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| 2008 Rally Catalunya : WRC Round 12 of 15 : 3rd - 5th October In this issue: 1. Event Preview 3. Other News 4. Team by Team Preview 5. Event statistics 6. Event Schedule 7. Championship Points 1. Event Preview This 12th round of the 15-rally championship returns for a fourth time to Salou, on the Costa Daurada coast, south-west of Barcelona. The sweeping roads of the Tarragona region are fast and flowing and can be compared to a race circuit in their characteristics. The asphalt is smooth but often abrasive, and can quickly become slippery as drivers cut across the open corners to shave tenths of a second from their special stage times and drag stones and dirt onto the surface. The roads will become especially slippery for the second pass of stages in the afternoon after the whole entry has already tackled the morning speed tests. It places huge importance on the work of drivers' safety crews, who pass through the stages ahead of competitors. They note sections of road where conditions have changed and relay the information to co-drivers who modify their pace notes accordingly before starting the tests. 3. Other News " Peugeot claim IRC makes title http://www.rallye-info.com/article.asp?sid=0&stid=7369 " IRC drivers title battle analysed http://www.rallye-info.com/article.asp?sid=0&stid=7368 4. Team by Team Preview BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 After a five-week break from competition, BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team returns to action in Spain next week for the first of two Mediterranean asphalt events on consecutive weekends that could go a long way towards deciding the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship titles. The team has prepared meticulously for Rally de España (2 - 5 October) and the subsequent Rallye de France in Corsica with back-to-back tests in both locations as the campaign enters its decisive phase. The reigning manufacturers' world champion has also strengthened its driver line-up for the final sealed surface events of the season. Finland's Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen, lying second in the drivers' standings, will be joined by acknowledged asphalt experts François Duval and Patrick Pivato in the record-breaking Focus RS World Rally Car. They will replace Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila, who will rejoin the squad for the final two rallies of the year in Japan and Britain. #3 : Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "The rally seems to be faster and faster each year. The stages are smooth and the organisers seem to improve the roads every time we come. It's like driving on a race track and it's crucial to find the correct braking point and the right line through bends. We're second in both the manufacturers' and drivers' points so I need to try to beat Sébastien Loeb. That's going to be very difficult and there's no room for mistakes, everything has to be perfect," #4 : Francois Duval/Patrick Pivato: "This isn't my favourite asphalt rally because the roads are fast and wide. I prefer stages that are narrow and tight. But that doesn't alter my plan which is to try to take a podium. The 2008-specification Focus RS WRC is a big improvement over the 2007 version which I drove on asphalt earlier in the season, and if I can match the pace of Dani Sordo then I should be around the top three," Citroen Total World Rally Team http://citroen.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=1 The 44th Rally Catalunya-Costa Daurada sees the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship resume sealed surface action. Following consecutive one-two finishes for Citroën Total in Germany and New Zealand, the team now leads the Manufacturers' championship standings, while Sébastien Loeb tops the Drivers' points table. The journey to Spain consequently stands out as a first class opportunity for the squad to consolidate its position, especially since the Citroën C4 WRCs entered for Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena and Dani Sordo/Marc Martí have already shown their ability in asphalt trim. C4 WRCs have also been entered by Urmo Aava/Kuldar Sikk and Conrad Rautenbach/David Senior. Both of these cars are prepared and run by PH Sport with the support of technicians from Citroën Sport Technologies. #1 : Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "A top result in Spain would do our chances a world of good in both championships. But our rivals are aware of that, too, so they will have no intention of making life easy for us. That said, this is a rally I really like and I will try to make the most of this opportunity to pull further clear at the top of the Drivers' standings," #2 : Daniel Sordo/Marc Marti: "This time round, we will probably have to adapt the way we drive and cut the corners less because our Pirelli tyres won't be equipped with mousse. However, that won't change my objective which is to continue the recent successful streak we've enjoyed since Finland, and also try to score valuable points for Citroën and ourselves." Subaru World Rally Team http://subaru.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=5 On the first weekend of October the Subaru World Rally Team will travel to Spain with three works entries as the World Rally Championship returns to tarmac. RallyRACC Catalunya Costa Daurada is the penultimate tarmac event of the year and the first half of a back-to-back asphalt double-header on which SWRT will be running a trio of Impreza WRC2008s for the first time. #5 : Petter Solberg/Phil Mills:"Spain is a very different rally to Germany with very different roads, a lot cleaner and more flowing, but if you can drive, you can drive, so it's not that big a change. We're always driving flat out anyway, so you don't do much different inside the car. It'll be an important rally though as it'll go a long way to deciding the result in Corsica the week after." #6 : Chris Atkinson/Stephane Prevot: "Spain is a very different event to Germany, where we were last on tarmac. The roads are wide, smooth and high-grip, and you can carry a lot of corner speed because of this. It's about the highest lateral load we get all season, and whilst it doesn't really affect us because we train for it, you notice it for sure inside the car. Because it's smooth it gets very slippery when it rains as the water doesn't run away, but when you get a series of corners right, it's a great feeling." Stobart VK M-Sport Ford World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 Stobart VK M-Sport Ford rally team welcomes the return of last year's superstars Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila who rejoin the team for both Tarmac tests. In Spain the pair will be reunited with former team-mates Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin as the two crews look to post some solid results and collect a strong haul of points for the Stobart squad. #7 : Jari-Matti Latvala/Mikko Antilla: "This week I have done five hours of asphalt training with one of Finland's top touring car drivers on a race track and there are quite a few things I have learnt, especially with my braking, which I know I can use on the next two Tarmac rallies. I did the same training 12 months ago only this time I feel like I have taken a lot more from it. This WRC season started on Tarmac and on a new tyre and my confidence was not perfect and in Germany I felt the pressure after my accident in Finland but now I actually feel quite relaxed. I have also been doing some drive days for Ford in a Fiesta and a Focus ST over the past few days and OK they are not rally cars but I was able to practice what I learnt from the touring car which is more time and practice for me. I'm looking forward to Spain and Corsica because I like these rallies and now I will have had more time with the Pirelli PZero tyre so I will be more familiar with its actions." #8 : Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin: "It will be nice to go back to a consistent Tarmac event in Spain and hopefully things will stay dry for us. I prefer the nature of these stages to Germany as the roads are consistent over all three days whereas Germany there was a lot of variation. Being with Rob [Wilson] yesterday should be good preparation for the event. We are back scoring points for the Stobart team and I am sporting my lucky number 7 so looking forward to starting the event next week. The weather again will play a big part and if it is consistent and we can get off to a positive start during the shakedown I think a points finish is certainly on the cards." Suzuki World Rally Team http://suzuki.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=12 The Suzuki drivers have been encouraged by a promising initial performance on asphalt from the SX4 WRC, which is still in only its first full season of competition. On the last tarmac round in Germany, Toni Gardemeister scored a valuable manufacturer point - and the SX4 WRC indicated that there was plenty of asphalt potential still to come. Rally de España however is extremely different in character to Germany, although it holds the same promise of uncertain weather conditions. With Europe now in the grip of autumn, the rain in Spain is a distinct possibility. #11 : Toni Gardemeister/Tomi Tuominen: I've not driven the Catalunya Rally since 2005, so I don't really know what to expect. It's an event that I like, but it's not always liked me in the past! For some reason we've often had little problems on this rally that have prevented us from getting a good result. It won't be easy because we have many opponents, but if we have a good level of reliability I think that we can score points." #12 : Per-Gunnar Andersson/Jonas Andersson: "There are a number of things to look out for on this rally, in particular the way to cut the corners. If you cut the corners too deeply you can damage the car but if you do not cut them enough then your stage time will be slow. We've got some small improvements on the SX4 WRC for this event including some new differential settings, which should make it easier to drive." 5. Event Statistics " 44th RallyRACC Catalunya - Costa Daurada (October 2-5): round 12 of 15. Route: the total distance is 1,313.99km, including 353.62km divided into 18 stages (9 different). 6. Event Schedule Thursday 2 October: Ceremonial start Start Passeig Jaume 1, Salou 20.00 Friday 3 October: Day 1 Salou - Salou Start PortAventura 07.30 SS1 La Mussara 1 20.48km 08.16 SS2 Querol 1 21.26km 10.04 SS3 El Montmell 1 24.14km 10.47 Serv A PortAventura (30 mins) 12.42 SS4 La Mussara 2 20.48km 13.58 SS5 Querol 2 21.26km 15.46 SS6 El Montmell 2 24.14km 16.29 Serv B PortAventura (45 mins) 18.14 Finish Port Aventura 18.59 Total 131.76km Saturday 4 October: Day 2 Salou - Salou Serv C PortAventura (15 mins) 07.30 SS7 El Priorat / La Ribera d'Ebre 1 38.27km 08.44 SS8 Les Garrigues 1 8.60km 09.57 SS9 La Llena 1 17.12km 10.28 Serv D PortAventura (30 mins) 12.18 SS10 El Priorat / La Ribera d'Ebre 2 38.27km 13.47 SS11 Les Garrigues 2 8.60km 15.00 SS12 La Llena 2 17.12km 15.31 Serv E PortAventura (45 mins) 17.11 Finish PortAventura 17.56 Total 127.98km Sunday 5 October: Day 3 Salou - Salou Serv F PortAventura (15 mins) 07.15 SS13 Riudecanyes 1 16.32km 08.05 SS14 Santa Marina 1 26.51km 09.06 SS15 La Serra d'Almos 1 4.11km 10.02 Serv G PortAventura (30 mins) 10.56 SS16 Riudecanyes 2 16.32km 12.01 SS17 Santa Marina 2 26.51km 13.02 SS18 La Serra d'Almos 2 4.11km 13.58 Serv H PortAventura (10 mins) 14.47 Finish Passeig Jaume 1, Salou 15.07 Total 93.88km Rally total 353.62km 7. Championship Points Full standings http://www.rallye-info.com/points.asp |