The crews are hitting the sunny island of Sardinia this weekend for Rally Italy. But before they gets underway, its the usual Pre-event shakedown for the drivers.
And its ex F1 Driver Robert Kubica who has lit up the screens and gone fastest in the stage. Kubica has been working on a new approach for this event. And so far so good.
Shakedown results below.
As one of the most technically demanding events of the year, Robert will need to apply all that he learnt in South America. Finishing in a creditable sixth place, the Pole produced a highly controlled performance, but as with any true racer, he will be keen to up his pace and continue his progress at the FIA World Rally Championship’s highest level.
Sardinia may be a prime location for the world’s rich and famous, but it is also ideal rallying territory. The gravel stages are extremely fast but also demand an air of caution. Huge rocks and tree stumps line the route ready to turn even the slightest of mistakes into a costly error.
The Formula One race winner has an affinity with all things Italian. Having made the move to Italy as a teenager, much of his early rallying was contested on the Italian asphalt and he claimed a dominant victory as part of the WRC 2 category on his Sardinian debut last year.
Progress will be the name of the game for the Pole and his fellow countryman and co-driver Maciek Szczepaniak. The pairing made strides with their pacenote system in Argentina, and that is something that they will be keen to develop further as the WRC returns to Europe.
Robert Kubica said:
“During my days in karting I spent quite a lot of time in Italy, so in Sardinia – as well as in Poland – I should have more fans than usual. Like all of the gravel events in the WRC, this is a difficult rally so in that respect my approach won’t be too different from the previous outing in Argentina.
“Of course Sardinia is a rally that I got to know a bit in WRC2 last year, but my goal will stay the same. I will just try to maximise my chances of finishing the rally, which means minimising any mistakes.
“All of the stages are very technical and the surface is sandy so it is quite slippery out there. All of the stages are fast – very fast in places – but it is also extremely narrow so you have to drive very precisely and try to get as much speed through the corner while keeping the line. There really is no margin for error in Sardinia.”
Mikko Hirvonen and Elfyn Evans will be seeking further success as the M-Sport World Rally Team gear up for Alghero and next week’s Rally Italia Sardegna. The sixth round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) provides a favoured hunting ground for both drivers, and the team have their sights firmly set on a strong result.
Photo:D.Darrall
Beyond the glitzy coastal glamour, Sardinia’s rugged mountains, ancient forests and unspoiled rural terrain make it ideal rallying territory. This year sees a move from the traditional base in Olbia to the western town of Alghero, but with 60 per cent of the stages unchanged the event has lost none of its charm. Regarded as a technical challenge, the route may be narrow but it is also extremely fast. A thin layer of sandy gravel masks the harder surface beneath and the stages are lined with treacherous trees and rocks. Leaving little room for error, Rally Italia truly favours the brave. Having secured six top-two finishes in Sardinia – including a win in 2012 – Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen are regarded as one of the boldest partnerships in the championship. Having made an uncharacteristic mistake on the previous outing in Argentina, the pairing came back fighting. Fearless through the tricky conditions that blighted the final day’s rallying, they looked to be in a league of their own; taking more than half a minute out of their nearest rivals through a single fog-plagued stage.
Hirvonen has a strong affiliation with Italy having spent much of 2002 competing in a number of the country’s regional events. Now, having truly reacquainted himself with the Ford Fiesta RS WRC, the Finn will be looking to channel all of his experience and skill into another strong result.
Evans also harbours a soft spot for the Italian isle. Having made his world rally car debut at the event last year, next week’s outing provides the only rally of the year at which the Welshman has already experienced the power and performance of the Fiesta RS WRC.
Last year’s outing provided something of a novelty for the youngster. Plunged into the unknown, Evans tackled the rally for the first time with just three days preparation. With a new car and a new co-driver, he overcame all the odds. Eclipsing the efforts of the WRC’s most recent champions on their equivalent debuts, the Welshman secured a sensational sixth place finish which prompted his promotion to the WRC’s highest league.
But Evans won’t let the familiar circumstances draw his focus. Determined to continue his development, the youngster has been working hard to ensure that he is in the best possible position to continue his progression. Having studied all of his notes and onboard videos from the previous year, the M-Sport man also travelled out to Sardinia a little earlier than planned to best acclimatised to the high temperatures with a specially designed fitness regime.
Mikko Hirvonen said: “This is an event that I enjoy so I hope that we can secure another strong result next week. I know that we have the pace; we just need to ensure that we avoid any mistakes and pull everything together. “It’s a tricky event, but I’ve done well here in the past. The roads are really technical and in some ways you could compare it to Mexico or Portugal, but the grip levels are a little different. “The biggest difference is the view of the road. It’s difficult to read the stages and see which way the road is going which inevitably makes your recce and pacenotes all the more important. Thankfully, I’m really confident in my notes and that should hopefully play to our advantage. “The stages are also very fast and narrow – which I like – but there are a lot of obstacles that you need to watch out for. There are a lot of rocks on the side of the road, and if it’s hot, it can be hard on the tyres so you need to ensure that you look after them.”
Elfyn Evans said:
“It will be nice to go back to an event where I have already experienced the power and performance of a world rally car, but I’m not going to let that affect my focus too much. The plan is still to learn as much as we can whilst developing our speed at this level.
“This year will certainly be easier than last year. Twelve months ago I was completely thrown into the unknown. I found out that I would be doing the rally three days before the recce began. I had never driven the Fiesta RS WRC in competition, I had never tackled the Sardinian stages and I had never had to adapt to a new co-driver quite that quickly!
“Thankfully, we overcame all of that. Thanks to the hard work of the team and Giovanni [Bernacchini, co-driver], we were able to secure a really good result and I think that is one of the reasons why I have been given this fantastic opportunity. Needless to say, this will always be a very special event for me.
“Dan [Barritt, co-driver] and I have spent a lot of time since Argentina looking through all of the onboards and ensuring that my notes are as accurate as they can be. Forty per cent of the rally will be completely new, but for the familiar 60 per cent, I think that we are well prepared to continue progressing and developing our speed.
“I also headed out to Sardinia a little earlier than planned to do some fitness training and really acclimatise to the heat. It’s fair to say that Sardinia is a little warmer than Cumbria at the moment, so it’s important for me to ensure that I am fully adjusted to the climate.”
M-Sport World Rally Team’s Mikko Hirvonen reaffirmed his class as Rally Argentina came to a close with four stages to the west of Villa Carlos Paz today. In a bitter sweet turn of fortune, the Finn claimed three of the four stage wins to prove that he would have been fighting at the head of the field were it not for his uncharacteristic mistake on SS2.
If the opening two days were not taxing enough, the final leg incorporated two legendary stages in the Valle de Traslasierra. Meandering through moonlike vistas littered with huge boulders and tight hairpin bends, ‘Giulio Cesare – Mina Clavero’ and ‘El Condor – Copina’ are demanding at the best of times. Combine that with the added complication of thick fog and mud, and today’s final stages provided what was arguably the biggest challenge of the weekend.
Never one to pass up a challenge, Hirvonen was the man of the hour over the morning loop and looked untouchable behind the wheel of his Ford Fiesta RS WRC. Thriving in the tricky conditions, the Finn dominated the opening three stages. Fearless in the fog that blighted the opening speed test, the M-Sport driver was a full 36.4 seconds faster than his nearest rival.
Thoroughly enjoying the tricky conditions, Hirvonen’s impressive pace highlighted the strength of his partnership with co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen. Driving to the notes with near-perfect precision, the pairing showed total trust in each other’s ability and reaped the rewards as a result. Setting the second fastest time in the points-paying Power Stage, the pairing also added an additional two points to their championship campaign.
In the sister M-Sport Fiesta RS WRC, Evans and co-driver Daniel Barritt continued to develop their skills. Making it through all 14 speed tests unscathed, it was mission accomplished for the young Welshman who leaves his first visit to Argentina with a wealth of experience that will be invaluable in years to come.
Piloting his Fiesta through some of the championship’s most technically demanding terrain, Evans showed real maturity and is now well placed to continue his progression at the sport’s highest level.
Elfyn Evans (7th) said:
“It’s not been easy to display good speed whist being safe at the same time and, for me, it has definitely been the most difficult event of the year. When you’re trying to learn a new rally you tend to settle into a rhythm as the event unfolds, but here, there is something new all the time and you are constantly learning how to tackle each variation.
“With regards to the first day, the stages were very technical in nature and there was no margin for error. Yesterday was quite high-speed with a really soft surface so it was quite difficult to commit, and today the weather made things very tricky with mixed conditions within the stages themselves.
“Although it has admittedly been a bit of a frustrating weekend for me, I know that the amount we have learnt will undoubtedly help my development for the future. We’ve made it to the end without incident and that is a big positive. Now it’s just a case of going back over the data with the team to decipher exactly where we can improve for next year.”
Mikko Hirvonen (9th) said:
“After my mistake on Friday we just wanted to finish the rally with a good pace and we were able to do that. Everything worked really well this morning. The boys clearly did a fantastic job with repairing the car and I was just able to really go for it.
“I tried to enjoy it as much as I could and we had a really good time out there. OK, it didn’t work out so well in the Power Stage, but I thought that I should probably let someone else take a stage win today too!
“I’ve always been quite confident in the fog. I have a good feeling with my notes and I’m able to really trust the distances into the corners – it just works for us.”
Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:
“Mikko [Hirvonen] did a fantastic job today which just goes to show the exceptional job that the mechanics did with repairing his Fiesta on Friday evening. He has always thrived in tricky conditions and I think that part of that is due to the strong partnership between himself and Jarmo [Lehtinen, co-driver]. They have complete faith in each other’s ability and that is just what’s required when the conditions are as they were today.
“It’s fair to say that Elfyn [Evans] was a little frustrated with his pace this weekend, but from start to finish, he has done exactly what was asked of him. It’s sometimes difficult for a young driver to hold back, but Elfyn knows how vital this experience will be for the future and I’ve been very impressed with his mature approach.”
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