Rally-eMag 036 April 2016

p1 paddon

Argentina

Issue 36, April 2016

Canarias

Ireland

the road to china pt. III / TAC rally BRC / rally de wallonie BRC / zuiderzeeRally drc

Ostberg, argentina

#rallythemoon Image: PR

Mikkselen, Argentina

#dancethenightaway

Image: PR

camilli, Argentina

#dusttodust

Image: PR

pa

tina n e g r a , d r a ddon-kenn

#kiwis

Image: PR

Rally-eMag April 2016 / Contents

This month Who made it?

Publisher: Rally-eMag Words: Steven van Veenendaal, Harry van Veenendaal.

Photography: Johan Vis Fotografie, JS Photography, PR.

Who helped?

Logo design: Minse Blom Backcover artwork: Dam Charles Distribution: Issuu.com

Who we thank!

PR Photography from: Peugeot Sport, Hyundai Motorsport, Citroen Racing, FIA ERC, Volkswagen Motorsport, M-Sport, Red Bull Media Pool.

How to reach us?

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Email: info@rally-emag.com Web: www.rally-emag.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ emagrally Twitter: @emagrally Issuu: www.issuu.com/rally-emag

WRC rally argentina

ERC rally islas canarias

INTERVIEW MARK WILFORD

Erc Circuit of ireland

Belgian & Dutch RC

Paddon surprise winner

We’re off

Rally China ‘99

ERC and BRC vs The Irish

TAC Rally Haspengouw Rally Zuiderzeerally

Page 8

Page 20

Page 28

Page 36

Page 42

YPF Rally Argentina / Review

ypf Rally argentina

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based in: villa carlos paz Date: 21-24/4/16 number of stages: 18 Shortest stage: Super Especial Cordoba 1.50 km longest stage: Los Gigantes - Cantera El Condor 38,68 km total stage distance:364.68 km Surface: Gravel

YPF Rally Argentina / Review

Paddon surprise winner in Argentina Volkswagen was fully focussed to win in Argentina. They wanted victory as it was the last event to complete a 13 event-winning spree.

Ogier wanted to add Argentina, as he hadn’t won it before. Latvala wanted to continue his good result of Rally Mexico, so you could say they were motivated. But this is Argentina and, even more so than in other events, you never know who will win. Paddon was on our favourite list but against such competition, it did not seem a very likely chance. But in the end Paddon proved he could win!

Words: Harry van Veenendaal

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Images: PR

YPF Rally Argentina / Review

What we said in our introduction actually did happen during the battle of Argentina. Latvala is doing well and is leading the rally at the end of the first day. But the actual battle was between Ogier and Paddon. With a string of second places and a stage win, Paddon finds himself second behind Latvala but before Ogier. In the afternoon loop however, Ogier loses something of his handicap as road sweeper and passes the man from New Zealand. “I’m absolutely on the limit”, he says. “I will not talk about my starting position anymore, I will just give everything I’ve got and then we’ll see.” Apparently that is quite a lot as Argentina is one of the worst rallies to be opening the road. Being second proves that the Frenchman is in a league of his own. In the meantime Latvala is happy with his performance: “Ogi-

er and Paddon are doing very well so I can’t rest, but it all adds up to an interesting fight.” So after day one, Latvala, Ogier and Paddon are leading the rally.

Saturday’s challenge Paddon saw some possibilities and started the Saturday with two scratches bringing him within striking distance of Latvala. But then Latvala came back and won the next two stages increasing his lead to 14 seconds. But at the second passing of the Los Gigantes - Cantera el Condor stage things changed. Earlier Paddon had been 2.5 seconds faster here then Latvala, who went into fighting mode and flew over the stage. Halfway into the stage he bumped into a stone that was on the inside of a long right-hander.

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A trip around the world As most WRC teams are based in Europe the journey to the long haul events is quite a challenge.

The journey starts when a ship containing some ten overseas containers per team leaves Europe for a voyage around the world. It’s first destination being Mexico and then, Argentina and China. The end of the journey is Australia; before the ship returns to Europe to the teams HQ’s to be

re-equipped for the next season.

But we then still have the competition cars and the necessary spare parts. At Volkswagen for example this means another eight containers. They fly the long journey to Carlos Paz. And then of course we have drivers and other team personnel. They also have to fly one of the longest non-stop flights from Europe to Argentina to finally end up in Carlos Paz.

Happy was his performance on the opening day, Latvala takes an early lead.

His suspension broke and the car was out of control. Rather then turning into the corner the car went straight on and hit a stone on the other side of the road. Consequently the Polo went rolling and stopped on the roadside. Both drivers were OK but their Saturday challenge was over.

“I’d love to be in that position (opening the road), because it would mean I was leading the championship.” - Hayden Paddon

Meanwhile Paddon won the stage and took the lead, During the remaining two stages he lost a bit of time to Ogier but at the end of the day he still held a healthy lead of just under 30 seconds. But would it be enough? Ogier was obviously agitated and started grumbling again about the starting order and it being not fair. Paddon proved he is not only challenging his rival on the sandy tracks but also verbally. Ogi-

er told Paddon he didn’t know what he was talking about: “You don’t have to open the road,” he said. Paddon immediately retaliated: “I’d love to be in that position, because it would mean I was leading the championship.”

Thrilling finale This was the firm basis for the rally’s finale on Sunday. A tormented Ogier focussed on one thing: beating Paddon and win the rally.

It started well for the Frenchman.

He did not see the fog in the beginning of the El Condor stage (Powerstage later in the day) Apparently equipped with radar eyes he tackled the stage and was seven seconds faster than his rival. But it can even go quicker as Ott Tänäk proved by winning the stage even three seconds faster than Ogier.

Rebuilding a rolled rally car After Latvala’s demise the team mechanics virtually had to rebuild Latvala’s car. Almost everything that the regulations allow to be changed was changed. This included a new tailgate, front and rear shock absorbers, bonnet, front windscreen, both mirrors, left and right fenders, all the antennas, and a new underside guard – on the outside. Seats, seat rails, harnesses, new HANS systems

and helmets, front wishbone, front track rod, a complete rear axle, new cardan shafts, water cooler and intercooler. All the top mounts and shock absorbers, as well as all the wheel mounts, drive shafts and wheel arch liners – on the inside of the Polo had to be replaced, and everything within the allowed three hours. Thanks to all this efforts Latvala was able to re-join the rally on Sunday.

The final count down Paddon, fourth after Mikkelsen, did not look happy at the stage end. His Hyundai mysteriously stalled once or twice in the stage.

On the next stage a similar scenario developed.

Again Ogier flew over the stage but this time won it. Second was Dani Sordo at almost fourteen seconds. Paddon, as he would later admit, thought his dream was over. He started the day with an almost 30 seconds lead and after two of the three stages only 2.6 seconds were left. He knew that on the first run of El Condor he lost seven seconds, so the calculations were easy. Were they really?

PowerStage When Ogier passed the finish line, one thing was clear he would not win the PowerStage. A Hyundai had already been faster and the gap was no less than eleven seconds. But it was not Paddon who was behind the wheel. It was Sordo. At that moment the first Paddon split came through. He seemed to be flying and was almost eight seconds faster than Sordo and even some eight point five seconds faster than Ogier.

At the stage end everyone was looking at the splits in anticipation, could he win? As Paddon

reached the finish it became clear he had achieved no less than a miracle: he had beaten Ogier fair and square in a direct battle, the battlefield being Ogier’s domain: the PowerStage! At Hyundai the party couldn’t end as Dani Sordo was second on the PowerStage so two Hyundai’s had been faster than Volkswagen! But what was more important the New Generation i20 is a real challenger and their new generation driver is up to this challenge. They won’t beat Ogier and Volkswagen on a regular basis yet but at least they are giving them a hard time.

TOP: Something about the southern hemisphere? Paddon takes win number one!

MIDDLE: Ogier gave it his all, but couldn’t claw back thirty seconds on the final day.

BOTTOM: Solid points for a steady third position for Andreas Mikkelsen.

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YPF Rally Argentina / Round-up

The reigning champion was quite relaxed. All drivers spent some time away from daily duties, apart of course from their fitness programmes that can never be paused. Mikkelsen and Ogier went skiing; Latvala preferred the motorised version and went skidooing in Lapland. He then moved on to the Unites States for a roadtrip in California and Mikkelsen went to Thailand. Ogier spent some time with his wife and saved a dog from an animal shelter. But there was also serious business. In this case it was the further preparations for the 2017 Polo. Several parts and components were tested over the globe and the first sketches of the new car were presented.

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In Argentina they had two goals: The last rally they didn’t win was Argentina 2015. They had won all the other rallies.

So traveling the globe and winning all rallies was their first goal. And it could be achieved in Argentina 2016. For Ogier the situation was more or less the same. He had won all the rallies currently in the championship with the exception of Argentina. So the South American WRC round had not been

friendly to the team from Hannover. In a way the 2016 version was no exception. But Ogier had an extremely difficult opponent in the much-despised (by him) rules. Argentina is one of the worst events to have to start as first on the road. And as these rules prescribe this is for two days. Still he nearly made it. Saturday was a bad day but on Sunday he almost proved the insurmountable gap of 30 seconds could in fact be closed. Hayden Paddon had different ideas, but it was very close. So Ogier didn’t win.

What was worse was that Volkswagen did not make it either.

Latvala was a serious contender but a top mount of one of his springs broke and made it impossible for him to steer his car into victory. After an enormous rebuild job he didn’t feel completely confident and again was caught with a similar issue in the PowerStage. After an on stage repair job he could continue but had to content himself with two points for his manufacturer. Andreas Mikkelsen did what he had to do and finished solidly into the points. He did well but also did it a bit invisible. But hey who cares if the points are there?

Volkswagen Motorsport

Roun

Hyundai Motorsport

nd-up

Hyundai did a pre-event test in their New Generation i20. As testing is not allowed outside of Europe, they found a place in northern Portugal that was reasonably comparable with Argentina. For four days the team tested different set ups as well as reliability of both cars and drivers. “We hope to continue our recent successes with these tests,” said team manager Michel Nandan.

In Argentina the A team consisted of Sordo and Neuville. Though Neuville had been demoted for Portugal, in Argentina he was still in the main team. After a promising start, electrical glitches hampered the Belgian’s performance and he lost some six minutes. He regained quite a few positions and ended up sixth. For Dani Sordo things went a lot smoother although he had a peculiar problem. After a meeting with one of the ever-present rocks his throttle got stuck. He could press the pedal but he had to help it coming back. Not the ideal situation if you’re fighting for your chances.

Nevertheless he was fourth and claiming to have been able to fight for the podium, had he not had the problem. Given his general speed

this is not an exaggeration.

But of course the man of the day was Hayden Paddon. From the shakedown (where he was fastest) to the very final stage where he was fastest again he had been fighting like al lion. He thoroughly feels at ease behind the wheel of the relatively new car and his fighting spirit equals Ogier’s. So what more can you say than that he is a real asset to WRC community. Perhaps the most significant thing to prove that is the way he ran his PowerStage. Though the stage before the PowerStage was an absolute disaster for him, he still saw a tiny chance. Without the fog of the first passage he was just under a minute faster on the second run. That is fighting spirit.

Perhaps Ogier’s tyres were not completely fresh anymore, but in a way you could say that is also Paddon’s achievement. He drove his rival to the limit. Also his verbally Ogier seems to have met his match, so let’s finish by repeating Ogier who said: He did an excellent job!” We at Rally-eMag are definitely looking forward to more battles between these two and we hope all the other drivers will be inspired.

YPF Rally Argentina / Round-up

The most significant thing about M-Sport in Argentina was the absence of Malcolm Wilson. Since 1997 when Wilson’s M-Sport started it’s WRC work for the official Ford team. Wilson has always been present on site. You could see him laugh, you could see him grumble but he was always there.

A very old injury dating back from the 1980 Scottish Rally kept him at home. He had needed to recover from surgery that had become necessary. He was however not just sitting at home doing nothing as he was kept up to date on an almost minute tot minute basis.

And from what we read the press releases we got the impression he was not entirely happy.

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But let’s first start before Argentina. For their pre-event test the British team did not have to travel very far. They stayed in their own testing ground in the Greystoke Forest. The aim of the test was most of all for both Camilli and Østberg to get more mileage behind the wheel of the latest spec Fiësta, but there was relaxation too as Østberg went to the Canary Islands for a well-deserved holiday. Before the holidays started however he competed in the Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Inglés to

showcase the new evolution R5.

Elsewhere in this issue you can read a report including Østberg’s adventures. In Argentina we saw back Elfyn Evans in a similar R5 again.

M-Sport World Rally Team

For Mads Østberg Argentina was one to forget. He was cheerful and claimed to have a good rhythm but the times did not tell the same story. Later on he admitted he did not know what was going on. What was even more distressing for the always happy Norwegian driver was the fact that Malcolm Wilson ominously informed us about his thoughts: “Mads is driving well, but the times aren’t there so we need to understand his issues and work to find a solution before Portugal” For Eric Camilli he was a lot friendlier. Eric did exactly what was asked of him this weekend and he can return to Europe in a positive frame of mind.

In WRC2 Elfyn Evans was eager to continue his winning ways, but an electrical threw him out of the rally on Friday. He came back and although he lost some time with some punctures he managed to fight back and ended fourth in WRC2.

Roun

Other teams

nd-up

Apart from the regular construc- first Sunday stage was the icing tor’s teams other familiar drivers on his Argentine cake. were also present in Argentina.

Citroën Lorenzo Bertelli under the banner The French team was not in Arof his Fuckmatié WRT had a host gentina, apart from Kris Meeke. of problems in Argentina. While He was not there to compete but being eighth a turbo problem left to do the recce that will hopefully him without power. He did come help him when he comes back in back but the anti lag system was the new car. “It’s strange to be still not working properly. When here in Argentina where I had my everything was working again he first victory, and to which I therecame backt to 13th. Under the cir- fore have very fond memories”. cumstances He couldn’t wish for After the recce, even before the more but it was far from reward- start of the rally he flew back home ing. to continue the test programme of the 2017 car. In this period the Henning Solberg once again had team released the first photos of a found a budget for a Ford Fiesta prototype of the C3 WRC they will RS WRC. But it being a long time be running in 2017. The camouago since he was behind the wheel flage livery was not very helpful in of such a machine it took him a showing what the car would look while to feel confident again. But like but a trained eye may have at the end of Friday he held a well- seen a C3 with a huge rear wing. deserved seventh place. A pow- At the first tests near the Citroën ersteering glitch threw him back plant in Versailles Kris Meeke was and he finished in ninth place, said to have a broad smile on his agood result for a non-regular. face when he left the car after having driven the first kilometres.

Ott Tanak has the same car as Solberg but is a regular contend- Local hero Marcos Ligato had er and he did well until he was some issues with his last minute stopped with electrical problems. acquisition DS3 but the home After returning on Rally2 regula- crowd cheered him to a respecttions there was no way he could able 7th place. battle for good results but was frequently faster than Mads Østberg in a ‘factor’ car. His scratch on the

Overall final classification 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Paddon-Kennard Ogier-Ingrassia Mikkelsen-Jaeger Sordo-Marti Ostberg-Floene Neuville-Gilsoul Ligato-Garcia Camilli-Veillas Solberg-Minor Fuchs-Mussano

Hyundai i20 WRC VW Polo WRC VW Polo WRC Hyundai i20 WRC Ford Fiësta WRC Hyundai i20 WRC Citroën DS 3 WRC Ford Fiësta WRC Ford Fiësta WRC Skoda Fabia R5

3:40:52.9 +14.3 +1:05.2 +1:17.1 +4:56.7 +9:29.5 +9:39.2 +10:16.0 +10:48.5 +24:42.8

YPF Rally Argentina / Standings 19/54

2016 FIA WRC Drivers’ Standings 1.

Sebastien Ogier 96 2.

Hayden Paddon 57 3.

Mads Ostberg 52 4.

Andreas Mikkelsen 48 5.

Dani Sordo 44 6.

Jari-Matti Latvala 27 7.

Ott Tanak 24 8.

Thierry Neuville 23 9.

Stéphane Lefebvre 10 10. Henning Solberg 8

2016 FIA WRC Manufacturers’ Standings 1.

Volkswagen Motorsport 117 2.

Hyundai Motorsport 81 3.

M-Sport World Rally Team 62 4.

Hyundai Motorsport N 49 5.

Volkswagen Motorsport II 45 6.

DMack World Rally Team 30

40th Rally Islas Canarias Based in: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Number of stages: Longest stage: Shortest stage: Total stage distance:

10-12/03/2016 Surface: Tarmac 12 Moya, 24.73 km Galdar, 13.97 km 213 km

Rally Islas Canarias / Review

We’re off!

The ERC got of to a false start this season with the postponing of the opening round, Rally LiepÄ ja in Latvia. A lack of snow forced to organizer to cancel the winter event and move it to a later date in the year. That meant that the Rally Islas Canarias was promoted to be the opening round of the championship, and it brought all the drama one might expect.

Words: Steven van Veenendaal

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Images: PR

Rally Islas Canarias / Review

Special guest Before the event started, the surprise entry of Mads Ostberg took most of the headlines. The WRC star would use the ERC opener to gain vital experience on tarmac in the Ford Fiesta. Ostberg made the switch from Citroën to M-Sport this year and although he has driven the Fiesta WRC in the past, the current evolution is a completely different car that he has to learn again from scratch. The break in the WRC calendar between the rallies in Mexico and Argentina gave Ostberg the opportunity to seek other challenges and he found the perfect opportunity on Gran Canaria. Of course, the ERC doesn’t allow World Rally Cars, but the R5 Evo model comes pretty close with regard to the handling. For MSport director Malcolm Wilson it was another chance to showcase the capabilities of their new R5 model, which already proved a winner at the WRC2 level in the hands of Elfyn Evans.

reigning champion Kajetan Kajetanowicz from Poland, and his Russian rival, Alexey Lukyanuk. It’s a classic battle between consistent pace and raw speed. Kajetanowicz is both very quick and nearly always makes it to the finish, while Lukyanuk possesses even more speed, but perhaps a little too much as he is also rather error prone.

The Russian is getting better and better though, and last year proved he is not just a threat on gravel anymore, his tarmac pace is also right up there with the best of them.

The big question will be, can he keep his act together and keep that blistering pace on the road?

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Ostberg sets the pace Usually Mads Ostberg visits the Canary Islands to relax and enjoy his holidays, but this time around he was all business and he made his intentions clear on the opening stage of the rally by winning it. He won it by the smallest of margins though, as Lukyanuk was a mere 0.1 seconds adrift. Lukyanuk had selectThe ERC regulars This year’s title fight looks ed soft compound tyres and to become a battle between was flying through the damp

WRC Star Mads Ostberg made a one-off ERC appearance.

On the hunt for a repeat, Kajetanowicz is looking for back-to-back ERC titles.

opening section of the stage, the second part was far dryer though and he struggled to the finish, having to let Ostberg past. Still, it proved that Ostberg, ranked second in the WRC standings, would have his work cut out for him to beat the top ERC boys.

A great start of the season for Lukyanuk with a win on round one.

Luis Monzon was the best local driver, finishing third.

Kajto fights back Kajetanowicz was somewhat off the pace on the opening stage as he dropped over 10 seconds. He would quickly flick the ‘Beast mode’ switch though as he fought back by winning the next four stages. Just to show how close the competition actually was, ‘Kajto’ was down 10.4 seconds after the opening stage, yet after winning four consecutive stage, still found himself down 6.9 seconds to Ostberg, there was not a lot between them on this one!

He did open up a sizeable gap to Lukyanuk though, of just over twenty seconds. It would turn out, that would be more important than the seconds he was behind Ostberg…

very desirable on the twisty mountain roads of Gran Canaria. ‘I had a bit of warning before when the brake didn’t seem to work well, but thought it was just some dirt getting in the way or something… ‘ said Ostberg after having crashed out of the lead at the final stage of the opening day. ‘It turns out it wasn’t, there was actually a problem and when you’re pushing hard there’s not a lot left in reserve.’ There wasn’t enough left, as he smashed into a wall an damaged his car too severely to continue the rally.

Fight for glory After Ostberg’s demise it was up to Kajto and Lukyanuk to duke it out for top honours. Kajto had the best cards, but a excessive tyre wear on the opening loop of stages dropped him half a minute behind Lukyanuk.

The Russian would not relinquish this gift, and powered through the final stages to beat Kajto and take a hardfought victory, his third ERC win in total and second in a Ostberg hits trouble row after ending last season A faulty brake system, not with a win as well.

40th Rally Islas Canarias Overall final classification 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Lukyanuk-Arnautov Kajetanowicz-Baran Monzon-Deniz Perez-Lopez

Chuchala-Dymurski Koltun-Pleskot

Consani-Vilmot

Puskadi-Godor Pernia-Garcia

Kasperczyk-Syty

2016 FIA ERC Drivers’ Standings Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Citroen DS3 R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Subaru Impreza STi Ford Fiesta R5 Peugeot 208 T16 Skoda Fabia R5 Renault Clio R3T Ford Fiesta R5

2:13:52.4 +32.7 +1.51.4 +2.58.5 +5.57.5 +6.17.0 +7.19.6 +8.00.0 +8..26.2 +8.37.0

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Alexey Lukyanuk Kajetan Kajetanowicz Luis Monzon Artilles Yonaton Perez Suarez Wojchiech Chuchala Robert Consani

Jaroslaw Koltun

Janos Puskadi Federico Della Casa Surhayen Pernia

Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Citroen DS3 R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Subaru Impreza STi Peugeot 208 T16 Ford Fiesta R5 Skoda Fabia R5 Peugeot 208 T16 Renault Clio R3T

38 pts 29 pts 25 pts 20 pts 11 pts 11 pts 8 pts 4 pts 3 pts 2 pts

the road to china pt. III

Feature / The Road to China

Mark Wilford PR Manager WRC Promoter

Words and mages: Harry van Veenendaal

In the third leg of our Road to China we go back in time. We found someone who was actually there during the 1999 version of the Rally China. As PR manager for Ford’s rallying activities, Mark Wilford was present during the first WRC qualifying event in China. So what was it like in at the 1999 event?

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Well we didn’t really know what to expect because China at that time was still a very closed environment and I think it was almost like a trip into the unknown because we did not really know what to expect when we got there. As we found out, it was very, very different to any country we had been to at that time and the rally was very different to any other rally. Unfortunately it was a very short rally for us as well, as both our cars retired in the opening kilometres of the first stage. So it was not a good rally for us. Both our drivers, Colin McRae and Thomas Radström hit the same rock about a kilometre into the opening stage, they broke a part in their suspension and that was it, finished, game over.‘ >>

Feature / The Road to China

ReM: Can you tell us something more about the rally in those days?

MW: I didn’t see much of it did I? But it was, like I said, very different from any other rally that we know. The impression rally was happening, they’ve been told not go out on the road basically and I really think they did not have much knowledge of what was going on around them. Like I said, I couldn’t really comment on the rally itself because I was there the first morning and that was it.

As this year will also be the case the rally was based in Huairou. This town was quite interesting because when we got there we were given car plates, and if you had a red car plate this meant you could go into town on a Mondays Wednesdays and Fridays and a blue car plate indicated you could go into town on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

ReM: And you had both of them?

MW: No we only got one. So it was a little bit difficult trying to do what we needed to do if you didn’t have the right plate there was a lot swapping of plates on the cars. But it was unique I felt.

ReM: Are the organizers the same as now?

MW: No they are not. The company that is organizing the rally right now is a company called LeTV, which is a major TV company and a major sports promoter as well.

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They are used to major sporting events and sporting shows so they’ve got quite a good background and a good knowledge and they’ve been working very closely with us. They’ll have expertise as well from elsewhere to put into the event. So I think it’s going to be a good rally I’m sure.

it was very different from any other rally

ReM: So it’s worthwhile going there?

MW: I think so yes. I went back to China four or five years ago for the Race of Champions in Beijing and it was a very different place then. Very different, much more westernized, a lot more freedom, you could move around a lot more. It will however, never be the same as a European rally but I don’t think there will be nasty shocks and I don’t think there will be any nasty surprises.

ReM: So you think the rally will go on as planned?

MW: Yes definitely you can book your tickets now!

ReM: OK let’s go back to the original rally what was it like logistically?

MW: Yeah again it was different from what we were used to, as you know, you needed to have a Chinese driver’s license to get there which you had to apply for, furthermore you needed a visa to get into the country, but to obtain the visa you had to have an invitation from the authorities in China.

So as a team we had to provide the names of all our team members to the organizers who would then arrange an invitation for us to come to China and then we could get our visa, So it was quite a long process and we couldn’t replace anyone. Just to get a little card that said: ‘yes you can come into this country’, was quite a big job. And you can imagine doing that job for seventy or eighty people is quite a major operation. And obviously for the logistics of getting the equipment in there is a similar situation. Here there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work from all the team coordinators to be able to get in the cars, the parts, the trucks and everything else

The rally will go on as planned?

Definitely, you can book your tickets now!

ReM: Any customs problems?

MW: I don’t think there were any problems when we actually got there. I think the problem was initially getting all the paperwork into China in the first place. Once the paperwork was all there it was OK, but getting it there was a di fferent story.

ReM: How did the locals feel about the rally?

MW: I think in the town itself they were aware that something was happening where the rally was happening. The stages however were out in the country, quite a long drive from Huairou.

Feature / The Road to China

This year is the perfect timing to bring the WRC back to China

I really don’t think that there, they had any idea what was going on at all. Like I said they’ve been told the rally was talking place and that they had to be sure to keep off the road but that’s pretty much it. But in the town itself there was quite a bit of enthusiasm. I’m not sure they knew exactly what was going on and what the sport was all about but they were enthusiastic because a big show was coming to their town. Things like that did not happen too much in China in these days

because we want to be back in Asia as Asia is one continent where we have not been for a long time. So it’s good for the teams It’s good for us ReM: So will all the teams be there? Will M Sport be there?

MW: Yes M-Sport will be there they paid their dues and they will be around for all fourteen rounds.

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ReM: Does China have a rally culture and ReM: Want kind of city was it? do they have local competitors?

MW: I can’t remember much about it. To Year there is a Chinese championship down be honest I don’t think it was that big, but I there in which people like Allister McCrae, don’t remember that much about the town Mark Higgins, Chris Atkinson, compete. itself, apart from the fact every hotel had bowling alleys and the only thing you could ReM: Typical Chinese names..? do was play bowling. But the town was in MW: Yeah... But they have been taking part 1999, but what has happened to it in be- there for the last couple of years. And I think tween I don’t know. I do know there have the motorsport organisation there is reasonbeen a lot of investments in that area be- ably strong. Chinese drivers have come out cause of this APEC conference, so perhaps in different branches of motorsport, well it was changed from a town to being a city outside of their own country. So they have now. But it is not that far from Beijing. So it a reasonable motorsport background there. should be reasonably accessible ReM: And what about other people are they ReM: Why did the rally stop in 1999? interested?

MW: I don’t really know as I was working for MW: Yeah there is a lot of interest because a team. I do know there have been some it’s different and because it’s new. And issues but I don’t know what they were. therefore it catches the imagination. If it had What I do know about the rally of this year been a normal European rally it would not that the enthusiasm for the rally is huge be- have caught so much imagination but gocause the economic situation in China was ing back to China I think, is really positive booming until recently and the car sales for the interest. over there are massive, so all the manufacturers want to be there, we want to be there

Next up

It seems that China is ready for the WRC. The people are enthusiastic about motorsports and the new promoter is an experienced organizer of sporting events.

But perhaps the most important thing is that China has changed. It’s a more open country eager to be a global player. In sports, basketball, football and Formula 1 in a way paved the way for the WRC. Join us next time as we continue The Road to China.

Circuit of Ireland Based in: Belfast Number of stages: Longest stage: Shortest stage: Total stage distance:

07-09/04/2016 Surface: Asphalt 14 The Glens, 31.21 km Newtownards TT, 2.30 km 210 km

Circuit of Ireland / Review

ERC and brc vs the irish The Circuit of Ireland is more and more returning to its former glory as one of the premiere rallies in the world. In 2014 the event rejoined the European Rally Championship and after a 25year absence, 2016 marked the return of the British Rally Championship as well. As the event is naturally included in its home championship, the Irish Tarmac Championship, the top contenders of three premium series will do battle on the fast Irish roads.

Game on!

Words: Steven van Veenendaal

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Images: PR

Circuit of Ireland / Review

Last year’s winner, Craig Breen, also returned to home soil to defend his crown.

The Irishman runs selected WRC rounds this year in the hope of proving his worth to claim one of their seats for the 2017 WRC season. For ‘The Circuit’ he made an exception to his routine and re-joined his old rivals from the ERC and given his skills and knowledge of the stages Breen was immediately touted as the outright favourite for victory. In the process he would have to deal with the front-runners of the ERC Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Alexey Lukyanuk though as well as the best of the British and the ever fast Irish.

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(Very) Early exit One of his rivals eliminated himself very quickly though as Alexey Lukyanuk didn’t even make it to the start of the event. The flamboyant Russian pushed a little too hard during a pre-event test and rolled his Fiesta badly. It was damaged too severely for the team to repair it in time for the start of the event. Lukyanuk had been the early ERC leader but his

retirement, of failure to start, meant he had to sit and watch as rival Kajetanowicz could go and harvest a lot of points without too much opposition.

Evans charges So far this season Elfyn Evans is pretty much unbeatable.

He won the WRC 2 category in Monte Carlo and Sweden, before taking a commanding win on the opening round of the British Rally Championship, the Mid Wales Stages Rally, as well. In Ireland he continued his winning ways by winning the first stage to open up a six second lead.

He doubled that lead on the second stage and looked like a hard man to beat.

Drama and retirement was to follow on stage three as the auxiliary belt let go on the DMACK Ford Fiesta R5.

Restarting under super rally rules, the WRC stars showed their class with four fastest overall stage times on Saturday before retiring again, this time after an accident.

Craig Breen came to defend last year’s victory.

Another unlucky outing for Robert Consani, smashing his 208 T16.

Let’s fight Evans’ demise paved the way for others to be successful and Craig Breen was ready to pounce. Breen blasted through the third and longest stage of the rally, The Glens, to open up a half-minute lead over Kajetanowicz in second.

Alistair Fisher was in third ahead of BRC rivals Fredrik Ahlin and Marty McCormack, who battled for BRC glory throughout the day.

Elfyn Evans could have been Breen’s biggest rival, but mechanical issues prevented the fight.

Josh Moffett took fourth overall, but more importantly, first in the BRC.

Breen extended his lead during the second loop of stages before spinning on the final stage of the day, a clear warning that the win wasn’t his just yet on the ever-tricky roads of the The Circuit. On the same stage (a remarkably eventful stage considering it was the shortest of the rally) Fredrik Ahlin also hit trouble when he hit a side kerb and damaged his rear left suspension. The Swede managed to struggle through the stage and make emergency repairs but still lost 23 seconds in the process. It wouldn’t help them much, a crash the next day put them out of the event.

Soft tyres Breen started the final day with a healthy 26-second lead in hand, but made the wrong tyre choice for the early morning loop. Kajetanowicz sensed the opportunity and clawed back time stage after stage. He had the gap down to just ten seconds at the midday service and when Breen suffered damage to his left rear tyre after hitting a rock the gap was cut in half to just five seconds. That was how close it would get though as Breen responded admirably on the following stages to bring home his second consecutive Circuit of Ireland victory. It wasn’t easy though “ I felt it slipping from my grasp today, we really had to dig deep.”

Best of the Brits McCormack was in pole position, but he knew his S2000 spec Fabia would have a hard time staying in front of the R5’s. Hard turned into impossible when a fuel pump failure cut his rally short and handed the lead to Josh Moffett, who inherited the lead of the rally and went on to win “It’s the biggest win of my career!”

Circuit of Ireland Overall final classification 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Breen-Martin Kajetanowicz-Baran Fisher-Noble Moffett-Rowan

Greer-Riddick Bogie-Rae

Wright-Fulton Cave-Morgan McGonigle-Geaney Koltun-Pleskot

2016 FIA ERC Drivers’ Standings Citroen DS3 R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Subaru Impreza STi Skoda Fabia R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Skoda Fabia S2000 Ford Fiesta R5

1:54:16.1 +10.6 +56.4 +1.40.1 +2.07.0 +2.55.6 +4.36.1 +4.51.1 +5.52.2 +6.26.2

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Kajetan Kajetanowicz Alexey Lukyanuk Craig Breen Luis Monzon Artilles Alastair Fisher Yonaton Perez Suarez Josh Moffett

Jonathan Greer Wojchiech Chuchala Robert Consani

Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Citroen DS3 R5 Citroen DS3 R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Ford Fiesta R5 Citroen DS3 R5 Subaru Impreza STi Peugeot 208 T16

60 pts 38 pts 38 pts 25 pts 23 pts 20 pts 19 pts 14 pts 11 pts 11 pts

Dutch WRC photographer Erik van ‘t Land releases his new calendar.

The best action from the WRC from all over the world in 12 pages.

You can order it now! €15 or two for €25 (excl. shipping).

Email info@rallypicture.nl for more info.

TAC Rally Belgian Rally Championship

Words: Steven van Veenendaal; Images: PR

Round 3

Belgian RC / TAC Rally

B Tielt Belgian Rally Championship

It was a close-knit fight between Loix and Princen for a long time at the TAC Rally, round three of the Belgian Rally Championship. Loix had been the one to take home the silverware on the opening two rounds of the championship, would he be able to do it again around Tielt?

pagne. It was the story of the season-opening Haspengouw Rally and the following Spa Rally was no different. Would history repeat itself again?

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It certainly seemed so. Loix lost some time on stage two and Princen was quick to pounce and snatch an early lead. He managed to cling Two rounds into the championship a clear pat- to the lead but after stage nine the charging tern is developing in the Belgian Rally Cham- Loix finally overtook him. Order restored you pionship. Freddy Loix and Kris Princen are in might think and it definitely seemed that way. a league of their own and are fighting tooth and nail for top honours. At the end of the ral- That was until the sun started to make way for ly, it is Freddy who gets to spray the cham- the rain‌

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As the final loop of stages commenced, the first drops of rain started to fall and with them the dynamics of the rally changed completely as it turned from head-to-head battle between two drivers, into a tyre war. How much rain was going to fall? How long do you dare to go on with slick tyres?

Those were the questions and Loix and Princen were looking for answers.

had been far from easy “I have never had to drive as hard in the Belgian Championship as I have to do this year. It is compliment for Kris Princen who is pushing me to the limit and we are both loving it!”

Gamble Princen was the one who took the gamble as he chose the softest tyres with maximum cuts. All he needed now, was for the rain to keep falling, the more the better. And fall it would. Unfortunately for Princen, it fell a little bit too late: “My tyre choice was perfect for the final stage of the rally, but the long penultimate stage was far too dry. I had to try something, it just started to rain too late.” Princen’s gamble allowed Loix to take his third consecutive victory of the season, although he would admit that it

Showboat Behind the battle for the win, Dutchman Hans Weijs Jr. quickly turned into the crowd favourite. He was asked by Schmidt Racing to pilot one of their BMW 130i’s for the occasion, a rear-wheel drive car handsomely nicknamed “The Beast”. It turned out the car was indeed a beast, as Weijs regularly recorded top-six times, right up there between the WRC and R5 machinery. Moreover he entertained the crowds with his spectacular (read: sideways) driving style. In the end it landed him fifth overall, a remarkable feat considering his car and the opposition he faced, another testament to his talents.

Again Princen was Loix’ closest rival, but again he came up short and had tot settle for second.

Dutchman Hans Weijs flew over the stages in his BMW M1 and powerslid his way to an incredible fifth place, much to the delight of the fans.

Overall final classification 1. Loix-Gitsels Skoda Fabia R5 2. Princen-Kaspers Peugeot 208 T16 3. Demaerschalk-Eelbode CitroĂŤn DS3 R5 4. Verschueren-Hostens Skoda Fabia R5 5. Weijs Jr.-Verbaeten BMW 130i 6. Becaert-Beernaert Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X 7. Coene-Vandemoortele Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X 8. Parmentier-Desmedt Ford Fiesta R5 9. Braeckevelt-Caytan BMW M3 E36 10. Boulat-De Busser BMW M3

1.31.31,4 +6,4 +1.20,1 +1.23,8 +7.44,8 +7.54,4 +8.12,1 +8.38,4 +8.55,1 +8.55,6

2016 Belgian Rally Championship Drivers Standings 1. Freddy Loix 2. Kris Princen 3. Vincent Verschueren 4. Anthony Dovifat 5. Steven Dolfen 6. Lucas Walbrecq 7. Sebastien Bedoret 8. Xavier Bouche 9. Stephan Hermann 10. Fred Bouvy

Skoda Fabia R5 Peugeot 208 T16 Skoda Fabia R5 Citroen DS3 R1 Peugeot 208 VTi R2 Renault Twingo RS R1 Renault Twingo R2 Skoda Fabia R5 Fiat Punto HGT Porsche 997 GT3

60 pts 48 pts 33 pts 20 pts 20 pts 18 pts 14 pt 10 pts 10 pts 10 pts

B

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B Namen Belgian Rally Championship

Although it should be well and truly spring by now, the Rally de Wallonie was held under autumn-like circumstances. Low temperatures and heavy rainfall turned the asphalt roads of the Namur province into slippery mud-covered tracks. As cutting is the key to success on Belgian rallies, the conditions got gradually worse as more cars made their way through the stages.

With 25 stages to go, this year’s event would provide a daunting challenge to all competitors.

Old Friend In all probability Francois Duval would have preferred a bit more straight forward rally to make his return to the championship. Coming back after years without competition (bar his outings in classic rwd Escorts) to do battle with Freddy Loix is by no means easy. Doing so in the harshest of conditions is nearly impossible. It would be clear quickly though, that he hadn’t forgotten the tools of the trade.

British RC / Mid Wales Stages Rally 48/54

WRC Bullying Prior to the event Chris van Woensel spoke his mind about the starting order on social media. Unlike Sebastien Ogier’s anger about having to start first on the roads, van Woensel was displeased about having to start too far back in the field.

Van Woensel uses an previousgen (two litre engine) WRC and apparently the Belgian organizers aren’t too fond of them. Van Woensel regularly was awarded a starting number in the twenties, causing him to start behind slower cars and forcing him to the tackle the stages after all his main rivals have had ample opportunity to smother the stage with dirt and mud from the roadside shoulders. His complaints didn’t help though as in Wallonie he was again seeded down the order in 23rd. Clearly exasperated by this decision he got his sportive revenge on the opening stage of the rally.

The spectator-friendly classic ‘Citadel’ stage fell victim to van Woensel thirst for success as he recorded the fastest time to take an early lead.

business. He records a sensational time of nearly eight seconds quicker than anyone else, handing him to lead before the rally gets underway proper on Saturday’s stages.

Duval doesn’t let up and continues to hammer home stage wins. First of the front runners to forfeit is Kris Princen, who crashes heavily on stage four.

Loix meanwhile is uncharacteristically off the pace and doesn’t record a stage win until stage thirteen, probably calculating his risks after the exit of Princen, his main championship rival.

Exit Duval After a strong Saturday performance Duval finds himself in the lead with almost half a minute to spare. The day’s final stage, would prove his Waterloo though. The tricky conditions catch Duval who goes off the road and is forced to retire.

It hands the lead back to the steady driving Loix, who wasn’t taking any chances, which sometimes is the best way to go. As all his rivals fell to the conditions, Loix kept his car on the stages and on track for another Belgian title. On Sunday Blitzing Duval On the second passage through he ‘merely’ had to maintain his the Citadel stage however, it’s lead, which he did, making it Duval he shows that he means four wins out of four starts.

The exasperated Chris van Woensel powered his ‘old’ WRC to victory on the opening stage. Unfortunately he wouldn’t make it to the finish though.

Overall final classification 1. Loix – Gitsels Skoda Fabia R5 2. Bouche – Fernandez Skoda Fabia R5 3. Verschueren – Hostens Skoda Fabia R5 4. Allart – Surson Skoda Fabia WRC 5. Baugnet – Cuvelier Ford Fiesta R5 6. Fernemont – Maillen Ford Fiesta R5 7. Collard – Borlon Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 8. Hermann – Maraite Fiat Punto HGT 9. Bouvy – Hottelet Porsche 997 GT3 10. v Rompuy – Feys Citroen DS3 R5

2:10.20,9 +44,4 +46,1 +2.14,4 +3.51,9 +3.59,6 +6.25,6 +10.59,1 +11.17,1 +13.32,4

2016 Belgian Rally Championship Drivers Standings 1. Freddy Loix 2. Kris Princen 3. Vincent Verschueren 4. Anthony Dovifat 5. Steven Dolfen 6. Lucas Walbrecq 7. Xavier Bouche 8. Stephan Hermann 9. Fred Bouvy 10. Sebastien Bedoret

Francois Duval splashed back on the rallying scene and immediately took the fight to Loix.

Skoda Fabia R5 Peugeot 208 T16 Skoda Fabia R5 Citroen DS3 R1 Peugeot 208 VTi R2 Renault Twingo RS R1 Skoda Fabia R5 Fiat Punto HGT Porsche 997 GT3 Renault Twingo R2

80 pts 48 pts 45 pts 30 pts 26 pts 26 pts 26 pts 21 pts 20 pts 19 pt

B

Img: JS

Zuiderzee Rally Dutch Rally Championship

Words: Harry van Veenendaal; Images: Johan Vis Fotografie (JV), JS Photography (JS)

Round 1

Dutch RC / Zuiderzeerally

D Emmeloord Dutch Rally Championship

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In March some 60 teams came to the Dutch rally season opener: the Zuiderzeerally. It is based in the Dutch town of Emmeloord, in one of the polders in the former Zuiderzee. The event consisted of three separate events. Apart from the normal rally there were two so called shortrallies.

These are sprint rallies with a limited mileage for beginning rally teams. The first one was the Zuiderzeeshortrally, an event with stages like the proper rally. These stages ran over a variety of rural roads ranging from narrow cobble stone streets to meandering roads on the dikes that prevent the polders from flooding.

They all have their own challenges. The cob-

bled streets are not flat, they have a kind of round form so that water can flow to the sides of the roads. Just like the dike roads they are often covered with a layer of slippery clay, left behind by tractors ploughing the adjacent land. For foreign competitors the dike roads have another challenge. The countryside in completely flat and the dikes being somewhat higher make it hard to read the roads. Sometimes the trees lining the roads help you, but for people not used to this phenomenon it is always tricky. The third event called Zeebodemshortrally (shortrally on the bottom of the sea) just uses a challenging stage in an industrial estate with long flat roads and brake breaking corners.

Dutch RC / Zuiderzeerally

The Zuiderzeerally organizers have a policy where they try to spread the nuisance for people living along the stages. Not everyone is a rallyfan so by changing the route every year they try to make it a bit easier on the people and on themselves because getting the necessary permits is not an easy task in the over populated Netherlands. For this reason the rally now concentrated in the rural area around the old town of Kampen. Right from the start Dennis Kuipers made clear his intentions. He wanted to win!

With his vast experience of quite a few WRC events and a host of other national and international rallies he was no match for the other competitors. He won all the stages and consequently the rally. A simple case of he came he saw he conquered.

of tarmac settings. Among them we saw Ib Kragh preparing for the Danish championship in a CitroÍn DS3 R5. Also from Danmark was Brian Madsen, one of the spectator’s favorites, because of his howling Peugeot 306 Maxi. But the best surprise was Christian Riedemann, a German Championship works driver in his Peugeot 208 T16 R5. Unfortunately he had to retire early in the rally because of mechanical issues. But the special nature of the event enabled him to return in the Zeebodemshortrally later that evening and he won that. Victory was less important than the extra mileage. A nice batlle unfolded behind the winner. It was a family feud between Jasper and his younger brother Jim van den Heuvel (now competing on the world stages in the WRC2 class). The older brother had just a little bit more experience and was second. Both Jim and Brian Madsen Traditionally some foreign competitors visit this event to do some testing scored the same time and were joined third and fourth.

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Former Danish champion Brian Madsen delighted the crowds with his spectacular (sounding) Peugeot 306 Maxi.

Img: JS

Jasper van den Heuvel tried, but his Mitsubishi was simply no match for Kuipers’ WRC power.

Img: JV

Overall final classification 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

Kuipers-Poel Ford Fiësta RS WRC vd Heuvel-Bakker Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X vd Heuvel-Gillis Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X Madsen-Posorski Peugeot 306 Maxi v Ballegooijen-Findhammer Mitsubishi Lancer Boon-Thirie Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X v Iersel-vd Einde Mitsubishi Lancer EVO X Kragh-Pedersen Citroën DS 3 R5 vd Marel-vd Marel Opel Adam Brouwer-Kroeze Audi Coupe S2

55:17.9 +1:45.4 +2:47.6 +2:47.6 +3:04.0 +4:11.5 +4:20.4 +4:21.1 +5:04.7 +5:42.1

2016 Dutch Rally Championship Drivers Standings 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6. = 8.

9.

10.

Dennis Kuipers 24 Jasper van den Heuvel 21 Jim van den Heuvel 16 Antoine van Ballegooijen 15 Timo van der Marel 12 Gerben Brouwer 11 Martin van Iersel 11 Piet Hein van der Heijden 9 Marcel van Leeuwen 8 Edwin Wolves

8

Img: JV

D

See you next time...

see you next time...