WRC: Rally Finland (2013)

Steve · Aug 7, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uzl00s8pIJY]WRC Rally Finland 2013 | Meeke & Hirvonen on the limit - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WH2Gyx-KDA]WRC Neste Oil Rally Finland 2013 (Incl. many mistakes) - YouTube[/ame]

Angib · Aug 8, 2013

I've only just been able to read this thread as the only WRC coverage in my country happens mid-week.

A nice statistic from the TV commentary was that Ouninpohja averages a little over 8 jumps per mile.

Steve · Aug 8, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnvqdDgM4B8]Neste Oil Rally Finland 2013 : GoPro - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Aug 8, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn7eKRd2gBY]WRC Rally Finland 2013 | Robert Kubica / Maciek Baran - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Aug 9, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COwThk4GAhE]RALLYTHEWORLD: Rally Finland - First man standing - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Aug 13, 2013

Kris Meeke will replace Dani Sordo for Australia.

They decided he deserved another chance. Looks like they saw his prowess on loose surfaces (Finland) and since Sordo is more of a pavement expert they're letting Sordo take the next rally in Germany (asphalt) and Meeke take the one after in Australia (gravel).

Meeke gets another break (best-of-rallylive.com)

13/08/2013 9:47 am

After the performance he produced in Finland, Kris Meeke has been named to replace Dani Sordo in the CitroÃ«n-Total Abu Dhabi WRT squad that will travel to Rally Australia (September 12-15).

Although Neste Oil Rally Finland was his first WRC outing since 2011, Kris Meeke was heading for fifth place until a crash on the penultimate stage.

The Ulstermanâ€™s speed did not fail to attract the attention of CitroÃ«n Racing team boss Yves Matton, however, and it was announced yesterday (Monday) that Kris will replace Spainâ€™s Dani Sordo in Australia. He will share the NÂ°3 DS3 WRC (CitroÃ«n-Total Abu Dhabi WRT) with co-driver Chris Patterson alongside Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen.

It will be his first attempt at the Coffs Harbour-based Rally Australia, an event that saw Sordo come third in 2009. The Spaniard will still be part of the French makeâ€™s line-up for Rallye Deutschland where he is expected to be more in his element on the all asphalt stages.
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Sordo out, Meeke in for Citroen in Oz (MaxRally.com)

by Richard Rodgers / 12th August 2013

Kris Meeke will replace Dani Sordo in Citroenâ€™s second factory DS3 for Rally Australia next month.

Sordo has struggled for form in 2013 and was comprehensively outgunned by Meeke on Rally Finland earlier this month, where the Briton was competing in place of Khalid Al-Qassimi, who fronts Abu Dhabi Racing, Citroenâ€™s main sponsor.

Meeke and co-driver Chris Patterson, who crashed out in Finland nearing the finish of the rerun of Ouninpohja, will also complete the recce for Rallye Deutschland later this month and prepare safety notes for Al-Qassimi and Scott Martin for the asphalt event.

â€œWe are really very happy that Citroen have put their faith in us again after our performance in Finland," said Meeke. â€œFor us, this is an incredible opportunity to take part in the rally as part of Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team alongside Mikko [Hirvonen] and Jarmo [Lehtinen[, and we are determined to give of our best.â€

Citroen chief Yves Matton said: â€œWe have to acknowledge that we have had better seasons. It is difficult to take decisions like this, but sometimes you have to change something to reenergise the team and get back to winning ways. This decision, which was made with Dani, will allow us to work on our difficulties and move in the right direction. Kris showed what he could do in Finland with an excellent performance and high motivation levels. So we instinctively turned to him to take over in Australia.â€

Sordo, meanwhile, is set to return to the Citroen line-up for Rallye de France at the start of October when Sebastien Loeb will make his WRC comeback with the French team having been absent since Rally Argentina in early May.

Despite also enduring a lacklustre campaign in 2013, Mikko Hirvonenâ€™s status as Citroen number one remains unaffected by the driver reshuffle and he will be planning to repeat his 2011 victory in Coffs Harbour when the WRC returns to New South Wales from September 12-15.

Itâ€™s not the first time Sordo has been overlooked by Citroen for a gravel event. In 2010 Sebastien Ogier was promoted from the semi-works squad to replace Sordo for the rallies in Japan and Great Britain. Sordo lost his drive at the end of the year and eventually found salvation at the now-defunct Prodrive-run factory Mini team.

Citroen is 55 points behind Volkswagen in the manufacturersâ€™ title race with five rounds remaining.
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Meeke: the best is yet to come (MaxRally.com)

by Graham Lister / 13th August 2013

Kris Meeke reckons he can only go faster after getting a second chance with the Abu Dhabi-backed Citroen team.

Meeke, the 2009 IRC champion, has been plucked from near-career obscurity to replace Dani Sordo as number two to Mikko Hirvonen on Rally Australia next month after spending the best part of two seasons on the sidelines.

Speaking to Redbull.com, the British driver said the opportunity to compete in the Southern Hemisphere would give him the competition practice he craves.

â€œSpeed comes with natural ability and the desire to succeed,â€ said Meeke, who deputised for Khalid Al-Qassimi in Finland earlier this month and wowed with his instant pace. â€œI showed the speed [in Finland] but now I need to show consistency and, at this level, that only comes with doing events.â€

Meeke was set for fifth place in Finland until he crashed nearing the finish of the rerun of Ouninpohja. Asked if he thought heâ€™d blown his chances of more Citroen action, Meeke said: â€œFor sure and there was no one more annoyed and frustrated than me. But I showed enough throughout all the tests and the whole week. If youâ€™re not quick in Finland youâ€™ll never get there.â€

The 34-year-old, who has described his drive in Australia as a â€œmassiveâ€ opportunity, acknowledged the support heâ€™s received from Al-Qassimi, who fronts Abu Dhabi Racing, and Citroen Racing chief Yves Matton.

â€œThey gave me the opportunity for Finland and I tried to do the best job I could,â€ Meeke told Redbull.com. â€œAnd to stand by me and offer me the support and put the trust in me for Australia, thereâ€™s no greater thing they could do than offer me that privilege to represent them.â€

Meeke also had a word for Sordo, who will miss the trip to Coffs Harbour following a poor run of form. â€œAs soon as the decision was made Dani sent me a text and I immediately lifted the phone,â€ said Meeke. â€œWe spoke and heâ€™s fully aware of he situation and so am I. Friendships are friendships and myself and Dani have always been good mates but there are no hard feelings. Life moves on and weâ€™re all looking after number one. Thatâ€™s the way it is.â€
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Kris Meeke: the best thing since Loeb? (MaxRally.com)

by Anthony Peacock / 12th August 2013

Itâ€™s been a funny couple of years for Kris Meeke. In 2011, all his dreams came true when he was signed by Mini for a factory drive in the World Rally Championship. But then it turned into a nightmare as funding for the campaign ran dry.

A handful of weeks before he was due to start the 2012 Monte Carlo Rally â€“ the first rally of what was meant to be a full programme for him â€“ Kris received a phone call to say that it was all off.

WTF, as he said at the timeâ€¦

And then there was Finland last month, where after 20 months out of a World Rally Car, he posted top-three stage times and was all set for a top-five finish until a roll on the penultimate stage. At the most difficult rally of them all.

Now thereâ€™s Australia, where heâ€™ll replace Dani Sordo. Itâ€™s a sign of how much he is valued by Citroen (and Peugeot) â€“ for whom he has been a test driver for the last two years.

â€œTesting is good but not ultimately what I want to do,â€ says the 34-year-old. â€œThe big thing is competition. I eat, sleep and breathe competition.â€

In terms of experience, there are few drivers out there who have the same amount of time behind the wheel.

â€œIâ€™m doing thousands of kilometres every year through testing; probably more than most regular drivers,â€ he explains. â€œIâ€™m as sharp as ever and absolutely ready to come back: whether thatâ€™s with Citroen and Peugeot or any of the new manufacturers coming into the sport. I know what it takes to compete in the world championship.â€

Hyundai is confirmed for the WRC next year and there are plenty of rumours about other manufacturers, including Toyota and Opel. Meeke has been linked to all of them at some point and of course heâ€™s high up on Citroenâ€™s list for next year too. Heâ€™s one of the few people able to deliver exactly the right blend of speed and experience, even though he only contested six events with Mini in 2011 during the teamâ€™s learning year.

â€œDuring my first six events I was closer to the front than any other driver who has entered the championship in the last 10 years,â€ points out Meeke. â€œWe averaged 0.6 seconds per kilometre off the fastest time on every stage we did. The only other person to do that in his first six events was Sebastien Loeb.â€

Blimey.

â€œAnd itâ€™s only after your first six events that you really come into your own,â€ he adds. â€œLook at Sebastien Ogier: in his first six events he was actually 1.4 seconds per kilometre off the fastest time.â€

When you look at what Loeb and Ogier have gone on to do, you realise how close Meeke is to taking the next step.

â€œItâ€™s hellishly frustrating and I think about it probably every hour of every day,â€ he says of his lack of recent competition. â€œBut in rallying youâ€™re just a cog in a wheel; itâ€™s not like being a football or a tennis player where your own performance is your destiny.â€

So Meeke is determined to back. â€œIn this game you can be nowhere and suddenly you have one phone call that changes your life,â€ he says. â€œIâ€™m just going to keep knocking on all the doors I can. I know Iâ€™m good enough.â€

Late last week that phone call might just have happened.
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