News

Rally GB hosts one-point WRC fight

This weekend’s final round of the 2009 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) will be a title fight between leader Mikko Hirvonen (Ford) and Sebastién Loeb (Citroen) with a solitary point separating the pair in the WRC drivers’ championship standings.

This year, after 11 rounds, 219 competitive stages and 3774.37km of competition, five-time and current drivers’ champion Loeb trails the 29-year-old Hirvonen from Finland. Whichever driver is the highest on the leader-board, irrespective of where they finish in the overall results, when the rally returns to its Welsh base of Cardiff after three days of flat-out driving will lift the crown.

There’s also a tactical element between Ford’s Jari-Mati Latvala and Citroen’s Dani Sordo to keep an eye on as the series readies itself for the most exciting finale for several years.

As the current leader, Mikko Hirvonen and co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen will start Wales Rally GB first on the road in their BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team car for the three-day, 16 stage and 348 kilometre competition.

“Although I’ve won there before, this rally hasn’t always been kind to me, but I do enjoy the roads in Wales and know them well. They’re fast and flowing, even quicker than my home event in Finland in places. If I had to choose a rally on which to fight for the title then Finland would be my first choice. But Britain would be second on the list. I love driving there and the roads really suit me. At this time of year they won’t be covered in ice or snow, so they should be perfect,” said Hirvonen.

“I feel really excited about the situation and can’t wait for the rally to start, but I don’t feel any pressure. It will be a hard fight and I don’t underestimate the job I need to do. But I have no expectations and because of that I’ve taken the pressure off myself and put it to one side,” he added.

All 16 special stages are held on narrow but fast privately-owned gravel tracks, more commonly used by timber-transport trucks. The rally is six weeks earlier than last year and a continuation of the dry and warm autumn in Britain could remove the event’s traditionally most difficult challenge: unpredictable weather. Tree-lined sections high in the hilly forests contrast with wide-open stretches and while ice and snow is highly unlikely in October, fog could be present if the weather worsens. In gloomy conditions the fog hangs between the trees and throws a white blanket across exposed areas on higher ground.

Equally as familiar with the terrain, Citroen Total World Rally Team’s Sebastién Loeb says the weather conditions play a big part in success at this event.

“The cocktail of rain, mud and fog – especially in the dark – has a habit of making this a very tough event. Our mission in Wales is pretty much straightforward; we need to finish ahead of Mikko Hirvonen and in the points. The two of us will obviously be under a great deal of pressure, and even a small mistake could put either one of us out of the running for the title. As far as possible, I will try to put everything else to the back of my mind and simply get on with the fight,” said the 35-year-old.

With 64 teams entered for the event, it also features as the final round of the Production World Rally Championship (P-WRC). While Portugal’s Armindo Araujo has an unassailable points lead, the battle for runner-up is between three drivers.

New Zealand has two entrants. Wales Rally GB will be the final event for Mark Tapper and Jeff Judd in the Pirelli Star Driver programme, and the Ralliart New Zealand team of Neil Allport is running Italian Giorgio Bacco in a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX.

The event is based in a new service park in Cardiff Bay and the spectacular indoor test at the city's Millennium Stadium has been dropped for 2009.  After Thursday's ceremonial start in Cardiff, drivers journey 160km north on Friday for two loops of classic tests in mid-Wales, split by a brief 15-minute service in Builth Wells. Saturday is the longest leg and mixes the long Rhondda test in the Vale of Neath, including roads not used since 2003, with the traditional second day tests further north, near Brecon. The final day is based in the south and includes two passes through the famous Walter's Arena section in Rheola Forest. Returning to Cardiff in the early afternoon, the championship title presentation and event accolades start from 2:35pm.