WRC: Rally de Portugal

Steve · Mar 31, 2012

Video highlights from Day 3:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBEmJXQ1FxI]LEG 3 HIRVONEN STAYS ON COURSE - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Sordo takes 3rd on Stage 17, 8 Sandell, 18 Araujo.

SS17: Solberg takes fourth (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS17, Silves 1 (21.42 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: â€œThis stage has a compact surface with a medium speed. There are some longer straights but nothing special. Maybe the early morning sun can also be a problem on this stage.â€

How the action unfolded:
Petter Solberg has reclaimed fourth place on Vodafone Rally de Portugal after going faster than Nasser Al-Attiyah through Sundayâ€™s opening stage.

Driving a Ford Fiesta RS WRC, Solberg is now more than 20 seconds in front of the Qatar World Rally Team ace in the overall classification.

â€œIt was a good stage, very muddy in places,â€ said the Norwegian. â€œThere were no risks, thereâ€™s a long stage next. The tyres should be good for the next stage. Iâ€™ve got two new ones on the front and two worn ones on the back. Iâ€™ve got two spares.â€

Al-Attityah is on course for a career-best fifth in his Citroen DS3 WRC. He said: â€œIâ€™m happy with what Iâ€™ve done, but I need to finish the rally with no risks. The hard tyres werenâ€™t right for this stage, but theyâ€™ll be good for the next.â€

Factory Citroen pilot Mikko Hirvonen was sixth fastest to his extend his lead on round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia to 1m14.7s.

Dani Sordo said he lost time when his Prodrive MINI John Cooper Works WRC developed a handbrake glitch. â€œIt was always braking at the front and I lost some time at the hairpins. It was a little bit humid in that stage.â€

Team-mate Patrik Sandell is back in action following his exit from fourth position on Saturday when he broke his Prodrive-run MINIâ€™s suspension striking a tree. He said: â€œI was on hard tyres all around and it was quite slippery all the way through but no dramas.â€

Running at the head of the field on the final day in Portugal, Jari-Matti Latvala opted to use worn soft compound tyres on his Fiesta to cope with the damp conditions. He was fastest through the stage by a margin of 19.6s. â€œItâ€™s damp at the moment with some slippery places,â€ said the Finn. â€œThe long one can be tricky in places under the trees. I made some mistakes, some hesitations but otherwise it was okay.â€

Ott Tanak said he was too cautious in his M-Sport Fiesta, while Daniel Oliveira was satisfied with his time but has vowed not to make any mistakes in his efforts to score manufacturersâ€™ championship points for the Brazil World Rally Team.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Sordo 4th on Stage 18, 6 Sandell, 15 Araujo.

SS18: Latvala flies on longest stage (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS18, Santana de Serra 1 (31.04 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: â€œThe longest stage of the rally and itâ€™s also very difficult. Some parts are very narrow but you also take a lot of speed so itâ€™s difficult because you have speed but not the space! There are places where you can cut corners but you have to be careful. The surface is hard but itâ€™s broken in some places so punctures could be a problem. There are also some crests on this stage, which runs along a mountain, and there are many changes of rhythm.â€

How the action unfolded:
Jari-Matti Latvala has won the longest stage of Vodafone Rally de Portugal following a charging drive in his Ford World Rally Team Fiesta RS WRC.

The Finn was 10.2s faster than team-mate Petter Solberg as he continues to battle back from the various delays suffered during round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia.

â€œItâ€™s hard work but a great stage,â€ he said. â€œThe car is fantastic to drive and Iâ€™m really enjoying it.â€

Mads Ostberg has suffered a scare in his bid to finish second overall after his Adapta Fiesta dropped on to three cylinders. â€œFor the last three kilometres we were in road mode, it happened early in the stage and we had to reset everything.â€

Ostbergâ€™s delay means Citroen Total World Rally Team driver Mikko Hirvonenâ€™s overall lead increases to 1m22.8s. The Finn was fifth quickest on the stage.

Thierry Neuville impressed in his Citroen Junior World Rally Team DS3 WRC, setting the third fastest time. He said: â€œIt was quite okay and I am quite happy with my time. At the end of the stage we had a little problem with the car but we go to the end. I had a fire detected [warning light] but there is no fire.â€

WRC Team MINI Portugalâ€™s Armindo Araujo spun his John Cooper Works WRC approximately halfway through the stage.

â€œIt was a long stage and quite difficult,â€ said the Portuguese driver. â€œI made a small spin at one junction in the middle but everything is okay with the car.â€

Daniel Oliveira completed the run with a front-left puncture on his Brazil World Rally Team Fiesta. The car was also sporting minor bodywork damage.

Ott Tanak lost three minutes after damaging the rear suspension on his M-Sport Fiesta. Martin Prokop reported suffering from severe understeer in his Fiesta.

Peter van Merksteijn Jr said his performance was his â€œbest everâ€ after the Dutchman made no mistakes in his Citroen DS3 WRC.

Yazeed Al Rajhi, who was leading the Super 2000 World Rally Championship category by almost nine minutes, is reported to have stopped with damaged front-left suspension on his Ford Fiesta RRC.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Sordo 2nd on stage 19, 6 Sandell, 9 Araujo.

SS19: Neuville survives stage fright (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS19, Sambro 1 (5.08 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: â€œThis is not a difficult stage but everybody will be wanting to win some points when it is the Power Stage. It is difficult for this because you will have to take risks and this can be a problem.â€

How the action unfolded:
Thierry Neuville remains on course for his first points in the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia despite reporting a â€œvery, very big momentâ€ in his Citroen Junior World Rally Team DS3 WRC.

The Belgian was seventh fastest through the stage as a result but holds on to 10th position in the overall standings on Vodafone Rally de Portugal.

â€œIt was a very, very big moment,â€ said Neuville. â€œWe went off the road. I went much too fast in a corner, but I managed to get the car out.â€

Petter Solberg was fastest through the run, which will form the rally-closing Power Stage later today, in his Ford Fiesta RS WRC. The Norwegian was 0.1s quicker than Dani Sordo in a MINI John Cooper Works WRC.

The power loss problem that slowed Mads Ostberg on stage 18 continues to plague the Norwegian, who had to complete Sambro in road mode. He is now 1m40.1s behind overall leader Mikko Hirvonen, who was fourth quickest.

Jari-Matti Latvala was third fastest in his Fiesta with Jari Ketomaa fifth and Patrik Sandell impressing in sixth in his Prodrive-run MINI.

Ott Tanak is nursing damaged rear suspension and was more than one minute off the pace in his M-Sport Fiesta.

Crews are now heading to service at the Algarve Stadium in Faro for a 30-minute halt. Stage 20, the repeat of the 21.42-kilometre Silves test, goes live at 12:23hrs local time.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

2 stages to go and Sordo seems to be mired in 11th place overall, Sandell is 15th and Araujo is 16th.

SS20: Drama for Novikov (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS20, Silves 2 (21.42 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: “This stage has a compact surface with a medium speed. There are some longer straights but nothing special. Maybe the early morning sun can also be a problem on this stage.”

How the action unfolded:
Evgeny Novikov’s hopes of a maiden podium finish in the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia have suffered a potentially disastrous setback after the Russian reached the end of stage 20 with a throttle cable problem.

Novikov completed the stage in third position overall and must now wait to see if emergency repairs carried out at the stage finish will enable him to reach the next run and complete Vodafone Rally de Portugal in the final podium spot aboard his M-Sport Ford Fiesta RS WRC.

“It happened after 500 metres but I think we have fixed it,” said Novikov.

There were no such problems for Petter Solberg who has claimed his eighth stage victory on the gravel event in his Ford World Rally Team Fiesta as rain at the start of the stage and during the middle of the run increased the challenge facing crews.

Jari-Matti Latvala, who was second fastest, 8.0s off Solberg’s pace, said: “I just tried to be sensible because there was a little bit of rain in the first couple of kilometres and in the middle of the stage.”

Thierry Neuville was 0.4s slower than Latvala in his Citroen following an impressive run to third. Dani Sordo was fourth quickest with rally leader Mikko Hirvonen fifth fastest in his Citroen. His lead over Mads Ostberg is 1m43.2s.

Patrik Sandell admitted to being careful in a few places at the wheel of his Prodrive MINI John Cooper Works WRC. The Swede was 10th quickest.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

SS21: MINI drivers in trouble (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS21, Santana de Serra 2 (31.04 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: â€œThe longest stage of the rally and itâ€™s also very difficult. Some parts are very narrow but you also take a lot of speed so itâ€™s difficult because you have speed but not the space! There are places where you can cut corners but you have to be careful. The surface is hard but itâ€™s broken in some places so punctures could be a problem. There are also some crests on this stage, which runs along a mountain, and there are many changes of rhythm.â€

How the action unfolded:
The drama continues on Vodafone Rally de Portugal with MINI John Cooper Works WRC drivers Armindo Araujo, Patrik Sandell and Dani Sordo hitting trouble during the rain-hit penultimate stage.

Araujo and Sordo both managed to complete the stage following delays but Patrik Sandell has retired following reports that he has gone off the road in his Sweden World Rally Team-backed MINI.

â€œI had a spin at a junction and hit a small bank,â€ said Sordo. â€œI got a puncture after this and had to stop and change the rear left wheel.â€

Araujo said: â€œI had a puncture on the front and had to stop and change the wheel.â€

Jari-Matti Latvala, running at the head of the field, was fastest through the stage in his factory Ford Fiesta RS WRC, more than 20 seconds up on team-mate Petter Solberg.

â€œIn some places, it was a bit slippery especially at the beginning,â€ said Latvala. â€œI tried to save the tyres for the Power Stage. There were some showers but short, mainly at the end of the stage.â€

Solberg said: â€œIt was very heavy rain and the stage is muddy and slippery. I drove the whole stage very cautiously.â€

Thierry Neuville completed the stage with a front-right puncture to move ahead of Peter van Merksteijn Jr in the overall classification. However, there are reports that the Belgian has stopped on the subsequent road section with transmission failure on his Citroen Junior World Rally Team entry.

Nasser Al-Attiyah, who started the stage in a career-best fifth, drove the last 10 kilometres of the run with a puncture on his Qatar World Rally Team Citroen. As a result he has slipped to sixth behind Martin Prokop.

Evgeny Novikov has completed the stage after making emergency repairs to a throttle problem on the previous run.

Mikko Hirvonen was sixth fastest and will take a lead of almost two minutes over Mads Ostberg heading into the rally-closing Power Stage.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Sordo rescues a few points by WINNING the Power Stage!

SS22: Power Stage glory for Sordo (WRC.com)

01 Apr 12

Wrc.com stage summary

Stage data: SS22, Sambro 2 - POWER STAGE (5.08 kilometres)

Stage description:
By WRC Team MINI Portugal co-driver Miguel Ramalho: â€œThis is not a difficult stage but everybody will be wanting to win some points when it is the Power Stage. It is difficult for this because you will have to take risks and this can be a problem.â€

How the action unfolded:
Dani Sordo has won the Vodafone Rally de Portugal Power Stage, which has brought the action on round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia to a close.

Driving a Prodrive-run MINI John Cooper Works WRC, Sordo was 0.3s faster than Ford pilot Jari-Matti Latvala to secure his first Power Stage victory and three bonus points. Latvala scored two bonus points with Ott Tanak claiming the final point with the third best run in his M-Sport Fiesta.

â€œAt the beginning there was a lot of rain and it was really difficult but afterwards I was pushing a lot,â€ said Sordo. â€œI am really happy with the performance of the car. Iâ€™ve had some good moments on this rally, I have a lot of confidence and also the car is fantastic.â€

Petter Solberg had hoped to end his troubled rally with victory on the Power Stage but lost out in the deteriorating weather conditions. â€œIt was raining very hard before we started and unfortunately we didnâ€™t get any points,â€ said Solberg, who was 10.3s slower than Sordo. â€œIt was so slippery I tell you. But I got a lot of points and I am still third in the championship. The Ford has been fantastic, very fast. We should be happy with the situation after Friday.â€

Mikko Hirvonen secured victory with the 15th fastest time. Mads Ostberg was 11th quickest to finish second overall with Evgeny Novikov claiming his maiden podium by posting the 10th quickest time.

Reports of Thierry Neuville retiring his Citroen Junior World Rally Team DS3 WRC on the road section heading to the final stage proved unfounded although the Belgian did have to start the Power Stage with a punctured tyre following a double deflation on the previous run. â€œI had only one spare wheel and now I have 70 kilometres to get back to service,â€ said the 23-year-old. â€œHopefully I will arrive.â€

Nasser Al-Attiyah reclaimed fifth place from Martin Prokop by 3.4s following a charging run as the Czech lost time with a hesitant start.

Jari Ketomaa snatched the final FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia driversâ€™ point by overhauling Peter van Merksteijn Jr for 10th position.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Spectators in Portugal: super and quite specialâ€¦ (MaxRally.com)

1st April 2012
By Anthony Peacock

You know when you're in Portugal. Thereâ€™s something about the craziness of Portuguese rally fans that puts them into another league of lunacy. It was at its height in the 1980s, when people used to stand in the middle of the road to get as close to the cars as possible. The height of bravado was to actually touch them as they flew past, and back in the day, mechanics used to regularly find bits of finger and other body parts in the air scoops at service.

For the fans it was exhilarating, for the drivers absolutely terrifying. Former World Champion Walter Rohrl remembers: â€œYou just had to try and forget that the walls at the side of the road were made out of people: instead you simply focussed on the road ahead and tried to think of it as a tunnel.â€

Rob Arthur, who was co-driver to British hero Tony Pond in the might MG Metro 6R4, had an even more poetic description. â€œYouâ€™d drive through the crowds in Portugal and it would be like Moses parting the Red Sea. Unbelievable.â€

Of course, it all went horribly and inevitably wrong during the 1986 event, when the Ford RS200 of local man Joaquim dos Santos speared off into the crowd and killed three people, injuring about 30 more. It remains the most deadly single accident in the sportâ€™s history.

Security was tightened up considerably afterwards, but there remained an endearingly anarchistic streak to Portuguese spectators, just one of the reasons why the rally was sadly â€˜restedâ€™ from the World Championship calendar for five years after the 2001 event.

The fans were up in arms, and one of the familiar sights on any world rally for years afterwards became a cavalcade of Portuguese camper vans with the slogan â€œyou can take away our rally but not our passionâ€ processing around Europe.

These days, itâ€™s all a lot safer. Spectators remain obediently behind barriers, but thereâ€™s still a slightly unhinged streak to them. One woman in the service park today was carrying a placard aimed at local hero Armindo Araujo (we think): â€œArmindo, I want your baby.â€ Another person (impossible to tell if it was a woman or man) was dressed up from head to toe as a television set. At least he got a good receptionâ€¦
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Loeb still on course for podium in Portugal (MaxRally.com)

1st April 2012
By Anthony Peacock

While his team mate Mikko Hirvonen was pounding the stages of Rally Portugal en route to a well-deserved victory, Sebastien Loeb was starting a new job.

Last year, he founded Sebastien Loeb Racing â€“ a team that competes in the European Le Mans Series. And his early exit from Portugal meant that the eight-time World Rally Champion could take up his role as team boss on the first round at Paul Ricard.

Loeb has employed a stellar line-up of drivers â€“ including former Peugeot factory drivers Stephane Sarrazin and Nicolas Minassian â€“ and as Rally Portugal came to an end, the Sebastien Loeb Racing crew was homing in on a podium on their first event.

This was despite the fact that the team had only taken delivery of their Oreca-Nissan LMP2 car a week before the Paul Ricard race, and had missed the official pre-season test session.

â€œOur team is on the pace and weâ€™ve got some very experienced drivers,â€ said Loeb. â€œWe need to remember that itâ€™s our debut and that weâ€™re all working on the car for the first time. Thatâ€™s not easy to do during a race weekend.â€

The European Le Mans series takes in five more events after Paul Ricard, at Zolder, Donington Park, Brno and â€“ ironically â€“ the brand-new Algarve circuit in Portugal.
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Steve · Apr 1, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8ji3HGmFDM]Highlights - 2012 WRC Rally Portugal - Best-of-RallyLive.com - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Apr 1, 2012

Wow, BIG news...I think?

Given the date it's hard to decide whether this is a genuine story but a few of the competitors are reporting so I think it's real.

Mikko Hirvonen excluded from Rally of Portugal victory, giving win to Mads Ostberg (AUTOSPORT.com)

By David Evans | Sunday, April 1st 2012, 22:23 GMT

Mikko Hirvonen has been excluded from Rally of Portugal victory following post-event scrutineering - handing the win to Adapta Ford driver Mads Ostberg.

Hirvonen's Citroen DS3 WRC was found to contravene technical regulations, with the non-conformity of the car's clutch being cited as the reason for exclusion. There is a secondary problem for the factory Citroen team, centred on the turbine wheel in the #2 DS3's turbocharger.

The issue with the turbine wheel is also sufficient for exclusion but this penalty has been suspended pending further investigation. The stewards' decision is due imminently.

In addition to giving Ostberg a maiden World Rally Championship win, Hirvonen's exclusion from the Faro-based event elevates Evgeny Novikov to second and gives Petter Solberg a podium finish, and ensures that Sebastien Loeb retains the points lead - which he had looked set to lose to his team-mate.
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Citroen to appeal against Mikko Hirvonen's Rally of Portugal disqualification (AUTOSPORT.com)

Sunday, April 1st 2012, 23:13 GMT

Citroen says it will appeal against the decision to strip Mikko Hirvonen of Rally of Portugal victory due to technical irregularities.

The stewards judged that Hirvonen's Citroen DS3 was running with a non-homologated clutch and an oversized turbo component.

But the team's technical chief Xavier Mestelan-Pinon insisted that the parts offered no performance advantage.

"The scrutineers identified differences in between the homologation sheet and two components: the clutch and the turbocharger," he said. "The Citroen DS3 WRC's clutch mechanisms are homologated with lightening holes. Our supplier recently provided us with a batch of parts that were not perforated and one of them was fitted to the #2 DS3 WRC.

"These parts don't provide any gain in terms of performance, as they are heavier than those which are homologated.

"Regarding the turbocharger, which is a standard part on all World Rally Cars, the wheel turbine dimension exceed the maximum authorised. This difference comes from dilatation, as the wheel is subject to extreme temperature and rpm factors."

Team boss Yves Matton felt the ruling was unfair.

"We had no intention whatsoever to cheat and the decision appears out of proportion," he said. "Given the fact that the reported differences didn't bring us any advantage, we've decided to appeal."

Matton also apologised to Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen for the situation.

"At the moment, most of all I feel sorry for Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen, who produced a superb performance on a particularly difficult rally," said Matton.

"They really deserved their first win with us. All I can do, on behalf of the entire team, is offer my sincere apologies for this situation. I hope that Mikko and Jarmo will have the chance to top the podium again very soon."

Hirvonen's exclusion made Mads Ostberg the rally winner for Adapta Ford.
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Steve · Apr 2, 2012

The wrc.com review: Vodafone Rally de Portugal (WRC.com)

02 Apr 12

Those people who are into drama should from now on resign their seats at their favourite theatres and simply book an annual return flight to Portugal instead.

Vodafone Rally de Portugal, round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia, had it all: thunder and lightning, shock retirements, the emergence of new and exciting talent, late night exclusions and even the return to the podium of a legend. About the only thing missing was costumes - otherwise the Algarve event would have been the perfect four-act drama.

Act one: the swashbuckling French hero mishears â€˜rightâ€™ instead of â€˜leftâ€™ and promptly ends up in the trees, under cover of darkness. That was a show-stopper as it was: youâ€™d have to go back to Greece in 2009 to find the last time that Sebastien Loeb crashed out of a rally and into retirement.

In fact, heâ€™s even more consistent than his team-mate, rally winner (for a while at least) Mikko Hirvonen, who hasnâ€™t destroyed a car since Finland 2010 - although to be fair to Mikko, he did a pretty good job of it at the time.

So the strength in depth that Citroen benefits from is simply awesome, which makes up for the fact that the DS3 WRC is not actually the fastest car out there. In Portugal, the MINI John Cooper Works WRC set more fastest times than the Citroen - which was not too difficult, as none of the top three set a fastest stage time at all: surely a record, albeit a slow one.

The MINI was just one of the surprises of the rally - along with the fact that not one, but two, Fords threw away the lead on Friday. There was no need for either driver to be pushing: particularly because Hirvonen (in third place at the time) was in front of them on the road and they could monitor his split times.

To be fair, conditions were extremely slippery and itâ€™s not as if either driver had a huge accident: they just suffered the sort of small mishap that people often get away with. But the timing was unfortunate, to say the least. As the teamâ€™s technical chief Christian Loriaux put it: â€œwe had an opportunity handed to us on a silver plate, we threw the plate in the bin, and then buried the bin.â€

And then, many hours after the rally had finished, the event stewards exhumed the bin, fished out the silver plate, and handed it back to Ford.

But that doesnâ€™t alter the reality of the situation. Itâ€™s now been three incidents in four rallies for Latvala. Equally heâ€™s quite capable of winning every event from now on - provided that he keeps it out of the scenery. In terms of raw pace nobody comes close: even his team-mate Petter Solberg suggested that Latvala â€œmust have left his brain in the service parkâ€ after he set a blistering pace in the Qualifying Stage.

However, the fastest driver isnâ€™t necessarily the best driver. That accolade still belongs to Sebastien Loeb - whose only weakness seems to be occasional selective deafness. â€œThe braking was correct, the speed approaching the corner was correct, even the angle was correct - it was just the direction that was wrong,â€ quipped Loeb on Friday, with the easy-going confidence of a man who knows that this is just a minor setback.

Normal service will be resumed in Argentina, but Loebâ€™s misfortune just underlines how damaging retirement can be to your championship prospects. This is why Ford can only kick themselves at a missed opportunity, although fourth place - which then became third - for Solberg was a remarkable save under the circumstances, which owes a lot to the good fortune of Friday afternoonâ€™s stages being cancelled. Had they run then he would have had an extra 15 minutes of penalties and been nowhere.

If however Solberg loses the championship by 10 points or less, heâ€™ll look back at this event with even deeper regret. There would, in theory at least, have been the option of boosting Solberg up to second at the end of the rally (which would have become first) by shifting aside Ford privateers Mads Ostberg and Evgeny Novikov. The fact that Ford and M-Sport team principal Malcolm Wilson didnâ€™t is either laudable or risky, depending on your perspective. And it would have been slightly bizarre to have had a winner care of Rally 2.

Novikov was one of the star acts of the whole drama. Having battled a broken throttle pedal, the young Russian made Denis Giraudet the oldest co-driver ever to stand on a WRC podium. Giraudetâ€™s legendary career has taken in 170 WRC starts, and heâ€™s claimed podium finishes with a total of seven different drivers. But you get the sense that this one is going to be special, coming 10 years after the last one. â€œSome people need cosmetic surgery to help them stay young,â€ said the 56-year-old. â€œBut all I need is Evgeny. Thereâ€™s no limit for him...â€

As for Ostberg, the bemused winner, he kept his head while all around were losing theirs. His was a quietly impressive rally, but he never thought for a minute that he would end up on the top step of the podium. â€œWe just couldnâ€™t live with Mikko - he was in a different league,â€ said Ostberg.

And yet itâ€™s Ostberg who is going home with the biggest trophy, having comprehensively proved a point. The youngsters arenâ€™t just knocking on the door - theyâ€™re already beating it down. As well as the podium heroes, Estoniaâ€™s Ott Tanak also showed stunning pace over some of the trickiest stages that we will see all year. Or so most of the drivers hope, anyway.

The FIA WRC Academy also proved that the future of the sport is in safe hands, with Northern Irishman Alastair Fisher taking a resounding victory on the opening round of this yearâ€™s series. If you thought Portugal was difficult in a World Rally Car, try it in a two-wheel-drive car that has half the horsepower. The amount of mud meant that some cars fell off even on the road sections, and there was no soft option tyre either to help the youngsters out. Yet somehow Fisher managed to keep it on the road. Not just him, but every driver who managed to do that over the last four days, deserves a curtain call.
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Steve · Apr 3, 2012

Loeb crashes but still celebrates podium (WRC.com)

03 Apr 12

Despite crashing out of Vodafone Rally de Portugal, Sebastien Loeb had plenty of reason to celebrate on Sunday when his eponymous sportscar team claimed a debut podium finish in the opening round of the European Le Mans Series.

Loebâ€™s unexpected retirement from round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia meant that he was able to join his team on the pit wall for qualifying and the six-hour race at the French Paul Ricard circuit last weekend.

The teamâ€™s driver line-up, consisting of former Peugeot factory Le Mans drivers Stephane Sarrazin and Nicolas Minassian, as well as up-and-coming youngster Nicolas Marroc, finished second overall in the race, having fought at the front throughout.

This was despite the fact that the team had only taken delivery of its Oreca-Nissan LMP2 car a week before the race, and had missed the official pre-season test session.

â€œIt was quite an emotional moment for me: this is the first time that Iâ€™ve seen my name on the side of a racing car and not been at the wheel,â€ said Loeb, who continues to head the WRC standings despite his exit in Portugal. â€œOur team is on the pace and weâ€™ve got some very experienced drivers. We need to remember that itâ€™s our debut and that weâ€™re all working on the car for the first time. Thatâ€™s not easy to do during a race weeken.â€
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Steve · Apr 3, 2012

Jari-Matti Latvala offered to relinquish Ford number one status after Portugal crash (AUTOSPORT.com)

By David Evans | Tuesday, April 3rd 2012, 10:27 GMT

Ford team director Malcolm Wilson has revealed that Jari-Matti Latvala was ready to give up his number one status in the squad following his third mistake from four rallies in Portugal last week.

The Finn crashed out of the lead of the Rally of Portugal on Friday. With Sebastien Loeb already out, a victory would have played Latvala right back into the fight for this year's World Rally Championship. Latvala's team-mate Petter Solberg also crashed, but he returned to finish third and is now closest to series leader Loeb; Solberg trails the Frenchman by four points while Latvala is 38 down on the defending champion.

Wilson declined the Finn's offer to support Solberg and says Latvala retains his full support.

"Jari did actually offer [to step down as number one]," said Wilson. "He said he accepted that maybe the time had come [for a change of tactic]. But the way out of this is to give him as much support as I possibly can - and that's what I intend to do. For me, he's the only driver in a straight fight who can take the fight to Sebastien and beat him. And, for us to win championships, we have to win rallies.

"Granted, three mistakes from four rallies is not good, but again he has proved he's the quickest guy at the moment and I've been in the sport long enough to know that it's coming. There's nothing to say he's not going to win the next four rallies â€“ it's happened in the past. Remember when Colin [McRae] went a very long time without finishing a rally and then, bang, he won three rallies on the trot in 2001."

Wilson added that the key to Ford's season now was to remain together as a team.

"This shouldn't have happened," said Wilson, "but I know that Jari's got the ability to bounce back and the most important thing is that we are a team. If we suddenly start splitting within the team then we are finished and we will not have that happen. It's times like this that he knows he can rely on me and the team around him."

While Wilson continues to support Latvala, he says he will reassess the team's tactics at the mid-point of the season based on the championship position.

"The strategy doesn't change," he said. "If we do [get to the mid-point of the season] and the situation is the same then of course we will change."
Click to expand...

Justa Jim · Apr 3, 2012

Good for Ford. Too bad BM doesn't think like that. :frown2:

Jim

Steve · Apr 3, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVpum9hv8S4]WRC Rally de Portugal 2012 (HD) - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Apr 3, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-4MYeDd4KU]WRC - Portugal 2012 Feature Video[HD] - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Apr 4, 2012

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usj77CecVuU]WRC - Portugal 2012 Day 3 [HD] - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Apr 5, 2012

Itâ€™s the end of the road for those roadsâ€¦ (MaxRally.com)

5th April 2012
By Giles Wade

The cancelled stages from last weekâ€™s Rally of Portugal will not be used in the World Rally Championship again.

The roads in the Cabeca do Velho area to the north-west of Faro were deemed too dangerous in Fridayâ€™s wet conditions, meaning the crews only drove 40 of the planned 80 miles on day two.

Carlos Barbosa, the president of the organisers, admitted there would be changes to the route for next season, saying: â€œWe wonâ€™t run the do Velho stages again, there are plenty more roads here for us to use.â€

The controversial night stages which claimed eight-time world champion Sebastien Loeb remain for 2013, but the rumoured north-south route starting in Porto and finishing in Faro has been ruled out, despite significant petitioning from Portuguese rally fans.

â€œThis wonâ€™t happen,â€ said Barbosa. â€œThis rally runs in the north or the south, and it will be in the south next year, this is where the investment comes for the event. We will run the Fafe Rally Sprint again, but thatâ€s all.â€
Click to expand...

Steve · Apr 6, 2012

Sordo Portugal speed thrills MINI chief (WRC.com)

06 Apr 12

Prodrive WRC Team chief Dave Wilcock says Dani Sordo's pace on Vodafone Rally de Portugal more than made up for his retirement on the opening day of the event, which cost him a shot at a podium finish.

Driving the uprated MINI John Cooper Works WRC, Sordo set six fastest stage times, including going quickest of all on the Power Stage, which brought round four of the FIA World Rally Championship powered by Nokia to a close.

â€œDaniâ€™s drive on the Power Stage was just excellent in those [wet] conditions,â€ said Wilock. â€œIt capped a rally that we generally have to be very pleased with, in spite of the overall finishing positions, because it has shown the world that the MINI WRC now has the pace to win on gravel as well as Tarmac.â€

Sordo said: â€œI was really happy to win the Power Stage, it is a great way to finish the rally. I have had some really good moments on this rally and I have a lot of confidence in the car and the performance is fantastic. I canâ€™t wait until we compete again as I think, with more luck on our side, we now have a real opportunity to do something very special with this car.â€
Click to expand...

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