This weekend marks the running of the Acropolis Rally in Greece. Typically recognized as one of the hardest rallies on both car and crew around. The MINI works team will not be competing in the event this year, but that has not stopped the team from travelling to Greece. The John Cooper works drivers took part in the typical rally recce today along with their 2012 championship competitors. While the team is not going to run their machines during the event, they did take down pace notes for next season’s…
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Dirt 3 – Available Today
Episode 88 – Openpaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSit back and enjoy as Shaun and Doug discuss all the happenings in motorsport. Rally Italy, Le Mans at Spa, F1 in Turkey and Mike Conway finally joins us! Plus much more!
Read MoreRally – Hirvonen Holds Third in Sardinia
FROM: Abu Dhabi Ford: Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team drivers Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen won three speed tests en route to third place after today’s opening leg of Rally Italia Sardegna. The Finns, driving a Ford Fiesta RS World Rally Car, lost time with a puncture after hitting a bank, but a high rate of attrition means they remain in a strong position with two more tough days remaining. Team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila retired this morning after damaging the suspension of their Fiesta RS WRC when…
Read MoreRally – MINI WRC Team is officially launched in Oxford
FROM: MINI WRC: Oxford/Munich, 11th April 2011. The return of MINI to one of the biggest stages in motorsport is approaching ever closer. On Monday, the MINI WRC Team was officially presented to the public at the Team Launch, which took place at the MINI Plant in Oxford (GB). This season, the team will contest six rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) with the MINI John Cooper Works WRC. The car will be tested against its rivals for the first time at the Rally d’Italia Sardegna from 5th…
Read MoreRally – Portugal Super Special
The first stage of Rally Portugal has ended and Mikko Hirvonen will carry a 1.3 sec lead over Sebastien Loeb heading into the proper stages. The super special was located in Lisbon and drew a massive crowd. Below are the top 10 after the stage. There are a couple key points to take away from the opening test. This is a bit unusual as the super special is supposed to be a low threat event that allows the spectators a chance to watch the rally cars up close. The results…
Read MoreRally – 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 MoreRally – Tire War in 2012?
It would appear as though a year away from the WRC is all Pirelli needed. The Italian manufacturer has indicated that they would like to rejoin rally’s top flight as soon as 2012 after a one year break. The intent of the return is to attack Michelin and have a battle amongst top teams in 2012. “I want us to be back in the WRC in 2012, once those regulations are out, we will study them carefully and begin – if the conditions are right – to prepare ourselves. We…
Read MoreRally – OFFICIAL: Sordo to MINI
Well the news has finally been made official. Dani Sordo will now compete along Kris Meeke in the new Prodrive MINI WRC. The team is not 100% sure when they will make their debut, but the fit of Sordo at the team is the best Sordo could hope for. News had broken previously that a deal was done, but no official announcement was made due to Sordo’s Citroen contract. Now that the contract has expired, the announcement could be made. For Sordo, this is the best he could have hoped…
Read MoreDakar – El Matador Showing Perfection
Carlos Sainz has been perfect after two stages of the Dakar in his VW. The Spaniard has began his title defense by winning the two opening stages of the rally and has done so in convincing fashion. The rally is now underway and Sainz VW is now in a battle with X-Raid BMW’s Stephane Peterhansel. A one sided battle really as Sainz has taken comfortable margins in both stages. VW teammate Nasser al-Attiyah is third overall after finishing P2 in today’s stage. American Robby Gordon was not so fortunate today.…
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