[Weasel 555]

Only a week after the punishing Acropolis Rally, the busiest period of the season is brought to a close by the Rally of Turkey, the final event before the summer break. It is the sixth gravel event in a row at the start of this season, and the conditions will provide no gentle wind-down on what is only the second World Rally for Subaru’s Impreza WRC2008.

Last seen on the world stage in 2006, the Rally of Turkey makes a comeback this year with an almost identical route to that of two years ago. Nineteen rock-strewn stages will take competitors through 360 competitive kilometres (slightly longer than previously) across the Anatolian mountains to an altitude of almost 1800 metres above sea level.

Driver quotes
Petter Solberg: “I’m looking forward to going back to Turkey as the stages have suited us well in the past. We were fast there in the old car, and we’ve shown what the new car can do in Greece, so I’m very excited to see what we can do again, to keep pushing and for the results to start coming. I have a good feeling with the new car, so if we can get the whole package working with the roads there, it could be very good. There’s more to come from the car, so I’ll drive my best with no mistakes and see if we can be a little bit quicker than in Greece.”

Chris Atkinson: “Turkey will be difficult again as every stage is so varied. It’s also soon after Greece which was a tough rally so it won’t be easy. Ok, it’s only the second rally for the new car, but we have learned a lot already and I hope can take this into Turkey to take the little steps forward we’re after. We need to get some more drivers’ points, so I’ll be pushing. For this week I’m just trying to relax though so I can arrive ready.”


SWRT.com preview

WRC Turkey Official Site

 

[Weasel 555]

Jari-Matti Latvala was quickest in the shakedown for the Rally of Turkey on Thursday morning, the eighth round in the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship and the final event before the summer break.

Latvala completed the stage in his BP Ford Abu Dhabi WRT Focus RS WRC07 in 3 minutes 55.7 seconds, setting his best effort on his third and final pass.

Stobart Ford's Gigi Galli meanwhile was second - 1.5 seconds slower, while Mikko Hirvonen ensured the 'Blue Oval' took a clean sweep of the top three, albeit another 2.2 seconds further back.

Shakedown Times:
1. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 3mins 55.7secs M
2 Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 3mins 57.2secs MT
3. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 3mins 59.4secs M
4. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 4mins 00.4secs M
5. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC 4mins 00.7secs M
6. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 4mins 01.4secs MT
7. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 4mins 01.7secs M
8. Andreas Mikkelsen Ramsport Ford Focus WRC 4mins 02.4secs A8
9. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC 4mins 03.9ecs M
10. Urmo Aava PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC 4mins 04.3secs A8
11. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 4mins 05.6secs A8

Crash.net Shakedown

 

[Weasel 555]

SS1 - Antalya (2.60km): Loeb fastest through the short dusty SSS; Petter Solberg second; Hirvonen third; Latvala fourth; Sordo fifth; Atkinson sixth; Andersson had launch control problems; Baldacci heads the PWRC category: Loeb leads the overall event by 0.7 seconds.

Overall times after SS1:
1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC 2mins 07.6secs M
2. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 00.7secs M
3. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 01.1secs M
4. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 02.2secs M
5. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 02.9secs M
6. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 03.7secs M
7. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 04.0secs MT
= Andreas Mikkelsen Ramsport-Ford Focus WRC06 +00mins 04.0secs A8
9. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 04.9secs MT
= Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 04.9secs MT
11. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +00mins 05.3secs M

Overall PWRC after SS1:

1. Mirco Baldacci Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2mins 13.0secs P
2. Simone Campedelli Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 00.4secs P
3. Nasser Al-Attiyah Subaru Impreza WRX STi +00mins 00.6secs P

 

[Weasel 555]

Overall times after SS4:

1. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 47mins 29.6secs M
2. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 06.9secs M
3. Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 07.7secs MT
4. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 08.4secs MT
5. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 10.2secs M
6. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 11.2secs M
7. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 24.4secs M
8. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 27.7secs A8
9. P-G Andersson Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +00mins 35.9secs M
10. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 36.1secs M
11. Andreas Mikkelsen Ramsport-Ford Focus WRC06 +00mins 37.2secs A8
12. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +01mins 16.2secs A8
13. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +01mins 25.1secs M
14. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +01mins 39.9secs MT
15. Barry Clark Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +02mins 14.0secs MT

Overall PWRC after SS4:

1. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 50mins 00.4secs P
2. Mirco Baldacci Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 00.4secs P
3. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +00mins 15.5

Notable retirements:

SS3. Urmo Aava PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC Lost a wheel. A8

 

[Weasel 555]

Overall times after SS6:

1. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 1hour 24mins 06.2secs M
2. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 04.4secs M
3. Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 15.3secs MT
4. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 19.2secs M
5. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 19.5secs M
6. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 33.5secs MT
7. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 51.8secs M
8. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +01mins 07.0secs A8
9. P-G Andersson Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +01mins 07.6secs M
10. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +01mins 12.4secs M
11. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +02mins 16.1secs A8
12. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +02mins 18.2secs M

Overall PWRC after SS6:

1. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 1hour 29mins 13.7secs P
2. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 00.7secs P
3. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 11.9secs

Notable retirements:

SS3. Urmo Aava PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC Lost a wheel. A8

 

[Weasel 555]

SS7 - Kumluca 2 (9.90 km): Loeb fastest through SS7; Hirvonen second; Galli third; Henning Solberg fourth; Petter Solberg fifth; Wilson sixth - despite rear left puncture; Andersson had a front right puncture; Latvala ninth - front right puncture; Atkinson retired from leg after SS6 - suspension damage; Baldacci heads the PWRC category; Hirvonen leads the overall event by 9.3 seconds.

Overall times after SS7:

1. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 1hour 31mins 50.8secs M
2. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 09.3secs M
3. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 13.5secs M
4. Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 15.1secs MT
5. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 34.5secs MT
6. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 58.1secs M
7. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +01mins 14.1secs A8
8. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +01mins 20.6secs M
9. P-G Andersson Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +02mins 00.2secs M
10. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +02mins 26.5secs M
11. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +02mins 26.7secs A8
12. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +02mins 49.8secs MT
13. Barry Clark Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +04mins 54.5secs MT
14. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +05mins 32.2secs P
15. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +05mins 44.0secs P
16. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +05mins 57.0secs P
17. Martin Prokop Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +06mins 00.7secs P
18. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +06mins 06.7secs M
19. Eyvind Brynildsen Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +06mins 11.0secs P
20. Evgeniy Vertunov Subaru Impreza WRX STi +06mins 22.3secs P

Overall PWRC after SS7:

1. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 1hour 37mins 23.0secs P
2. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 11.8secs P
3. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 24.8secs P

Notable retirements:

SS3. Urmo Aava PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC Lost a wheel. A8
SS6/7. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 Suspension. M

 

[Weasel 555]

Overall times after SS8:

1. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 1hour 44mins 22.0secs M
2. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 02.0secs M
3. Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 04.8secs MT
4. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 15.1secs M
5. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 24.9secs MT
6. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 58.4 secs M
7. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +01mins 23.0secs A8
8. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +01mins 26.5secs M
9. P-G Andersson Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +01mins 59.4secs M
10. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +02mins 40.3secs M
11. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +02mins 54.4secs A8
12. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +03mins 12.8secs MT
13. Barry Clark Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +05mins 41.3secs MT
14. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +06mins 28.8secs P
15. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +06mins 29.9secs P

Overall PWRC after SS8:

1. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 1hour 50mins 50.8secs P
2. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +00mins 01.1secs P
3. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 20.7secs P

 

[Weasel 555]

Amazing how Loeb has gotten to the front of the pack on day 1 !!!!
------------------------------------------
End of Day 1:
SS9 - Phaselis 1 (22.40 km): Henning Solberg fastest through SS9; Sordo second; Wilson third; Loeb fourth; Gardemeister fifth; Petter Solberg sixth; Hirvonen, Latvala and Galli eased off to ensure a better road position on day 2; Andersson lost over 4 minutes with a steering problem; Aigner heads the PWRC category; Loeb leads the overall event by 1 second at the end of day 1.


Overall times after SS9:

1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC 2hours 02mins 35.2secs M
2. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 01.0secs MT
3. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 01.1secs M
4. Gigi Galli Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +00mins 02.2secs MT
5. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 06.9secs M
6. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +00mins 49.1secs M
7. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +01mins 05.9secs A8
8. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +01mins 06.8secs M
9. Toni Gardemeister Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +02mins 27.1secs M
10. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +02mins 50.0secs A8
11. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +03mins 17.2secs MT
12. P-G Andersson Suzuki WRT SX4 WRC +05mins 53.7secs M
13. Barry Clark Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +06mins 12.3secs MT
14. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +07mins 14.6secs P
15. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +07mins 15.5secs P

Overall PWRC after SS9:

1. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2hours 09mins 49.9secs P
2. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +00mins 00.9secs P
3. Uwe Nittel Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +00mins 06.0secs P

Notable retirements:

SS3. Urmo Aava PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC Lost a wheel. A8
SS6/7. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 Suspension. M

 

[Weasel 555]

if anyone actually missed me posting the results/news sorry i was away at a charity event "Scoobies for Autism" a event to raise money and awareness to famalies with autistic children. hosted by members from clubwrx.net and nasioc.com ;D

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Day 3:
Overall times after SS19 / Day 3 - Top 13:

1. Mikko Hirvonen BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 4hours 42mins 07.1secs M
2. Jari-Matti Latvala BP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC 07 +00mins 07.9secs M
3. Sebastien Loeb Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +00mins 25.7secs M
4. Daniel Sordo Citroen Total WRT C4 WRC +02mins 25.6secs M
5. Henning Solberg Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +02mins 33.7secs MT
6. Petter Solberg Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +02mins 48.2secs M
7. Matthew Wilson Stobart VK Ford Focus WRC 07 +04mins 24.2secs A8
8. Conrad Rautenbach PH Sport-Citroen C4 WRC +07mins 46.7secs A8
9. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +09mins 34.1secs MT
10. Barry Clark Munchi's Ford Focus WRC 07 +14mins 48.8secs MT
11. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +20mins 14.5secs P
12. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +21mins 03.2secs P
13. Chris Atkinson Subaru WRT Impreza WRC 2008 +22mins 36.5secs M

Overall PWRC after SS19 / Day 3 - Top 4:

1. Andreas Aigner Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 5hours 02mins 21.6secs P
2. Patrik Sandell Peugeot 207 S2000 +00mins 48.7secs P
3. Mirco Baldacci Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +03mins 01.0secs P
4. Martin Rauam Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX +05mins 31.0secs P

Championship Tables:
WRC Championship Tables

Sebastien Loeb has said that it is 'wrong' tactics played such a key role in deciding the outcome of the Rally of Turkey this weekend, the final round in the World Rally Championship before the summer break.

Loeb was forced to play the 'road sweeper' on both days one and two, after Mikko Hirvonen, Jari-Matti Latvala and Gigi Galli all slowed in the final stage on Friday night in order to ensure they didn't have to run first in the order on the second leg.

Read More

The next WRC Event is a true high speed "classic" the Neste Rally of FinlandAug1-3
Neste Oil Rally of Finland