writer This weekend sees the season finale of the ABSA South African Off-Road Racing Championship in Gauteng for the RFS Magalies 400 race.

Race headquarters, the start/ finish and the designated service point are all located at the Tarlton complex near Krugersdorp. The Donaldson Prologue on Friday starts at 12:00 and the race at 08:30 on Saturday.

The route is spectator friendly with plenty of vantage points. Public access to Tarlton and spectator viewing points is free of charge.

Production Vehicle category: The overall championship might be done and dusted, but there is other unfinished business in this category for this weekend.

The RFS Toyota Hilux pair of Chris Visser/Japie Badenhorst made certain of the overall championship with a win on the Human Auto 400 last month. Veterans Hannes Grobler/Hennie ter Stege can finish level on points with the new champions if they win, and Visser/Badenhorst fail to score.

Should this happen the title will go to Visser/Badenhorst on a count out of wins. Because of anomalies in off-road scoring the situation is a little different in the premier SP Class where Grobler/ Ter Stege still have a chance of pipping Visser/Badenhorst for the title.

This would lead to a situation where Visser/Badenhorst would be overall champions, with Grobler/Ter Stege the SP Class titleholders. But there is other unfinished business with both the Class D and Class E championships up for grabs.

With everyone chasing a win on the last event of the season the SP Class will be no place for the faint of heart.

Visser/Badenhorst are in the happy position of being able to go out and enjoy themselves, whatever the result.

But there is no doubt the red mist will descend on the pair, and they will be in there fighting for a fifth win.

Behind them only 11 points separate Grobler/Ter Stege and the Team Castrol Toyota pair of outgoing drivers champion Duncan Vos/Rob Howie. And behind them six points separate Terence Marsh/Buks Carolin in the Regent Racing Nissan Navara, Neil Woolridge/Kenny Skjoldhammer (Team Ford Ranger TDCi) and Gary Bertholdt/Andre Vermeulen in the Atlas Copco Toyota Hilux.

There are no fewer than 17 SP Class runners entered with the return of teams like Jaco Swanepoel/Keith Solomon (JAM TEC Toyota Hilux) and Graham and Trevor Leith in the Transcor Ford Ranger. Add to the list regulars like Kobus van Tonder/Freddie Kriel (Uni Freight Ford Ranger) and you have a recipe for good racing throughout the field.

The Class D scrap is a straight fight between current leaders Deon Venter/Ian Palmer (4×4 Mega World/RFS Toyota Hilux) and reigning champions Dewald van Breda/Johann du Toit in the Northam Toyota Hilux. Venter/Palmer have won twice in a row while technical issues saw the Northam Toyota bumped up into the SP Class in the Free State.

The 4×4 Mega World team took advantage of the situation to open up a nine point lead with Van Breda/Du Toit hauling out of mothballs the car in which they won last year’s championship.

Former champion Cliff Weichelt, in his first outing of the season, and Johan Smalberger (N1 4×4 Toyota Land Cruiser) could throw a cat among the pigeons in a vehicle that has shown plenty of potential.

Nine points is also the gap in Class E between championship leaders Lance Woolridge/Ward Huxtable (Team Ford Ranger), and Pikkie Labuschagne/ Rikus Erasmus in the 4×4 Mega World / RFS Toyota Hilux. Labuschagne and Erasmus lost last year’s championship by a single point, and are in a challenging position courtesy of the Human Auto 400 accident that put teenager Woolridge/ Huxtable out of the running.

Woolridge’s back injury might still be a problem, along with the second 4×4 Mega World/RFS Toyota Hilux entry of Hein Moolman/JD Wolfaardt. Gerald le Roux/Willem Pretorius (Ruwacon Ford Ranger) will also be a threat along with Malcolm Kock/Johan Berger in another Toyota Hilux.

The bevy of Toyota entries ganging up on young Woolridge/ Huxtable is completed by brothers Diederik and Danie Hattingh (Transcor Toyota Hilux), and Barrie Drenth/ Natasha Muller (Ultimate 4×4 Toyota Hilux) who take a step up from the Northern Regions championship.

Special Vehicle category: It will be a winner-takes-all shootout in the Special Vehicle category too. Going at each other with all guns blazing will be overall championship leaders

Shameer Variawa/Siegfried Rousseau, in the Team Total Porter, and the father and son combination of Kallie and Quinton Sullwald in the Elegant Fuel BAT as just six points separate the two crews. A tie would see the two crews level with three wins each. The title would then go the way of the Sullwald’s on a count out of second places.

Added interest comes by way of a second Sullwald father and son team, Herman and Wichard (Sullwald Racing SVR). In among all the uncertainty there is one certainty: Variawa/Rousseau and the two Sullwald crews won’t pussyfoot around with tactics and permutations.

All three teams will be out to win, and the fact they will be up against two cars from the same stable is the rub of the green for the Team Total crew.

The Class B championship has already been settled in favour of Cape veteran Bes Bezuidenhout and daughterin-law Lindie in the Adenco BAT. A win on the Human Auto 400 took them clear of Coetzee Labuscagne and daughter Sandra (Raysonics Zarco) who now have to see off a challenge from Keith and Andrew Makenete in another Zarco.

The Labuscagne’s lead the Makenete’s by four points in the battle for second place in what should be a good family fight. The Class B entry is filled out by Johan de Klerk/Lappies Labuschagne and the UTV Racing entries of Stratford Voogt/Sidriaan de Villiers and Dwayne Voogt/Harry Steffen.

The Class P brigade will be racing mainly for pride. Van Staden and Rossouw clinched the championship in the Free State but will be under pressure from Rutherford and Mike Lawrenson, Swaziland flyers John Thomson/Clinton McNamara (Zarco), Johan and Deon Bezuidenhout (Adenco BAT) and the Century Racing CR2 in the hands of Mark Corbett/Rudi Balzer.

One point separates Johan Bezuidenhout and Corbett among the drivers, and two points is the difference between Deon Bezuidenhout, Balzer and McNamara in the co-driver stakes.

The husband and wife pair of Marius and Jolinda Fourie have been impressive since moving up from the regional ranks, and there will be plenty of rivalry among veteran crews like Richard Schilling/ Chris Davies (Aceco), Bodo Bertholdt/ Phillip Herselman (Atlas Copco BAT) and Nic Goslar/Richard Carolin in the Men’s Health International Zarco. H&H

News

Features

EVENTS

Issue 159 • 18 - 24 Nov

Best of WRC 2008 highlights: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mThzqHaU2s

Petter Solberg on WRC Wales Rally GB 2009 shakedown: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhWElXmqRtw

ENTRY IS OPEN FOR NEW YORK WINTER RALLY 2011 Words: Staff Writer

L’ESTAGE AND RICHARD AIM FOR “TRIPLE CROWN” Words: Staff Writer Pictures: M. Young/WorldRallySport.com Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard are gearing up for this weekend’s Rally of the Tall Pines, in Bancroft, Ontario.

This final round of the 2010 Canadian Rally Championship presents the Rockstar Royal Group team with the opportunity to put their hands on yet another 2010 championship title, which would automatically give them the “Triple Crown”, earmarked for the team winning the Canadian Rally Championship, the Rally America series, and the North American Rally Cup all in the same year. This is an extremely rare feat in the world of motorsports.

At the wheel of his Rockstar Royal Group Mitsubishi Evo X, Antoine L’Estage is confident heading into the final round of the season: “It will be a super exciting rally! Nathalie and I have already won Tall Pines on three previous occasions and it’s where I won my very first national rally in 2004,” he confides.

The situation at the top of the driver’s championship is as such: the L’Estage/Richard duo is leading by two points. If the team and their primary rivals finish the rally, as long as L’Estage/ Richard lead at the end of the day, Triple Crown honours will have been earned.

“I really enjoy Tall Pines and I always feel at ease, regardless of the road conditions. If I had my choice, I’d prefer dry gravel to snow or ice-covered roads because they will almost definitely be lined by ditches instead of snow banks.

But at the same time, I’ve often won in those conditions so I don’t have any apprehensions and thanks to Yokohama,

we have all the compounds we could need,” explains the Québec driver.

The Rockstar Royal Group team tested its Mitsubishi Evo X last week to ensure that everything is in order mechanically before arriving in Bancroft.

“We’re not leaving anything to chance because one thing is certain: it will be an epic battle,” concludes Antoine.

Nathalie Richard adds: “We have won the last two rounds of the Canadian Championship and even the last three events if you count the final round of the Rally America series in the US where we won the title this summer. We’re on a roll and we’ll do everything to carry on that momentum up until the end of Tall Pines.”

Antoine L’Estage currently holds three North American titles (2007, 2008 and 2010), two Canadian championship titles (2006 and 2007), one American title (2010) and twenty-four overall victories in Canada and the United States. Nathalie Richard holds five overall national championships (Canada and USA) and thirty national victories on both sides of the border. The North American title she clinched in September is her sixth in seven years.

Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard make up the only team to participate in the entire 2010 Rally America and Canadian Rally Championships, with the support of Rockstar Energy Drink, Royal Group, Yokohama Tires, Mitsubishi Canada, Drenth Motorsport Gearboxes, Garrett Turbos, Énergie Cardio, Libra Racing, Driver’s Edge Autosport (OMP), and VP Racing Fuels. For more information on the team or on rallying in general, visit Coyote Rallye. H&H

Entry is now open for New York Winter Rally scheduled for 15 - 16 January 2011. The rally is the first round of the 2011 United States Rally Championship. Each day is also a separate round of the regional New York Rally Championship.

Both the United States Rally Championship and the New York Rally Championship award separate Championship titles for drivers and codrivers in the two-wheel-drive category and in the all-wheel-drive category.

The rally is much more compact than in the past. It will start with registration and two-pass reconnaissance on Saturday morning and 170km of special stages will be completed by Sunday afternoon.

This is the first time ever in North America that snow and ice tires with real rally studs are authorized on a National Championship rally. It snowed heavily on the stages yesterday and snow cover remained on the ground at higher elevations. The studded tires are not mandatory and separate awards have been established for the highest-placed two-wheel-drive car and the highest-placed all-wheel-drive car without studded tires.

The total of $7,000 in prize money and cash support will be awarded to teams driving two-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive cars. The “early bird” entry with the early entry fee of only $480 for the two Regional events will close on 16 December. The regular entry will close in early January.

The rally is entirely based on the Ten Mile River Scout Reservation in Narrowsburg, New York including the Rally Headquarters and the overnight Parc Ferme. All racing will take place on private roads located on the Reservation.

Motels in the area are offering attractive special rally rates to participants in the rally.

Further information about New York Winter Rally 2011 and secure online entry can be found at www.RallyNewYork.com. H&H