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Rallye de France-Tour
de Corse
Round 12 of 14 WRC Events
October 15-19 2003
The McKlein Rally Calendar 2004
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Corsica Photos:
http://www.wrc-online.net/gallery.asp?rallyid=9&year=2003&page=1
FIA Press Release - www.fia.com
[WRC] 2003 Corsica Final Wrap Up
Sunday, 19 October 2003
Petter Solberg brought his Subaru Impreza WRC2003 home to win the 12th round of this year's FIA World Rally Championship in Ajaccio today. The Norwegian had crashed his car heavily at the pre-rally shakedown on Thursday lunchtime, but the Subaru team worked through the night to re-prepare the car in time for the Friday-morning start. Solberg repaid their efforts in fine style with a 36.6-second victory at the end of the third day of competition in Corsica. Solberg's only threat through the final day had been Ford's Francois Duval, but today's stages proved difficult for the Belgian, who had never driven them before. Eventually Duval was caught and passed by Carlos Sainz (Citroen) who made an inspired choice ofslick tyre for the final two stages of the day. Sainz's efforts net him the lead in the drivers' championship - a series which Richard Burns has headed since Rally of Turkey in March. Burns' eighth place drops him to third in the championship - three points behind Sainz - equal point with Solberg, who is second for difference in victories. The next round of the FIA World Rally Championship starts in Catalunya in just four days time.
555 Subaru World Rally Team
Technical: Both Subaru Impreza WRC
2003s ran without any mechanical problems throughout the final leg of
the event.
Sporting: Petter Solberg controlled proceedings from the front this morning. His overnight lead of 17.9 seconds had mushroomed to 36.5 seconds after the first loop of stages, allowing the Norwegian to take a more measured approach to the final two. Solberg's third win of the season moves him up second in the drivers' championship, just three points off the lead. Tommi Makinen's day didn't start too well, the Finn feeling unwell for the first two stages. He also suffered a puncture in the first of the day's four stages. Those troubles aside Makinen maintained his grip on seventh position and managed to take 22.9 seconds out of sixth-placed Gilles Panizzi through the final test of the rally.
Quotes: Petter Solberg said: "This is an amazing result. I can't say enough for the team and everybody who has worked so hard to achieve this. Sitting in my hotel room on Thursday morning, this seemed such a long way away. I didn't really believe that I could actually take part in this rally never mind win it. It's fantastic. Now I am right back in with the championship fight. It would be nice to have a wet Catalunya Rally for us, as the Pirellis really work so well in wet and changeable conditions. Having said that, Pirelli came up with a very good tyre in the dry on this rally - look at the first day, we were close to the others when there was no rain."
Tommi Makinen said: "My stomach was really bad this morning, I did not feel so good at all. On the stages, we were quite lucky with the puncture - the tyre did not go off the rim. If it had, then we could have had some problems as we were in quite a fast part of the stage at that time."
David Lapworth said: "I've never seen anything like this in all my time in rallying. If you could have seen the state of the car on Thursday afternoon, you wouldn't have believed it could be here. The team has done a brilliant job, as have Pirelli, coming up with some new tyres for us after a two-day test in the week prior to the rally."
Citroen Total
Technical: The Citroen Xsara WRCs
ran without any problems through the final leg of the event.
Sporting: Carlos Sainz closed in on Francois Duval, narrowing the gap to the second-placed Ford to just 0.1s after the first two stages of the day. The Spaniard had been all set to go out of service on intermediate tyres until - quite literally - the last minute, when he changed his mind and went for cut slick tyres. The first of the final two stages was damp, and Sainz dropped time to his rival. Going into the final stage 10.6 seconds separated the pair, but when the final 20 kilomtres was dry, Sainz was able to push harder and make up the time and more, eventually beating Duval by 5.1 seconds.
Colin McRae was also embroiled in a battle to regain the fourth place he held overnight. Marcus Gronholm passed the Citroen driver in the first run at Pont De Calzola. Just 1.2 seconds split the pair in the next stage, but McRae struggled to match the Finn in the final test, losing the place by 16.8 seconds. Sebastien Loeb started the day in 14th position and made one place on the leaderboard through the final four stages of leg three. The Frenchman was, however, fastest on every stage today.
Quotes: Carlos Sainz said: "This has been such a difficult rally for tyres, right up until the end nobody was sure what we would want. It was my decision to go on the slicks, and it was the right one. It's been a great battle with Francois. Now I have the championship lead - I just hope I have a good Catalunya."
Colin McRae said: "We lost some time in the wider part of the second stage this morning - it was really slippery in there, with a lot of mud around. Then on the last loop we took an intermediate tyre with a cut in it - we didn't need the cut. We tried, but unfortunately we couldn't manage to get fourth - but we did get some valuable points for Citroen in the manufacturers' standings."
Sebastien Loeb said: "This is quite a difference from two weeks ago - but then that's the way rallying goes. The one thing we can take from this rally is the pace we have shown, that's encouraging for the next round in Catalunya."
Ford Motor Company
Technical: Francois Duval's Ford
Focus RS WRC 03 ran without any problems through the final day, while
the sister car of Markko Martin suffered a gearbox problem towards
the end of the first stage of the leg. Martin then crashed on the
penultimate stage. Mikko Hirvonen's 2002 Focus ran with no technical
trouble.
Sporting: Running on stages which he hadn't seen before, Duval was always going to struggle to keep Carlos Sainz behind him, he managed it through the first loop. But was usurped on the final stage of the day after a big push from the Spaniard who had chosen a slick tyre more suited to the final 20 kilometres of the rally. Duval, who led the rally yesterday, ended the event 5.1 seconds behind, but was happy with the performance he had shown throughout the rally." Markko Martin's event ended on the penultimate stage, when the Estonian crashed his car out of the rally. Mikko Hirvonen took tenth place on his first visit to the island. The Finn, driving a 2002-specification Focus, hit a bank and spun on the finish line of one stage this morning, but he escaped both incidents.
Quotes: Markko Martin said: "We came to a fast fourth-gear corner that turned into a slower one. I lost the car under braking and we went backwards off the road and into the trees. It was a fairly heavy impact, I hit my head hard. We were fortunate not to go off the road forwards, that could have been quite nasty."
Francois Duval said: "I didn't know those stages this morning, Carlos and the others did. It's been fantastic to lead this event and to finish where we have. Stephane and I have been working hard with our notes and that work is paying off."
Mikko Hirvonen said: "Setting a fastest time and making the top ten on my first effort in the Tour of Corsica is a very good result for me, I am happy with that."
Marlboro Peugeot Total
Technical: All three 206 WRCs have
run without mechanical fault today.
Sporting: Marcus Gronholm passed Colin McRae for fourth place on the second of today's stages. He then extended his advantage over the second run. After struggling to find the right Michelins yesterday, the Finn got it right today. This is Gronholm's first finish since he finished second on Rally Deutschland. Gilles Panizzi took the wrong tyres for the final loop of stages, a choice which summed up Panizzi's rally this time around. Richard Burns brought his 206 home in eighth place, clinching the final drivers' championship point. Burns and his co-driver Robert Reid were both suffering from sickness today. Burns admitted it was affecting his concentration through the first loop of stages, but he felt a little better for the second.
Quotes: Marcus Gronholm said: "We made good tyre choices today. This morning was quite difficult in places; there wasn't any rain, but the surface of the road was damp. Our tyre worked well there, then we took an intermediate this afternoon and with all of the mud from the cuts, it was good."
Gilles Panizzi said: "This has been a really frustrating rally for me. I couldn't get the car right on leg one, then when they were right, I couldn't get the right tyres. I just hope that Catalunya is going to be better for me."
Richard Burns said: "We had a bit of a moment towards the end of the penultimate stage, the car slid wide and dropped off the road a little bit. Apart from that we haven't had any trouble - apart from the fact that Robert (Reid) and I have both been ill. The first stage this morning was a real struggle to get through it."
Skoda Motorsport
Technical: Toni Gardemeister's Fabia
WRC suffered continued problems with the steering sensor - it also
broke rear anti roll bars on both loops of stages. Didier Auriol
retired prior to the opening stage when his Fabia was hit by a
water-related electrical fault.
Sporting: Gardemeister started and finished the day in 11th place today. The Finn struggled with the car throughout the day, having the Fabia's handling seriously compromised by the broken anti-roll bars. The only stage he managed without the anti-roll bar breaking was the first test, where his fastest time of the leg came.
Quotes: Toni Gardemeister said: "The car is very hard to drive like this. In long corners you get lots of understeer, then in the tight ones the back end of the car tends to snap away from you. When you have the broken anti-roll bar at the back end of the car, it's soft which picks the front up and takes the grip away from the front wheels. It hasn't been such a good day. "
Other entries
Niall McShea won the final round of
this year's FIA Production Car World Rally Championship in his
Mitsubishi Lancer E6. The Ulsterman took control of the rally when
Spain's Dani Sola (Lancer E8) retired mid-way through the final leg
with a broken differential. McShea took victory from Subaru's Toshi
Arai, with fellow Impreza driver Martin Rowe taking third. Rowe's
third place was enough for him to be crowned this year's world
champion of the cathegory. It was a good weekend for British Group N
drivers, as Mark Higgins won the category outright in his
Impreza.
19/10/2003 RALLY STATISTICS
STARTERS: 39 crews (21 Group A and 18 Group N) started this morning.
TOP RETIREMENTS: Martin (EE), Sola (E).
TODAY:
Sunday 19 October
Leg 3 started from Ajaccio at 07h00 and covered 240.92km, including
112.10km on four stages.
SS13 PENITENCIER - COTI CHIAVARI 1 (24.24km)
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
15m 19.0
2 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
15m 22.3
3
Duval
(B)
Ford
15m 26.6
LEADERS AFTER SS13
1 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
3h 24m 35.9
2
Duval
(B)
Ford
3h 25m 58.1
3
Sainz
(E)
Citroen
3h 25m 05.7
SS14 PONT DE CALZOLA - AGOSTA 1 (31,81km)
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
19m 47.2
2 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
19m 51.9
3 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
19m 53.5
LEADERS AFTER SS14
1 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
3h 44m 27.8
2
Duval
(B)
Ford
3h 45m 04.3
3
Sainz
(E)
Citroen
3h 45m 04.4
SS15 PENITENCIER - COTI-CHIAVARI 2
(24.24km)
1
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
15m 25.4
2 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
15m 26.0
3
McRae
(GB)
Citroen
15m 27.2
LEADERS AFTER SS15
1
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
3h 59m 59.9
2
Duval
(B)
Ford
4h 00m 38.4
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
4h 00m 49.0
SS16 PONT DE CALZOLA - AGOSTA 2 (31,81km)
1
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
19m 56.4
2 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
19m 59.2
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
20m 02.9
LEADERS IN AJACCIO AFTER SS16
1 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
4h 32m 17.6
2 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
+36.6
3
Duval
(B)
Ford
+41.7
4 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
+1m 09.2
5
McRae
(GB)
Citroen
+1m 26.0
6
Panizzi
(F)
Peugeot
+1m 58.7
7
Makinen
(FIN)
Subaru
+2m 25.8
8
Burns
(GB)
Peugeot
+2m 36.7
9
Bugalski
(F)
Citroen
+2m 46.8
10
Hirvonen
(FIN)
Ford
+3m 55.4
FIA PROD. CAR WRC LEADERS AFTER SS16
1
McShea
(GB) Mitsubishi
4h 49m 47.8
2 Arai
(J)
Subaru
+57.6
3
Rowe
(GB)
Subaru
+5m 04.0
4
Kulig
(PL)
Mitsubishi
+5m 58.4
5 Blomqvist
(S)
Subaru
+6m 03.6
6
Colsoul
(B)
Mitsubishi
+8m 09.5
7
Trivino
(MEX)
Mitsubishi
+17m 26.1
8
Errani
(I)
Mitsubishi
+38m 30.0
FINAL RALLY STATISTICS
EVENT: The rally covered 971.75km, including 397.40km on 16 special stages (including eight run twice). All stages were on asphalt roads closed to other traffic.
STARTERS: 62 crews (19 Group A and 32 Group N) started the rally
FINISHERS: 34 crews (25 Group A and 15 Group N) finished the rally
STAGE
WINNERS:
Sainz (SS1)
Loeb (SS2-13-14-1516)
Martin (SS3-5-6-7)
Duval (SS4)
Hirvonen (SS8)
Panizzi (SS9)
Solberg (SS10-11-12)
RALLY
LEADERS:
SS1 Sainz
SS2-SS3 Martin
SS4-SS7 Loeb
SS8-SS11 Duval
SS12-SS16 Solberg
FIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (provisional standings after 12 of 14 rounds):
FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers: Sainz (E) 61, Solberg (N) 58, Burns (GB) 58, Loeb (F) 55, Martin (EE) 43, Gronholm (FIN) 43, C. McRae (GB) 40, Makinen (FIN) 23, Duval (B) 21, Rovanpera (FIN) 18, Panizzi (F) 17, Gardemeister (FIN) 9, Auriol (F) 4, Robert (F) 3, A.McRae (GB) 3, Hirvonen (FIN) 3, Schwarz (D) 3, Tuohino (FIN) 2, Loix (B) 1, Ginley (GB) 1, Lindholm (FIN) 1, Bugalski (F) 1.
FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers: Citroen 137, Peugeot 129, Subaru 88, Ford 78, Skoda 21.
FIA Junior World Rally Championship (after 5 of 7 rounds, this event not counting): Tirabassi (F) 28, Canellas (E) 25, Carlsson (S) 18, Wilks (GB) 18, Aava (EE) 16, Baldacci (I) 12, Katajamaki (FIN) 10, Ligato Broccoli (RSM) 9, others
FIA Production Car World Championship (after 7 of 7 rounds/how many rounds entered): Rowe (GB) 43/6, Arai (J) 38/6, Blomqvist (S) 30/6, Singh (MAL) 30/6, Sola (E) 22/6, McShea (GB) 18, Ligato (RA) 13/6, others.
NEXT
EVENT:
October 23-26: Rallye Catalunya- Rallye de Espana
Website: www.rallycatalunya.com
[WRC] 2003 Corsica Leg 2
Saturday, 18 October 2003
Norway's Petter Solberg ended an
astonishing second leg of the Tour de Corse with a 17.9-second lead
over Belgian Francois Duval. It was drama from the start of today's
six stages on this 11th round of the FIA World Rally Championship.
Overnight leader Sebastien Loeb slid his Citroen Xsara WRC off the
road and dropped ten minutes on the second stage of the day. That
test also claimed Ford's Markko Martin, who had only just moved into
second place. The Focus driver dropped four minutes changing a
smashed wheel on his car. These early problems left Duval at the head
of the field, a position he held until the last stage of the day,
where some inspired driving from Solberg carried him to the top of
the leaderboard, just two days after he'd crashed his Impreza heavily
on the shakedown stage. Duval is second, but under intense pressure
from his former team-mate Carlos Sainz. The Citroen-driving Spaniard
is 4.5 seconds behind Duval.
Dani Sola continues to lead the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship standings, although Martin Rowe remains in a potentially championship-winning position. Tomorrow's final leg includes two runs at two stages, for a total of 112km - with further mixed weather conditions.
555 Subaru World Rally Team
Technical: Both Subaru Impreza WRC
2003s have run without any mechanical troubles today.
Sporting: Solberg's tyre choice was a little too conservative for the opening loop of stages this morning and he spun on the second test, but as the day wore on, the Norwegian's stage times tumbled as he powered his way into the lead by the end of the day - having started the middle leg of stages in sixth place. Tommi Makinen spent most of the leg adjusting the damper settings on his car, trying to find the best solution for the ever-changing conditions. He took a tyre too hard for the second loop of two stages this afternoon and couldn't get any heat into them.
Quotes: Petter Solberg said: "This is amazing. I have been right on the limit all day, but in these conditions trying to get the right tyre is almost impossible. The conditions are changing throughout the stage, all of the time there are places where it would be better to have a small cut here - or not to have had the cut in that place. It's so hard to get it right. The car has been perfect today and I really think we were right with the cut slick tyres we took through that long final stage of the day."
Tommi Makinen said: "I don't have so much experience of using these dampers in the wet conditions, so it has taken me a while to get the set-up right. The hard tyres were terrible in SS10 and 11. Not even in the longer stage could we get them to warm up."
Ford Motor Company
Technical: The 2003 specification
Focus RS WRCs of Markko Martin and Francois Duval ran without any
problems, while Mikko Hirvonen also enjoyed a trouble-free day in his
2002 car.
Sporting: Martin rocketed back into contention for the lead on the first stage this morning. His fastest time took him to within ten seconds of the leader Loeb. Unfortunately for the Estonian, he went off the road two kilometres into the next stage, smashing a front wheel and dropping four minutes. Duval ensured there remained something to smile about in the Ford camp as he hit the top of the leaderboard after SS8. The Belgian maintained a consistent pace throughout the remaining stages, but came under an increased threat from Solberg as the second leg wore on. The highlight of Hirvonen's day was his fastest time on the eighth stage. The Finn made it through the test before the worst of the rain arrived. That first ever fastest time in the FIA World Rally Championship helped Hirvonen towards a top ten position overall at the end of the leg.
Quotes: Markko Martin said: "I had been adjusting the settings on the car at the start of that stage (SS8). Once the car was right, I pushed harder. The car slid wide in a left-hand corner and hit the mountain, smashing the right-front wheel. We had to stop and change the wheel, which took ages. Yesterday there was still some hope, but today it's different. We had a chance to win the rally and to help ourselves a lot in the championship, now that has gone."
Francois Duval said: "I stalled the car three times at the start of the eighth stage, we dropped about 15 seconds. Apart from that, things have gone well. With the weather the way it has been, today has been a really difficult day, so much aquaplaning. We have to be careful, I won't attack yet."
Mikko Hirvonen said: "We had a bit of a scare on the 11th stage today. There was lots of grip on the entry to one corner, but on the exit there wasn't as much. The car slid along the side of the road in fourth gear for a while, but in the end it was okay - quite exciting, though. Setting the fastest time on my first visit to Corsica is amazing - I'm very happy with that."
Citroen Total
Technical: The Citroen Xsara WRCs
ran largely without mechanical fault throughout the second leg,
although the windscreen wipers and screen demister stopped working on
Colin McRae's car during SS10.
Sporting: Loeb slid off the road on the second stage this morning, dropping ten minutes while spectators tried to get the Xsara back onto the stage. He dropped from first place to 18th. The Frenchman's misfortune - along with that of Ford driver Markko Martin - elevated his team-mate Sainz into second place. Sainz was immediately embroiled in a big fight with Subaru's Petter Solberg and Peugeot driver Marcus Gronholm in his attempts to hold on to that position. Sainz dropped behind Solberg on the day's penultimate test after what he described as a difficult day. McRae struggled for visibility through the wet tenth stage, when the wipers broke and then the screen misted up. That aside, the Scot's day was without major drama. Philippe Bugalski spent the day fighting with Richard Burns, eventually finishing behind the Briton in ninth place.
Quotes: Sebastien Loeb said: "It was about half way though the stage that I had my problem. I turned in a little early for a left-hand corner and then got out of shape on the right-hander that followed. The car spun and the front was stuck, we couldn't move it at all. We had to wait for some spectators to come and help us, eventually we got going again - but we had dropped ten minutes. The roads were so difficult to drive on, so slippery. Okay, we have done some good times since then, but that doesn't really matter now. I don't know what this means for the championship, we have to wait until the finish to find that out."
Carlos Sainz said: "Today has been such a hard day. The tyre choice has been really hard to make, the weather has been changing all of the time. It's a compromise between the stages, what could be good for one is wrong for another. All we can do is our best, and we have been pushing throughout the day."
Colin McRae said: "We've had a bit of an up and down day - but certainly not an easy day. On the first run at the long stage I would have preferred more of a cut in the tyre, but there wasn't time to do that in service. That would certainly have made a good difference for us in the stage."
Marlboro Peugeot Total
Technical: All three 206 WRCs have
run without mechanical fault today.
Sporting: Marcus Gronholm struggled through a day which he wasn't enjoying very much. The Finn slid off the road near the start of SS11, his harder compound Michelins not finding any grip at all on the shiny Corsican asphalt. He had run as high as third overall, but his off-road excursion on this afternoon dropped him back down the leaderboard. Gilles Panizzi, however, was heading in the opposite direction. The Frenchman was in a completely different frame of mind today. He'd found a car set-up which was working for him in the mixed conditions, and a fastest time on the first run at the long stage moved him right back into contention. Richard Burns took an intermediate tyre on the first loop of stages this morning and dropped a lot of time when the first test of the day proved to be drier than expected. He then spun at a hairpin dropping ten seconds on the ninth stage.
Quotes: Marcus Gronholm said: "It's horrible today. I felt I was too slow everywhere this morning, the conditions are so unpredictable. I don't think anybody is enjoying this rally with these conditions. When we went off this afternoon, the car was all over the place."
Gilles Panizzi said: "The car has been better today. I really feel I can drive it like this and really push. Pretty much everything has been changed on the car, but the team don't know what was the problem yesterday. For me the really started today.
Richard Burns said: "I've been pretty pleased with the way the car has worked today, but when the weather changes the way it has today, it's really difficult to get things right - and exceptionally difficult to get the right tyres, we should know - we got it wrong on the first loop this morning. On the second run at stages ten and 11, I took a slick tyre which was losing its heat as soon as we hit any damp patches. It didn't rain, but there was enough dirt on the road to make an intermediate the better tyre."
Skoda Motorsport
Technical: Toni Gardemeister's Skoda
Fabia WRC suffered a broken anti-roll bar this morning and problems
with the steering sensor throughout the leg. Didier Auriol's car
retired yesterday with electrical problems.
Sporting: Gardemeister moved up two places through today's six stages, ending the leg in 11th place. The Finn had no major complaints about the car, the team deciding to disconnect the steering sensor as it was starting to affect the performance of the car's differentials.
Quotes: Toni Gardemeister said: "In the rain today the team had softened the anti-roll bars and got the car working well. I was enjoying driving it, everything felt good, but then in the mud it was so hard - the car was sliding like hell in places, no grip at all. The last stage was really muddy, we needed to have taken a harder tyre for that stage. "
Other entries
Despite a brace of spins, Dani Sola
maintained his grip on the FIA Production Car World Rally
Championship. The Spaniard had struggled with tyre choice on a couple
of tests and admitted he hadn't really enjoyed the day in his
Mitsubishi Lancer E8. He remained comfortably ahead of Niall McShea's
Lancer E6. The Ulsterman was struggling with tyres, having run a wet
tyre when he felt an intermediate would have worked better. Subaru
drivers Toshi Arai and Martin Rowe are third and fourth, with the
title heading to the Briton if the scores remain the same.
Of the non official entries, Cedric Robert leads the charge in 13th place, despite turbo problems aboard his Peugeot 206 WRC.
18/10/2003 RALLY STATISTICS
STARTERS: 55 crews (28 Group A and 27 Group N) started this morning.
TOP RETIREMENTS: Bengue (F), Stohl (A), Rousselot (F), Ginley (GB), Frisiero (I), Richard (CDN).
TODAY:
Saturday 18 October
Leg 2 started from Ajaccio at 07h15 and covered 447.80km, including
190.00km on six stages.
TOMORROW:
Sunday 19 October
Leg 3 starts from Ajaccio at 07h00 and covers 240.92km, including
112.10km on four stages. The first car is expected to arrive at the
finish in Ajaccio at 14h30.
WEATHER FORECAST: Further rain expected overnight and into tomorrow morning..
SS7 AMPAZA - PETRETO 1 (38.64km)
1
Martin
(EE)
Ford
25m 32.2
2
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
25m 36.6
3
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
25m 41.1
LEADERS AFTER SS7
1
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
1h 27m 05.8
2 Martin
(EE)
Ford
1h 27m 15.4
3 Duval
(B)
Ford
1h 27m 16.2
SS8 PONT DE LA MASINE - COL ST GEORGES 1
(15.42km)
1
Hirvonen
(FIN)
Ford
10m 31.5
2
Bugalski
(F)
Citroen
10m 40.0
3 Gardemeister (FIN)
Skoda
10m 40.7
LEADERS AFTER SS8
1 Duval
(B)
Ford
1h 38m 17.7
2
Sainz
(F)
Citroen
1h 38m 28.3
3 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
1h 38m 33.0
SS9 COL DE CARAZZI - BASTELICA 1
(40.94km)
1
Panizzi
(F)
Peugeot
27m 23.5
2
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
27m 25.3
3 Duval
(B)
Ford
27m 30.9
LEADERS AFTER SS9
1 Duval
(B)
Ford
2h 05m 48.6
2
Sainz
(F)
Citroen
2h 06m 00.2
3 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
2h 06m 15.0
SS10 AMPAZA - PETRETO 2 (38.64km)
1
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
25m 20.7
2
Martin
(EE)
Ford
25m 33.6
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
25m 34.1
LEADERS AFTER SS10
1 Duval
(B)
Ford
2h 31m 29.2
2
Sainz
(F)
Citroen
2h 31m 34.3
3 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
2h 31m 35.7
SS11 PONT DE LA MASINE - COL ST GEORGES 2
(15.42km)
1
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
10m 22.3
2
Martin
(EE)
Ford
10m 25.5
3
Duval
(B)
Ford
10m 25.6
LEADERS AFTER SS11
1
Duval
(B)
Ford
2h 41m 54.8
2 Solberg
(N)
Subaru
2h 41m 58.0
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
2h 42m 02.6
SS12 COL DE CARAZZI - BASTELICA 2
(40.94km)
1
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
27m 15.6
2
Makinen
(FIN)
Subaru
27m 24.8
3
Martin
(EE)
Ford
27m 33.2
LEADERS AFTER SS12
1
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
3h 91m 13.6
2
Duval
(B) Ford
+17.9
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
+22.4
4
McRae
(GB)
Citroen
+1m 15.5
5 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
+1m 23.6
6
Panizzi
(F)
Peugeot
+1m 26.5
7
Makinen
(FIN)
Subaru
+2m 10.3
8
Burns
(GB)
Peugeot
+2m 22.0
9
Bugalski
(F)
Citroen
+2m 32.9
10
Hirvonen
(FIN)
Ford
+2m 33.9
[WRC] 2003 Corsica Leg 1
Friday, 17 October 2003
Winner of the last round of the FIA
World Rally Championship in Italy, Citroen's Sebastien Loeb continued
where he left off in Corsica today. The Frenchman ended the day with
a 3.9-second advantage over Ford Focus RS WRC03 driver Francois
Duval. Loeb was concerned about the close proximity of the Belgian -
and the other Ford of Markko Martin. Martin had led the event through
stages two and three, but a time-consuming spin on the fourth test
dropped him back down the order. Fastest times on the two remaining
tests of the day elevated the Estonian back into fifth spot, 18.5
seconds behind the leader. Marcus Gronholm was third at the end of
the leg after a trouble-free run in his Peugeot, with Duval's
team-mate Carlos Sainz fourth. Today consisted of six stages - two
loops of three - and at the end of the 97 kilometres of competitive
action, just under half a minute separated the top seven crews. All
of the stages ran in dry conditions, although the Vico - Pont du
Liamone test was dirtier than most on the second run through.
Dani Sola leads the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship, with fellow Mitsubishi driver Niall McShea second. In the title race, Martin Rowe (Subaru Impreza) is sixth, two places behind his rival for the crown Toshi Arai (Subaru Impreza).
Citroen Total
Technical: The factory Citroen Xsara
WRCs of Sebastien Loeb and Carlos Sainz ran without mechanical
trouble today, while Colin McRae suffered brake and transmission
trouble and Philippe Bugalski struggled with a throttle problem for
the first three stages.
Sporting: Sebastien Loeb and Carlos Sainz both made strong starts to the event, running at the sharp end of the field throughout leg one. Loeb admitted his car was oversteering too much through the morning loop, while Sainz's day was without any problems. Colin McRae was struggling to slow his Xsara WRC down on stages two and three this morning. The Scotsman was running a transmission set-up close to the one which his team-mate Sebastien Loeb had used on the last round in Sanremo, but it didn't work for McRae in Corsica. McRae's Xsara was locking its brakes too easily throughout the day.
Quotes: Sebastien Loeb said: "We made some adjustments to the differentials at the lunchtime service today, the car felt better in the afternoon. This is a big race, very close. It's been really hard work out there, the Ford's are so close, there's no room for a mistake."
Carlos Sainz said: "I am feeling fine and quite happy at the moment. The new stages we did today were good, there was the odd patch of gravel, but nothing serious at all. Our time wasn't so good on the fourth stage, I'm not sure why - but we have been at the maximum. The car has worked really well."
Colin McRae said: "It's a matter of getting the set-up right for me. On the downhill sections the car wasn't right this morning, it wasn't braking right. It was more transmission than brakes, though. The first stage was okay - but after that it wasn't so good. It's another one of those situations where you need to be off to the best start possible - we haven't made that and now we're trying to catch up again."
Ford Motor Company
Technical: Both Ford Focus RS WRC03s
ran without fault through the opening leg, as did the 2002 version of
Mikko Hirvonen.
Sporting: Markko Martin admitted to a steady start through the opening couple of stages, but once he found himself on the more familiar, latter part of SS3 - a stage which has been used before - the Estonian felt more at home and pushed harder - opening up more of an advantage through. Martin led the event after the second stage and moved further ahead on the third. Unfortunately for him, however, a spin on the fourth test cost him 30 seconds. He ended the day with fastest times on stages five and six, recovering to fifth place, 18.5 seconds off the lead. Francois Duval set the fastest time on the fourth stage. The Belgian preferred the stages which were new for everybody this morning and certainly happier on the second run. His fastest time on SS4 was backed up by top three times on the remaining two stages, ensuring he ended the day in a strong second position. Mikko Hirvonen's day was also without drama in last year's Focus RS WRC.
Quotes: Markko Martin said: "I wasn't so keen on the first two stages this morning, but the third was really good - more typical of the Corsica roads. In the spin this afternoon, the back of the car dropped down a bank; I took full throttle to get it out. We came up the bank and shot across the road into the bank on the other side of the road. I couldn't get reverse gear, the spectators had to push me out - I lost a lot of time."
Francois Duval said: "This morning was good on the stages which nobody had driven on, but then when we got to the part of stage three which had been used, it wasn't quite so good - the others pulled a little bit of time out of me. This afternoon was great, fastest times and second overall: I'm very happy tonight."
Mikko Hirvonen said: "I was too cautious through the opening stage, but I think that's probably because I was missing the kilometres I should have had in Sanremo. I thought I might have been a little quicker on the second run, but okay the times are still close to people like Tommi Makinen, so it's not so bad."
Marlboro Peugeot Total
Technical: None of the Peugeot 206
WRCs suffered any technical problems through the opening leg of the
event, although Gilles Panizzi remains convinced there is something
amiss with his car - the team have been unable to find
anything.
Sporting: Marcus Gronholm and Richard Burns spearheaded the Peugeot attack through the morning stages, with both drivers comfortable in their cars. Last year's winner - Gilles Panizzi - was far from happy with the way his car ran for the first loop, complaining about the set-up of his Peugeot. Just as he did on the last round of the series in Italy, Gronholm was quickest of the 206s through the opening day. The Finn was comfortably in the top three, but this time his team-mate Burns wasn't far behind. The Briton admitted he was feeling considerably more comfortable in the car than he had a fortnight ago. Burns ended the day in sixth spot. Panizzi ended the day out side of the top ten and over one minute off the pace. The Frenchman was frustrated by his problems, particularly as he couldn't identify precisely what was wrong. The team changed the gearbox at lunchtime, but Panizzi said it was no better through the afternoon's loop of three stages.
Quotes: Marcus Gronholm said: "I'm not sure why we are closer to Loeb than we were on the last round. We have a good set-up with the car, no problems. I'll keep on pushing and see what we can do."
Richard Burns said: "From shakedown yesterday I felt the car was right for me. I've got confidence in the car which means that I can push harder. Maybe there is a little bit too much oversteer with the car, but I can live with that. I haven't been taking big risks today, but at the same time there's not a lot more to come in terms of times."
Gilles Panizzi said: "This morning it was like the first loop of Sanremo all over again. My car didn't feel right, it was like a different car from the one I had in shakedown. I was absolutely sure that something was broken."
555 Subaru World Rally Team
Technical: Petter Solberg's car was
finished at 05h00 this morning following the Norwegian's accident at
shakedown yesterday. The gearbox in his Impreza WRC 2003 gave trouble
on the first loop of stages, but that was the only mechanical problem
on the car. Tommi Makinen's Subaru ran without fault throughout leg
one.
Sporting: Solberg was grateful to make the start of the first stage this morning following his crash yesterday morning. The Rally Australia winner admitted he was nervous ahead of the opening test, but with that out of the way he was able to settle back in to his usual driving style. The gearbox problem was stopping the car selecting ratios cleanly, but he overcame that trouble to bring the car home in eighth position at the end of the day. Makinen's run through the morning loop wasn't helped by running dampers which were too soft on the rear of the Subaru. That aside it was a drama-free day for the four-times world champion.
Quotes: Petter Solberg said: "The mechanics have done such a fantastic job to get the car ready, it's amazing. Once I'd got that first stage out of the way, everything was better. You can't help thinking about a crash like the one I had yesterday. We hit the telegraph pole, but if that hadn't been there, it was a big drop down. The car has been getting better and better throughout the day today."
Tommi Makinen said: "The car didn't feel so good this morning, but on the last stages it was good - the team changed some suspension parts which helped the handling. There was a lot of sand and gravel around in the second run of the stages which made it more difficult to drive. We have been pushing hard, but trying to save the tyres - which have been working well."
Skoda Motorsport
Technical: Didier Auriol's Skoda
Fabia WRC suffered an electrical problem at the start of the first
stage and retired. Toni Gardemeister's car ran reliably throughout
leg one.
Sporting: Auriol's problems began at the control ahead of the event's opening test. His Fabia stalled and refused to fire up. The Frenchman, who has won the Tour de Corse six times before, then tried to bump start the car, but damaged first and second gears. Eventually he ran out of time and was forced to retire. Gardemeister was happy to get some asphalt mileage under his belt after his early exit from the last round in Sanremo. The Finn was running the suspension considerably softer than he had in Italy and subsequently had more confidence in the Skoda.
Quotes: Didier Auriol said: "On the way to the first stage, I noticed some water inside the car. I don't know where it came from, but it seems it got into the car's electrics and caused a problem when we came to re-start it. It's very disappointing to retire from any rally in this way."
Toni Gardemeister said: "With the car like this I can drive so much faster. The suspension and geometry is much better. Now we are about one second per kilometre off the times of the fastest crews - and some of that is coming from the engine, which still needs some more power. The changes to the engine for this rally have made the power delivery smoother and made the car even more easy to drive. "
Other entries
Dani Sola's day has run largely to
plan among the FIA Production Car World Rally Championship
contenders. The Mitsubishi Lancer E7 driver arrived back in Ajaccio
with a two-minute lead over his nearest contender: Niall McShea, who
is using a slightly older Lancer E6. Martin Rowe's title aspirations
remain intact, he holds sixth place, with Toshi Arai unable to get
into lead - the Japanese driver is fourth. Top non-factory driver is
Frenchman Alexandre Bengue. He holds ninth overall in his private
Peugeot 206 WRC, after scoring a fourth time in SS5.
17/10/2003 RALLY STATISTICS
STARTERS: 62 crews (30 Group A and 32 Group N) started this morning.
TOP RETIREMENTS: Auriol (F), Ferreiros (PE), De Dominicis (I)
TODAY:
Friday 17 October
Leg 1 started from Ajaccio at 09h05 and covered 283.03km, including
95.30km on six stages.
TOMORROW:
Saturday 18 October
Leg 2 starts from Ajaccio at 07h15 and covers 447.80km, including
190.00km on six stages. The first car is expected to arrive back in
Ajaccio at 19h28.
WEATHER FORECAST: Showers expected overnight, with changeable conditions tomorrow.
SS1 CARGESE - PAOMIA 1 (14.64km)
1 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
9m 49.6
2 Burns
(GB)
Peugeot
9m 50.5
3 Martin
(EE) Ford
9m 51.2
SS2 VICO - PONT DU LIAMONE 1 (15.49km)
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
10m 04.6
2 Martin
(EE)
Ford
10m 05.4
3 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
10m 06.2
LEADERS AFTER SS2
1 Martin
(EE)
Ford
19m 56.6
2 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
19m 56.7
3 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
19m 56.9
SS3 la liscia - sarrola carcopino 1
(17.52km)
1 Martin
(EE)
Ford
10m 43.6
2 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
10m 46.7
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
10m 48.6
LEADERS AFTER SS3
1 Martin
(EE)
Ford
30m 40.2
2 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
30m 43.6
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
30m 45.3
SS4 CARGESE - PAOMIA 2 (14.64km)
1 Duval
(B)
Ford
9m 45.3
2 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
9m 48.9
3 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
9m 49.6
LEADERS AFTER SS4
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
40m 33.2
2 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
40m 36.1
3 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
40m 37.5
SS5 VICO - PONT DU LIAMONE 2 (15.49km)
1 Martin
(EE)
Ford
10m 03.6
2 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
10m 06.2
3 Duval
(B)
Ford
10m 06.6
LEADERS AFTER SS5
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
50m 39.4
2 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
50m 44.4
3 Duval
(B)
Ford
50m 44.9
SS6 la liscia - sarrola carcopino 2
(17.52km)
1
Martin
(EE)
Ford
10m 43.2
2
Duval
(B) Ford
10m 43.7
3
Loeb
(F)
Citroen
10m 45.3
LEADERS AFTER SS6
1 Loeb
(F)
Citroen
1h 01m 24.7
2
Duval
(B) Ford
+3.9
3 Gronholm
(FIN)
Peugeot
+5.3
4 Sainz
(E)
Citroen
+10.2
5
Martin
(EE)
Ford
+18.5
6
Burns
(GB)
Peugeot
+19.5
7
McRae
(GB)
Citroen
+29.4
8
Solberg
(N)
Subaru
+43.8
9
Bengue
(F)
Peugeot
+1m 00.7
10
Bugalski
(F)
Citroen
+1m 05.7
[WRC] 2003 Corsica Preview
Thursday, 16 October 2003
The middle of the three October
asphalt rallies in this year's FIA World Rally Championship starts
competitively tomorrow morning. Citroen driver Sebastien Loeb will be
looking to find the same form as in Italy two weeks ago, when he led
the Sanremo Rally from start to finish, despite running the wrong
tyres in torrential rain which hit the final loop of stages in the
Ligurian mountains. Loeb's third win of the season moved him into
second place in the chase for the 2003 drivers' championship; he now
lies just two points behind the Peugeot 206 WRC of Briton Richard
Burns. Burns struggled to get into the groove on the last round, only
managing seventh place. Fourth place for Carlos Sainz was enough for
Loeb's fellow Xsara WRC driver to maintain third place, with Subaru's
Petter Solberg fourth - albeit nine points adrift of the leader. As
always in Corsica, the weather will play a big part in proceedings.
The stages run through the mountains behind the rally's base in
Ajaccio, climbing as high as 1,200 metres in some parts - which will
make tyre choice as difficult as it is critical.
This event is also the final round of this year's FIA Production Car World Rally Championship, where Britain's Martin Rowe needs to finish fifth or higher to clinch this year's title in his Subaru Impreza. Toshi Arai (Subaru Impreza) can still deny the former Renault factory driver his moment of glory, however.
Citroen Total (1st - 125 points)
Technical: Citroen will field four
factory specification Xsara WRCs, with Philippe Bugalskli joining the
usual trio of drivers. Bugalksi's car - while running at the same
level as the other three - will be prepared by Spanish privateer team
Piedrafita Sport. Sebastien Loeb's Xsara is the same car which the
Frenchman has used to win Rally Deutschland for the last two years.
Sporting: Loeb arrives on a high having taken his third win of the year just two weeks ago. Loeb has tackled this event three times before, but never at the wheel of a manufacturer World Rally Car. His lack of experience will be levelled, however, by the fact that this year's route includes a lot of stages which are new to all of the drivers. Carlos Sainz was another driver to miss a test session last week, following his kidney stones problem in Italy. The Spaniard will be fit for this week's event - a rally which he enjoys. Colin McRae will be hoping to find some extra pace after slipping behind his team-mates on Rallye Sanremo. The Scot has won Corsica twice in the past, but those victories have been balanced by two big accidents in the last three years on the island.
Quotes: Sebastien Loeb said: "The key for me to win the championship is finishing the next three rallies. In Italy I found the pace to run at the front without taking too many risks. If I can do that again then okay, that's good, but if not then I'm not going to take big risks - particularly if it rains."
Carlos Sainz said: "I'm still feeling a little pain, but it will be fine for the rally. As for the championship, I think Sebastien is still the favourite for the title. Obviously I will be trying to beat him this weekend, but for the team the big positive is the leading position Citroen has in the manufacturers' standings."
Colin McRae said: "I didn't have much fun in Italy at all. Corsica is a good rally, one of my favourites on asphalt. I know I've had some big crashes here, but I don't think its reputation as a really dangerous event is justified anymore. We don't go to any of the stages with the really big drops these days."
Philippe Bugalksi said: "My co-driver is a Corsican and I love this rally. I love the way the stages flow, they're great. I've done the event quite a few times as a round of the French Championship and won it twice. My other favourite event is Catalunya - which is just a week away - so this is a good part of the season for me."
Marlboro Peugeot Total (2nd - 121
points)
Technical: The three official 206
WRCs will start Corsica in the same specification in which they
finished Sanremo.
Sporting: Richard Burns has put his troubled Italian outing behind him and is confident he can bounce back to score more points on this rally. The two points he picked up late in the day during Rallye Sanremo ensured he remained at the top of the drivers' table. Gilles Panizzi's drive from fifth to second on the final loop of Rallye Sanremo was one of the talking points of the event. The Frenchman was the only one of the front-running drivers to chose anything but a slick racing tyre for the final two rain lashed stages. He'll be looking for more of the same inspired choices of Michelin through this coming weekend. Marcus Gronholm has admitted that his chances of retaining his world championship disappeared when he crashed out of Sanremo on the penultimate stage. The Finn, who damaged some muscles in his back in the accident, had been the leading Peugeot - even impressing Panizzi with his improved asphalt pace - in third place when he lost control of the 206 and aquaplaned into the side of the mountain. Gronholm and Burns are both still searching for an illusive first FIA World Rally Championship victory on asphalt.
Quotes: Richard Burns said: "The more open stages in Italy were more like the ones which we will find in Corsica and we seemed to go better on those, so hopefully things will be better on this round. Certainly it's going to be hard work to match the sort of pace which the Citroens and Markko (Martin) found."
Marcus Gronholm said: "My back will be fine for the rally. I missed a test session last week, which has given me some more recovery time. I couldn't believe in Italy how little grip we had in the rain, it was amazing. Before we went off, I felt I had been driving well - at the maximum for the car."
Gilles Panizzi said: "I still think that Peugeot can win the manufacturers' award this year, it is going to be difficult - there's no doubt about that - but the 206 still has the pace to do. I'm looking forward to Corsica, I've won here before and it's a rally I enjoy."
555 Subaru World Rally Team (3rd - 76
points)
Technical: Neither Petter Solberg or
Tommi Makinen will run with the roll-control system which the team
introduced on the last round in Italy.
Sporting: It remains unclear whether Solberg will start the event tomorrow morning, the Norwegian crashed off the road during today's shakedown stage and damaged the left-hand side of his Impreza extensively. The team is considering numerous possibilities - including bringing a fresh car out from the team's base in Britain. Makinen's day was without problems. The Finn will be looking to end a dismal run of three accidents on the last three years on this rally.
Quotes: Petter Solberg said: " I always respect shakedown. I've never put a foot wrong before, but we are competing at the top level in a high-pressure situation. Unfortunately things like this can happen at any time during the shakedown or the event. Right now I just want to start the rally."
Tommi Makinen said: "I had a good feeling with the car on the last round in Italy. For me, it's a good idea having these asphalt rounds so close together; you need to get into the right driving style for this surface - you need to be very precise, not sliding the car around. Having all the rallies close means you get the best out of yourself."
Ford Motor Company (4th - 71 points)
Technical: As usual Ford is fielding
a Focus RS WRC03 apiece for Markko Martin and Francois Duval, while
Mikko Hirvonen will use a 2002 specification Focus for the event.
Martin's car is the one which he used to win both Finland and
Cyprus.
Sporting: Martin was the only driver able to challenge Citroen's Sebastien Loeb for outright pace in Italy. Ford's Estonian star set seven fastest times, but dropped 30 seconds on the opening leg when leaves blocked the car's air intake, forcing the engine into a safe mode. A further 30 seconds were dropped at the start of the second leg, when the car refused to fire due to an electrical fault. Martin has admitted that his chances of the championship are remote, but he's determined to add an asphalt win to his victories in Greece and Finland earlier this season. Duval also showed improved pace in Sanremo, ending the rally fifth overall. He and co-driver Stephane Prevot had worked hard to find a new pace-note system prior to the start, and the Belgian crew were happy with their Italian performance. Duval has, however, never finished the Tour de Corse. Hirvonen is hoping for a longer rally this week, having retired from Sanremo on the second stage with engine failure. This will be the Finn's first trip to the island of Corsica, so he admits he's in the dark about what to expect from the stages.
Quotes: Markko Martin said: "Corsica is a rally which should suit the Focus quite well. The stages are twisty like they were on the last round, but this time they're a bit faster. We've shown that the Focus is the fastest car on all surfaces, but for us to mount a big attack on the championship we need to win the next two rounds."
Francois Duval said: "Fifth was good in Italy, especially as there were so few retirements from the top drivers. The fact that I haven't finished the event is not such a big problem this year as there are quite a lot of new stages for all of us. If I can find the same speed - and we get a few retirements - maybe it will be possible to make it to the podium this weekend."
Mikko Hirvonen said: "I learned some stuff about driving the Focus on these traditional style asphalt rallies, but because I retired quite early in the event, I've still got more to learn this week. All I know about the roads is what I've heard from my team mates, but my main aim for this weekend is to get to the end of the event and gain as much experience as possible."
Skoda Motorsport (5th - 21 points)
Technical: Both Fabia WRCs have had
a slight revision to the specification of engine, otherwise they are
in largely the same shape as the last round in Italy.
Sporting: This will be Didier Auriol's 17th attempt at a rally which he has won six times before. The Frenchman admits, however, that the Skoda would need a significant increase in pace for him to reach a record-breaking seventh victory. Auriol said the Fabia was working well in Sanremo, the only problem being the engine - which he felt wasn't delivering enough power. Corsica has special memories for Auriol not simply because it's the rally he's won the most, but also because he took his first WRC win on the island. Toni Gardemeister will be looking to progress further than the second stage, which was where he crashed out of Rallye Sanremo a fortnight ago. The Finn has completed a lot of asphalt testing in the car and feels confident in the package he has for this event.
Quotes: Didier Auriol said: "We have to be realistic: Corsica is going to be a tough rally for us. The car is getting better and better. The main area of development for us is the engine, but I am very happy with the handling of the car - it behaves very nicely on the road."
Toni Gardemeister said: "I prefer this event to Sanremo, the roads are more flowing and easier to get into a rhythm on. If our car stays reliable then we should be able to go after a good result, but it's impossible to try to predict what could happen on an event like this one."
Hyundai World Rally Team
Sporting: Hyundai will not start
this event. The Hyundai Motor Corporation and the team which runs its
cars in the FIA World Rally Championship - Motor Sport Developments -
have been unable to reach a conclusion to their contractual dispute.
Other entries
Martin Rowe leads the field in the
FIA Production Car World Rally Championship going into the last of
the seven rounds of the series. The British Subaru Impreza driver
needs to finish in the top five to win the title. Toshi Arai, the
only man who can still take the title away from Rowe, has a new car
for this event incorporating a new roll cage which stiffens the
chassis of his Subaru.
16/10/2003 RALLY STATISTICS
EVENT: The Rallye de France-Tour de Corse is the 12th of 14 events in the FIA World Rally Championship.
ENTRIES: 71 (32 Group A, 39 Group N)
DRIVERS: Austria 1, Argentina 1, Belgium 3, Bulgaria 1, Canada 1, Estonia 3, Finland 4, France 31, Germany 2, Great Britain 6, Italy 5, Japan 2, Mexico 1, Monaco 1, Norway 1, Portugal 1, Peru 1, Poland 1, Romania 1, Russia 1, Spain 3, Sweden 2.
MANUFACTURER TEAMS: Citroen, Ford, Peugeot, Skoda, Subaru, (Hyundai)
CARS: (including the manufacturer cars): Citroen 5, Ford 5, Honda 1, Hyundai 2, Mitsubishi 25, Peugeot 10, Renault 8, Skoda 2, Subaru 11, Toyota 2.
TIMETABLE:
Thursday 16 October
Ceremonial start at 19h30, Ajaccio, Place Foch
Friday 17 October
Leg 1 starts from Ajaccio at 09h05 and covers 283.03km, including
95.30km on six stages. The first car is due to arrive back in Ajaccio
at 17h14
Saturday 18 October
Leg 2 starts from Ajaccio at 07h15 and covers 447.80km, including
190.00km on six stages. The first car is expected to arrive back in
Ajaccio at 19h28.
Sunday 19 October
Leg 3 starts from Ajaccio at 07h00 and covers 240.92km, including
112.10km on four stages. The first car is expected to arrive at the
finish in Ajaccio at 14h30.
Total
The rally covers 971.75km, including 397.40km on 16 special stages
(including eight run twice). All stages are on asphalt roads closed
to other traffic.
TODAY:
Thursday 16 October
Ceremonial start at 19h30, Ajaccio, Place Foch
TOMORROW:
Friday 17 October
Leg 1 starts from Ajaccio at 09h05 and covers 283.03km, including
95.30km on six stages. The first car is due to arrive back in Ajaccio
at 17h14.
WEATHER FORECAST: Cloudy with occasional
showers, heavier rain expected later in the event.
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