Inside Rally

The Hyundai WRC Team had an official Launch today. Officially confirming that they will compete in 2014. As well as revealing the Drivers and Car livery for next year.

Hyundai already confirmed that Thierry Neuville, will be Hyundai’s lead driver, and will tackle all the WRC rounds in 2014. But the big question was, who will be joining him.

Today Hyundai Revealed at their launch, that Neuville will be joined by 3 other drivers throughout the season who will be; Chris Atkinson with Co-driver Stephane Prevot, Juho Hanninen an Co-Driver Tomi Tuominen. And Dani Sordo with Co-Driver Marc Marti. The three drivers will be chosen in turn to do selected events along side Neuville. But it is not yet know exactly what events which driver will compete in. Although it is thought that Dani Sordo will drive Monte Carlo & Juho Hanninen will compete in Sweden but no confirmation from the team as of yet.

They have also revealed the Livery of the car the i20 WRC and Shell as their main sponsor. The Team will be entered in the World Rally Championships under the name; Hyundai Shell World Rally Team.

The Official calendar for 2014 WRC season

Citroën Racing has finally announce their driver line-up for the 2014 World Rally Championship season.

Photo:D.Darrall

Driving for the Citroën Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team next year will be Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle and Mads Østberg/Jonas Andersson.

“It’s an incredible opportunity,” says a delighted Kris Meeke. “I’ve always been close to Citroën over the last few years. I’m really lucky to be able to work with a team that has so much experience and so many titles.”

Photo:D.Darrall

“I have only competed in ten World Championship rallies in a WRC,” he says. “I think I’ve got some potential, but I still need to get some experience under my belt. The Citroën DS3 WRC is a terrific car and I’m going to be able to use the team’s knowledge to help me improve. I know that I’ll have to be patient in the first half of the season and learn all about the rallies that I haven’t done before.”

26-year-old Mads Østberg has already taken part in 65 WRC rallies and won the Norwegian Championship four times. With seven podium finishes to his name at world level, he notched up his first WRC victory at the Rally of Portugal in 2012.

Photo:D.Darrall

“I am very happy and proud to be joining Citroën Racing,” explains the Norwegian. “We worked hard to get an official driver’s spot. After so many years watching Citroën win, it’s a dream come true to be part of this team.”

“Competing is the most important thing,” adds Mads. “And even though I don’t know the team or the car yet, I can recognise the worth of the guys and the Citroën DS3 WRC. Of course, I’m joining Citroën Racing to get some good results and to try and win some rallies. I’ve always shown that I could be quick. I know that the standard in the World Rally Championship is exceptionally high, but I want to be competitive!”

Like last year, Khalid Al Qassimi will take part in a selection of World Championship rallies. The driver from Abu Dhabi will line up for the races in Sweden, Portugal, Italy and Spain and will concentrate on taking part in the entire Middle East rally Championship.

Photo: D.Darrall

“Our team line-up for the 2014 season is in keeping with our ambitions,” concludes Yves Matton, Managing Director of Citroën Racing. “Kris Meeke and Mads Østberg have followed very different career paths, but both of them are on the cusp of making it into the very top class of world rally drivers. After an initial phase of learning and getting to know each other, our goal will be to help them to improve and turn them into real contenders for victory.”

Citroën Racing will unveil its entire rally and track racing programme for 2014 on Monday 16 December, at a press conference in Versailles. The event will be broadcast on the site http://www.citroen-wrc.com at 14:30 (GMT+1).

As the latest model in M-Sport’s successful range of Ford Fiesta rally cars, the Ford Fiesta R5+ got off to a sensational start at the Coppermines Grizedale Stages in the United Kingdom last weekend. With Matthew Wilson and co-driver Chris Patterson behind the wheel, the car could not have had a better debut – securing victory by almost a minute.

Based on the standard Ford Fiesta R5 which launched earlier this year, the Fiesta R5+ incorporates a modified turbo and air-intake system. The standard 32mm restrictor has also been replaced with a 34mm example which provides the engine with an extra 30hp. Not homologated for FIA championships, the Fiesta R5+ is intended for national series.

Also in action last weekend was Elfyn Evans with the Ford Fiesta R200. Acting as course car on the Coppermines Grizedale Stages, Evans was joined by M-Sport’s Customer Liaison Manager, Richard Millener, in the co-driver’s seat. Had the pairing contested the rally proper, they would have placed an impressive fifth overall – ahead of a number of world rally specification cars and just 21 seconds adrift of the podium.

As with the Fiesta R5+, the Fiesta R200 is not FIA homologated and is thus intended for national championships. Based on the standard Ford Fiesta R2, which has achieved global success since its launch in 2009, the R200 variant comes complete with a modified induction system which allows the engine an added 30hp.

Both cars will be officially launched at the Autosport Show in the UK in January, after which they will be available for sale from M-Sport.

Matthew Wilson said:

“It’s been a while since Chris [Patterson, co-driver] and I have used organisers pacenotes, so it took a while to get back into the swing of things. But once we found our rhythm we really got a feeling for the car and how much performance it can produce.
“We all know how competitive the standard Fiesta R5 is, and this upgrade just adds to that. It’s a great package for national events.”

Elfyn Evans said:

“It was great to be out on the stages again last weekend, and I was impressed with the extra power the Fiesta R200 provides. I spent a lot of years competing with the Fiesta R2, and this is a great upgrade – you can really feel the power increase. We were able to set some really strong times, and I think we’ve proved how good the car can be on national rallies.”