Jari-Matti Latvala won Rally Portugal on the weekend, rounding out a dominant 1-2-3 clean sweep for Volkswagen. We’ll get to that another time. Until then, another Jari made headlines with his spectacular aerial work.
Watch Jari Ketomaa launch his Ford Fiesta high into the sky. That was the good part. It soon turned very bad and very ugly.
Thankfully both Jari and his co-driver, Kaj Lindstrom, emerged without injury.
[Thanks to Julian for the tip]
We’re just three races into the 2015 WRC season and dual world champion Sebastien Ogier already has a commanding lead in the drivers’ championship. Here’s a pictorial look back at how he conquered the dust and gravel in Rally Mexico.
It’s okay, unlike Sebastien, we give all of his main rivals equal time in the spotlight too. Enjoy the pics!
If you haven’t yet seen Ott Tanak’s crash from Rally Mexico then put your floaties on and get ready to get wet!
The 27-year-old Estonian crashed out on SS03 and the off itself wasn’t so spectacular, it was only after he had gently rolled into the water that things became dramatic. It was actually a bit scary there for a moment: could Tanak and co-driver Raigo Molder escape their stricken Fiesta?
Thankfully they did, both men getting to the safety of dry land without too much fuss. Molder even had the presence of mind to grab his pace notes.
If you’re an Autosport+ subscriber there’s some interesting post-rally analysis on Tanak’s crash. David Evans laments that the crash attracted world healdines, but the subsequent victory by Sebatsien Ogier barely rated a mention.
Further, Evans questions why it took 17 minutes to get FIVs on the scene. It took 12 minutes alone just to locate Tanak and Molder, as there were issues with their car’s tracking device.
The tale had almost remarkable ending. After spending nine hours in that lake the car was salvaged and brought back into service. M-Sport set about repairing the car and had three hours to do so. And they did, for a brief moment, get the car running.
Alas, shortly after leaving service the Fiesta stopped running, and despite the team’s best efforts Tanak was unable to resume.
It’s time to dust off your sombrero and grab a Corona from the fridge because Sebastien Ogier has won Rally Mexico for the third year in a row.
Before the event the reigning world champion said it would be difficult to manage a podium finish due to regulations seeing him running first on the road, sweeping the dust and gravel aside for his following opponents. And yet, in the end, the Volkswagen ace won the event by almost 1 minute and 20 seconds from Citroën’s Mads Ostberg.
“Absolutely incredible! I am so happy and proud of this victory in Mexico,” Ogier said after his third win from three starts in 2015. “It is one of the best wins of my career. Julien and I had a perfect weekend, the Polo was fantastic, and the team did a magnificent job.
“We pushed like crazy from the word go in the cockpit, came up with the cleverest tyre selection on Friday—and were rewarded in the end.
“It is my third win in a row here. The Rally Mexico seems to be kind to me. And I love coming here. The route suits me, the countryside is fantastic, and the fans make the rally a great fiesta every year.”
Andreas Mikkelsen moved up to second in the championship standings thanks to his third place on a weekend where many front runners had problems.
Kris Meeke crashed out. Jari-Matti Latvala crashed out. And so did Thierry Neuville.
The most spectacular incident was when Ott Tanak gently rolled into a lake. That in itself wasn’t so bad, it was the sight of his Ford Fiesta RS WRC sinking and the subsequent footage of he and co-driver Raigo Molder swimming to safety that grabbed the headlines. We’ll have more on that later.
In the meantime Ogier now enjoys a 34 point lead in the drivers’ championship and appears well on the way to a third straight title. The WRC returns in mid-April for Rally Argentina.
Well, whaddya know, time flies when you’re having fun and Rally Mexico is almost upon us. By the barest of margins here’s your chance to check out the ice cool pics from Rally Sweden, which was one of the most exciting WRC events we’ve ever seen.
Let’s hope Rally Mexico provides as much entertainment and another chance to look at those silly hats!
Sebastien Ogier won Rally Sweden on the weekend, but this was not just any rally win. It was one of the most exciting finales to a WRC event we have been lucky enough to see. And the final deciding stage was live on television.
Going into the last special stage, a power stage offering bonus championship points, Andreas Mikkelsen held a narrow lead from Sebastien Ogier and Thierry Neuville. All three drivers had led the rally at various stages over the weekend.
Neuville was the first of the three leaders to go and did his part by setting the fastest time, more than five seconds faster than Mads Ostebrg’s previous best. Next was Ogier and in that 16km final stage we saw what he is made of. The dual world champion was blistering and went 4.8 seconds faster than Neuville. Wow!
The pressure was on the young shoulders of Andreas Mikkelsen, could he defend his lead and claim his maiden WRC victory?
Alas for the 25-year-old Norwegian he made a small mistake about two-thirds the way through the stage. Like many before him during this event, he ran a fraction wide on a corner and was sucked into one of the soft snow banks. There was no damage to his car, but the 40 seconds he lost relegated him back to third place, behind Neuville and eventual winner Ogier. It was a cruel blow and ended hopes for what would have been a very popular win.
With his second win from two races Ogier is already building a sizeable gap in the championship; he has 53 points and leads Mikkelsen and Neuville, both on 30 points.
The next rally will take place in Mexico in around three weeks from now.
Rally Sweden will be held this weekend. It’s the only genuine snow and ice event on the WRC calendar and with that comes unique technical requirements and driving methods for the teams and drivers.
After the break we’ve assembled a few preview clips to bring you up to speed on what to expect this weekend.
Before Rally Sweden kicks off next weekend, take some time to relive Volkswagen’s dominantion of Rallye Monte Carlo, where the reigning world champions went Ogier one, Latvala two and Mikkelsen three!
Toyota has officially confirmed it will be returning to the World Rally Championship in 2017. Its new rally weapon of choice will be the Yaris WRC, featured here in special launch livery.
Testing of the Yaris WRC has been underway in Europe for some time. Toyota’s commitment will now increase following this announcement and will include a young driver development program as well. The team will be based in Colgone, Germany.
Why wait until 2017 if you’ve already been testing the car for close to 12 months? It’s a pretty good question and the answer lies in the expectation that new regulations will be introduced to the WRC at the end of the 2016 season.
It wouldn’t make sense to introduce a new car with only one season to go before a regulation overhaul. But then why run a three-year test program without knowing what the regs will be for your first race?
In the end that’s for Toyota to worry about, all we know is we’re glad to see the four-time constructors’ champions returning to one of world motorsport’s greatest categories.
The Volkswagen Polo R WRC may have a new look but it’s still the dominant force in world rallying as the team’s record-breaking clean sweep of the podium at the Rallye Monte Carlo proved.
Sebastien Ogier again showed he will be the man to beat in 2015, taking victory by almost one minute ahead of Jari-Matti Latvala. While Andreas Mikkelsen finished third to make it a perfect result for Volkswagen.
In his one-off appearance for Citroën nine-time world champion Sebastien Loeb showed the world he still has blistering pace. Loeb set the scene by going fastest on the opening stage and taking the lead of the rally. He stayed there until SS7 when Ogier fought his way in front.
Loeb’s chances of victory ended after he hit a rock on SS8, which forced him out for the day. He rejoined under Rally 2 regs and fought back to finish eighth overall. The French maestro also won more special stages than any driver during the event.
Mads Ostberg finished fourth for Citroën. Hyundai’s best result came from Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo, who finished fifth and sixth respectively. While Elfyn Evans was the best placed Ford driver in P7.
Rally Sweden is next up, taking place in mid-February.
Citroën has unveiled its 2015-spec DS3 WRC which will be earning its money this weekend when Rallye Monte Carlo is underway.
The most successful rally pairing of all time, Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena, will be making a one-off appearance for Citroën and they have been designated as one of the two crews who can score points for Citroën in the championship.
Kris Meeke is the other driver contributing to the manfacturers’ championship, while Mads Ostberg is probably secretly hoping he can beat both Loeb and Meeke and embarrass his bosses in a nice way.
All three of the DS3 WRCs will be racing in 2015-trim which have new upgrades to the engine, suspension, aerodynamics and gearbox.
“The DS 3 WRC is a very accomplished car, but we have worked hard to make it even more competitive,” Xavier Mestelan-Pinon, Citroën Racing’s Technical Director explained.
“For example, we have focused our efforts on the engine so that it delivers more power and torque, whilst also improving reliability. Taking advantage of the changes in the regulations, we have reintroduced steering wheel-mounted paddles for the gear changes.
“Other significant improvements have been made to the aerodynamics, with a new spoiler and a new front end that will be introduced shortly, as well as to the weight distribution with the use of lighter parts. Lastly, we have altered the kinematics of the rear suspension. Work is ongoing and, in the next few months, we will be presenting another aerodynamic upgrade.”
Vokswagen’s WRC title defence starts next week when Rallye Monte Carlo gets underway and this is the car they will be using.
The most immediate change is the new livery, but underneath the skin the second-gen Polo R WRC has been given a thorough going over. The most notable technical change for 2015 is the introduction of steering wheel mounted paddles for changing gears; the old sequential lever gearsticks are no longer in place.
“The new Polo R WRC has undergone intense further development, both on the inside and the outside,” said Dr Heinz-Jakob Neußer, Volkswagen Board Member for Technical Development. “Not only does it look even more dynamic and sporty than it did before, but our engineers have also been working meticulously on technical innovations under the bonnet and have improved many detailed aspects of the package that has been so successful for the past two years.
“The focus of this further development was on efficiency, reliability and performance. We can hardly wait to see the new Polo R WRC in Monte Carlo and at the other twelve rallies on four continents.”
World Champion Sebastien Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala will get their 2015-spec Polos straight away, while junior driver Andreas Mikkelsen will have to wait until the fifth rally of the year in Portugal.