s e k a r b Hand s n i p r i a H & of rallying ld r o w e h t o t in t h your insig
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RAUTENBACH CLAIMS FIRST ROUND IN KWAZULU-NATAL
ISSUE 176 • 01 APR 2011
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Gronholm in GRC, P14
BRC and Irish rally news
Paddon in PWRC, P9
SA, S A P12
USA rallying snippets sni
Doyle wins RNY, P9
WR, P10 W
WR and IRC WRC news updates new
“I have had a lot of problems, I’m not sure if I was born with it or not. I want to know can I buy luck?” - Henning Solberg after the WRC Rally de Portugal
Editorial Information Editor Evan Rothman
Photojournalist Eva Kovkova
Contributors RallyBuzz, Motorpics, Newspress. All content copyrighted property of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, 2007-11. 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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Features Feature s
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Blue Oval makes teams green with envy Taylor wows in Portugal Paddon claims PWRC win Doyle wins Rally New York USA
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Events
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WRC Rally de Portugal review SARC Total Tour Natal Rally review Global Rallycross review BRC Bulldog Rally preview
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TOTAL TOUR NATAL RALLY ON TV Words: Staff Writer Premier Rally Broadcast: • 06 April - SS2: 18h30 • 07 April - SS5: 00h30 • 07 April - SS2: 10h00 • 08 April - SS2: 23h30 • 11 April - SS7: 10h00 • 12 April - SS7: 17h00 • 16 April - SS5: 12h00 -
19:30 01:30 11h00 00h30 11h00 18h00 13h00
Junior Championships Broadcasts: • 11 April - SS5: 19h00 - 19h30 • 11 April - SS2: 23h30 - 00h00 • 12 April - SS2: 11h00 - 11h30 • 13 April - SS7: 17h30 - 18h00 • 15 April - SS2: 10h40 - 11h10 H&H
BREAKING NEWS: WRC EMBRACES GREENER FUTURE Words: Evan Rothman Picture: Eva Kovkova With the world of rallying enjoying significant gains in popularity in recent seasons, the FIA, the sport’s governing body, announced on 01 April plans to change add another dimension to the already exciting Super Special Stages. This past weekend’s WRC Rally de Portugal saw competitors recce the opening stage of the event in environmentally-friendly golf carts. In line with the “greener” approaches for the future of this most thrilling sport, HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS interprets its sources as stating that from WRC Rally Jordan later this month, all Super Special Stages will now be contested in these same golf carts. “The power difference between these and our rally cars is of course
vast, but for the environment and action for specators, they cannot get any better viewing of their stars in action,” commented Olivier Quesnel, head of Citroen Racing. Continued Matthew Wilson at the live press conference: “The low ground clearance, small wheels and higher driving position gives us a better view through the corners. Scott [Martin] has an easy time in these stages - let’s face it, these cars are exactly lightning quick. The 01 April press conference also had FIA’s chief Jean Todt praising the reliability of the golf carts in the WRC Rally de Portugal pilot programme. It is believed that spectators were able cheer on their favourite crews, while the drivers and co-drivers were able to wave and pass out team memorablia as they weaved their way through the tight and twisty stage. H&H
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Issue 176 • 01 Apr 2011 • Page 05
First glimpse of MINI Countryman S2000 in action at WRC Rally Portugal test session: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2LI
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Got a great shot from a rally? Send your favourite rally photograph to evan.hhmag@gmail.com to be featured here! Picture by Eva Kovkova.
THIS WEEK’S BEST VIDEO << Watch the trailer that was shown at the Geneva Motor Show to get you in the mood for the MINI WRC Team’s outings in the FIA World Rally Championship: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2Hv 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 rallyrelated videos to to be featured in this section. Or, send us a twitter to @Evan_Rothman or a message on Facebook.
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BLUE OVAL MAKES TEAMS GREEN WITH ENVY Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Evan Rothman What would one call a â&#x20AC;&#x153;dominantâ&#x20AC;? performance in a rally? A leader charging off into the sunset is one such way, another would be when a team romps home with a onetwo result and yet another could be when a rally car, in the hands of drivers of different driving styles and approaches, claim a number
of stage wins. In fact, ten out of a possible 14. The Ford Fiesta S2000 landed on South African shores last year for this very same event, claimed its first win here with Conrad Rautenbach (G-Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000) on his first outing in the car in 2010 at Caledon, Western Cape and he has brought more silverware to the Blue Oval with a win in the KwaZulu-Natal rally this past weekend. Rautenbach also claimed the
inaugural Privateers Championship in 2010 after a string of strong results last season. Mark Cronje/Robin Houghton (Sasol Rally Team Ford Fiesta S2000) set the cat among the pigeons in their first national event as a pairing, in a new car and in an all-new team this weekend. Dominating Day One, they set five scratch times to give their new sponsors and new team much to smile about. Team-mates Jon Williams and Cobus
Issue 176 • 01 Apr 2011 • Page 07
Teaser: WRC Rally de Portugal 2011: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2Ls
Vrey also proved to be on pace with the front runners despite being out of a rlaly car for over 18 months. Williams last competed in the Production Car World Rally Championship (PWRC) in 2009 after winning the Pirelli Star Driver Africa contest. This youngster from Cape Town wowed team bosses and manufacturers alike while competing on the selected rounds of the World Rally Championship in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, and worked on putting together a competitive package for 2011 in South Africa. Suffering a number of teething problems in his brand new Ford Fiesta S2000, Wiilliams’ result was not as he would have wished it, but outstanding under the circumstances HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS believes.
The Ford flag flew proudly on Day Two when Conrad Rautenbach/ Nicolas Klinger (G-Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000) took charge of the event (full event report appears in our Parc Ferme section) to post three fastest stage times on his way to the overall victory. After being hamstrung by a few minor problems on the last two gravel stages of Day One, Charl Wilken/Greg Godrich (Basil Read/Bizhub Ford Fiesta S2000) took up the challenge on Day Two to work themselves up the leader board despite a five-minute time penalty incurred on Day One. This crew set the fastest stage time on the dramatic SS11 (21km) speed test to hadn Ford its tenth stage win in 2011. Not forgetting the lower
formulae, Ashley Haigh-Smith/Hilton Auffray (Ford Fiesta S1600) finished first in Class on their maiden national outing in this new challenger also built by M-Sport in the U.K. The Fiesta S1600, a two-wheel drive 1600cc charger, was also the fastest two-wheel drive car to finish this event, challenging and beating the quicker and more powerful Class A7 (two-wheel drive, 2000cc engined) cars. It is a welcome return to the sport and it will produce spectacular rallying in seasons to come. H&H
Watch Ken Block in-car footage from WRC Rally Sweden 2011: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2L9
TAYLOR WOWS IN PORTUGAL Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Molly Taylor Motorsport Australian rally crew Molly Taylor and Rebecca Smart finished eighth outright after making their debut in the first event of the 2011 FIA WRC Academy Cup, the Rally de Portugal. The event started in Lisbon on Thursday last week with a timed special stage through the centre of the city before moving to the forests of the beautiful Algarve region in the south of the country. The pair took it slow and steady initially, finishing the morning stages of Day One in tenthth of the 18 Cup starters. The afternoon was not so kind: a spin on SS6 cost around 20 sec, and then the Pirelli Star Driver scholarship winner flipped the Ford Fiesta R2 in the very next competitive stage after clipping a rock on a corner about six kilometres in. “In one way it was not so good, because it happened in front of some spectators – so not exactly the sort of driving demonstration you want to give people,” Molly laughed. “But in other
ways we were really lucky it happened there, because they were able to help us get right way up and going again. And because we’d had a good run in the morning we only fell back to 13th for the day.” After a fantastic job by the M-Sport mechanics who repaired the slightly battered car overnight, Molly and Rebecca had a consistent morning on Day Two but were hampered slightly by a wheel alignment problem which they believe was a result of the roll. They took it cautiously on the afternoon stages too, finishing the day in a solid eighth spot to give them eighth outright for the weekend and four valuable points in the Championship tally. The Academy Cup competitors did not contest Day Three of the event (Sunday, March 27), instead spending the day analysing their performances with Academy staff. “Portugal is known to be a rough event and there was major carnage among our fellow competitors as well as the WRC guys, so we’re actually really pleased we made it through,”
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Molly said. “We had so many dramas before the event that it was almost a relief to actually start. We did have some butterflies, but it was good to get going and it was really exciting to be out there – so we did enjoy ourselves! “The crowds were amazing, and so encouraging – and we were really lucky we had some around at the right place at the right time. If they hadn’t been there, it would have been a struggle to get going again and get a result. “The car’s handling was a bit nasty after the rollover, but we managed to work around that, and the main thing is that we finished and we got some points. Our first event – woo-hoo!” The next event on the Academy schedule is Rally d’Italia Sardegna over the weekend of 5 -8 May, but the Australians are also contesting a number of other rallies, including Round Two of the British Rally Championship - the Bulldog International Rally in North Wales this coming weekend. They are also running a Ford Fiesta R2 in the British Rally Championship. H&H
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Issue 176 • 01 Apr 2011 • Page 09
Ford WRC 2011 Meet the Chef: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2L7
DOYLE/ MOYNIHAN WIN RALLY NEW YORK Words: Staff Writer Picture: Liviu Hrituleac/LHImages.com
PADDON CLAIMS PWRC WIN Words: Staff Writer Picture: HaydenPaddon.com New Zealanders Hayden Paddon and John Kennard have won the Production Car category at Rally de Portugal, a perfect outcome for their new Subaru-based international campaign. And to top it off, the Kiwis delivered the largest winning margin – 7 min 39.3 sec – in the history of the feeder series to the World Rally Championship. Paddon had the advantage over the 17 other P-WRC competitors virtually from the outset of the three day rally run near the southern coast of Portugal. The two-time New Zealand rally champion established a 33.3 sec lead after Friday’s six stages, taking five stage wins along the way. On Saturday, Paddon pushed hard through the morning’s three runs to extend his lead to over three minutes. “With a 30 second lead starting [Saturday] morning, our plan was to push and extend our lead on the first pass over the stages,” said Paddon of his Day Two strategy which played a critical role in his success. “The feeling in the car was good and although the slippery, dusty road conditions sometimes made it difficult, we were able to set some good times, mixing it with some of the WRC cars. Going back to midday service we had stretched our lead to over a minute and in the afternoon, when our closest competition hit problems in the rough conditions, we decided to back off to protect our car on the deteriorating
roads. It was very difficult to drive at less than full pace, knowing that from there the rally was ours to lose. But we had to constantly keep the end result in mind and drive with the head instead of the right foot,” he said. Despite lowering his pace slightly, Paddon successfully completed each of Saturday afternoon’s three repeated stages second fastest while continually extending his overall category lead as competitors experienced issues. Paddon/Kennard ended Day Two with a commanding 6 min, 35 sec advantage over the secondplaced competitor. With just four stages to run on Sunday, Paddon started well winning the first 21km stage to push his lead out to over 7 min, but then his new Subaru suffered a bent steering arm on the second stage. However, with such a lead, he could afford to back right off, drop almost two minutes and still arrive at the finish having increased his leading margin to over eight minutes. The Kiwis cruised through the repeated afternoon stages with their final winning margin of 7 min 39.3 sec creating history in world rallying circles. “The car’s been fantastic,” he said. “It’s much better than the Mitsubishi in the tight and twisty stuff; it just picks up and goes out of the corners. Okay, we miss a little bit at the top end of the engine, but the handling makes up for that. It’s been a great rally!” H&H
The Irish team of Tommy Doyle/ Liam Moynihan (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) became first-time winners of Rally New York USA this weekend. They finished the 480km (300mi) of Catskill Mountain roads 23 sec ahead of the field. Tom Lawless, the 2006 winning driver, placed second with Irishman Martin Brady co-driving (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo). They were 90 sec in front of the third placed entry, Danny O’Brien/ Brendan McCabe (Subaru Impreza WRX). The up-and-coming team of Matt Gottlieb/Austin Gager (Subaru Impreza WRX) placed fourth overall. Michael Reilly/Josh Benthien (Ford Focus ZX3) won the category for two-wheel-drive cars and placed fifth overall. They were well ahead of newcomers Erik Potts/Steven Case (Ford Focus SVT), despite backing off at the end to ensure a finish when the car’s exhaust manifold broke just in front of the turbo system. Third went to Erika Detota/Travis Hanson, who came back from a delay caused by a broken fuel line. Despite the fact that the calendar said spring and the days were sunny, temperatures in the spectacular Catskill Mountains of New York remained near or below freezing all weekend. The roads – entirely paved for this event – were generally clear, but drivers needed to remain watchful as a few patches of snow remained. Rally New York USA is the only tarmac National Championship rally in the USA. It was the second round of the United States Rally Championship. More information on the United States Rally Championship can be found at http://www.usrallychampionship.com. More information about Rally New York, Ltd. and on its other events is at http://www.rallynewyork.com. H&H
Event Reports & Results
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OGIER MASTERS MAYHEM IN PORTUGAL TO CLAIM VICTORY Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Citroen Racing, WorldRallyPics A sense of humour should be a prerequisite for all drivers and co-drivers in the World Rally Championship. In fact, it should be a requirement for all involved in this sport. After bringing his battleweary Ford Fiesta RS WRC to the finish ramp in the WRC Rally de Portugal, Henning Solberg said: “I have had a lot of problems, I’m not sure if I was born with it or not. I want to know can I buy luck?” After 17 grueling stages over three long days in the Portuguese heat, the leader board was half as long as it was then the crews took to the first stage. The WRC category also saw a long list of its competitors not complete the
entire event distance, and this was to be expected from this car-breaking rally. Keeping his head down and driving an inch-perfect event, Sebastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia (Citroen Total World Rally Team) claimed a back-to-back win on this trying event. Over 30secs back were teammates Sebsastien Loeb/Daniel Elena, who were not able to reel in the young Frenchmen on the final day’s four stages despite their best efforts. Ogier, who this journalists opinion has had a chance of winning both previous rounds of the 2011 WRC calendar, made good on his potential to claim the victory here. “It’s been a perfect weekend,” smiled Ogier. “We controlled our first day well and then we pushed at the right moment. It’s a telling result for the whole team with the double and
the points in the Power Stage. After six months without a win I was starting to get a bit edgy. I hope it’s the start of a good series. The points we’ve bagged today will help us relaunch our championship challenge after our disappointment in Rally Mexico. I’d like to thank the team for all their hard work. I’m as happy for them as I am for myself!” Suffering a multitude of punctures on Day One, Petter Solberg/ Chris Patterson (Petter Solberg World Rally Team) were forced to call it quits to restart Day Two under SupeRally regulations. The Norwegian ace pushed his privateer Citroen DS3 WRC beyond its limits, and the car repaid the favour to bring the team home in sixth position overall. Along the way, Solberg claimed six stage wins. Without his
Issue 176 • 01 Apr 2011 • Page 11
The WRC 1990 Lancia Delta Rally story: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2Kx
Day One headaches, this driver would most certainly have claimed a podium position. Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Anttila (Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team) and teammates Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen also suffered at the hands of the demanding stages, demoting them to drive for the third and fourth respectively. Punctures and mechanical maladies forced the Fords’ pace down, but both drivers secured two stages wins apiece when they had clean runs. The true pace of the Ford Fiesta RS WRC versus that of the Citroen DS3 WRC is yet to be seen: for now, Citroen is one better than Ford in terms of reliability. But, with ten rounds still remaining on the calendar and the happy hunting ground in Rally Jordan later this month on the menu, rally fans
will be able to analyze the pace of each in greater detail still. Claiming fifth place overall was Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin (M-Sport Stobart Ford Rally Team), driving a consistent and mature rally. Their teammates Mads Ostberg/Jonas Andersson were hamstrung by a series of minor problems. Kimi Raikkonen/Kaj Lindstrom (Ice 1 Racing) claimed seventh position overall, running comfortably on the gravel speed tests. Federico Villagra (Munchi’s Ford World Rally Team) was eighth overall at the end of the rally, followed by Henning Solberg (M-Sport Stobart Ford World Rally Team) and Dennis Kuipers (FERM World Rally Team) in tenth. With less than two weeks before the WRC drivers tackle the Rally
Jordan, all eyes will be on the Ford crews and their aim to claim a second win this season for the Fiesta RS WRC from the Citroen DS3 WRC. H&H OVERALL CLASSIFICATION 01) S. Ogier/J. Ingrassia Citroen DS3 WRC - 04hr 10m 53.4s 02) S. Loeb/D. Elena Citroen DS3 WRC + 31.8s 03) J-M. Latvala/M. Anttila Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 03m 22.1s 04) M. Hirvonen/J. Lehtinen Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 06m 16.3s 05) M. Wilson/S. Martin Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 07m 48.5s 06) P. Solberg/C. Patterson Citroen DS3 WRC + 10m 17.4s 07) K. Raikkonen/K. Lindstrom Citroen DS3 WRC + 10m 54.1s 08) F. Villagra/J. Perez Companc Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 11m 38.8s 09) H. Solberg/I. Minor Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 14m 16.4s 10) D. Kuipers/F. Miclotte Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 17m 54.6s
Ahead of the WRC Portugal 2011 - Service Park: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2L5
SUGARCANE SHENANIGANS: RAUTENBACH SWEEPS TO WIN Words: Evan Rothman Pictures: Evan Rothman After a lay-off of nearly five months, rally crews took to the first round of the South African Rally Championship this past weekend to tackle the 14 testing stages of the Total Tour Natal Rally. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edition saw a healthy entry list of 39 cars take to the start ramp, but the trying speed tests of Scottburgh, Pennington and Amanzimtoti on the South Coast saw the number of finishers total only 23. With sweaty palms and big grins the Total Tour Natal Rally started on Friday afternoon, taking in five stages (four gravel and one tarmac) to then continue on Saturday with a further
eight gravel tests and a final tarmac Super Special Stage to conclude the event. The usual teething issues for the new cars and teams saw frantic action ahead of the event, but once the balaclava, helmets and gloves were donned, the crews doggedly chased after the final finish time control on Saturday evening. With the route providing its share of upsets on the leader board, mechanical problems slowing cars and driver errors costing valuable stage time, each new stage was, however, met with the same determination and commitment. Day One saw Mark Cronje/ Robin Houghton (Sasol Rally Team Ford Fiesta S2000) claim five stage wins from five, to end the day with 12,8 sec lead over the rest of the 17-strong Class
S2000 field. In fact, the top eight were separated by only 47,6 sec after 36,72 demanding competitive kilometers. Funnily enough, the winning margin eventual winners Conrad Rauntenbach and Nicolas Klinger (G-Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000) celebrated over Jan Habig and Robert Paisley (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000) was even smaller at only 8,2 sec. Stage wins were battled over for tenths of a second, making this one of the most hotly contested editions of this event in years. No one driver was able to romp off into the distance with the rally lead; the front of the rally changed four times over the final four stages, with the top two at one time being separated by a slender 0.2sec. The pivotal point of this event came in stages 10 and 11. Day One and
Issue 176 • 01 Apr 2011 • Page 13
WRC Portugal 2010 - Sebastien Loeb in action: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2KY
Day Two’s morning leader Mark Cronje/ Robin Houghton enjoyed a 20,2sec margin over Conrad Rautenbach/Nicolas Klinger. Rautenbach put the hammer down to reel in Cronje and leapfrog him to end the stage with a slender 0,2sec. Cronje, Enzo Kuun (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000) and Habig were left scratching their heads at Rautenbach’s searing pace through this stage. At the end of SS10, the running order was as follows: 01) Rautenbach, 02) Cronje + 0,2sec, 03) Habig + 11,4sec, 04) Kuun + 18,7sec. Habig and Kuun traded places in this stage too, and Habig capitalized on his Day One momentum. SS11 was the event’s turning point. Cronje made a driving error when he misjudged his speed over a jump, landed with his car’s nose first into the gravel to damage his car and retire from the event at the end of the stage. Rautenbach moved further ahead into the lead with a handy 11,3sec cushion over the hard-charging Habig who extended his lead over teammate Kuun to 9,7sec. Through SS12, Habig outfoxed his younger rival to jump into a 0,3sec lead over Zimbabwean Rautenbach and 26,6sec over Kuun. The final gravel stage of the event, SS13, saw Rautenbach work magic behind the steering wheel of his G-Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000 as he regained the lead and a 7,4sec gap over Habig. Defending Champion Kuun was unable to stick with the two leaders as they tried to outdo each other and settled for third place overall 43,1sec behind Rautenbach. The rally’s final leader board didn’t change
through the final 01km tarmac Super Special Stage, handing Rautenbach and Klinger a much-deserved victory. Rautenbach managed to outgun Habig in his own backyard, but what was most telling was that the off-season updates and settings changes to the Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 have brought it up to speed with the mighty Ford Fiesta S2000. What happened to the rest of the Class S2000 runners? Most exciting was Mohammed Moosa/Grant Martin (Team Total Evolution Toyota RunX S2000) as they fought for a top five position on Day One saw them continue their chase on Day Two’s opening stage. Unfortunately, a string of frustrating mechanical problems saw Moosa fighting to bring his car to the finish line. With the pace needed to hound the newer (and factory-backed) machinery, this pairing will be closely watched in the upcoming Sasol Rally. Teammates JeanPierre Damseaux/Carolyn Swan brought their machine home in fifth place overall, ahead of the factory Toyota crews after a consistent and mature drive. Disappointing on this event was the Castrol Toyota team as they struggled with technical troubles, not able to show their rivals their true pace. Doggedly determined to see the end of this rally high up the finishing order were Jon Williams/Cobus Very (Sasol Rally Team Ford Fiesta S2000). Struggling with a mysterious misfire and differential difficulties on Day One, Williams then had a few minor mechanical hiccups on Day Two that slowed his overall pace. Despite that, Williams first rally in 18 months went
extremely well and a podium is within this talented drivers grasp on the next event. HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS will feature a full review of the Junior Championships (S1600 and S1400) will be featured in next week’s issue, but in brief Ashley Haigh-Smith/Hilton Auffray (Ford Fiesta R2) claimed the inaugural S1600 honours while Megan Verlaque/Lirene du Plessis (BP Ultimate Volkswagen Polo Vivo S1400) clinched the win in their first outing in this highly competitive Class. H&H
OVERALL CLASSIFICATION 01) C. Rautenbach/N. Klinger Ford Fiesta S2000 - 01hr 40m 44.0s 02) J. Habig/R. Paisley Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 + 08.2s 03) E. Kuun/G. Hodgson Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 + 44.1s 04) H. Fekken/P. Arries Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 + 02m 06.8s 05) J-P. Damseaux/C. Swan Toyota RunX S2000 + 02m 16.8s 06) N. Ryan/G. Tyrer Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 02m 38.2s 07) J. Williams/C. Vrey Ford Fiesta S2000 + 02m 39.7s 08) G. De Villiers/R. Pitchford Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 + 03m 19.3s 09) J. Van Niekerk/D. Lewkowicz Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 05m 16.1s 10) J. Gemmell/D. Sturrock Toyota Auris S2000 + 05m 23.9s S1600 CLASSIFICATION 01) A. Haigh-Smith/H. Auffray Ford Fiesta R2 - 02hr 06m 32.6s 02) T. Conradie/K. Naidoo Toyota Auris + 34.5s 03) C. Snyders/C. Snyders Volkswagen Polo + 52.8s S1400 CLASSIFICATION: 01) M. Verlaque/L. Du Plessis Volkswagen Polo Vivo - 02hr 20m 09.4s
Ahead of the WRC Portugal 2011 - Service Park: http://wp.me/ppkXc-2L5
BOGIE HEADS BRC FOR BULLDOG Words: Staff Writer
GRONHOLM WINS INAUGURAL GLOBAL RALLYCROSS WITH FORD Words: Staff Writer Picture: Ford of Europe For a guy who hasn’t regularly raced since 2007, Marcus Gronholm, quickly established himself in the Global RallyCross Championship (GRC). Gronholm, a two-time WRC champ who won the inaugural GRC SuperRally on Friday, never blinked in his domination of the GRC field capturing the Global RallyCross Championship AWD RallyCross finale and giving him a clean sweep of the weekend. Gronholm won the six-car A Main Finale in the Best Buy Fiesta edging his Ford teammate Tanner Foust who came in second in the ROCKSTAR Fiesta. “It was a nice weekend for me and for the team as well,” said Gronholm. “I am happy and my Ford Fiesta worked very well in the final. It was easy to drive and I was quite confident. When I took the start I was quite confident that if I kept my line I could hold the lead and he [Tanner Foust] couldn’t pass me. I had a lot of fun and I would love to race X Games.
Whether I race any GRC events between now and X Games we will have to see.” Tanner Foust was dubbed the pre race favorite by Gronholm and most rally experts. Foust ended the weekend with a pair of podium results including a second place finish in the RallyCross event. “What a final,” said Foust, who is the defending X Games champ in RallyCross and SuperRally. “I know I am not the first one to say ‘I just couldn’t catch Marcus Gronholm. He like just disappeared and by the first corner his Fiesta was just a little bit out of reach and even though I had the fastest splits on the Joker lap I fell behind. I was impressed with the first weekend of the GRC.” The Global RallyCross Championship will return to action outside Seattle, Washington 15 - 16 April. H&H
With the month between Rallye Sunseeker’s initiation as the season’s first event and round two all but gone, the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship heads to the Bulldog International Rally North Wales with the opening skirmish still fresh in everyone’s minds. Having set the benchmark on round one of both Scottish and British series, leading from SS2, right to Bournemouth’s sea-front podium, David Bogie/Kevin Rae arrive in Welshpool this weekend with a perfect hat-trick. The Border Counties Rally on 19th March saw their third win in three events in their familiar Mitsubishi Evo IX, giving them tremendous momentum for their “Bulldog” foray. Tom Cave/Craig Parry aren’t planning to make life easy for the Scots though. They too have momentum on their side with double victory on back-to back events the weekend after Rallye Sunseeker. A local crew up for a fight is that of Pirelli Star Driver Elfyn Evans/ Andrew Edwards. Placed third on their Subaru Impreza debut, they have already completed their pre-round two test and have pronounced themselves happy. Added to that is the knowledge that this was the event on which Elfyn secured his Pirelli Star Driver nomination and took a stunning ninth place overall in a Fiesta ST. The first Englishmen of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship front-runners are Adam Gould/Seb Marshall. Reunited with Marshall this year, the former Pirelli Star Driver winner had a steep learning curve in Bournemouth, acquiring the latest shape Impreza just days before the rally. They took a pair of fastest stages times and were never out of the top six, battling with, but eventually beaten into fourth by Evans. In just a few hours all the crews will tackle some of the best rally stages in the world.The action begins in earnest on Saturday morning, centred on the Rally HQ and service area Welshpool’s Livestock Centre with ten stages over three loops throughout the day. The winner will be announced at the Livestock Centre champagne finish just after 7pm. For more information on the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship visit: http://www.rallybrc.co.uk. H&H