The dust was not the only thing that made things rather dirty on day 3 of Rally Jordan. There was tactics a plenty and some rather questionable moves by a few select individuals that would make the result a little sketchy. After the misfortune suffered by Mikko Hirvonen on day 2, Sebastian Loeb merely just needed to finish the event in order to collect a hefty points lead heading into Turkey. The Frenchman did just that by taking his 56th career victory over the factory Ford number 2 of Jari-Matti…
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Rally – Misfortune for Hirvonen and Ogier
Mikko Hirvonen wrecked his Ford Focus this morning in the opening stage of the morning. The Finn who had set himself for a better road position yesterday, ended up playing a version of rally car pinball. The Ford driver who looked invincible in Sweden and Monte is clearly going to have his confidence rattled after this crash. Not only was the Ford way off the pace in Mexico, but now the hopes and dreams of the blue oval racers rests on a surprisingly good Jari-Matti Latvala. The clear number two…
Read MoreEpisode 32 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin the crew as we celebrate OP’s 1 year celebration that we almost forgot. We also break down Australia and St. Pete. We also break the hot news of the week and look ahead to Rally Jordan and the Malaysian Grand Prix. Sit back with one of your favorite adult beverages (or coffee if on your way to your job) and enjoy Episode 32.
Read MoreRally – 2010 WRC iPhone App
The WRC has taken a technological leap forward with delivering their product to fans all over the world. The premier rally series has released an iPhone app that is simply BRILLIANT! Unlike a number of racing apps out there for say F1 and ALMS, this WRC app has the ability to dial into the WRC radio station so as individuals on the move can tune into the rally via there mobile. That in itself makes the app worth the price. How much you ask? Oh thats right…its FREE! Along with…
Read MoreRally – Manufacturer Supply and Demand Issues
2011 will see both Ford and Citroen drop their current WRC cars in favor of the new technical regulations that allow for only S2000 chassis and 1.6 litre turbo engines. That has presented an interesting issue. Both Citroen and M-Sport are at capacity building the DS3 and Ford Fiesta WRC respectably. Because of the manufacturers efforts in developing, testing, and building these machines in time for next season, there is currently no way to produce a C4 or Focus in case of emergency this season. This can be a REAL…
Read MoreRally – WRC Jordan Will Happen
News coming out of the WRC website indicate that the six months of rain that fell last week in a 72 hour span will not hinder Rally Jordan and that the show will go on. Last week seen fierce weather devastate much of the rally surface and even chunks of ground were taken by massive flash floods. To compound the problem, some of the stages are actually below sea-level which caused impossible situations as the water ran down from higher ground. The Jordanian government is currently working around the clock,…
Read MoreRally – Corona Mexico Review
So ends the first proper gravel test of the year, and what a rally it turned out to be in Mexico! The clear favorites going into this weekend had to be Mikko Hirvonen and the BP Ford team, however it was not to be as the Citroens would prove to be too much. Day 1 was exciting as Petter Solberg would set a dominant pace all day long. Sebastian Ogier would run a clean and consistent second as the two factory Citroen efforts would take the third and fourth positions.…
Read MoreRally – Quirky Mexico Shakedown
Round 2 of the WRC campaign kicked off today with the shakedown stage and a number of cars would not make it back to service without a battle wound courtesy a water bridge. Petter Solberg would claim the fastest time in the shakedown with a 2:51.7. It would appear as though the gremlins that haunted the Norwegian during Rally Sweden would allow him to enjoy at least one day of the event. Both Petter Solberg and Dani Sordo would suffer damage to their Citroens with the latter actually busting a…
Read MoreEpisode 28 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin the crew from Open Paddock this week as we discuss the 100 Acre Wood Rally in detail. No shortage on discussion with points of view from the photographer, a returning fan, and a first time rally attendee. Here from Travis Pastrana on what went wrong for his event as well as a number of interviews from John Cassidy on his adventure through the stages. We also get into the IndyCar silly season as things begin to accelerate towards the season opener as well…
Read MoreRally – Hirvonen Takes Sweden
Mikko Hirvonen has started off his 2010 campaign in style as he has won the Rally of Sweden. The Finn defeated Sebastian Loeb by a margin of around 42 secs. The battle raged in the morning stages as Sebastian Loeb took an early lead. However, a differential change at the mid day service park saw Mikko surge ahead of his title rival. Once ahead, the Ford number one began to pull away until Sebastian threw in the towel and Hirvonen was able to take the opening round by 42.3 seconds.…
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