So it is all over. The first gravel test of 2011 and an all too familiar ending for fans of the WRC. Sebastien Loeb claimed victory south of the border and in pretty dominant fashion. The weekend was not without its issues however. Here are a few points I was able to take away from Round 2. Tires Michelin had a rough showing this weekend. While the brand has been away from rally’s top flight for sometime, there were a number of punctures on the hard rocks of Mexico. The…
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Rally – L’Estage Wins 100 Acre Wood, Hanson Maintains Championship Lead
FROM: RALLYCAR: Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard have won the 2011 Rally in the 100 Acre Wood after a flawless drive from start to end. L’Estage set a blistering pace early on, winning ten of the event’s fifteen special stages and finishing 17.7 seconds ahead of international rally ace David Higgins. This victory was a particularly sweet one for L’Estage, who celebrated his birthday on Saturday, the second and final day of the rally. Subaru Rally Team USA’s David Higgins and co-driver Craig Drew placed second overall, netting their first…
Read MoreRally – Stobart Goes Big for Mexico
The M-Sport Stobart team had a weekend to remember in Sweden with Mads Ostberg giving the team their best ever result of 2nd. The team also led a rally for the first time ever. So what is the next logical step? Go even bigger in Mexico! The team is set to run with four M-Sport Stobart powered Ford Fiestas. Mads Ostberg and Henning Solberg are the nominated points drivers for the first gravel test of the year. Joining them in a non points capacity will be Matthew Wilson and Evgeny…
Read MoreRally – Red Bull Skoda Ready to Attack SWRC
One of my top story lines for Rally Mexico is going to be the arrival of the Red Bull Skoda outfit and 2010 IRC champion Juho Hanninen. A seat that was previously held by Patrik Sandell now goes to one of the top all around drivers in rally and they will be looking to win south of the border. Skoda is currently fielding one factory level entry with their man Juho at the wheel while a second car will be fielded by Baumschlager Rally Racing. Hermann Gassner jr will be…
Read MoreRally – Manufactured Product?
So I know what you are thinking…”Shaun, rally is by far NOT manufactured results like some of our other favorite series.” I agree to you 100% minus the sly tactics the teams pull on occasion. I am talking about the grand scheme of things to be honest and my point is that rally is a sport of manufacturers…or at least it used to be! Audi, MINI, Lancia, Porsche, Peugeot, Ford, Subaru, Mitsubishi, and all the rest were at one time battling it out through the history of rally as full…
Read MoreRally – Kim DeMotte Talks About Returning to Rally in the 100 Acre Wood as a Driver
Rally – Araujo Set as MINI WRC Customer
Armindo Araujo is set to graduate from the PWRC and take on the World Championship later this season. Earlier this off season, Araujo had indicated he was very close to signing a deal to drive the world championship level cars this season. The Portuguese driver and two times production champion received the personality of the year award from the WRC based on a fans vote. An award he won over the likes of Ken Block and Petter Solberg. He will debut for MINI in a S2000 car in Portugal before…
Read MoreMSP – Sweden, Mikkleson, VP Fuel, and SPEED Center
The WRC season has arrived and because of that, we will now move the Service Park column to Monday to accommodate. What a show the WRC put on in Sweden to usher in its new era of car and talent. This rally had absolutely everything and will go down as one of the most exciting rallies we have seen in a long time. Final Thoughts on Sweden Are you serious!?! This has been one of the best overall rallies we have seen in sometime. New Zealand was amazing due to…
Read MoreRally – Ford Fiesta RS WRC claims podium clean sweep on rally debut
FROM ABU DHABI FORD WORLD RALLY: Ford’s all-new Fiesta RS World Rally Car made a dream debut by powering to a 1-2-3 finish in Rally Sweden today. Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team’s Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen won a thrilling opening round of the FIA World Rally Championship by just 6.5sec from Mads Østberg and Jonas Andersson. Hirvonen’s team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila were third. It was Ford’s first podium clean sweep since Rally Sweden in 2008, when Latvala claimed his maiden WRC win and was followed home…
Read MoreRally – Hirvonen Takes Back to Back Sweden Victories
The 2011 season got started with one of the craziest rallies in recent memory! Way to usher in a new era for the Fiesta and DS3. The previous two days of the rally were unpredictable except for one point. Whoever was first on the road usually lost time due to fresh snow. Mikko Hirvonen was to be first on the road this morning and he would prove that to be false as he set some blistering times in the mornings stages on what was really nothing more than fresh ice.…
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