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| 2008 Rally Japan : WRC Round 14 of 15 : 31st October - 2nd November In this issue: 1. Leg 1 Unofficial Leaderboard 2. Leg 1 News 4. Leg 1 Team by Team News 5. Remaining Event Schedule 1. Unofficial Leaderboard 1. M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen FIN Ford Focus RS 42min 40.8sec 2. J-M Latvala/M Anttila FIN Ford Focus RS 43min 07.0sec 3. S Loeb/D Elena FRA Citroen C4 43min 11.4sec 4. C Atkinson/S Prévot AUS Subaru Impreza 43min 41.1sec 5. P Solberg/P Mills NOR Subaru Impreza 43min 42.8sec 6. M Wilson/S Martin GBR Ford Focus RS 43min 52.0sec 7. P-G Andersson/J Andersson SWE Suzuki SX4 43min 52.4sec 8. T Gardemeister/T Tuominen FIN Suzuki SX4 44min 17.6sec 9. H Solberg/C Menkerud NOR Ford Focus RS 44min 27.4sec 10 J Ketomaa/M Stenberg FIN Subaru Impreza 45min 42.2sec 2. Leg News BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team hit top form on the vastly shortened opening leg of Rally Japan to hold first and second places tonight. Behind Hirvonen and Latvala, Sébastien Loeb (Citroen) held third, the Frenchman driving cautiously in his quest for a fifth world title. Chris Atkinson (Subaru) made a steady start but climbed from ninth to fourth, overhauling team-mate Petter Solberg on the final stage. Stobart driver Matthew Wilson (Ford) rounded off the top six. Team-mate François Duval (Ford) climbed to second, ahead of Latvala, on stage five but retired on the following test after crashing heavily into a steel post supporting a roadside barrier. The Belgian was uninjured but co-driver Patrick Pivato was airlifted to hospital with a broken pelvis and a fractured tibia and is undergoing surgery this evening. Dani Sordo (Citroen) retired from fifth on stage six with engine problems while Conrad Rautenbach (Citroen) went out after sliding off the road on the opening test. Tomorrow's Route This shortest leg of the three-day event was truncated as a result of bad weather and a serious accident. Snow earlier in the week damaged the roads in the longest special stage and organisers scrapped both passes over the test for safety reasons. An accident this afternoon halted that stage and the resulting delay meant another test was cancelled to put the rally back on schedule. Drivers tackled just 57.40km of the scheduled 90.48km. The rally is based in Sapporo, the largest city on Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido, for the first time after moving west from the previous host town of Obihiro. The bulk of today's tests were to the north-east over twisty and muddy gravel forest tracks, often tree-lined and with large drainage ditches alongside. The leg ended with two passes over a super special stage inside the ultra-modern Sapporo Dome, a baseball stadium and host to soccer's World Cup in 2002. The second day is the longest of the rally. After leaving Sapporo at 07.30, drivers tackle two identical loops of four stages near the town of Chitose and Tomakomai, before another two passes over the Dome super special stage. They reach the final overnight halt at 19.17 after 156.78km of competition. 4. Team by Team News BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team hit top form on the vastly shortened opening leg of Rally Japan to hold first and second places tonight. Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen dominated in their Ford Focus RS World Rally Car to lead from the opening speed test in this 14th and penultimate round of the FIA World Rally Championship. They built a 26.2 second advantage over team-mates Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila. #3 : Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: Hirvonen was fastest over two of the morning's three stages to open a 6.9sec lead over Latvala by the time the cars returned to Sapporo for service. He was quickest through both afternoon tests over the same roads, before winning both passes over the Dome test, for a tally of six wins from seven stages. "Today was soft, narrow and twisty but everything felt good so I pushed hard all day," said 28-year-old Hirvonen. "It was cold and muddy in the opening stage this morning, so cold that I never really got any heat into the tyres, although the grip was still consistently good. I didn't expect so much snow there and in some places when I cut a corner, it came over the car. This afternoon the roads were really rutted but I expected them to be worse. It was difficult to drive because the ruts were so deep. But I had a clear run and everything went smoothly. "Tomorrow's stages are wider and faster. There was a lot of loose gravel on the surface during the recce so I hope it continues to rain tonight to dampen everything down because first in the start order won't be the best place to be otherwise. The stages will require a different rhythm from today and I hope I can find that immediately," added Hirvonen. #4 : Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila: Latvala struggled to find a good feeling initially. "My position is good but it was an up and down day," said the 23-year-old Finn. "I made no big mistakes but I wasn't totally satisfied with my driving. I couldn't find a rhythm in the first two stages this morning. I pushed too hard and the car was going too wide into corners. I changed the differential programme for the final stage and that really helped. "The conditions were challenging, both inside and outside. There was so much rain outside tonight that when we entered the stage inside the Dome, the concrete was soaked. It was like driving on ice and I had to be so careful," added Latvala. Citroen Total World Rally Team http://citroen.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=1 The opening day of the 2008 Rally Japan, which is the 14th and penultimate round of this year's World Rally Championship, ended this evening with Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena in third place with their Citroën C4 WRC. They steered clear of kamikaze tactics to complete the first leg in a position which could well enable them to secure their fifth consecutive world title on Sunday afternoon. Dani Sordo/Marc Martí were halted by a turbo problem in the second Citroën Total car. #1 : Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: Sébastien and Daniel didn't start the rally at a breakneck pace. "I took the first stage really cautiously; too cautiously perhaps," admitted the Alsace-born driver at the lunchtime break. "There was snow by the side of the road and I was worried we might come across ice, too. It was quite complicated to find the best compromise between outright speed and caution. It was easier to find a good rhythm for the following tests which were less treacherous." The four-time World Champions effectively went on to post the fastest time on SS4 to reach the first service halt in fourth place, just 2.5 seconds off the podium. "The second loop saw the cancellation of SS8, too," reported Seb early in the evening. "I tried to stay focused but I also kept a close eye on the gaps in order to keep the pressure on our rivals. The first day is already over and that's a good thing. I hate driving defensively. I am happy with third place this evening and I am aware what that could bring us, although I'm trying not to think about the title. We've got a big day to come tomorrow and I expect the second leg stages to be very selective." #2 : Daniel Sordo/Marc Marti: At that point, they were one place clear of their own Citroën Total team-mates Dani Sordo/Marc Martí whose mission in Sapporo was to score as many points as possible for Citroën, and the Spanish pair effectively enjoyed a trouble-free morning. "The stages were narrow and very slippery," commented Dani who ended the first loop 6.9s off a podium position. "It could have been easy to make a mistake and there was more to lose than we had to gain. That said, the short run gave us a chance to familiarise ourselves with the new terrain which is no easier than that found in the Obihiro region." Dani Sordo's analysis of the day was understandably less positive following his early disappearance fromthe leaderboard. "Everything was going perfectly," related the Spaniard. "We had settled into a good pace which was quick without us taking any risks. I was pleased with our position, but then our engine dropped power on SS6 and we were forced to stop. It's hugely disappointing but we will see with the team whether we will be able to profit from the SupeRally ruling to restart on Saturday morning…" Subaru World Rally Team http://subaru.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=5 On the home event for the Subaru World Rally Team, Chris Atkinson and Stéphane Prévot finished in fourth position overall on a day that saw three stages cancelled and one stopped prematurely. Teammates Petter Solberg and Phil Mills also climbed the leaderboard to secure fifth position at the end of the first day, the two crews separated by just 1.7 seconds. #5 : Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "The stages this afternoon were very rutted and slippery, but we had no major problems today other than a small off in the first stage, but no damage" said Petter Solberg. "Today's stages were very narrow and slippery and we knew that it would be difficult. The stages tomorrow will be much faster though and I think they will suit us much better so hopefully tomorrow we can increase our speed. I want to fight for a podium. The approach doesn't change. It's always the same focus on fighting for a win coming into every rally." #6 : Chris Atkinson/Stephane Prevot: "The car was not right this morning so we lost a lot, but it was much better this afternoon and we were able to make up time" said Chris Atkinson. "I had a lot of understeer this morning and after service it was less. It was enjoyable to drive. Ok the times are still not where we want them, but we didn't lose a lot of time to Sebastien this afternoon. Ford seem to have a very good engineering package for these conditions though and they're very fast. I was making up time this afternoon so it would have been nice to keep going without the cancellations." Stobart VK M-Sport Ford World Rally Team http://ford.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=2 After day 1 of Rally Japan, round 14 of the FIA World Rally Championship, Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin lie in sixth place. Unfortunately François Duval/Patrick Pivato retired from the event after an accident on stage 6 this afternoon which saw the French co-driver airlifted to Higashi Tokushukai hospital in Sapporo with a fractured pelvis and fractured tibia. To increase the chances of a speedy recovery he will be operated on tonight. Organisers and event medical staff did a fantastic job to arrive speedily on the scene and work efficiently to help the Frenchman out of his car after he became trapped in it for several minutes after the accident. Duval was uninjured in the accident and accompanied his navigator to the hospital. The accident occurred 4.8 kilometres into stage six on a fast muddy section of road when Duval slid wide into a crash barrier heavily impacting a steel support pole on the co-driver's side door. First on the scene were team-mates Wilson and Martin who aided Duval in alerting safety officials. Officials cancelled the stage (giving notional times to those who did not complete it) to allow medical crews easier access to the Stobart crew's car. Unfortunately for competitors running down the order the rally action became very slim when organisers were forced to cancel stage 8 to make up the time. Due to demanding weather conditions which has seen several centimetres of snow fall over the last few days, stage 7 (and 3) was also cancelled, yesterday, in the concern of safety. Wilson's drive today was a very measured one as he began proceedings by setting the fifth fastest time on the opening stage of the rally. The 21-year-old continued this form to the final stage of the day to finish sixth and will head into tomorrow's leg less than 11 seconds behind fourth place; the position he finished on last year's Rally Japan. The young Brit however has Swede P-G Andersson nipping at his heals just 0.4 seconds behind so will need to be on the ball in the morning when stage 11 gets underway at 08:28. #7 : Francois Duval/Patrick Pivato: Retired accident. #8 : Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin: "Well it has been quite an eventful day and I hope Patrick is doing OK in hospital tonight as he undergoes surgery. It is good to finish the day sixth and in a position to fight for a top-four spot but OK we have seen what has happened today and there is a long way to go in this event. The first two stages went really well this morning and it's great to have found the speed right from the word go. The stages were getting quite rutted even running just ninth on the road and the one proper stage we did this afternoon was quite tricky. On stage two we struggled a little bit with the small Tarmac sections on the stage because it was difficult to judge the braking points entering these sections. The pacenotes also didn't quite gel this morning but we made quite a few changes during the stages and this seemed to help on stage 5 this afternoon." Suzuki World Rally Team http://suzuki.rallye-info.com/teams.asp?sid=12 Both Suzuki SX4 WRC pilots are in the driver points at the end of the opening day of the Rally Japan, Suzuki's eagerly-anticipated home event. P-G Andersson returns to parc ferme in Sapporo holding a strong seventh place overall while his team mate Toni Gardemeister is eighth. After a trouble-free first day, the Suzuki drivers are both looking forward to another clean run through the stages tomorrow. Gardemeister had an unusual start to the rally, when he had to take a Japanese driving test earlier in the week because his normal Monaco licence was not valid in Japan. Although he passed the test, he has to carry a special sticker on the back and the front of his car to indicate that his is an 'inexperienced' driver! #11 : Toni Gardemeister/Tomi Tuominen: "The stages this morning were very slippery, with some snow by the side of the road as well, so it was a struggle to find traction. We plan to make a few changes to the set-up tonight, so hopefully the car should be well-suited to the stages tomorrow. But we're already very pleased to be in the points and the plan is definitely to continue this way, without taking any risks. The superspecial stage was a lot of fun and I think it was a great show for everyone!" #12 : Per-Gunnar Andersson/Jonas Andersson: "I'm very pleased to be back on gravel, which is my favourite surface, and I think we've got off to a good start. Today's stages were very technical and tricky: I think we will enjoy the stages tomorrow and on Sunday more. For the time being we are in a good position and the car has been very reliable; now we have to capitalise upon this and avoid making any mistakes." 5. Remaing Event Schedule Saturday 1 November: Day 2 Sapporo - Sapporo Serv C Sapporo Dome (15 mins) 07.30 SS11 Imeru 1 2.57km 08.28 SS12 Nikara 1 31.12km 09.21 SS13 Kamuycep 1 33.66km 10.37 SS14 Kina 1 9.55km 11.32 Serv D Sapporo Dome (30 mins) 12.37 SS15 Imeru 2 2.57km 13.50 SS16 Nikara 2 31.12km 14.43 SS17 Kamuycep 2 33.66km 15.59 SS18 Kina 2 9.55km 16.54 SS19 Sapporo 3 1.49km 18.09 SS20 Sapporo 4 1.49km 18.19 Serv E Sapporo Dome (45 mins) 18.32 Finish Sapporo Dome 19.17 Total 156.78km Sunday 2 November: Day 3 Sapporo - Sapporo Serv F Sapporo Dome (15 mins) 06.00 SS21 Koyka 1 3.57km 07.07 SS22 Iwanke 1 13.57km 07.56 SS23 Sikot 1 27.76km 08.21 SS24 Imeru 3 2.57km 08.53 SS25 Sapporo 5 1.49km 10.06 Serv G Sapporo Dome (30 mins) 10.36 SS26 Koyka 2 3.57km 11.58 SS27 Iwanke 2 13.57km 12.47 SS28 Sikot 2 27.76km 13.12 SS29 Imeru 4 2.57km 13.44 Serv H Sapporo Dome (10 mins) 14.30 Finish Sapporo Dome 15.00 Total 96.43km Rally total 343.69km |