A sense of humour should be a prerequisite for all drivers and co-drivers in the World Rally Championship. In fact, it should be a requirement for all involved in this sport. After bringing his battle-weary Ford Fiesta RS WRC to the finish ramp in the WRC Rally de Portugal, Henning Solberg said: “I have had a lot of problems, I’m not sure if I was born with it or not. I want to know can I buy luck?”
After 17 grueling stages over three long days in the Portuguese heat, the leader board was half as long as it was then the crews took to the first stage. The WRC category also saw a long list of its competitors not complete the entire event distance, and this was to be expected from this car-breaking rally.
Keeping his head down and driving an inch-perfect event, Sebastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia (Citroen Total World Rally Team) claimed a back-to-back win on this trying event. Over 30secs back were teammates Sebsastien Loeb/Daniel Elena, who were not able to reel in the young Frenchmen on the final day’s four stages despite their best efforts. Ogier, who this journalists opinion has had a chance of winning both previous rounds of the 2011 WRC calendar, made good on his potential to claim the victory here.
“It’s been a perfect weekend,” smiled Ogier. “We controlled our first day well and then we pushed at the right moment. It’s a telling result for the whole team with the double and the points in the Power Stage. After six months without a win I was starting to get a bit edgy. I hope it’s the start of a good series. The points we’ve bagged today will help us relaunch our championship challenge after our disappointment in Rally Mexico. I’d like to thank the team for all their hard work. I’m as happy for them as I am for myself!”
Suffering a multitude of punctures on Day One, Petter Solberg/Chris Patterson (Petter Solberg World Rally Team) were forced to call it quits to restart Day Two under SupeRally regulations. The Norwegian ace pushed his privateer Citroen DS3 WRC beyond its limits, and the car repaid the favour to bring the team home in sixth position overall. Along the way, Solberg claimed six stage wins. Without his Day One headaches, this driver would most certainly have claimed a podium position.
Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Anttila (Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team) and teammates Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen also suffered at the hands of the demanding stages, demoting them to drive for the third and fourth respectively. Punctures and mechanical maladies forced the Fords’ pace down, but both drivers secured two stages wins apiece when they had clean runs.
The true pace of the Ford Fiesta RS WRC versus that of the Citroen DS3 WRC is yet to be seen: for now, Citroen is one better than Ford in terms of reliability. But, with ten rounds still remaining on the calendar and the happy hunting ground in Rally Jordan later this month on the menu, rally fans will be able to analyze the pace of each in greater detail still.
Claiming fifth place overall was Matthew Wilson/Scott Martin (M-Sport Stobart Ford Rally Team), driving a consistent and mature rally. Their teammates Mads Ostberg/Jonas Andersson were hamstrung by a series of minor problems.
Kimi Raikkonen/Kaj Lindstrom (Ice 1 Racing) claimed seventh position overall, running comfortably on the gravel speed tests. Federico Villagra (Munchi’s Ford World Rally Team) was eighth overall at the end of the rally, followed by Henning Solberg (M-Sport Stobart Ford World Rally Team) and Dennis Kuipers (FERM World Rally Team) in tenth.
With less than two weeks before the WRC drivers tackle the Rally Jordan, all eyes will be on the Ford crews and their aim to claim a second win this season for the Fiesta RS WRC from the Citroen DS3 WRC.
OVERALL CLASSIFICATION
01) S. Ogier/J. Ingrassia
Citroen DS3 WRC – 04hr 10m 53.4s
02) S. Loeb/D. Elena
Citroen DS3 WRC + 31.8s
03) J-M. Latvala/M. Anttila
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 03m 22.1s
04) M. Hirvonen/J. Lehtinen
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 06m 16.3s
05) M. Wilson/S. Martin
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 07m 48.5s
06) P. Solberg/C. Patterson
Citroen DS3 WRC + 10m 17.4s
07) K. Raikkonen/K. Lindstrom
Citroen DS3 WRC + 10m 54.1s
08) F. Villagra/J. Perez Companc
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 11m 38.8s
09) H. Solberg/I. Minor
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 14m 16.4s
10) D. Kuipers/F. Miclotte
Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 17m 54.6s