Time for the third round then if this seasons championship and just like last season, Kalle Rovanpera is leading the championship coming into this event. This season’s rally has 291km over 20 stages. Thierry is second in the championship standings following a good result in Sweden back in February. Gus Greensmith is the leading M-Sport Ford full time driver holding fourth in the standings, although Seb Loeb holds third following his victory in Rallye Monte Carlo.
One driver not having a good start to the season, Elfyn following two bad results for the Welshman in Monte and Sweden, will be looking at this rally as a reset to his championship challenge. He and Seb Ogier battled for victory right till the end last year, and the Frenchman took the win. However, Elfyn has always shown very good pace on sealed surfaces and will definitely be targeting victory.
Another driver targeting a better result will be Ott Tanak, who just like his former Welsh teammate has not had a good start to the season, and I suspect will also be targeting a win.
Croatia Rally begins on Friday with two loops of Mali Lipovec – Grdanjci (19.20km), Stojdraga – Gornja Vas (20.77km), Krašić – Vrškovac (11.11km) and Pećurkovo Brdo – Mrežnički Novaki (9.11km), covering a total distance of 120.38km
The itinerary on Saturday contains a further eight stages, as the crews twice tackle Kostanjevac – Petruš Vrh (23.76km), Jaškovo – Mali Modruš Potok (10.10km), Platak (15.85km) and Vinski Vrh – Duga Resa (8.78km)
Two passes each of Trakošćan – Vrbno (13.15km) and Zagorska Sela – Kumrovec (14.09km) make up Sunday’s schedule, with the second run of the latter acting as the rally’s Power Stage.
Let’s hear from the drivers.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä
“I have been waiting to get back in the car for Croatia and that’s always a good sign! We’ve only had two rallies but it’s always nice to have some good points in the beginning of the season. We are in the same situation as last year leading the championship going to Croatia and hopefully, we can do better there this time around. It will be a big challenge for us because we didn’t get to experience most of the stages last year, but we have been in this situation before with less experience than our rivals and I will do my best to manage. The feeling in the test was positive and I think there has been really good progress with the car. Hopefully it will go well on the event too.”
Esapekka Lappi
“Sweden was a great start to our season sharing the car with Seb. I hope I can take the confidence from there, but that was in conditions I know well and something I’m comfortable with, while Croatia will be a completely new rally for me. But I’m still really looking forward to what we could do there. The car felt really good in the test. It had been a while since I had driven on asphalt and it’s crazy how impressive the grip is on this surface. You can also really appreciate how much extra power we have from the hybrid. It was a bit like a Finnish road with a lot of crests and jumps, which is not so common on asphalt and pretty fun. There’s also a lot of dirt on the roads and managing that is something I want to be better at. I want to perform well and have a clean rally and I’m sure we can do it.”
Elfyn Evans
“It’s been quite a long break since the last rally so it’s been good to get back in the car for some testing and to get ready for Croatia. For me it has not been the start to the year that we wanted by a long way and we need to look forward and focus on performing in the coming events. Croatia is not an easy rally but it was a good one for us last year and hopefully we can have a strong run again. There are some things from last year that we have tried to learn from so that we have a car that’s suited to all of the different conditions. On our test we had a particularly slippery road that’s similar to what we’ll face on the rally, and that was a good place to work through some options.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville
“Croatia Rally is a very challenging event as the grip is quite low and the profile of the stages is very demanding. There’s lots of blind corners, crests, jumps and cutting, and the roads can be quite dirty as well as being very narrow. Last year we were lucky with the weather and the conditions were quite dry, but it was still quite cold. There are definitely a lot of challenges we are going to face again in potentially tricky conditions, especially with these new cars, but it is a surface I feel very comfortable on. It is a rally I enjoyed a lot last year and I am looking forward to it.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 03, Croatia Rally 22-25 April 2021 Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Ott Tänak
“Competing at Croatia Rally for the first-time last year was a bit more demanding than we expected as the tarmac there is very different – it looks good but the grip is very low. The surface changes and the general characteristics of the roads also make it quite challenging to drive, with lots of crests and jumps that you normally don’t have too much on tarmac. It was a big job to manage in 2021 but we expect it will be a lot more fun this year now that we have experience and know what to expect from the event.”
Oliver Solberg
“Croatia Rally looked like a fantastic event last year. It is very exciting for me to go there for the first time– it’s a beautiful country and I think it will be a fantastic tarmac rally, although I know it is very tricky. The roads don’t have a lot of grip, but personally I like a bit of slippery tarmac, so that makes me happy. My expectations for the event are difficult to set as unlike my team-mates, I haven’t driven there before. For me it will be about getting lots of experience and not as much about pace. We will just drive and have fun and see where we end up.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Craig Breen
“I’m really looking forward to Croatia, it’s a rally I really enjoy. Tarmac rallying is actually what I prefer, so to get back out in Croatia is going to be great. We had a really good test last week, I found a really good feeling with the car and I was happy with everything, so let’s see if we can bring on the pace that we showed in Monte, our last part-Tarmac rally.
“It should be a good event – if not tough – but the stages are similar to last year, there are some new ones, but most are relatively the same. So we’re looking forward to it, and let’s hope that together as a team we can do a good job and bring home some good points.”
Craig Breen (IRL) and Paul Nagle (IRL) perform during their practice run at the World Rally Championship Croatia in Karlovac, Croatia on April 4th, 2022 // Tomislav Moze / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202204050458 // Usage for editorial use only //
Gus Greensmith
“After the team’s performance in Monte-Carlo, on what was a very dry version of the rally, we’re feeling very confident going into Croatia, and I think the pre-event test has validated that. We started on a very similar surface to Monaco, and the car immediately felt so alive. It’s just such an impressive car on Tarmac so we’re feeling very good, I’m very excited for this rally. It’s been a long time away so we’re looking forward to getting going.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“Last year I started my first event in a WRC car in Croatia, so it feels like we have come full circle now after a full year. We’re very happy to be going back to Croatia, where I managed to get a good result last year, and to get back out on asphalt before a long line of gravel events is going to be great. I think we’re really going to enjoy it, it’s a tricky rally with lots of different grip levels, but it’s a great rally to do because you have so much variety between the stages.
“The team gave a strong performance on asphalt at the beginning of the season, so we hope to be in a strong position after that. I’m looking forward to the event, and it marks the first time I’ve competed twice on the same event in a WRC car, so I’m pretty happy about that as well.”
Pierre-Louis Loubet
“I’m really happy to be going back to Croatia and to be joining the M-Sport team. We did a pre-event test with the team a few weeks ago, as well as a rally in Belgium, and everything was working really well and the feeling in the car is nice. I hope I will be able to do my best for the team this week in my first rally, we’re going to take this one step-by-step and try our best to be competitive. We’ll see you there!”
Jari Huttunen, WRC2 Driver
“This year is my first time competing in Croatia, so I’m not really sure what to expect, but I’ve watched some footage and the conditions look nice. This will be my fourth event with the M-Sport team, starting in Monza last year, and so far, is it going well and the car feels good. Hopefully we will be somewhere in the top three, but the aim will be to maintain a consistent pace over the weekend.”
Summary
Well, we are all set for round three of this year’s championship. Can Hyundai take victory with either Thierry or Ott, or will we see M-Sport or Toyota take victory this weekend? If M-Sport take victory, then we will have a new winner, as none of their drivers have taken victory yet. Shakedown takes place on Thursday morning!
It was a brilliant return to Sweden for round two of this year’s world rally championship, with young Finns Kalle and Jonne taking victory for the Toyota Gazoo WRT. Here’s the story as to how they took a third career win at the top level.
Friday
The first day saw 125km’s over seven stages and the startlist looked like this – Rovanperä, Breen, Neuville, Greensmith, Katsuta, Evans, Tänak, Fourmaux, Lappi, Solberg.
First stage then, Kroksjö 1, 14.98km and the top three was Ott, Kalle and Oliver and only one second covered the top three. The top Puma crew were Craig and Paul who held seventh and was a little over seven seconds from the lead.
Onwards then to SS2 Kamsjön 1 – 27.81 km and we had a change in the top positions. Esapekka was fastest from Kalle and Oliver and now he was in the lead from Kalle and Oliver. Ott dropped from the lead into fourth place. Two other drivers were also moving up with Elfyn moving into fifth and leapfrogging Thierry and Takamoto jumped into seventh. Unfortunately, Craig suffered a spin and was out.
Into SS3 Sävar 1 – 17.28 km and Kalle took his first stage win from Thierry and Elfyn. This performance was enough to take him into the lead with Thierry moving into second overall. Oliver incredibly remained in third overall after setting the fourth fastest time. Elfyn was also on the move gaining one place into fourth overall, passing Ott. Sadly, Esapekka had dropped from the lead to sixth overall and it was not all down to the stall on the line
After the service break, SS4 Kroksjö 2 – 14.98 km was next up and we had yet another different leader and stage winner, with Elfyn setting the fastest time from Esapekka and Oliver. The Welshman jumped three places into the lead and Kalle fell down to fourth place. It was still very close at the top though, with just 5.2 seconds covering the top five!
Into SS5 Kamsjön 2 – 27.81 km and fastest was Ott from Esapekka and Elfyn. The Welshman continued to lead from Ott who was now in second overall. Oliver was passed and was now down to fourth place. Thierry was also on the move, passing Kalle for fifth place.
SS6 Sävar 2 – 17.28 km was won by Thierry from Kalle and Esapekka and now the Belgian jumped into second place, just six tenths behind Elfyn. Kalle’s pace also lifted him up the leaderboard into fourth. There was disaster for Ott though who lost time in the stage with a problem with his hybrid unit and fell down to 28th overall.
The final stage then, SS7 Umeå Sprint – 5.53 km, and Kalle was fastest from Thierry and Takamoto. Elfyn was passed by the Belgian for the lead and fell to third overall behind Kalle as well.
Classification after Day One
1
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
1:02:31.2
2
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+4.3
3
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+7.4
4
E. Lappi
J. Ferm
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+8.8
5
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
+28.1
6
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+1:18.9
7
A. Fourmaux
A. Coria
Ford Puma Rally1
+1:32.9
8
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Puma Rally1
+1:48.1
Let’s hear from the drivers
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (1st)
“This has been an important day for the whole team, and a great start to this rally for us. Leading after the first day has certainly put smiles back on our faces after Monte-Carlo. We started well this morning. We had a red flag in the second stage, but we got a new notional time which kept us in our representative position. We made some small set-up changes at lunchtime service but only a few adjustments. I felt comfortable and I was able to drive fast. The car was working perfectly. We managed our tyres well in the afternoon to catch back important seconds and we made it into the lead. The rally is still long, and I am going to keep pushing hard.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship Round 02, Rally Sweden 24-27 February 2022 Thierry Neuville Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Oliver Solberg (5th)
“At the end of this first day, I am happy. Fifth place is not really what we hoped for, but the pace this morning was good. I know that with consistent and clean speed, I am up there, and that’s very encouraging. We just need a bit more experience. I made a mistake with the tyres this afternoon, which was a gamble that didn’t pay off. That was a bit annoying, but we have a long weekend still ahead of us. We have to keep pushing. The others today have had times when they are on the limit, so tomorrow will come down to whoever makes the fewest mistakes. The aim for me is the same as today: drive clean, fast and stay smart.”
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä (2nd)
“I’m really happy to be in this position tonight. It was a better day than I had been expecting with our road position. The morning loop especially was good: We were right in the fight and the car was working well in those conditions. We expected the second pass to be more difficult and it was. In some places it was really difficult, like in the first stage of the loop with huge ruts. But we managed it quite well with no mistakes and got some time back at the end of the day with some good tyre usage. Tomorrow we’ll have the same starting place as our rivals and hopefully we can fight against them and push on.”
Elfyn Evans (3rd)
“I’m not completely happy with my day. This morning I didn’t quite feel at one with everything and I felt I could have gone a bit better. The afternoon started off pretty well in difficult conditions but we probably took a bit more out of the tyres than I would have liked. We paid a price for that in the final stage, which was slippery with fresh ice and a lot of junctions and the acceleration was difficult. The tyre management on snow is something I’ve been trying to work on since last year and there’s clearly still a bit of work to do. But we’re still in a good position for tomorrow.”
Esapekka Lappi (4th)
“It’s been a good comeback day for me. Not a perfect day, but close to it. It’s so nice to be in the battle for the podium, which was the target beforehand, and maybe still fighting for the victory. The gap is less than ten seconds, so anything can happen. It was really nice to get that stage win already this morning; this was giving us some extra boost for the day. I’ve still been getting comfortable in the car today and trying a few things with the setup: The extra power from the hybrid feels crazy, especially on the smaller roads. But I will be more ready for tomorrow than I was for this morning.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 02 / Rally Sweden 2022 / 24-27 February 2022 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Saturday
With 82km’s over six stages on this day, who would be leading at the end of the day? The startlist looked like this – Breen, Tänak, Greensmith, Fourmaux, Katsuta, Solberg, Lappi, Evans, Rovanperä, Neuville.
Welshman, Elfyn was fastest in SS8 Brattby 1 – 10.49 km from Esapekka who had set the early benchmark in this first stage of the, with fellow GR Yaris Rally1 driver Kalle third. Kalle’s pace took him past Thierry and into the lead, but just seven tenths of a second ahead of the Belgian. Craig returned to the fight and was the fastest Puma driver as well, really encouraging for the M-Sport Ford team.
The top three of the following stage, SS10 Långed 1 – 19.49 km was Kalle, Ott and Elfyn. Thierry fell behind Elfyn as the Welshman moved up into second place and just four seconds from his teammate who still held the lead.
Craig took a stage win is SS11 Umeå 1 – 11.17 km from Kalle and Ott. Ott and Elfyn set the same time. There was another change in positions with former rally leader Thierry only going tenth fastest and dropping behind Esapekka in the overall standings to fourth. The Belgian duo were now 15 seconds behind Kalle, but remained within a few seconds of the podium positions.
Elfyn took SS12 Brattby 2 – 10.49 km from Thierry and Kalle, thereby reducing the lead that Kalle had to just 1.2 seconds. Thierry moved a little closer to the podium, the Belgian was now just three tenths from Esapekka.
Kalle was fastest in SS14 Långed 2 – 19.49 km from Elfyn and Thierry and extended his lead over his Welsh teammate to 5.7 seconds, whilst Thierry re-passed Esapekka. Adrien was having a good run, holding seventh overall, but his teammate Craig had a mechanical problem and fell down the leaderboard again.
The final stage of the day then, SS15 Umeå 2 – 11.17 km and Kalle was quickest from Elfyn who went off at the final corner and going over the snowbank at the side of the stage, hitting the red board. The car was stuck on the snowbank and Elfyn attempted to reverse back onto the stage, but this did not work. He went forwards instead and knocked a light that was lighting the side of the stage. The Welshman was eventually given a penalty for not following the correct line after the finish line.
Classification after Day Two
1
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
1:45:26.7
2
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+8.3
3
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
+21.7
4
E. Lappi
J. Ferm
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+25.9
5
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+1:44.8
6
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Puma Rally1
+2:48.1
7
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
+5:19.9
Let’s hear from the drivers.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä (1st)
“Overall, it was a nice day and we have to be happy tonight to be where we are. The first stage of the loop seemed to be a little bit difficult for us compared to our rivals. But we were able to fight back well in the second stage on both loops. It’s good to be leading but the gap is still really small, so we need to keep pushing hard from the start tomorrow morning.”
Elfyn Evans (2nd)
“It’s been good fun today the car has generally been working well and I have really enjoyed it. It’s not been bad from my side, just a few errors here and there. Kalle’s done very well, he’s had a little edge on some stages and grown his advantage this afternoon. But it’s still pretty tight going into tomorrow. We’re going to keep trying to do our best and it’s not over until it’s over.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 02 / Rally Sweden 2022 / 24-27 February 2022 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Esapekka Lappi (4th)
“The car has been working well today, the feeling was really good and better than yesterday. We’ve been consistent, but just losing a little bit of time on each stage to our team-mates. We just seem to be missing a little bit at the moment, but it’s just very small details with the car, and maybe I just need more kilometres. We will keep pushing until the end tomorrow.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (3rd)
“Not an easy day for us today, but we are in third place which I think would be a great achievement for us if we can hang onto that position tomorrow. We had a complicated morning; we were trying our best but the other three were going really quick. It was hard to resist them. We also went wide under braking in the final morning stage, and I had to spin the car round which lost us a couple of seconds. I thought we might have a chance in the dark stages to catch back some time, and we were able to gain back a position. Our main issue this weekend has been under braking, and we still have some work to do on the chassis to gain more confidence in this area. Let’s see what’s possible tomorrow – if we can finish on the podium, I’ll be satisfied.”
Oliver Solberg (5th)
“It is difficult to say exactly what happened. It seems we had a throttle issue after the long stage this afternoon; certainly, the car was not moving forward! Elliott and I, with quick communications from the team, tried to repair it. We were at least able to make it to the end of the day, which was the most important thing. This morning, things were not clicking, neither with the car nor with myself. We changed some stuff, and the car was behaving more consistently. I could push again, which was nice, back a little to the rhythm from yesterday. I couldn’t take huge risks, but the times were good. We go again tomorrow.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship Round 02, Rally Sweden 24-27 February 2022 Oliver Solberg, Elliott Edmondson, Hyundai i20 N Rally 1 Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Ott Tänak (28th)
“We had nice conditions in the morning, the first stage was more snowy and the second one more icy and technical. We had to come back under re-start regulations, so we just had to do our job and have some fun. The pace didn’t really matter much, as we are not competing for anything meaningful. The second loop was tricky – harder work than in the gym. Tomorrow’s stages are generally fast, with straights and high-speed corners. It will be special.”
Sunday
The final day then and as usual the shortest day with 5km over 4 stages. The startlist looked like this – Breen, Tänak, Solberg, Greensmith, Katsuta, Lappi, Neuville, Evans, Rovanperä.
SS16 Vindeln 1 – 14.19 km was first up and it led to disaster for Elfyn who had a spin in the stage, clipping a snow bank and his bonnet opened onto the windscreen. In the M-Sport Ford camp Adrien pulled out before even starting the stage with a mechanical problem. Kalle was fastest in the stage from Thierry and Oliver and with the exit of Elfyn, Thierry and Esapekka both moved up into second and third places respectively.
The first run through SS17 Sarsjöliden 1 – 14.23 km which would be the rally ending powerstage saw Ott go fastest from Oliver and Esapekka, whilst Craig remained quick with the fourth best time. Takamoto had a moment with a stall in the stage, but remained in fourth overall.
Into the penultimate stage then, SS18 Vindeln 2 – 14.19 km and Thierry was fastest from Esapekka and Kalle. The younger Finns were still firmly in the lead, a full 21.6 seconds ahead of the Belgians in their i20 Rally1.
The final stage then, SS19 Sarsjöliden 2 [Power Stage] – 14.23 km and the top five was Ott, Kalle, Thierry, Takamoto and Craig. Kalle had taken his third career victory at the top level and had moved into the championship lead as well. What a simply amazing drive from him and Jonne.
Final Overall Classification –Rally Sweden
1
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
2:10:44.9
2
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
+22.0
3
E. Lappi
J. Ferm
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+30.6
4
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
+2:19.4
5
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Puma Rally1
+3:20.4
6
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 N Rally1
+5:39.4
7
A. Mikkelsen
T. Eriksen
Škoda Fabia Evo
+7:11.1
8
O. C. Veiby
S. Skærmoen
Volkswagen Polo GTI
+7:34.3
9
J. Huttunen
M. Lukka
Ford Fiesta MkII
+8:14.2
10
E. Kaur
K. Aleksandrov
Volkswagen Polo GTI
+8:24.8
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä (1st)
“It feels very good to win here in Sweden. It was a really nice fight the whole weekend. After being the first car on the road on Friday, this is a really good result. It was a bit of a pity that Elfyn went out this morning because it was a great fight, but otherwise it’s a very good result for the team. I struggled a bit in the first rally with this car in Monte Carlo, but now I felt much more confident over the whole weekend with the car. Big thanks to the team because it has been a big job for them to make the car better all the time and make me comfortable.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 02 / Rally Sweden 2022 / 24-27 February 2022 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Esapekka Lappi (3rd)
“It’s great to be back and to be back on the podium. That was my target before the weekend but I knew it would be tough. But we managed it and I’m so happy. I’m so proud of myself, of Janne and of the whole team. We didn’t have any issues on my car the whole weekend. I couldn’t get second place without taking more risks. It cannot have started better than this. To expect more would have been ridiculous. We had a long break; our last rally was in October last year so this is a top result.”
Takamoto Katsuta (4th)
“To finish the rally in fourth place is very good. In the beginning of the weekend, I was struggling a lot, but by the end I was very comfortable in the car and I was enjoying it a lot on the stages. Thank you so much to the team, because they changed a lot of things during each service and the feeling in the car was perfect at the end of the weekend. From Saturday onwards especially, I felt so comfortable in the car. In the Power Stage I tried a big push to get some extra points for the team and took two points, which was good even though there was room to improve. But the most important thing is that we finished the rally. Thanks to Aaron as well: He did a really good job during the weekend.”
Elfyn Evans (DNF)
“It was a huge disappointment for me to end the rally this way. Everything was going OK in the first stage but on a long left-hander I lost the rear-end of the car and unfortunately, I wasn’t able to catch it, so we had quite a high-speed spin. After making some repairs we managed to get going again but unfortunately, we had to stop for hybrid-related reasons. I’m sorry for the team because they’ve obviously built a very fast car but so far, I haven’t been able to bring back the results they deserve. It’s not nice to go into this break on a bad note but we’ll focus on the next round and on being the best we can there.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (2nd)
“It’s a great feeling to take a podium here in Sweden, our first in the new hybrid era. It’s a bit unexpected after what we saw in Rallye Monte-Carlo, but the team has done a good job. My thanks go to everyone at the factory in Germany for pushing hard. We could already see in shakedown that the speed was not too bad, and it was a surprise to be leading the rally on Friday evening. After that, it was a bit more difficult to find the right set-up, but we had enough pace to keep our focus on the podium – and eventually secure second place. We now have one-and-a-half-months to prepare ourselves and the car for Croatia. These weeks will be very important, and there’s a lot of work to be done, but after this result we can look ahead to the upcoming events with more positivity.”
Oliver Solberg (6th)
“The Power Stage was not the perfect end to the rally that we were hoping for. I made a few mistakes, and was a bit careful in other places, so it was not a clean run. Still, I have enjoyed this weekend very much. It has been great to be competing at home in a WRC car for the first time, you really can’t get better than that. The car has been working well all weekend and the team has done an amazing job, so thanks to them. It’s not the result we wanted after some bad luck with the car but that’s how it is. We need to work hard with a big smile on our faces because the speed is there. We just need to improve our performance more to get to the top, but I have no doubt we will get there.”
Ott Tänak (20th)
“There are not really many positives for us to take away from this rally. Overall, it has been a frustrating and disappointing weekend. On the plus side, we showed that we had the pace to be competitive. The downside is that we weren’t able to score many points. We were lucky to take some points away from the Power Stage, but they are few compared to what we should be scoring. I can’t really stress too much about the situation because there’s little I could have done differently from my side. The team has been working hard and the podium for Thierry offers a bit of pay back. I’ve said before that the potential of the car is there, it just needs work to get where we want to be.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship Round 02, Rally Sweden 24-27 February 2022 Ott Tanak Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
M-Sport Ford WRT
Gus Greensmith (5th)
“I didn’t have a great start to the weekend, I wasn’t very happy with how Friday went because we lost a lot of time, either through my mistakes or problems with the car, which kind of took us out of the fight a little. At that point then, it was just a bit of a reset and taking it step-by-step, and through some other people’s mistakes and misfortune we picked up some good positions. Two fifths in a row puts us fourth in the championship and a de-facto third, if you take Mr Loeb out of the equation, so I’d say that’s pretty good.”
Craig Breen (36th)
“A relatively disappointing weekend for us in Sweden, after the great result in Monte we were looking to build on it again and get some more good points for the championship. Unfortunately, the error we made on Friday put out any hopes of getting a good result, but nonetheless we improved as the weekend went on; we had a stage win on Saturday which is great, our first stage win in the team.
“We definitely have a lot of things where we can improve for the upcoming events. We’re looking forward to getting our heads down and getting focused on Croatia, which is coming up very soon.”
Adrien Fourmaux (DNF)
“It has been a nice weekend for me to get my confidence back after Monte, and I’ve enjoyed my time on the snow. This was my first snow event in a WRC car, and I can be happy with my pace and gathering that experience. At the end of the first day, we were in 7th position, so I was really happy with that, and unfortunately on Saturday we had to retire before the last stage due to an engine issue.”
Jari Huttunen, WRC2 Driver (9th)
“The first part of the weekend was tricky but today it went well, and I felt I didn’t make as many mistakes. I am happy with the result, getting a podium was our target so it’s good. I think I have some work to do on my driving, and maybe a few things with the car, as we look to get even better results. We still have a lot of work to do, so let’s see.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
After Round Two
1
K. Rovanperä
46
2
T. Neuville
32
3
S. Loeb
27
4
G. Greensmith
20
5
S. Ogier
19
6
T. Katsuta
18
7
C. Breen
16
8
E. Lappi
15
9
A. Mikkelsen
12
10
O. Solberg
8
11
O. Tänak
5
2022 FIA World Rally Championship Round 02, Rally Sweden 24-27 February 2022 Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai i20 N Rally 1 Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
2022 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After Round Two
Time for the championship to return to Sweden for the first time since 2020! Elfyn and Scott picked up victory for the Toyota team the last time this rally was run and of course this rally was cancelled last year because of the covid situation faced by Sweden last year and we had a replacement event in Finland instead.
Well, back to this year and we have a very interesting situation that the top two crews from M-Sport Ford and Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT that finished first and second are not competing. This means that Kalle and Jonne will be opening the road throughout Friday’s stages in their GR Yaris Rally1.
Let’s take a look at the stages
Rally Sweden begins with its longest day, with Friday’s running consisting of two loops of Kroksjö (14.98km), Kamsjön (27.81km) and Sävar (17.28km) plus a single pass of Umeå Sprint (5.53km), totalling 125.72km
Saturday’s itinerary contains six stages and sees the crews twice tackle Brattby (10.49km), Långed (19.49km) and Umeå (11.17km)
Sunday features two tests each of Vindeln (14.19km) and Sarsjöliden (14.23km). The second pass of the latter will be the rally’s Power Stage.
Now with a number of fast crews further down the championship standings following Rallye Monte Carlo we should be looking to Ott, Elfyn and Thierry to challenge for the podium given their starting positions. Returning to the top cars we see Esapekka Lappi, and if he can get a good start and set some top times, then the Finn can hope to challenge near the top as well.
Craig Breen will also be quick in the Puma Rally1, whilst teammates Gus and Adrien will look to have good pace and see if they can both set some top times and maybe even some stage wins out there!
Let’s hear from the drivers!
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Elfyn Evans
“We didn’t start the year how we wanted to on the first rally, but the one small benefit is that our road position should be a bit better for Sweden. We want to capitalise on that as best as we can and, like always, do as well as possible. With everything being so new there have been a lot of different things to try during our testing on snow and ice, but overall, I’m feeling comfortable – although it is always hard to tell exactly how fast you are on this surface because things like traction vary depending on the conditions. We’ve also been looking through the videos of the stages provided by the organiser, and they look very fast in places but also with some very narrow and technical sections.”
Kalle Rovanperä
“Overall, I was really happy with our weekend in Monte Carlo. We started out in a difficult place but we did a lot of work together with the team to improve my feeling in the car. Of course, taking the extra points in the Power Stage means we start first on the road in Sweden and will have some road cleaning to do there on the first day. But we will do our best to take as many points as we can at the end of the weekend and hopefully, we can still have a really good rally. In testing we were starting from zero with the snow setup for the new car and it felt a bit tricky to drive in the beginning, but together with our team-mates I think we have made some good steps in the right direction during the two tests.”
Esapekka Lappi
“I am very excited about this moment. To be competing at the highest level once more is something I have been looking forward to for a long time. It has felt very natural to be working with the team again over the last few weeks and through testing. My feeling in the GR YARIS Rally1 was already quite good from the beginning and it’s been getting better step by step. I think the events I did with a Rally2 car last year are helping me a lot to understand how best to drive these cars. Rally Sweden is an event I have always enjoyed and I have always been competitive there. We need to remember that it’s been five months since my last rally, but I believe we can be on the pace and I want to fight for the podium – that’s my minimum target. It won’t be easy but I feel it’s possible.”
Hyundai Motorsport
2021 FIA World Rally Championship, Rally1 Test, November 2021 Action during Rally1 Test 2021 Photographer: Romain Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville
“With the all-new itinerary, it’s very difficult to know what is waiting for us at Rally Sweden, but it will definitely be interesting. While we don’t have a lot of experience with the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 in these conditions – it is a proper full-snow rally –I think our driving style will be pretty similar to the previous cars we’ve competed with at Rally Sweden. Rallying is always a bit more spectacular on snow with the studded tyres. Usually, the stages are quite fast, you have to lean into the snowbanks and drive sideways a bit more. You have to be slightly more brutal to get the studs to grip into the ground. Everybody has worked so hard over the last couple of months and we hope that we will see a good return for that effort next weekend.”
Ott Tänak
“Rally Sweden will be an all-new event as we are moving more north than we have in previous years. I really don’t know what to expect but snow is always something I’ve really enjoyed competing on. Sweden was the location of our first podium with Hyundai Motorsport, and it would mean a lot to be able to replicate that result next weekend. We have the inner drive to come back fighting from our difficult first round of the season; we want to turn that into positive momentum that will carry us throughout the year ahead. Last season we were victorious in the snow in Arctic Rally Finland, so we know we are fast and competitive on this surface. The target will be to hit the ground running and find a good rhythm with the Hyundai i20 N Rally1.”
2022 FIA World Rally Championship Round 02, Rally Sweden 24-27 February 2022 Hyundai i20 N Rally 1 Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Oliver Solberg
“First of all, it is going to be very emotional to compete in my first home event as a factory driver. It is something I have dreamed about my whole life. I think the new location is an important step, as it is what the rally needs to secure fantastic conditions, even if it is sad to move away from my hometown. Snow and ice is also my favourite surface as well so it will be a very special rally. You have to be quite aggressive with your driving style, keeping the front of the car in the lines but pushing the rear. It will be new for everybody, so preparations are more equal and gives me a good opportunity to have a strong weekend. Rally Sweden will be a mix of everything: fast and twisty roads, wintry conditions, lots of snow banks – and maybe some reindeers.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Craig Breen
“I’m really excited to discover a new rally in Umea. I’ve done the rally many times before in Torsby, but it’ll be completely new this time, and I’m looking forward to having some great conditions. This is the first rally on loose surfaces with the new cars and the Puma hybrid, so hopefully it’ll be good.
“Obviously, we start near the front of the road on the first stage, so that will be something new for me to discover. Being second car on the road will be not the best conditions but honestly, it’s a challenge I’m looking forward to. It comes with having a good championship position, so at the end of the day it’s good for that reason.
“I’m hoping for a good event, trying to build more confidence with the car like we did in Monte Carlo, and to see if we can get another strong result; the most important thing is to keep the championship position strong heading into Croatia, so let’s see how it goes.”
Gus Greensmith
“We’re looking forward to Rally Sweden, especially now it’s based up in Umea. From what we’ve seen the stages look really, really fast, some of the fastest I’ve ever seen, so that’s going to be really exciting. Generally, the conditions sound great so we’re looking forward to having big snowbanks to lean on. From my previous experience of testing the Puma last year on loose surfaces, the balance of the car and everything feels great, so we’re excited for this one.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“I’m really happy to come back to Sweden after two years, and it looks like we’ll have nice road conditions for this famous rally. The atmosphere is so special with this being the only event with 100 per cent snow, so it’s always something I look forward to as I enjoy driving on snow. For sure, I want a good result but first of all I want to enjoy it and get some experience on this surface. It’ll be the first time for me on snow in a WRC car, so it will be quite a big step, but I’m really looking forward to it.”
Jari Huttunen, WRC2 driver
“I’m very excited to start Rally Sweden, it’s nice to be back with M-Sport for my first rally this year. This is a very unique event with some challenging conditions, but it’s a great opportunity to add to my experience in WRC2.
“We’ve got a new location and some new roads, and it’s also my first time on snow with M-Sport Ford – so let’s see what we can do.”
Mattias Adielsson, WRC2 driver
“It will be a fantastic opportunity and proud moment for me to start our home rally in WRC with M-Sport Ford World Rally Team. I feel very well prepared for the upcoming challenge, and I know I have the material to be at our best in a Fiesta Rally2!
“But I’m also humble and I know the guys in WRC2 are much more experienced drivers then I am; luckily it is our home surface and I think we can put down some really good pace during the rally once we start feeling comfortable.”
Summary
We are set then for a great rally! Enjoy it. It’s going to be special and we’ll have a new championship leader at the end.
Time for the fiftieth world rally championship season to start with the new rules and new cars that were launched on Saturday evening. The driver movements are well documented as well, so let’s get on and review this incredibly iconic rally. With four days of competition ahead, lets take a look at the stages.
The 90th running of this event this year is based in Monaco instead of Gap and with 296km over 17 stages the challenge of this rally remains as tricky as ever. We may not see any snow, but there will almost certainly be ice on the stages making it a big challenge to stay on the road.
Shakedown takes place on Thursday the 20th of January with a short 2.29km stage that starts at 9:31 local French time.
Later the same day the opening ceremony takes place in Monaco followed by two stages run in the dark: Luceram / Lantosque (15.20km) and La Bollène-Vésubie / Moulinet (23.25km)
Friday’s itinerary consists of two attempts of Roure / Bevil (18.33km), Guillaumes / Péone / Valberg (13.49km) and Val-de-Chalvagne / Entrevaux (17.11km) with just a tyre fitting zone between the morning and afternoon loops
Saturday begins with Le Fugeret / Thorame-Haute (16.80km), before presenting the challenge of two passes of Saint-Jeannet / Malijai (17.04km) and Saint-Geniez / Thoard (20.79km)
Sunday features two loops of La Penne / Collongues (19.37km) and Briançonnet / Entrevaux (14.26km). The second pass of the latter will be the rally’s Power Stage.
The usual crews will be challenging for the podium spots I suspect.
Let’s hear from the drivers!
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Team Toyota poses for a photograph during the WRC launch at the Hangar 7 in Salzburg, Austria on January 15, 2022.
Sébastien Ogier
“I’m at the beginning of a different stage in my career, and as I’m not taking part in the full championship the feeling is a little bit different to usual for me at this time of the year. But being part of this programme with TOYOTA GAZOO Racing is still exciting and going to Rallye Monte-Carlo is always special for me. I’m still a competitor and I still want to win, so I will be giving my best to perform. I know the team has been working very hard to be ready with this new generation of car and big steps have been made in every test. I’ve had the chance to do three days of testing in the GR YARIS Rally1 in December and another day last week, all to prepare for this event. It’s quite a big change and it’s an exciting challenge to try and adapt to that. But I think going to Monte Carlo will be a huge challenge for everybody: There’s more uncertainty than ever going into this rally.”
Elfyn Evans
“This is an exciting time in our sport and I’m looking forward to the challenge of these new cars. Since I first tested the GR YARIS Rally1 we’ve made some good progress, but it’s impossible to know where we stand relative to the competition until we get to Monte Carlo. So much has changed and it’s a clean sheet of paper. It’s not been easy to jump from a car that was so well-developed, where everything was coming quite easily, and into something that is a lot more unknown. The additional power from the hybrid system makes a huge difference and how you manage it could be worth quite a lot in certain cases. We’ve already learned a lot in testing and I’m sure we’re going to continue learning a lot during the year, starting in Monte Carlo. It’s a rally that’s always a bit of a lottery with the weather anyway, and now the base has moved south there’s a lot of new stages and different terrain to get to grips with.”
Kalle Rovanperä
“My feeling with the new car is good and we have some good preparation behind us. With any new car there are always many things to work on and to improve, but I feel we have been making good progress all the time. It’s been especially interesting to get used to the boost from the hybrid. It gives you much more power, and that’s usually a good thing, but it can also be a bit tricky in certain points if you’re not ready to use it. As a driver you need to think about how to use it and if you can do that better than the others it could make quite a big difference. Rallye Monte-Carlo is going to be quite special this year. It’s always a tricky rally but this year we are going to have a lot of new stages as well as a totally new car. Friday and Saturday are going to be long days without mid-day service and if you can get through those days without issues that will already be quite good.”
Hyundai Motorsport
2022 FIA World Rally Championship, WRC Launch 2022, 15 January 2022 X Photographer: Vincent Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville
“Our main target in Monte-Carlo is to finish and gain experience in the car. I don’t think we are going to have a completely dry event but I don’t think it will be full of snow either; as usual, we are expecting a mix of conditions. Because of this, it’s very hard to have the perfect tyre choice for all the stages, so it’s all about compromise next weekend – the driver who does it best is going to be the most competitive. Choosing the tyres is not so easy because you have to collect a lot of information, trust yourself and commit. It will be a challenge, but I like driving in these conditions, so it is going to be exciting.”
Ott Tänak
“I think there is some uncertainty heading to Monte-Carlo, so it is important that we get through the rally without any major issues and keep the car running so we gain as much experience as possible – that will be the priority. Rallye Monte-Carlo is not as much about pure performance; it is about the reliability and the small decisions you make. Of course, we want to finish well and score many points for the championship this weekend. The very first stage in the dark with the new car will certainly be an adventure.”
Oliver Solberg
“Starting my first WRC campaign in Monte-Carlo is going to be very exciting. I think we have realistic expectations for the event – the most important part for us is just finishing and helping the team as much as possible. Rallye Monte-Carlo is an event where everything can happen; a stage can start with snow and end with tarmac, so it’s a very interesting and unpredictable way to begin the season with the new cars, but it’s also very exciting. I know I will take some time to find my feet but I have the best guys in the team to learn from.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Sebastien Loeb
“It’s a radical change of scenery after spending three weeks on the Dakar Rally but it’s still very exciting to be at the start of the Monte Carlo Rally, especially with the WRC’s new hybrid era.
“I’m also proud of this collaboration with Malcolm’s team, working with them has been talked about throughout my career but never quite managed to happen, so thank you all, M-Sport, Ford Performance and Red Bull for finally making this happen on such an amazing event.
“For this rally, I will certainly be less prepared than the other drivers but the feeling with the Puma Hybrid Rally1 was immediately very good and everything just came together. I am looking forward to having fun this weekend with Isabelle, my new co-driver, and the whole M-Sport team.”
Craig Breen
“It is always something very special competing on Rallye Monte Carlo, but to be doing it for the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, is a dream come true! The team has done an unbelievable job building and developing the Puma Hybrid Rally1 and it really shows. It is by far the best rally car I have ever driven and with the addition of the hybrid unit, it is going to add another dimension to the rally. Paul and I are relishing the challenge and are really looking forward to the year ahead with M-Sport and Ford.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“For Rallye Monte-Carlo, we will try to do our best, feel the car and understand its level of performance compared to the others. It will be the first time here in the top category of the WRC, I have been here previously in the Fiesta Rally2, my first appearance was already a top ten overall finish! I love these roads; I have performed quite well in the past so I have good hopes. By the way it’s a new era for everyone so we’ll need the perfect match between the car’s reliability and driving skill to perform well until the end of the rally. We hope to deliver the best result as we can, everything is possible!”
Gus Greensmith
“I’m excited to be a part of the 2022 M-Sport Ford World Rally Team as we head into the most significant rule change in WRC history. The team has done a great job developing the new car, and I feel really comfortable driving it. We’re all confident the car should be a lot more competitive than recent years, which will hopefully give us more opportunities to fight near the front. I was happy with my improvements last season, and I want to build on that going into 2022. I was within a second of my first stage win last year, and I feel that with the new package, this is definitely an achievable goal, and we also want to try to push for our first podium as well. Monte Carlo has always been a tricky opener for the championship, but I have done the rally a few times now, and with the new car feeling so good, I am really looking forward to the challenge. It will be essential to build the speed throughout the weekend, especially with this being Jonas and I’s second rally together. Thanks again to all the team for all the hard work they have put into the Puma Hybrid Rally1, and I hope we can repay them with a good result in Monte.”
Summary
Well, we are set for another gripping season of top-level rallying. Which team have done the best job with the new regulations and who will take victory this weekend? Make sure that you are following the action online and pop back at the end of each day for my daily reports.
The final day then and just three stages on and around the Temple of Speed. The startlist looked like this – Fourmaux, Rovanperä, Greensmith, Suninen, Katsuta, Solberg, Neuville, Sordo, Evans, Ogier.
The first stage then, SS14 Grand Prix 2 – 10.29 km, and Thierry was fastest from Seb and Elfyn. The Toyota duo had in fact set the same time and this meant that the gap remained half a second between them. In fact, there were no changes in any positions in the leaderboard. Seb did have a scare on this one though after clipping a chicane block with the right-hand side wheel, but somehow avoided smashing up that corner of his Yaris.
Thierry made it two in a row, winning SS14 Grand Prix 2 – 10.29 km from Dani and Teemu. An all-Hyundai top three! The Finn’s pace took him ahead of Takamoto and back into sixth place. Of course, this happened after the Japanese driver had a huge moment after losing the rear of his Yaris and clipped a concrete block, the result being that his suspension and wheel on the front-left getting broken really badly. He limped to the end of the stage and completed it a full minute and five seconds slower than Thierry. He was now 15 seconds behind Teemu and 3.7 ahead of Gus. There was also drama for Elfyn, who had a couple of moments where his car seemed to stall and cut out. The gap that Seb had over Elfyn was suddenly 7.6 seconds!
Well, then the final stage of the event, year, and of these incredible cars. The starting list was changed a little before SS16 Serraglio 2 [Power Stage] – 14.62 km – Huttunen (WRC2), Gryazin (WRC2), Fourmaux, Rovanperä, Greensmith, Katsuta, Suninen, Solberg, Neuville, Sordo, Evans, Ogier. Thierry was fastest from Takamoto, Dani third, Elfyn fourth and the new world champion Seb fifth in the stage.
At the stop line we saw incredible scenes as Seb and Julien climbed onto the top of their car and celebrated their eighth world championship. They are true greats of the sport now having won titles with Volkswagen, M-Sport Ford and now Toyota!
Let’s take a look at the final standings.
Final Overall Classification –Rally Monza
1
S. Ogier
J. Ingrassia
Toyota Yaris WRC
2:39:08.6
2
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota Yaris WRC
+7.3
3
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+21.3
4
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+32.0
5
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+1:32.0
6
T. Suninen
M. Markkula
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+2:22.6
7
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota Yaris WRC
+2:34.5
8
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Fiesta WRC
+2:50.2
9
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota Yaris WRC
+4:49.6
10
A. Crugnola
P. Ometto
Hyundai i20 N Rally2
+9:06.9
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 12 / ACI Rally Monza / 18th-21st November 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Let’s hear from the drivers.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier (1st)
“It’s so hard to describe these kind of emotions. Somehow you feel empty because it’s been such an exhausting season like always, where you need to put so much into it to win the championship. But we do it for moments like this. A big thanks to all the team members: Without them we are nothing and today we are all world champions, so let’s celebrate this. It’s pretty remarkable what Toyota has achieved, and the team deserves it because they’ve put a lot of effort into it. The emotion is even stronger knowing it’s the end of my journey with Julien. We could never have dreamed of a better way for it to end it. We knew we still had a lot to do this weekend and that it was not over yet. We didn’t have to beat Elfyn, but we couldn’t afford to relax and then drop positions, and to win in the end is just perfect.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 12 / ACI Rally Monza / 18th-21st November 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Elfyn Evans (2nd)
“Of course, it’s mixed feelings for us today. Naturally you always want more. We knew the drivers’ title would be difficult but we wanted to try and win the rally. In the end we didn’t quite get it but congratulations to Seb and Julien on another fantastic title and also on a fantastic career together. I want to thank everybody in the team, they’ve been working so hard, giving us fantastic equipment but also a fantastic atmosphere to work in. It’s also a very fond farewell to the Toyota Yaris WRC, it’s been a joy to drive.”
Kalle Rovanperä (9th)
“It feels really good to help the team secure the manufacturers’ championship. It was a really nice season for us, and getting the teams’ title also feels really good for us because we were able to bring good points in many rallies. It’s a big thing for the team and it feels really nice to be a part of it. It was not so easy to do the job we did this weekend, but it was important that we did it and this feeling makes it worth it. The team has been working really hard, so big congratulations and thank you to them. It’s been a great year with an amazing car and I think we really showed how strong our team is.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Dani Sordo (3rd)
“I am honestly really happy to have secured a podium finish here in Monza, and to end this era of WRC cars with a top-three finish. It has been a relaxed final day for me, focused and just trying my best to avoid making any mistakes. I’d like to say thanks to the team for another year working together, with some good highlights. I hope next season with the new hybrid regulations will be even more fun.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 12, Rally Monza 18-21 November 2021 X Photographer: Vincent Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville (4th)
“My focus today has been on enjoying these final stages of the season with our Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, the last runs in this era of the WRC. I had a nice clean morning, picking up stage wins and just trying to savour the moments. We have had some incredible years with this car, and with Hyundai Motorsport; it’s been very exciting, and we’ve got a lot of special memories. I am now looking ahead to the new adventure in 2022 and adding more memorable moments together with the team.”
Teemu Suninen (6th)
“It has been a weekend in which we’ve been able to make steady improvements, learning all about the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC in different conditions. It’s tricky to jump into a brand-new car for this rally, but I am grateful to the team for giving me the opportunity and the time to get up to speed. We’ve been able to improve our pace step-by-step, and we’ve been fast on the clean tarmac sections, which has been a good thing. We just focused on bringing the car home, which we have achieved.”
Hyundai 2C Competition
Oliver Solberg (5th)
“I want to carry on!” said Oliver at the finish. “When you have a car like the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, you just don’t want to stop driving it. This has been such a cool, such a fantastic week.
“The roads in the mountains which we did on Friday and Saturday morning were really, really nice. I was taking it quite steady, quite sensible to start with – there were damp patches and some fog on the top of the mountain. After I made some change to the set-up with the car and got some more grip with the rear, I was able to really push and, honestly, it was just so much fun.
“When you are driving a car like this on roads like that, it’s impossible not to smile. It’s the best feeling in the world!
“This rally is actually quite complicated because you go from driving the cars out there in the mountains and then we come to the circuit where it’s much more technical, so many more junctions and always turning and you have to really change the driving style. You have to be completely precise.
“We used some of the gravel roads in the circuit and this is also a lot of fun – this was reminding me of when I was competing in rallycross. I have to tell you; I was really sad when we came to the finish of the last stage.
“We made more progress and took more experience from this rally. Some people were asking me what was the difference between this event and the one before [Rally de España] where we were not so high up. The answer is that we went faster! I was never in Spain before, but I competed on this rally last year and I had some experience of the stages.
“I think the speed we had was good here. To be able to fight with my team-mates was more than I was expecting, to be honest.”
“It was perfect with Elliott,” said Oliver. “From the very start we were comfortable together; we did some practice before the rally and everything worked really well. He did a great job and I want to thank him.
“As well, I really want to thank everybody from Hyundai Motorsport and 2C. Andrea [Adamo, Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal] gave me the most amazing opportunity this season when I drove the i20 Coupe WRC for the first time in Arctic Rally Finland. That rally was incredible for me and this one as well.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
After Round Twelve
1
S. Ogier
230
2
E. Evans
207
3
T. Neuville
176
4
K. Rovanperä
142
5
O. Tänak
128
6
D. Sordo
81
7
T. Katsuta
78
8
C. Breen
76
9
G. Greensmith
64
10
A. Fourmaux
42
2021 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After Round Twelve
1
Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team
522
2
Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team
463
3
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
202
4
Hyundai 2C Competition
62
Well, what a rally! Hope you’ve enjoyed my daily reports. Look out for my final driver review in the coming week.
The second day then, with 108km’s over six stages. The startlist looked like this – Fourmaux, Rovanperä, Suninen, Greensmith, Katsuta, Solberg, Sordo, Neuville, Ogier, Evans.
Into stage SS8 San Fermo 1 – 14.80 km and Thierry made the best start of them all, winning the stage from Seb and Dani. Elfyn could only manage the fourth best time dropping 4.6 seconds to the fastest time and falling behind Seb again, the gap between the top two now 1.5 seconds.
The longer SS9 Selvino 1 – 24.93 km saw Elfyn take the stage win from Dani and Seb. There was drama for Thierry though right at the start of the stage. His tyres weren’t warmed up and he lost the rear of his car, with the result that he then collided with the barrier and caused some big damage to the right-hand side front of his car. The bonnet was also very loose on the right as well and flapping about, but he got the car to the end of the stage despite all of this.
Back to the shorter SS10 San Fermo 2 – 14.80 km and it was another stage win for Seb from Thierry and Teemu. Elfyn was only sixth and fell back into second place, now 1.1 behind Seb. Further back, Teemu passed former M-Sport teammate Gus Greensmith as well, showing that the Finn was getting to grips with his i20WRC.
Seb increased his lead over Elfyn in SS11 Selvino 2 – 24.93 km to 5.2 seconds after setting a time that was 4.1 seconds faster. What a time! Dani was third fastest and making third place his over his teammate. The top ten was pretty static, but it’s worth mentioning that this was the last stage on public roads that these cars were unleashed on, as the remaining stages of Rally Monza would be held in the grounds of the Monza circuit.
Elfyn hit back in SS12 Sottozero 1 – 14.39 km winning the stage from Dani and Thierry! Seb could only set the fifth best time and was now back in the lead by just three tenths of a second. Takamoto was the best of the rest, taking fourth in the stage.
The final stage of the day then, SS13 Sottozero 2 – 14.39 km and run after the sun had set. All the cars had their light pods fitted. Dani won the stage from Thierry and Seb, and we had yet another leader change with Seb going back into the lead and Elfyn was now behind by just half a second.
Classification after Day Two
1
S. Ogier
J. Ingrassia
Toyota Yaris WRC
2:13:27.2
2
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota Yaris WRC
+0.5
3
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+27.4
4
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+46.6
5
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+1:21.2
6
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota Yaris WRC
+1:38.8
7
T. Suninen
M. Markkula
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+2:17.1
8
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Fiesta WRC
+2:24.8
9
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota Yaris WRC
+3:39.1
Lets hear from the drivers at the end of day two.
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier (1st)
“It’s been super close today between Elfyn and me, with so many swaps for the lead. It’s definitely exciting for the fans. We had a good loop this morning. Those were the last proper stages with this generation of car and I really enjoyed it. Generally, on the track I’ve been taking less risks and losing a bit of time, but tonight I managed to drive cleaner, and a slightly different tyre choice maybe helped with the traction on the gravel. Tomorrow I need to keep my focus on the title; if we can win the rally too it will be the cherry on the cake.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 12 / ACI Rally Monza / 18th-21st November 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Elfyn Evans (2nd)
“The morning loop was enjoyable but Seb was very strong again in the mountains. I struggled on the first stages both times through, had a good run on the other stage the first time through but I’d lost the tyres a bit by the end of the second pass. I was a bit disappointed to give away that time, but we got it back again in the first one at the circuit this afternoon. Then in the dark I was too careful in a few places where the visibility was quite difficult. But it’s set up very nicely for tomorrow and we’ll keep fighting.”
Kalle Rovanperä (9th)
“This morning the conditions were really nice and the stages were much cleaner than yesterday, so I could be a bit faster in some sections without having to take any risks and just enjoy the driving the car on those roads. The circuit stages were nice and enjoyable too, even though we were not pushing much. It’s important for the team to do the job that we’re doing, and tomorrow we just need to finish it off.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Dani Sordo (3rd)
“Honestly, I am quite happy with how today has gone for us. We had some amazing stages in the mountains, and the circuit sections were better as well. We made some important modifications to the car at the end of Friday, which made it easier to drive and gave me more confidence. The stages were also drier, so we had a bit more grip as well. We are currently in the third-place podium position, which is great, however there is a small but tricky final day awaiting us. We will do our best to keep our advantage over Thierry.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 12, Rally Monza 18-21 November 2021 Dani Sordo Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville (4th)
“After the first day didn’t go as expected, we knew we had to push to catch back time. It worked well on the opening stage, setting the fastest time, but we wanted to improve more on the next one. Unfortunately, we had cold tyres and two corners into the stage we lost the rear, ripping off the bumper. We lost a position to Dani, and we’re still fighting to get it back. Still, I’ve been able to enjoy myself today, especially in the mountain stages; these cars are incredible, there has been a great atmosphere, lots of spectators and nice weather, it is really fantastic!”
Teemu Suninen (7th)
“I am pleased with the improvements we have made since yesterday, and especially in the first four stages. I was able to be confident in the car, and the driving was OK. I was still struggling on the gravel and muddy places in the Monza circuit stages. Still, we have taken a good step forward and that’s positive. I’m enjoying myself a lot, and it’s nice to see what the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC can do; it seems a strong car, so we will try to improve again on the final three stages tomorrow.”
Sunday
The last day beckons for the 2021 season and the last time that these cars will be seen on the world championship stages. It’s also the last few stages of Seb and Adrien’s partnership. Let’s see if they can go out on top, or maybe Elfyn and Scott will deny them a final victory. There are two championships to decide as well. Let’s see what happens…. Is there a final twist to this season, or can Seb and Adrien wrap up their eighth world title?
Well, day one was the Elfyn and Seb day, with the pair of them fighting over the lead throughout the seven stages that made up day one. Here’s how the action came together. The crews entered in championship positions, meaning that the startlist looked like this – Ogier, Evans, Neuville, Rovanperä, Katsuta, Sordo, Greensmith, Fourmaux, Suninen, Solberg.
Into the first stage, SS1 Gerosa 1 – 10.96 km then, and there was fog and low cloud on the mountains. Seb won the stage from Elfyn and Dani. There was a large gap at the end of the stage between the two championship protagonists of 3.6 seconds, with Dani the best of the Hyundai drivers holding third place.
It was all change into SS2 Costa Valle Imagna 1 – 22.11 km, with Elfyn setting the pace from Seb who was just a tenth slower. There was a change behind them, with Thierry passing Dani and moving into third place. There was also a change further back with Teemu getting to grips with his i20 and moving ahead of fellow Finn Kalle and into ninth place.
Next up was SS3 Gerosa 2 – 10.96 km and Seb was fastest and by quite a big margin of 2.1 seconds over Elfyn, whilst Thierry remained the closest challenger, but was now 20.7 seconds behind the two Toyota crews. The stage was now without huge drama though, with Adrien rolling his Fiesta. The Frenchman was out for the day.
Into stage SS4 Costa Valle Imagna 2 – 22.11 km and it was another stage win for the championship leaders, with Elfyn keeping the leaders honest with a time just nine tenths slower. The two Hyundai crews of Dani and Thierry set the exact same time. Further back, Oliver was having a great day, holding fifth place.
Elfyn was fastest in SS5 Cinturato 1 – 14.49 km and with Seb only fifth fastest and a huge 5.7 seconds slower the gap between them was now just eight tenths of a second. Oliver was quick too, with the fourth best time and only 2.6 seconds slower than Thierry. Impressive stuff from the young Swede.
After a short break the second run of SS6 Cinturato 2 – 14.49 km and Thierry won the stage with Elfyn second fastest just 4 tenths slower, whilst Seb was third and 2.5 seconds further back. Elfyn now moved into the lead. There was a change further back, with Takamoto moving past Gus and into sixth place.
The last stage of the day then, SS7 Grand Prix 1 – 10.29 km and Dani was quickest from Takamoto and Elfyn who led the rally by just 1.4 seconds from Seb. Dani’s pace meant that he’d taken 3.7 seconds from Thierry lead over him as they continued their battle for the final podium position.
Classification after Day One
1
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota Yaris WRC
1:04:05.2
2
S. Ogier
J. Ingrassia
Toyota Yaris WRC
+1.4
3
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+21.6
4
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+24.6
5
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+50.6
6
T. Katsuta
A. Johnston
Toyota Yaris WRC
+1:05.5
7
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Ford Fiesta WRC
+1:14.1
8
T. Suninen
M. Markkula
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+1:28.6
9
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota Yaris WRC
+1:57.3
Let’s hear from the drivers at the end of day one.
Toyota Gazoo Racing
Elfyn Evans (1st)
“It was a challenging morning with the thick fog and the grip levels were changing all the time, partly from the dampness and with the different surfaces as well, but it was really enjoyable to drive. We were losing a bit of time to Seb, I was frustrated to give a few seconds away. But we had a good afternoon. I put a lot of effort into being stronger on those stages this year. It’s good to be leading but the gap to Seb is virtually nothing; he was a bit stronger than us in the mountains so we need to look at this and try to improve for tomorrow morning.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 12 / ACI Rally Monza / 18th-21st November 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier (2nd)
“It’s been a good day. This morning I really enjoyed driving the stages in the mountains. The feeling was good in the car, we did a good job on the pre-event test and it was good to see the times coming. When it’s nice to drive you can be close the limit but still feel comfortable. This afternoon around the circuit I was a little bit more on the safe side, because there’s a lot of things you can hit, and we also had an issue on SS5 that cost me some time. But it’s OK, I’m happy with where I am right now and we just need to try and do the same tomorrow.”
Kalle Rovanperä (9th)
“Our plan for this rally is to be there for the manufacturers’ points. We don’t want to take any big risks, and then if something happens with our teammates, we can still secure the points. It’s a really important weekend for the team and we want to help as much as we can. It’s not so easy to drive like this, especially when the conditions are tricky like they were this morning in the mountains and you can lose quite a lot of time. The stages at Monza this afternoon were a bit more enjoyable, even though they were tricky in some sections with the gravel and mud.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (3rd)
“I would say that we are satisfied with our performance in the car today. We pushed very hard this morning, almost at the edge, and the feeling was good. I was enjoying the driving, but the times were not there. Usually in tricky conditions the car is fast, but this time we weren’t and to be honest I don’t know why. Even in Spain, in the dirty places, we were quick, but it seems like we missed something this morning. Around the track, the speed is there so we’ll have to see what happens on tomorrow’s mountain stages.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 12, Rally Monza 18-21 November 2021 Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Dani Sordo (4th)
“We struggled a bit with the set-up of the car, especially in the slippery places, where we lost a lot compared to our rivals. The morning loop wasn’t amazing, we just didn’t have the precision that I needed. The feeling in the afternoon was better, but no less tricky. We made a small change on my car, in the direction we had in Catalunya, and we were able to find the precision we’d been looking for all day. A small change but also a big change. I expect tomorrow’s stages to be just as demanding.”
Teemu Suninen (8th)
“It has been a challenging first day in the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. I’ve only had one day of testing with the car so in tricky places, I didn’t have the confidence to push hard. At the beginning, I was way too careful, but stage by stage I was happier. I was struggling a bit at times but that’s part of the learning curve and getting experience of a new car. Drivers always want to win the battles, and that’s the same with me, so if I can get a good feeling on Saturday, I will try to go for it a bit more. At the same time, it’s important to keep the car in one piece and bring it to the finish.”
Saturday
Day two sees 108km’s over six stages. Can Elfyn hold the lead over his teammate and championship rival? We shall find out tomorrow. Pop back at the end of the day for my day two report.
It’s time for the finale of this seasons World Rally Championship, with teammates Seb Ogier and Elfyn Evans both looking to win this season’s championship. Seventeen points separate them at the top of the table and assuming both drivers finish the rally, it is likely that the championship will be decided on the final stage.
Of course, there are a few driver and co-driver changes our there. First of all, Ott and Martin will not be competing at all. This means that Teemu and Mikko will be competing in the i20WRC. They were going to be in the i20 Rally2 of course, but have now been moved into the full WRC model. The other change is also within the Hyundai team, with Oliver Solberg taking a new co-driver. Elliott Edmondson, who was Gus Greensmith’s co-driver at the start of the season, will step into the seat along-side the young Swede.
Gus Greensmith also gets a new co-driver after the retirement of Chris Patterson. Jonas Andersson will step into the Fiesta. Ironically, he is Swedish as well, so we have a Swede with a British co-driver and a Brit with a Swedish co-driver!
Jonas Andersson (SWE) – Ford Fiesta RS WRC. Shakedown, 2013 Rally Sweden
Let’s take a look at the stages facing the crews.
Rally Monza opens with a shakedown on the evening of Thursday 18 November.
Friday features two passes each of Gerosa (11.09km), Costa Valle Imagna (22.17km) and Junior (14.97km) followed by an evening run of Grand Prix (10.21km) in darkness.
Saturday is the longest day of the rally, with two passes of San Fermo (14.45km) and Selvino (25.06km) in the morning proceeding back-to-back afternoon runs of Roggia (14.85km).
Sunday’s three stages only cover a competitive distance of 39.07km, as two passes of Serraglio (14.43km) follows a single run of Grand Prix. The second pass of Serraglio will be the rally’s Power Stage.
ACI Rally Monza itinerary:
Friday November 19
SS1 Gerosa 1 11.09km (6.89 miles) 0731
SS2 Costa Valle Imagna 1 22.17km (13.77 miles) 0816
SS3 Gerosa 2 11.09km (6.89 miles) 1016
SS4 Costa Valle Imagna 2 22.17km (13.77 miles) 1101
Service 1225
SS5 Junior 1 14.97km (9.30 miles) 1338
SS6 Junior 2 14.97km (9.30 miles) 1548
SS7 Grand Prix 1 10.21km (6.34 miles) 1820
Service 1840
Sunday November 21
SS14 Grand Prix 2 10.21km (6.34 miles) 0748
SS15 Serraglio 1 14.43km (8.96 miles) 1008
SS16 Serraglio 2 14.43km (8.96 miles) 1218
Service 1245
Friday and Saturday see stages away from the Monza race track and then the final stages will be run on parts of the Grand Prix track just like last year.
Let’s hear from the drivers –
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier
“While it’s true that this rally will be the end of a sporting chapter for myself and especially for Julien, this is not something I am thinking too much about for now: I think this is the best way to approach it, so that I can give my best as always and focus on our target of winning both titles. Of course, the situation going to Monza is much more favourable than one year ago, as this time I have some points in hand in the drivers’ standings. But it is not done yet and we need to stay focused. We had a good test in Italy last week, and I hope we can start the rally with the right rhythm, perform well and fight for a top result as well as keeping the championship in mind.”
2020 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 07 / ACI Rally Monza / 3-6 November, 2020 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC
Elfyn Evans
“It’s good to be going into the final round still with a chance of taking the drivers’ title. It’s an outside chance but Scott and I will give it our best shot: The approach will be just to aim for the best result possible and see what happens. After a difficult mid-season, the last couple of rounds have been better for us, but Monza will be a completely different challenge again. The stages in the mountains have a really nice character, but the stages at the circuit are very mixed and not so flowing. It’s impossible to capture all of that in a pre-event test, but after last year we have a pretty good idea of what to expect.”
Kalle Rovanperä
“It’s going to be interesting to go back to Monza. Last year it was quite a special event with the extreme weather that we had, and I’m sure it will be another difficult rally in any case. This time we will have more stages on the proper mountain roads, which will be nice. At the circuit, you can have a bit of everything in one stage, and if it rains it will be very muddy and tricky. The plan is to fight for the best position but also to have a clean rally: With our team-mates fighting for the championship, it will be important for us to be there to secure the points for the manufacturers’ title if needed.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville
“I have participated a couple of times at Rally Monza in previous years, both as a WRC event and as Monza Rally Show, so I know the roads quite well. The stages are unique with lots of chicanes and cones, which is not the traditional rally style, but this year’s there looks to be more typical Italian mountain stages. It is also a great experience to compete on the Monza circuit. As it is the last event of the season, our aim is to push hard and fight at the front.”
Dani Sordo
“Monza is always a very nice rally to drive, and of course is a special place for the team as we won the manufacturers’ championship here in 2020. I really like the format of the event, with some stages on the circuit and others in the mountains. Last year was very fun, especially with the tricky weather conditions, so I think crews and spectators both really love this rally. I will of course try my best to get the best result possible this year.”
2020 FIA World Rally Championship Round 07 Rally Monza 03-07 December 2020 Action, Day 2, Dani Sordo, Carlos Del Barrio, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Fabien Dufour Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Teemu Suninen
“Being part of the Hyundai Motorsport WRC line-up for Rally Monza is a great opportunity for us. I will follow the goals set by the team and show our speed within those limits. The Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC is a new car for me and for sure I will need some time to get used to it. After I drove it for the first time at the pre-event test, there is no doubt that it is a winning car. Monza, as an event, has a lot of variations in grip and rhythm. There is also quite a difference between the stages up in the mountains and circuit sections. What a wonderful way to end the season!”
Oliver Solberg
“I was 15 when this current generation of cars started competing in 2017. I remember the incredible excitement around that time: what would they be like? How fast would they be? And what about the downforce? How would that feel?
“To be driving one of these cars at the other end of this generation is something incredible for me. Honestly, if you had told me I would be a Hyundai Motorsport driver in an i20 Coupe WRC when this chapter closed, I would have thought you were a little bit crazy. Of course, it was always my dream, but this is something really special.
“It will be quite emotional to say goodbye to these cars. I know I didn’t drive this amazing Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC so many times like the other guys, but it’s a real privilege to be part of a group of drivers who have competed in the world’s fastest ever rally cars. And an even bigger privilege to do it with this team.
“Next year’s going to be incredible with new technology and quite the same speed and potential, but the ‘WRC Plus’ cars will always be special.
“For Monza, I can’t wait! Last year was a really cool rally. The conditions were a little bit – actually, completely – crazy with all the snow and rain. I hope it’s nicer this time. I know we have fans coming back to this great event, so it would be really nice for them to watch in the sunshine.
“It’s also exciting for me to compete with Elliott for the first time. We did a lot of practise together already and I’m sure we’re going to work well.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Gus Greensmith
“Monza is a rally of two halves, you have the stages on the circuit which also incorporate quite a lot of gravel and grass which is something we don’t see during the year on Tarmac. Also, the actual Tarmac part of the track is very different as well, it’s more of a single venue format which is very different to what we see all year. Then we go to the stages up in the mountains, three of which are the same as last year which I know from personal experience are very tricky but we also had some very good times there last year. It’s somewhere I think we can excel at this weekend.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“I’m really excited to be going back to Monza after doing the rally last year in a Fiesta Rally2, I was happy about my pace so hopefully we have some good pace on this rally. It’s always interesting to do some stages inside a circuit and also in the really nice mountains. There are some beautiful mountain stages here too, last year was a big challenge with the weather so let’s see and hopefully the conditions will be a bit nicer. We’re happy to see the spectators back in the circuit area and we are looking forward to seeing them there! Thanks to M-Sport and all my partners for an amazing season.”
Jari Huttunen
“For me it’s really exciting to be joining M-Sport for Rally Monza in WRC2. It’s a new car and team to get to know, which will be a steep learning curve, but one I am looking forward to.
“I know that the Fiesta Rally2 is very competitive on Tarmac so I am looking forward to seeing what we can do together. Ok, Rally Monza has extra challenges that come with the circuit stages, but I still cannot wait to line up on the start line of the event with a prestigious team like M-Sport. I would like to thank M-Sport for making this happen at short notice.”
Summary
It could be a really special weekend Elfyn, Scott and their fans. It could just as equally be a special weekend for Seb and Adrien, given that this will be their last rally together before they end their partnership. One of these crews will be victorious and whoever is will completely deserve their success. Hopefully it will a good straight fight between them to the end of the rally with no reliability problems.
Anyone could stand on the podium come the end of the rally. Dani Sordo took third place behind his teammate Ott last year. Could he go one better? Of course, Seb took victory, but Elfyn was thereabouts with his pace before sliding off the road in stage eleven. The weather reports look much more stable in terms of no snow forecast, but we’ll have to see how things go on each day.
Enjoy! The action starts with shakedown on Thursday evening.
We saw another incredible rally in Spain. Let’s take a look and the performances of the crews.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de Espana 14-17 October 2021 Thierry Neuville Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
We have to start with the drive from Thierry and Martijn. Once they took the lead from Elfyn and Scott, they didn’t look back. Nine stage wins gave him a good lead and a repeat win as well after winning in 2019. It was a typically strong drive from the Belgian duo, and the kind that you’d expect from Thierry.
Elfyn and Scott, competing for the first time in Spain in the Toyota Yaris surprised everyone with their pace on the first stage and I’m not sure why. The Welshman has always shown very good pace on tarmac over the years, and with him getting the car to his liking, it was just a matter of time when he’d be quick. He still had some struggles as the roads got messy with the gravel being pulled out and the car not giving him the feeling that he wanted, but their performance was good enough to net second place, and also with the good finish to the power stage they closed the championship lead down a bit more to just seventeen points.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 11 / Rally Catalunya/Spain / 14-17 October 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Dani and Candido had a great event, driving to their first podium together. They passed Seb on the final day for third place, taking four stage wins, including the power stage as well. It was a really good drive and has kept Hyundai’s hopes of retaining their manufacturers title just a bit longer.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de España 14-17 October 2021 Dani Sordo, Candido Carrera, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Looking beyond the podium Seb and Julien were the only other crew to take some stage wins, with two on Saturday. It wasn’t enough though to help them hold onto the podium position though and means that they go to Rally Monza with a useful but not big lead over their teammates. It is likely that the championship will be decided on the final stage, should both crews still be running on the final day.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 11 / Rally Catalunya/Spain / 14-17 October 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle and Jonne had a good rally, with consistent times in the stages. They’d not competed in the Yaris on these roads before, and showed good pace out there. When we return next year, we can expect some good pace from the young Finn’s.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 11 / Rally Catalunya/Spain / 14-17 October 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
At M-Sport we saw good drives from both crews. Adrien and new co-driver Alex did pretty well and set some good times including a second fastest time. There was a mistake that cost them time, but that does not detract from a very good drive from the French duo.
For Gus and Chris, it was a really good drive to sixth place. Chris Patterson’s final ever co-drive in a World Rally Car brought them both a good result, the kind that we have got used to since the change for Gus earlier this year.
Oliver and Craig drove to an excellent seventh overall, gaining good experience for the future. Learning the stages that they will return to, including the unique nature of the way to drive these cars in the road conditions that face them.
Finally, Ott and Martin had a rally to forget. After struggling with understeer throughout Friday morning, they went off the road, colliding with some trees causing too much damage to his i20 and leading to retirement from the event. A big shame for the crew who won their world title on this rally in 2019. They will return next year with a new car and hope for a better result. Who knows, they may even be fighting for another world championship.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de España 14-17 October 2021 Ott Tanak, Martin Jarveoja, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Well, we now head to Rally Monza which will see the championship decided for the second year in a row. Look out for my preview just before.
Well, just 50km’s over four stages remained, including the power stage of course. The start list looked like this – Katsuta, Fourmaux, Solans, Solberg, Greensmith, Rovanperä, Sordo, Ogier, Evans, Neuville.
SS14 Santa Marina 1 – 9.10 km was first up and run before sunrise as well, bringing an added dimension and difficulty to the stage. Dani set the best time, from Thierry and Elfyn. The Spaniards pace meant that he’s passed Seb for third place as well. Elfyn lost a further 1.4 seconds to Thierry whose lead was now 17.1 seconds. Adrien continued to show good pace as well, setting the early pace, and ultimately being fifth fastest.
Well, into SS15 Riudecanyes 1 – 16.35 km and the dress rehearsal for the power stage. Dani was fastest again from Thierry and Seb. Adrien and Takamoto both set the same time jointly sixth fastest in the stage.
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de España 14-17 October 2021 Dani Sordo, Candido Carrera, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Dufour Fabien Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
After a short break the run of SS16 Santa Marina 2 – 9.10 km saw Dani take yet another stage win, seven tenths faster than Seb and the Spaniard was now 2.3 seconds ahead of the world champion, and not looking unfazed at all in their battle. Adrien continued good form in this one, with the fourth best time, equal with Thierry. Elfyn cruised through, three seconds of the front runners’ pace, likely looking ahead to the power stage.
Finally, to SS17 Riudecanyes 2 [Power Stage] – 16.35 km, and there was some drama for Thierry and Martijn as well. A video emerged of Martijn push starting their i20 and then flames and smoke coming out of the exhaust suddenly! They were having problems with the starter motor on their car and getting the car started because of this. Never-the-less, they did make it to the stage on time. Then there was further drama, with rain falling in the stage as well. The startlist was changed once again – Gryazin, Camilli, Katsuta, Fourmaux, Solans, Solberg, Greensmith, Rovanperä, Ogier, Sordo, Evans, Neuville. Nikolay was first to come across the rain at around 13.5km into the stage. As each crew completed, we had a new fastest time. The rain then eased off, but of course the road was still wet and greasy at the end. Dani set the fastest time, taking the maximum points with Thierry second and Elfyn third. It was a good time from the Welshman, eclipsing his title rivals time by three tenths of a second, and nicking another point out of Seb’s lead.
Final Overall Classification –Rally de España
1
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
2:34:11.8
2
E. Evans
S. Martin
Toyota Yaris WRC
+24.1
3
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+35.3
4
S. Ogier
J. Ingrassia
Toyota Yaris WRC
+42.1
5
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota Yaris WRC
+1:31.8
6
G. Greensmith
C. Patterson
Ford Fiesta WRC
+4:17.3
7
O. Solberg
C. Drew
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+4:26.7
8
N. Solans
M. Martí
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
+4:34.9
9
E. Camilli
M. Vilmot
Citroën C2 Rally2
+9:49.4
10
N. Gryazin
K. Aleksandrov
Škoda Fabia Evo
+10:05.9
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de Espana 14-17 October 2021 Thierry Neuville Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Let’s here from the drivers then!
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (1st)
“I am relieved to get to the end of this rally, to be honest. It has been a tough weekend, and not without its challenges. We have fought incredibly hard across all stages, taking a lot of fastest times, and gradually extending our advantage. The result itself probably doesn’t show how much we’ve had to work. We had a good clean run until the final stage; everything was working perfectly up to that point. Unfortunately, we had a lot of stress before the Power Stage with an engine starter motor issue. That was the only disappointing aspect of an otherwise positive rally. Thanks to Martijn for another good job, and our second win together, as well as to Dani and Cándido for their podium result.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship Round 11, Rally de Espana 14-17 October 2021 Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, WRC, Action during Day 3 of Rally de Espana 2021 Photographer: Vincent Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Dani Sordo (3rd)
“Honestly you can’t imagine how happy I am, not only for myself but also for Cándido, as it’s our first podium working together. He has been working really hard to get us to this level. We couldn’t have done any more, we have pushed in every stage. Thanks to all my family and the supporters, who have been cheering us on this weekend. We have been involved in a fantastic battle with Sébastien and it has been a pleasure to drive here. Thanks to the team for giving me such a competitive car that has allowed us to fight, and for supporting me always. I am so happy.”
Oliver Solberg (7th)
“I knew what I had to do this week. I had to come here and drive really sensibly to make the finish, make the miles and to keep Andrea happy.
“I have to say, the conditions were, in places, tougher than I expected. You can watch the onboards and see the cars sliding on some of the gravel and mud pulled to the stage by the cars ahead, but until you are in that car and feeling it slide beneath you in sixth gear, you don’t have the experience.
“Sometimes I have been really surprised by how much the cars are off the road and cutting, but this is why I was here – I had to learn and see this for myself. Now I understand much better this rally and what it takes to make everything work here.
“We had one small problem with the clutch in the Salou stage on Saturday night. I knew I couldn’t stall the car and that was probably the worst stage to drive like that – it was so tight, so narrow and so twisty. Fortunately, it was very short and we could make it through.”
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Elfyn Evans (2nd)
“Second place is a positive result but it’s not so easy to be happy when we made such a good start to the weekend. Unfortunately, it faded away a little bit and I didn’t feel completely at one with everything. There was perhaps a little bit more to gain from this weekend. The good thing from the weekend is that we managed to close the points gap and that the championship is still open. Realistically it’s a big gap to close in one round, but as we experienced last year, anything can still happen and we’ll try our best once again at Monza.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 11 / Rally Catalunya/Spain / 14-17 October 2021 // Worldwide Copyright: Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Sébastien Ogier (4th)
“Coming here I was targeting more than fourth position, but it is still good points towards the championship. It was a close fight today and we definitely tried in the first three stages; then the rain on the last one did not help with my strategy of not taking risks, and I was definitely on the safe side there. But overall, we have to remember that this weekend is another positive step for the championship and that’s what matters the most. It’s not over yet though, so we’ll have to be good at Monza and try to repeat the success we had there last year.”
Kalle Rovanperä (5th)
“Overall, it has been quite a good weekend for us. There was a lot of learning, especially on Friday, but it got better with the setup and with my driving as the weekend went on. Today we were aiming for the Power Stage but the conditions were tricky and it was drying for the guys behind us on the road, so we didn’t have the chance to fight for more. We didn’t quite find the perfect feeling and not the pace that we wanted, but we tried our best and it was a solid weekend.”
2021 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
After Round Eleven
1
S. Ogier
204
2
E. Evans
187
3
T. Neuville
159
4
K. Rovanperä
140
5
O. Tänak
128
6
C. Breen
76
7
T. Katsuta
68
8
D. Sordo
63
9
G. Greensmith
60
10
A. Fourmaux
42
2021 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After Round Eleven
1
Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team
474
2
Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team
427
3
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
187
4
Hyundai 2C Competition
52
Well, we head now to the final round in Rally Monza from the 19th to 21st of November and a battle for both championships as well. Stay turned for my thoughts on the crews’ performances in the next few days.
