Categorie archief: WRC
Zes toeschouwers overleden na rally-ongeluk
Een verschrikkelijk drama zaterdag rond een rallywedstrijd in het Spaanse Carral. Volgens de Spaanse krant El Mundo zijn zes toeschouwers om het leven gekomen bij een ongeluk met een van de wagens.
Onder de doden is een kind, meldden Spaanse media zaterdag.
Een bolide vloog op hoge snelheid uit de bocht en belandde in het publiek langs de kant. Bij het ongeval raakten zeker twintig anderen gewond.
Het ongeluk gebeurde bij de plaats Carral in Noordwest-Spanje, even ten zuiden van de provinciehoofdstad A Coruña. De rallywedstrijd is vanwege het ongeluk stilgelegd.
Het ongeval gebeurde rond 20:00 uur. Agenten van de Guardia Civil en ambulancemedewerkers waren snel ter plaatse om de slachtoffers en de fans te behandelen en ondersteunen.
Bron: http://www.telegraaf.nl
MULTIPLE F1 WORLD CHAMPION TO RACE AT ROC 2015 IN LONDON
Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel will compete at the 2015 Race Of Champions at London’s former Olympic Stadium
The German, who now drives for Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 team, won the F1 world title in every season from 2010 to 2013
Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen, World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg and ROC title-holder David Coulthard are among drivers already confirmed
More of the world’s greatest drivers will head to London on November 20-21 to find out who is the quickest of them all in ROC’s identical machinery
Tickets for ROC 2015 are now available from http://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/roc
Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel has signed up for this year’s Race Of Champions on November 20-21 at the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – the iconic home of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Vettel became the youngest driver ever to win the Formula 1 world championship when he took his first title in a last-race thriller in 2010. He has since cemented his place among the sport’s all-time greats by following that with three further triumphs in the next three seasons.
After his switch to Scuderia Ferrari at the start of this year, Vettel made an immediate impact yet again. First he reached the podium on his debut in Australia, then he took the team back to the top step with a fine victory at race two in Malaysia. Four further podiums have since firmly established his status as the main challenger to this year’s leading Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.
Vettel also has an impressive record at the Race Of Champions. He made his debut at London’s Wembley Stadium in 2007 and duly partnered his countryman Michael Schumacher to ROC Nations Cup glory for Team Germany. The pair went on to keep the trophy until 2012 with victories in Beijing, Düsseldorf and Bangkok, leaving them with a record six consecutive ROC Nations Cup wins.
Now Vettel is back for another Race Of Champions in London, this time at the former Olympic Stadium – though he will sadly need a new partner in the ROC Nations Cup as Michael Schumacher continues his rehabilitation from injuries suffered in a skiing accident late in 2013.
Drivers already confirmed for ROC 2015 include nine-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen, reigning FIA World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg and current ROC Champion of Champions David Coulthard.
Vettel said: “I’m looking forward to returning to the Race Of Champions, which I’ve enjoyed competing in since my Formula 1 debut in 2007. It is going to be very exciting to race cars in the Stadium that hosted the 2012 London Olympic Games. Of course I’ll miss having Michael as my team-mate this time but I’ll try my best to bring the ROC Nations Cup trophy back to Germany and to win my first individual ROC title. That is one trophy that is still missing from my collection…”
The Race Of Champions is an annual end-of-season contest which has been held for over 25 years. It brings together some of the world’s greatest drivers from motor sport’s major disciplines – including Formula 1, World Rally, Le Mans, MotoGP and the X-Games – and sets them free to battle head-to-head in identical machinery.
The event is run over two days: first comes the ROC Nations Cup (on the evening of Friday November 20) when drivers pair up in teams based on nationality to bid for the title of ‘World’s Fastest Nation’. Then on the afternoon of Saturday November 21 it’s time for the Race Of Champions itself, when teamwork goes out of the window and it’s a flat-out battle for individual glory.
ROC president Fredrik Johnsson said: “It’s brilliant news that Sebastian will join us at this year’s Race Of Champions at London’s former Olympic Stadium. When he raced at Wembley in 2007 it was still a year before his first F1 grand prix win but it was clear to everyone watching that they were in the presence of something special – not least when he beat World Rally Champion Marcus Grönholm in his own rally car.
“Since then Seb has proved himself to be one of the greatest drivers of all time with four F1 world championships and counting. His podiums for Ferrari this year show he is still at the very top of his game and he will no doubt be as keen as ever to push to the limit in the identical machinery on offer at the Race Of Champions.
“The only huge pity is that Michael won’t be able to join him to seek yet another ROC Nations Cup title for Team Germany this year. Everyone involved sends Michael our best wishes and rest assured we’ll find Seb a worthy team-mate in his absence. This is a special chance to see this racing legend in action up close in a stadium setting and we look forward to welcoming a full house in November to enjoy the show.”
In recent years ROC has visited the Stade de France in Paris (2004-2006), London’s Wembley Stadium (2007-2008), the ‘Bird’s Nest’ Olympic Stadium in Beijing (2009), Düsseldorf’s Esprit Arena (2010-2011), the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok (2012) and Bushy Park Barbados (2014). Now the contest is returning to its European roots at the iconic home of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The former Olympic Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park was the backdrop to some of the most memorable action of London 2012, plus the opening and closing ceremonies. Now it is being transformed into a year-round multi-use venue that will deliver a lasting sporting, cultural and community legacy in east London. The works will be paused this autumn for a range of international sporting events – including its fastest ever race as ROC comes to town – before it closes for further refurbishment ahead of its full re-opening in 2016.
Tickets for ROC 2015 in London are now available via http://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/roc. For access to rights-free high-resolution imagery and to keep up with all the latest news ahead of this year’s event please visit http://www.raceofchampions.com, Race Of Champions on Facebook plus @raceofchampions and #ROCLondon on Twitter.
Result WRC Rally Finland
HALF A SECOND WAS ALL THAT SPLIT QUENTIN GILBERT AND HENRI HAPPAMÄKI IN THE FIA JUNIOR WRC CATEGORY AFTER A DRAMATIC FINALE TO A THRILLING BATTLE AT NESTE OIL RALLY FINLAND ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
Gilbert led from early on Friday morning after Happamäki punctured and dropped 2min 30sec. However, the Finn won seven of Saturday’s eight stages to close to within 22.8sec of the Frenchman with just two stages remaining on Sunday.
Happamäki further reduced the gap to 12.4sec after Sunday’s opener. When Gilbert received a 10-sec penalty for checking into a control late, the Finn looked on course for a remarkable comeback victory.
However, Gilbert produced a blistering drive through the final stage to hold on for his third win in four rallies by 0.5sec. He can claim the title at the next round in Corsica in October.
“The last stage was very tense! It’s my best win and a superb result for the championship. Now we must prepare well for Corsica and do our best to win the title,” said Gilbert.
Happamäki said he tried to pressure Gilbert until the very end. “I drove well after having punctured at the start of the rally. With 16 fastest times it was difficult to do any better. At the finish I was disappointed with the result and perhaps I will only realise how good my performance was tomorrow,” he said.
Ole Christian Veiby was a distant third, more than three minutes behind the leading duo, with Terry Folb fourth. Jean-René Perry and Mohammed Al Mutawa completed the top six. All were driving identical DS 3 R3-MAX cars.
Bron: http://www.wrc.com
THE TITANIC DUEL FOR SUPREMACY AT NESTE OIL RALLY FINLAND BETWEEN VOLKSWAGEN TEAM-MATES JARI-MATTI LATVALA AND SÉBASTIEN OGIER CONTINUED UNABATED ON SATURDAY MORNING WITH EACH CLAIMING A STAGE WIN.
STAGE INFO: SS11 / 12
SS11: Mökkiperä 1, 13.84km
Mökkiperä is one of the rally’s most technical tests and a tough wake-up call. It has plenty of jumps but is slower than others. The opening section comprises flat roads, long straights and 90 degree corners. But after 6km it switches character, with one fast corner following another, most of them with tricky crests to increase the challenge.
SS12: Jukojärvi 1, 21.14km
A new opening 7.6km introduces the normal Jukojärvi, with a monster jump at 4.9km. Once it joins the usual route, the rhythm changes several times and there are many stones lurking by the roadside which demand precision. The final 13km are very fast, especially the section from 17.50km – 19.50km which Mikko Hirvonen says requires just one dab of the brakes!
Overnight leader Latvala stretched his lead to 6.0sec by winning Mökkiperä in his Polo R, only for Ogier to strike back and top the times in Jukojärvi. It left the gap between them at 2.1sec – exactly the margin when they turned off their engines last night.
Latvala launched an attack in the opener but credited Ogier for his response. “Seb did a brilliant drive. The road was getting slippery and I didn’t have the best feeling. I didn’t do the best performance,” said the Finn.
Dry roads in the opener hampered Ogier, second in the start order. “It was drier than yesterday and we cleaned the roads. The set-up was too soft and I could have done better. Conditions were damper in the next one. First on the road was the best place but second wasn’t bad,” said the Frenchman, who stiffened the spring settings before the start.
Kris Meeke was second and third to increase his advantage over Citroën team-mate Mads Østberg to 15.5sec. The French squad replaced the transmission on Meeke’s DS 3 last night although the cause of the Ulsterman’s problem yesterday remains unknown.
Østberg survived a close call on the first corner in Mökkiperä, while fifth-placed Thierry Neuville ended Jukojärvi with his Hyundai i20’s windscreen wipers stuck across the front screen.
The Ford Fiesta RS cars of Ott Tänak and Elfyn Evans were restored to full health and both were focused on checking their pace notes having dropped so much time yesterday. However, Tänak was still third in Mökkiperä.
It was a fraught start for Martin Prokop, who went off in the opener and then overshot a junction in the next test.
Bron: http://www.wrc.com
NEW ZEALANDER HAYDEN PADDON HAS JUST ONE MORE RALLY TO WAIT UNTIL HE GETS THE SAME SPECIFICATION OF I20 WORLD RALLY CAR AS HYUNDAI MOTORSPORT TEAM DRIVERS THIERRY NEUVILLE AND DANI SORDO.
Paddon drives for Hyundai’s second-tier Motorsport N squad and has used an older specification car all season compared to the ones driven by Neuville and Sordo.
Most recently in Poland, Neuville and Sordo benefited from an engine camshaft upgrade, while Paddon’s car had the prevous unit that was introduced at Rally Guanajuato Mexico in March.
But from ADAC Rallye Deutschland [20-23 August] onwards Paddon, the fastest Hyundai driver for the last two rallies, will compete on level terms.
“We try to update Hayden’s car two rallies after the others, so from Germany onwards he will have the same engine we introduced in Poland,” said team principal Michel Nandan.
“The camshaft modification improves the range of useable torque, and while that wasn’t too relevant in Poland, and won’t be in Finland, it will be much more effective on twisty events like Germany where you have more corners and braking.”
No further engine modifications are planned between now and the introduction of Hyundai’s all-new model in 2016, so Paddon should be in identical machinery for the last five rounds – including his home event in Australia.
Nandan refused to rule out a guest spot for Paddon in the main squad later in the season, but felt the car upgrades made the move less important.
“Hayden has already made the team once this year, when he replaced the injured Dani in Sweden, so it could be possible – we’ll see,” he said. “But the three cars will be the same quite soon, so it doesn’t really matter in terms of him having the same chances.”
Bron: http://www.wrc.com
DPMotorsport 