WRC WRC - 2016

Steve · Feb 14, 2016

Today's only stage, the Power Stage. Stage result left, overall and final result right.

Steve · Feb 14, 2016

The podium.

Ogier

Paddon

Ostberg

Steve · Feb 14, 2016

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI7jtIW2vA0"]WRC Rally Sweden 2016: Powerstage Highlights - GHrallyemotion - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Feb 15, 2016

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XA1zTYiHGMg"]WRC Rally Sweden 2016 | MAX ATTACK | Meeke / Nagle - YouTube[/ame]

Some high quality video here.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ0hr5aALuQ"][WRC] WRC Rallye Sweden 2016 | TenciebrandTV & Rallycast - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Feb 16, 2016

Apparently cancellation really was a close call.

Weather relief of Rally Sweden boss (wrc.com)

16 FEB 2016

Rally Sweden boss Glenn Olsson has spoken of his relief at the last-gasp freeze that saved last weekendâ€™s second round of the FIA World Rally Championship from being scrapped.

Just four days before Thursdayâ€™s start, he faced the prospect of cancelling the WRCâ€™s only pure winter round as a big thaw turned the frozen roads into a muddy mess.

The cost of repairing roads damaged by crews using studded tyres on gravel, allied to safety concerns over competitors driving on patchy ice with tyres which had lost their studs, meant a weather-enforced cancellation looked likely for only the second time in the eventâ€™s history.

However, freezing temperatures and up to 10cm of snow saved the rally after organisers delayed the recce for 24 hours and cancelled eight special stages.

â€œThe weekend before the rally were terrible days. We had no forecast giving us cold degrees during the event and didnâ€™t see how this could work,â€ admitted Olsson.

â€œOn Sunday morning the first forecast came in saying it would be cold and we started working to find a route that could be used. We had our teams out on the roads checking them and giving us information what roads we should and couldnâ€™t use.

â€œWe built an itinerary and had meetings and discussions with the FIA and WRC Promoter. We took a final decision on Monday together with the teams that we should do this.â€

Olssonâ€™s team received praise from competitors for the effort they put into making the event run, which included regrading roads through the night after the recce to flatten ruts in advance of the freeze.

â€œItâ€™s almost hard to understand how difficult the situation was during the recce. We knew if the cold came it would work, because the roads freeze fast during winter.

â€œOn Friday morning I heard the first reports on WRC Live radio from the drivers that they were happy and that was the first time I felt it would work. The live TV stages on Saturday and Sunday looked great, but we had so much luck,â€ he added.

Olsson also paid tribute to the people who ensured the event happened.

â€œIn total, 4,000 people worked during the weekend and so many worked day and night to make it happen. We were lucky we had the snow because it changed the whole atmosphere in the forests. It couldnâ€™t b a happier ending,â€ he said.
Click to expand...

Steve · Feb 17, 2016

More great video from Sweden.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjdbhunBy7s"]WRC Rally Sweden 2016 | MAX ATTACK - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlaOk5I0Gb4"]WRC Rally Sweden 2016: Closer to HIGHSPEED ACTION! - GHrallyemotion - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Mar 3, 2016

Time for Rally Mexico. The first stage started some minutes ago. There are 3 stages today but they total only 5.69km...? Oh well, here we go!

Rally Mexico: back to gravel (best-of-rallylive.com)

03/03/2016 2:39 am

Here we are, back in sunny Leon de los Aldamas for the first in a sequence of six gravel fixtures that will take the championship up to mid-July. The Mexican stages are as tricky and challenging as ever, although there appears to be less of a loose top-coating this year.

The crews have completed their recce of the weekâ€™s 21 stages which include the awesome 80km Guanajuato test that has been the talking point of the paddock. Itâ€™s been keeping the co-drivers busy, too, and VWâ€™s Julien Ingrassia had 106 pages of notes to copy, for example.

The stage includes sections from various other stages, mostly in the opposite direction. The first 26 kilometres are smooth and fast but it still took us two good hours to complete the distance when we went to take a look earlier!

Overall, the tracks seem a little cleaner than in the past, probably due to winter rain. It has clearly rained in the state of Guanajuato in recent weeks because the vegetation in the Sierra de Lobos is exceptionally green and lush. Competitors even face the prospect of a few water splashesâ€¦

The weather should be fine for the rally, though, with the thermometer climbing to around 25Â°C in the afternoon in the mountains near Leon. Storms canâ€™t be ruled out for Thursday eveningâ€™s start ceremony and the early super-specials, however.

Meanwhile, Wednesday evening was given over to the usual â€˜meet the teamâ€™ functions in the service park which is again based outside Leonâ€™s Poliforum exhibition complex. Festivities kicked off at Hyundai Motorsport which is hunting for a third straight podium finish this season. Nominated drivers are Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo in the new Hyundai i20 WRC/Michelin which is making its dirt debut.

M-Sportâ€™s aim is looking to extend its uninterrupted sequence of 200 WRC finishes in the points since January 2002, a run that could see the British team takes its score to more than 200 points over the period. For that to happen, Mads Ostberg and Eric Camilli will need to survive Rally Mexicoâ€™s numerous pitfalls.

At Volkswagen Motorsport, there were celebrations to mark SÃ©bastien Ogierâ€™s 100th world class start, 2,927 days after his WRC debut on this event back in 2008.

CitroÃ«n isnâ€™t doing this rally, but Kris Meeke still did the recce, as did Dutchman Kevin Abbring and even Finlandâ€™s Juho Hanninenâ€¦

Thursdayâ€™s shakedown is due to start at 9am local time ahead of the official colourful start in UNESCO-listed Guanajuato at 8pm, followed by three super-specials.
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Steve · Mar 5, 2016

Latvala dominates Mexico's opening leg (wrc.com)

05 MAR 2016

Jari-Matti Latvala exploited favourable road conditions to dominate Friday's first full leg at Rally Guanajuato Mexico and build a half-minute lead over team-mate SÃ©bastien Ogier.

Starting the high-altitude gravel speed tests eighth in the order, Latvala benefited from roads swept clean of dirt by those ahead to win all four loose surface special stages and head Ogier by 32.1sec.

The Frenchman endured the worst of the conditions by running first through the dusty mountain roads and was powerless to restrain Latvala. He regained a few tenths of a second on the three short spectator tests in LeÃ³n, but faces a tough task to preserve his unbeaten start to the WRC season.

"I'm happy with the gap tonight," said Latvala, who will again benefit from the road conditions in Saturday's leg in his Volkswagen Polo R. "I have to be a bit careful and patient because I don't need to take all the time in just one stage."

Ogier drove on the limit and was far from disheartened. "I'm happy so far. This afternoon was very good. I've been pushing as much as I can and couldn't do better," he said.

Dani Sordo held third all day in a Hyundai i20 to end 1min 15.6sec off the lead. The Spaniard was unhappy with his car's handling and a sticking throttle ensured nervous moments as he fought to keep the i20 on the road.

Norway's Andreas Mikkelsen topped the times in LeÃ³n's street stage, but an overshoot and handling problems upset his chances of closing on Sordo and they were split by 31.1sec.

Hayden Paddon and Mads Ã˜stberg fought for fifth all day and were separated by 14.8sec at the close. Both regretted their choice of Michelin's hard compound tyres this morning, Ã˜stberg labelling the decision as 'one of the biggest tyre mistakes I've done'.

He was penalised 10sec for a jump start while Paddon damaged his i20's suspension after swiping a wall and burned his hand while making repairs. He also slid into a ditch after his car mysteriously filled with dust in the final mountain stage.

Ott TÃ¤nak was seventh in a Ford Fiesta RS despite a spin and what the Estonian believed to be a broken differential, while Martin Prokop, Lorenzo Bertelli and WRC 2 leader Teemu Suninen completed the leaderboard.

Thierry Neuville retired in the opening stage when he spun into a bank and broke his car's suspension, while Eric Camilli dropped many minutes with a puncture and later lost first and second gears.

Saturday's second leg is the longest of the rally. Drivers face six gravel tests in the mountains north and east of LeÃ³n before two short stages at the city's motor racing circuit and a night test next to the service park. It adds up to 152.40km of action.
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RallyMini370 · Mar 7, 2016

The EuroLamp guys came in 10th! they put up a good performance in the Mini

Steve · Mar 7, 2016

Yes, well done, Eurolamp MINI crew!

Steve · Mar 7, 2016

Dominant Latvala is master of Mexico (wrc.com)

06 MAR 2016

Jari-Matti Latvala ended team-mate SÃ©bastien Ogier's perfect start to the WRC season with a convincing victory at Rally Guanajuato Mexico on Sunday.

After a disastrous opening two rounds in which he failed to score, Latvala controlled the first gravel round of the season to secure his 16th career victory on hot and dusty mountain roads near LeÃ³n.

He headed Ogier, starting his 100th WRC round, by 1min 05.0sec after almost 400km of white knuckle driving, wrecking the world champion's unblemished start to the campaign after maximum scores in Monte-Carlo and Sweden.

Both were driving Volkswagen Polo R cars and the win was the 12th consecutive victory for the German manufacturer, equalling its championship record set in 2013-14.

Latvala laid the groundwork with a faultless performance on Friday and Saturday's dirt speed tests. The Finn enjoyed a low start position and benefited from roads cleaned of gravel by those ahead to leave a faster line. He won all 10 loose surface stages over those two days and measured his pace through today's final two tests, which included the 80km Guanajuato, the longest in the WRC since 1986.

"This is a fightback and it's a fantastic feeling. I had such a difficult start to the season with two rallies and zero points. My mind wasn't so good and this hasn't been a strong rally for me in the past, but I drove with no problems," said Latvala.

Facing the worst of the conditions as road opener for two full days, Ogier was resigned to his fate by Saturday afternoon. He recognised he had no chance of catching his colleague and settled for a strong haul of points in his quest for a fourth title, adding a maximum three bonus points by winning the final live TV Power Stage.

Dani Sordo completed the podium, Hyundai's third consecutive top three finish with its new i20 car. The Spaniard finished 3min 37.9sec behind Latvala, despite a broken fan causing his engine to overheat and brake problems in today's long stage.

Mads Ã˜stberg claimed fourth in a Ford Fiesta RS to climb to second in the drivers' standings behind Ogier. The Norwegian was penalised for a jump start and had a gearshift problem early in the event but headed New Zealand's Hayden Paddon by 46.2sec.

Ott TÃ¤nak completed the top six in another Fiesta RS, with Martin Prokop, Lorenzo Bertelli, WRC 2 winner Teemu Suninen and Valeriy Gorban filling the leaderboard.

Andreas Mikkelsen did not restart after crashing yesterday, joining Thierry Neuville on the sidelines after the Belgian suffered a heavy accident.

Round four of the championship takes competitors to south America for Rally Argentina (21 - 24 April). The gravel event is based in Villa Carlos Paz.
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Tactical drive pays off for Latvala (wrc.com)

07 MAR 2016

Jari-Matti Latvala believes his dominant drive to victory at Rally Guanajuato Mexico yesterday was the cleverest of his career.

The Finn's low start position on Friday and Saturday ensured he benefited from cleaner conditions than main rival and team-mate SÃ©bastien Ogier, who opened the dusty gravel roads on both days.

Latvala took advantage to win all the dirt stages on both days and build a lead he managed through Sunday's final leg when the Volkswagen Polo R colleagues enjoyed more even conditions in the mountains above LeÃ³n.

"This was probably the cleverest drive of my career. Rally Finland last year was the drive of my life in terms of pure driving, but it was different because it was a high-speed event. This was about tactics, calculating, avoiding the rocks and not making mistakes," he said.

"It's an event where if you try to win too much time in one stage you risk damaging the car or breaking the suspension, like I've done in the past. Trust your road position is good and drive on that basis, step-by-step, stage-by-stage and it will pay off."

The 30-year-old Finn admitted another bad result in Mexico would have ended his championship hopes just three rounds into the campaign after failing to score in both Monte-Carlo and Sweden.

"The pressure was pretty high when I came here. I knew if I didn't score points the whole championship was gone, because if Ogier won again and I had zero points then there would be an 80-point gap.

"We have only caught six points but we are catching and that's important. I know when we go to Argentina for the next round my road position will remain good and we could again have an advantage," he added.
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Steve · Mar 7, 2016

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKPZkeh9eS4"]Mexico2016 Day 2 Neuville Crashes - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_Qvx8XnMl0"]WRC Rally Guanajuato MÃƒÂ©xico 2016: Stages 14-18 - YouTube[/ame]

RallyMini370 · Mar 7, 2016

sordo got 4th due to using 29 turned instead of the allocated 28. Bummer

Steve · Mar 7, 2016

Yup, it's a shame. Must have felt esp. good for Sordo to podium given he's a hard pavement expert and has always struggled a bit to be competitive on loose surface rallies.

The team took responsibility, saying it was a communication error.

Hyundai accepts blame for tyre error (wrc.com)

07 MAR 2016

Hyundai Motorsport say a communications error was to blame for a tyre blunder that robbed Dani Sordo of his podium finish at Rally Guanajuato Mexico.

Sordo [above] completed Sunday's final stage in third place, but was later penalised when it was discovered that he had used 29 tyres during the event instead of the 28 permitted in the regulations.

Late that night stewards imposed a two-minute penalty on Sordo and he lost third position to M-Sport World Rally Teamâ€™s Mads Ã˜stberg.

The team did not challenge the decision, which cost it a run of three consecutive podiums this year.

Team manager Alain Penasse said: "Due to an obvious communication error, three new tyres and two used ones â€“ instead of three used and two new â€“ were fitted at the Tyre Fitting Zone after SS20 on Sunday morning. This means one tyre in excess was used compared to the number allowed by the regulations.

"We will now go back to Alzenau and investigate the issue further. For sure, this doesnâ€™t take away the performance of both the crew and the team throughout this challenging rally.â€
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Steve · Mar 7, 2016

MINI at 2:45

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoHNO3Jxkuo"]WRC Rally Mexico 2016 - Day 4 (Actioncam) Pure Sound - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Mar 8, 2016

:crazy:

Moooove over!

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM4r81DEV_U"]2016 Rally Mexico - Ogier's epic save - YouTube[/ame]

RallyMini370 · Mar 8, 2016

moooooooooooove over cows!! haha For Hyundai still came 3rd

Steve · Mar 8, 2016

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that probably wasn't in the pace notes.

Steve · Mar 8, 2016

This one includes a bit of onboard as well.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZ75IOekC5s"]WRC Rally Guanajuato MÃƒÂ©xico 2016: Ogier-cow-incident - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Mar 9, 2016

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