Rally WRC Most liked posts in thread: WRC - 2017

Steve · Jul 28, 2017

By Stage 4, Latvala had the lead and Ogier and Paddon were already out.

SS2-4: Latvala sets pace (wrc.com)

28 JUL 2017

Jari-Matti Latvala headed a Toyota Gazoo Racing 1-2 at Neste Rally Finland following Friday morningâ€™s opening loop of speed tests.

While he and Esapekka Lappi enjoyed a clean run in their Yaris World Rally Cars, it was a dramatic morning elsewhere. Championship leader SÃ©bastien Ogier and Hayden Paddon crashed out, while Ott TÃ¤nak dropped big time after a mistake.

Home drivers dominated the opening gravel tests following last nightâ€™s JyvÃ¤skylÃ¤ street stage. Teemu Suninen, Latvala and Lappi shared the fastest times as Latvala opened a 5.3sec advantage over his colleague.

â€œJukojÃ¤rvi (SS4) was the most difficult stage of the morning,â€ said Latvala. â€œI was surprised how slippery the roads were in the first stage I expected better grip. In the next one some sections had better grip, but it was still very slippery in places.â€

An over-cautious Lappi was 12th after Halinen, but second in Urria and fastest in JukojÃ¤rvi promoted the youngster up the order to leave Toyota sitting pretty.

Craig Breen was third in a CitroÃ«n C3, 8.1sec off the lead, but the Irishman had concerns. â€œI had a big moment over a jump and somethingâ€™s not right at the front of the car. I donâ€™t know what it is, but I hope itâ€™s not the suspension,â€ he said at the finish of JukojÃ¤rvi.

Teemu Suninen was two-tenths back in fourth in a Ford Fiesta, the young Finn erring on the side of caution. â€œI was a bit careful because many drivers had problems and broke their cars here,â€ he explained at the JukojÃ¤rvi stop line.

Mads Ã˜stberg and Juho HÃ¤nninen completed the top six. Title challenger Thierry Neuville was almost 20sec off the lead in ninth, the Belgian admitting he was lacking pace and worried about strange noises in his Hyundai i20.

It was a disastrous morning for M-Sport World Rally Team. Ott TÃ¤nak retained his overnight lead until he slid wide and swiped some JukojÃ¤rvi rocks. The impact broke his Fiestaâ€™s right rear wheel and he dropped 90sec.

Ogier was in more serious trouble. He landed heavily after a jump 1km from the end of the same stage and broke the Fiestaâ€™s rear right suspension. His car ended in the trees, the Frenchman sidelined for the day (below).

JukojÃ¤rvi also ended Paddonâ€™s hopes. He retired his i20 with rear right damage after an impact.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 28, 2017

By Stage 10 the Rally Finland was lead by 4 Finns separated by only 25sec:

P1 LAPPI
P2 LATVALA
P3 SUNINEN
P4 HÃ„NNINEN

SS5-7: Finns in titanic fight (wrc.com)

28 JUL 2017

Finlandâ€™s Jari-Matti Latvala held a slender lead at Neste Rally Finland at the midpoint of Fridayâ€™s opening leg after a thrilling duel with Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Esapekka Lappi.

Latvala headed his colleague by 5.3sec after the opening loop of three dirt road speed tests west of JyvÃ¤skylÃ¤. Lappi won the second pass of all three to trim the deficit to 1.6sec as competitors headed to mid-leg service.

â€œItâ€™s been a great start but the fight is very tight with Esapekka, heâ€™s pushing hard,â€ said Latvala. â€œJukojÃ¤rvi (SS7) was the best stage of this loop. I had a good rhythm and this afternoon I want to try to keep that rhythm.â€

Lappi is making only his fourth World Rally Car start and has won four stages in a row. â€œI could feel the grip was changing a lot but thatâ€™s how it is in rally. After my caution on the first stage itâ€™s been a good step up this morning,â€ said the Yaris driver.

A dry morning gave way to heavy rain in JukojÃ¤rvi but it didnâ€™t stop Mads Ã˜stberg relegating Craig Breen and Teemu Suninen to climb to third in his Ford Fiesta. The Norwegian was third in all three stages to trail Lappi by 12.2sec.

It was a tight battle for the final podium place with Breen 0.4sec behind and Teemu Suninen another tenth adrift. Breen continued to feel uncomfortable with the handling of his CitroÃ«n C3, struggling more as the loop progressed.

Juho HÃ¤nninen made it three Yaris cars in the top six, the Finn 5.4sec behind fellow countryman Suninen and half a second clear of a frustrated Kris Meeke. â€œI can't place the car like I want to. I just canâ€™t do the right thing,â€ said the C3 pilot.

Elfyn Evans continued to fight an understeering Fiesta in eighth, with Hyundai i20 duo Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo completing the leaderboard. Neuville was 34.1sec off the lead but focused on capitalising on the demise of title rival SÃ©bastien Ogier, who crashed earlier.

â€œI tried to push hard but there is a lot of gravel on the road and the rear is sliding,â€ said the Belgian, who was opening the stages. â€œI used every inch of the road but couldnâ€™t do more. Our main contender, Ogier, is out for today and we have to be in the top five at the end of the weekend to take good points,â€ he said.

Ott TÃ¤nak is 11th after his earlier puncture, the Estonian overshooting a junction after being distracted by a faulty wiper jammed across his Fiestaâ€™s windscreen.
Click to expand...

SS8-10: Lappi edges ahead (wrc.com)

28 JUL 2017

Young charger Esapekka Lappi ousted experienced team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala from the lead of Neste Rally Finland on Friday afternoon.

Lappi, starting only his fourth rally at the WRCâ€™s top level, claimed his sixth victory in nine speed tests today to edge ahead of his Toyota Gazoo Racing colleague and fellow Finn by three-tenths of a second.

Lappi had closed on Latvala since an overly-cautious opening this morning and finally moved his Toyota Yaris ahead after a big attack through the 21.68km Lankamaa special stage to lead a WRC round for the first time.

â€œThe feeling is quite nice!â€ he said. â€œI gave everything I could. I knew this was a tricky stage and I was pushing so much and to be only 1.4sec quicker than Jari-Matti shows the quality of the competition.â€

Finns dominated the top of the leaderboard, holding the first four places. Latvala completed Lankamaa, the last of a loop of three tests, with slight damage to the right rear of his Yaris after clipping a chicane, but he headed Teemu Suninen by 14.4sec.

Suninen won the Ã„Ã¤nekoski-Valtra test in his Ford Fiesta and was 10.2sec clear of Juho HÃ¤nninen in another Yaris, but there were major concerns for the Toyota man. He hit a rock 6km after the start of Lankamaa, damaging the rear right suspension mounting.

Craig Breen and Mads Ã˜stberg both lost ground in the podium battle. Breen lost the brakes in his CitroÃ«n C3 midway through Lankamaa, while Ã˜stberg conceded almost 20sec after a joint in his Fiestaâ€™s track control arm came loose.

Breen held onto fifth but the Norwegian fell behind both the Irishman and Elfyn Evans to seventh.

Kris Meeke was also in trouble, ending the stage with hay bale tape trailing from his C3. The Ulsterman didnâ€™t wait to explain what happened, but dropped about 15sec.

A frustrated Thierry Neuville continued to labour in ninth. â€œI think â€™m driving well but I canâ€™t match the others. I should be faster than this,â€ said the Hyundai i20 pilot.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 28, 2017

Friday in Finland: Lappi heads Toyota 1-2 (wrc.com)

28 JUL 2017

Rookie Esapekka Lappi dominated Neste Rally Finland to lead a WRC round for the first time on Friday night.

The Finn, making only his fourth World Rally Car start, headed Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate and fellow countryman Jari-Matti Latvala by 4.4sec after winning eight of todayâ€™s 12 speed tests.

Home drivers bossed the leaderboard with fellow novice Teemu Suninen third in a Ford Fiesta, a further 14.6sec behind.

It was a disappointing day for title contenders SÃ©bastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville. Championship leader Ogier crashed this morning [below], while Neuville struggled for pace in eighth.

A cautious Lappi trailed 12th after this morningâ€™s opening dirt road special stage but reeled off eight wins from nine special stages to overhaul Latvala and surprise himself.

â€œI couldnâ€™t even imagine leading,â€ said the 26-year-old Toyota Yaris pilot. â€œItâ€™s really something special and difficult to understand. Ever since I was a young boy Iâ€™ve dreamed of driving a World Rally Car in Finland. Now itâ€™s happening and Iâ€™m leading. Iâ€™m speechless.â€

Latvala led after Ott TÃ¤nak yielded the early initiative when he swiped some rocks and punctured his Fiestaâ€™s right rear tyre. The Estonian lost more than 90sec to end 10th.

Suninenâ€™s performance was almost as impressive as Lappiâ€™s. In only his second drive in a World Rally Car, the 23-year-old won two tests during an epic 16-hour day in sunshine and heavy rain.

Craig Breen, Juho HÃ¤nninen and Mads Ã˜stberg joined the battle for a podium place. Brake problems and handling issues delayed Breenâ€™s CitroÃ«n C3 and the Irishman was fourth, 14.0sec behind Suninen.

HÃ¤nninen provided more Finnish delight when he held fourth before hitting a rock and damaging the rear left suspension mounting on his Yaris. He was lucky to survive in fifth, 6.1sec behind Breen and 5.9sec ahead of Ã˜stberg.

The Norwegian fell back from third when handling issues, blamed on either a damaged track control arm or broken driveshaft, relegated him to sixth.

Elfyn Evans battled an oversteering Fiesta in seventh ahead of Neuville and Kris Meeke, who fell back after bending his C3â€™s steering against a concrete chicane.

Ogier damaged his Fiestaâ€™s rear suspension after a heavy landing over one of Finlandâ€™s many jumps and shortly after he crashed into trees when it failed altogether.

His demise handed the initiative to Neuville in their title duel. But the Belgian was subdued and faces a massive battle to achieve his target of a top five finish. â€œTomorrow is a huge day. We should be faster than this, but I couldnâ€™t do more,â€ said the Hyundai i20 driver.

Todayâ€™s other major retirement was Hayden Paddon, the Kiwi breaking his i20â€™s suspension after clattering a rock.

Saturday packs in eight more gravel stages near JÃ¤msÃ¤. They are split into two identical loops and include the classic rollercoaster Ouninpohja, regarded as the sportâ€™s biggest test of bravery and commitment. It all adds up to 132.34km of action.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 28, 2017

Ogier restart in doubt (wrc.com)

28 JUL 2017

SÃ©bastien Ogier may sit out Saturdayâ€™s second leg of Neste Rally Finland following fitness concerns over co-driver Julien Ingrassia following the pairâ€™s accident on Friday.

The WRC leaderâ€™s hopes of a fifth consecutive title suffered a blow when his Ford Fiesta smashed into trees in this morningâ€™s JukojÃ¤rvi special stage after incurring suspension damage earlier in the test.

Although neither crew member was injured, a shaken Ingrassia later reported feeling unwell. A decision on whether they will continue under Rally 2 rules will be left until Saturday morning after Ingrassia has had the opportunity to recuperate overnight.

â€œWe just need to wait a bit because Julien got a bit shaken in the crash,â€ explained Ogier. â€œWeâ€™ve done all the tests at the hospital and there was nothing that came out of them, but still at the moment Julien is not feeling super good.

â€œSo I want to wait and give him the chance to decide. He is OK, nothing really special just a bit dizzy I think.â€

If Ingrassia is unfit, it is likely the pair would restart from parc ferme before retiring again in service. That would allow them to rejoin on Sunday to chase vital bonus points in the live TV Power Stage and salvage something from the weekend.

A heavy landing over one of Finlandâ€™s many jumps damaged Ogierâ€™s rear suspension and affected his Fiestaâ€™s handling. The crash happened later in the same stage.

â€œWhen I reached the corner, I just braked slightly late, not so much, but the combination of that and the broken damper meant I lost the rear. I had quite a big side impact with a tree and that was gam over,â€ he explained.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 29, 2017

Still three Finns leading (surprisingly, none of them are Latvala) but Evans (4th) is only 1.3sec behind and closing on Hanninen (3rd).

Saturday in Finland: Lappi closes on maiden win (wrc.com)

29 JUL 2017

Esapekka Lappi closed on a remarkable first FIA World Rally Championship victory in Finland on Saturday.

The Finn, starting only his fourth event at the top level, ended the penultimate leg of Neste Rally Finland with a 49.1sec lead in his Toyota Yaris over fellow novice Teemu Suninen.

Just Sundayâ€™s short final leg separates him from becoming the sixth different winner in nine rounds.

Lappiâ€™s delight was in contrast to the heartbreak of Toyota Gazoo Racing team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala. Latvala won the first five of todayâ€™s eight dirt road speed tests to overturn Lappiâ€™s overnight advantage and build a 8.5sec lead over his Finnish colleague.

His hopes of a fourth victory on his home event ended when his Yaris ground to a halt with a suspected electrical problem midway through the famous Ouninpohja special stage, leaving Lappi clear.

â€œIâ€™m disappointed for Jari-Matti but itâ€™s not my fault his car broke down so I need to enjoy this moment now,â€ said Lappi. â€œItâ€™s something amazing.

â€œWe led yesterday by 4sec, but this is 50sec and I really need to concentrate to keep my head cool. I had butterflies in my stomach when I saw Jari-Matti.â€

Latvala was devastated by his retirement, which also ended Toyotaâ€™s hopes of a 1-2-3 finish.

â€œItâ€™s one of the biggest disappointments I have faced in my career. I was feeling extremely well and enjoying the driving but once you get a technical problem thereâ€™s nothing you can do and thatâ€™s a hard part of motorsport.â€

There was a huge fight behind Lappi for the remaining podium places. Suninen, starting only his second event in a World Rally Car, lost position after his Ford Fiesta overshot a chicane but climbed to second after overhauling Juho HÃ¤nninen in the penultimate test.

HÃ¤nninen broke his Yarisâ€™ front anti-roll bar this afternoon and trailed Suninen by 4.3sec in an all-Finnish top three. Elfyn Evans was only 1.3sec behind in fourth after an impressive drive in his Fiesta which culminated in a final stage win.

Craig Breen could not retain his overnight fourth after struggling for rhythm in his Citroen C3 and surviving a spin and an overshoot. The Irishman was 14.7sec clear of title challenger Thierry Neuville, who aimed to capitalise on absent championship leader SÃ©bastien Ogier.

After a disappointing drive yesterday, the Belgian climbed from eighth to sixth as better grip this afternoon suited his Hyundai i20â€™s set-up.

Ogier did not restart morning after yesterdayâ€™s heavy crash. Co-driver Julien Ingrassia was signed off from competing for 15 days by medical chiefs after being diagnosed with mild concussion.

Ott TÃ¤nak recovered to seventh after yesterdayâ€™s puncture, passing Kris Meeke in the final stage when the Ulsterman also suffered a flat tyre and dropped almost a minute. Dani Sordo was ninth and Mads Ã˜stberg 10th, despite crashing into a ditch and damaging his brakes.

Sundayâ€™s final leg features two identical loops of two short stages south of JyvaskylÃ¤ covering 33.84km. The rally-ending Oittila is the live TV Power Stage, with bonus points available to the fastest five drivers.
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 29, 2017

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOsAssL7j3s"]WRC - Neste Rally Finland 2017: Highlights Stages 12-17 - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgQn21hyDSA"]WRC - Neste Rally Finland 2017: Highlights Stages 18-21 - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Jul 30, 2017

Ogier won't start Sunday.

Not sure why they'd bother anyway since dropping out early Fri and skipping all of Saturday means they're so far behind they wouldn't have a chance for any points (unless the do well on the power stage).

Steve · Jul 30, 2017

9 rallies so far this season and now a 5th different winner...and a rookie, too! And a Finn winning in Finland!

Sunday in Finland: Ice-cool Lappi nets first win (wrc.com)

30 JUL 2017

Esapekka Lappi secured a shock maiden FIA World Rally Championship victory in Finland on Sunday afternoon.

Novice Lappi, driving for only the fourth time at the WRCâ€™s top level, won Neste Rally Finland by 36.0sec in a Toyota Yaris.

The 26-year-old overcame a late scare after breaking a wheel in the penultimate speed test to claim an emotional victory on home ground. It was a sweet success for his locally-based Toyota Gazoo Racing team, its second win after returning to the WRC this year.

Thierry Neuvilleâ€™s sixth place dislodged SÃ©bastien Ogier from the championship lead. They are level on points, but the Belgian leads on a tie-break after Ogier crashed out.

Lappi, who became the sixth different driver to win in nine rounds, fought with experienced team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala for most of the four-day, dirt round encounter. Latvala retired from the lead on Saturday afternoon when his carâ€™s electronic control unit failed.

Carrying a 49.1sec advantage into todayâ€™s short final leg, Lappi measured his pace through the final four tests, keeping his cool when he wrecked his carâ€™s rear left wheel after running wide.

Amazing, just amazing,â€ he said. â€œIâ€™m on my home soil so I should have been strong here and I was, but a victory was beyond my dreams. I have to really say a big thanks to the team because they built such a fast car in such a short time.â€

Elfyn Evans won a thrilling three-car fight for second to match his career-best result. The Welshman started the final day in fourth in a Ford Fiesta behind Teemu Suninen and Juho HÃ¤nninen.

The trio swapped places in every test before Evans overhauled HÃ¤nninen in the final kilometres to secure the runners-up spot by 0.3sec. Third was Hanninenâ€™s first WRC podium and brought further delight to Toyota.

Suninen held a slender second until crashing his Fiesta in the penultimate test. He finished fourth, 25.2sec behind HÃ¤nninen, a remarkable result for the 23-year-old Finn in only his second World Rally Car drive.

The ever-consistent Craig Breen was the leading CitroÃ«n driver in fifth. The Irishman headed Neuville by 10.5sec, despite often struggling for confidence in his ill-handling C3. Neuville rarely looked like finding the pace which has netted three wins and six consecutive podiums.

Ott TÃ¤nak recovered from a first day puncture to finish seventh in a Fiesta, with 2016 winner Kris Meeke, Dani Sordo and Mads Ã˜stberg completing the leaderboard.

The series returns to asphalt next month for the first time since April at ADAC Rallye Deutschland (17 - 20 August).
Click to expand...

Steve · Jul 30, 2017

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N15VwpFTxck"]WRC Rally Finland 2017 | MAX ATTACK - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Oct 26, 2017

This onboard from the shakedown makes this weekend's Rally GB look promising.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBWF-tqDci8"]WRC - Wales Rally GB 2017: SHAKEDOWN ONBOARD Elfyn Evans - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Nov 19, 2017

From this weekend's rally in Australia. I might disagree with the title, just a bit, maybe a new kind of dumb...

Behold The Dumbest Thing I've Ever Seen On A Rally Stage

A few fans at Rally Australia got way too close to the action on the Welsh Creek stage. One even actively cheated death by crawling into a ditch right next to the stage road. Worse yet, it was the perfect kind of ditch for a driver to drop a wheel into to ditch-hook the car around the corner. Good thing the driver wasnâ€™t feeling that.
Click to expand...

Check out the full article (with more pics) here: https://blackflag.jalopnik.com/behold-the-dumbest-thing-ive-ever-seen-on-a-rally-stage-1820590843

Crashton · Nov 19, 2017

Beyond farking stupid! Hope they don't get rally Oz dropped from the calendar like happened to Rally Poland.

minirab · Nov 20, 2017

That makes the Group B fans look like wussies.

Forums

Rally WRC Most liked posts in thread: WRC - 2017

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Crashton Club Coordinator

minirab Well-Known Member

Useful Searches

Rally WRC Most liked posts in thread: WRC - 2017

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator Staff Member Articles Moderator

Crashton Club Coordinator

minirab Well-Known Member

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator

Steve Administrator
Staff Member Articles Moderator