GRN's 2011 round-up: Intercontinental Rally Challenge (Part 1)

Starting off Global Rally News' review of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge is the historic Rallye Monte Carlo, and this year was it's centenary.

Bryan Bouffier got his 2011 IRC campaign off to the best possible start after he took his first win of his IRC career. Piloting his Peugeot 207 S2000, he and co-driver Xavier Panseri took a 32.5 sec win over Freddy Loix after an inspired tyre choice launched him from seventh to first. A faultless drive for Guy Wilks on his début for Peugeot lead to a third placed finish.

SS7 turned the rally leaderboard on it's head. As ever in Monte Carlo, the right tyres became the deciding factor between flying up the order, and plummeting down it. Heading out to the stage, Bouffier and Francois Delecour, returning to the scene of his final World Rally win, went out on studded tyres. Most other drivers, including reigning Champion Juho Hanninen and former World Champion Petter Solberg, went out on intermediate tyres, virtually useless in the snowy and slushy conditions. The resulting shake-up lead to Bouffier taking the lead and Delecour taking sixth. Delecour won the next stage, taking full advantage of his studded tyre choice. Bouffier spun twice, but still took second. Hanninen dropped even further down, as did team-mate Kopecky.

Stéphane Sarrazin fought back to third after a stuck gearbox on SS11 and a poor tyre choice on SS7, but elected to drop time to let team-mate Guy Wilks into third, as this may be Sarrazin's only IRC appearance this year due to closed-circuit racing commitments, which includes the 24hrs of Le Mans. Francois Delecour took fifth, after admitting he wouldn't be able to hold on to the second place he gained after SS8. An older-spec car and a power problem in his car lead to him being passed. Nevertheless, he proved that age is but a number, beating a number of established IRC regulars.

Juho Hanninen took sixth after his poor tyre choice in the conditions of SS7 and SS8. Nicholas Vouilloz took seventh after a puncture dropped him right down the order. Fastest time over the first run over the Col de Turini showed what he might have been able to do on his first rally for almost a year. Jan Kopecky had a lacklustre rally, unable to find his usual pace, well down in eighth. Giandomenico Basso, the first IRC Champion, took ninth in a private 207 S2000. Tenth was Toni Gardemiester. The former WRC regular suffered at Day 1 puncture but fought back to tenth with an inspired performance.

Juho Hanninen made up for his Rallye Monte Carlo with a close win on the Rally Islas Canarias. The rally was close fought from start for finish, Day 1 ending with only 9 secs separating the Top 4 drivers. Team-mate Jan Kopecky made it a Skoda 1-2 with second, only 1.5 secs between himself and his rally-winning team-mate. Rising Belgian star Theirry Neuville took third after leading early on the final day, but worn tyres dropped him time.

Freddy Loix, on his début on the rally, took fourth after making some adjustments to his notes. Indeed, he fought for the top spot at one stage, but a misted up windscreen lost him time. Guy Wilks made it to fifth, after holding the lead at one point of Day 1, until a lack of confidence in his set up dropped him out of contention. Andreas Mikkelsen followed team orders, which were to finish the rally after crashing out of Monte Carlo, taking sixth spot.

Championship leader Bryan Bouffier ended the rally 7^th, a combination of poor set-up and lack of knowledge hurting him badly. Eighth went to Bruno Magalhaes, who was still recovering his confidence after his big Monte Carlo crash. Giandomenico Basso switched from a privateer Peugeot 207 S2000 to a works Proton Satria Neo S2000, taking ninth. Toni Gardemiester took the final point for 10^th after switching to a Skoda Fabia S2000 for the rally.

Theirry Neuville underlined his undoubted natural talent by taking his first IRC win on the very next round, the Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc. Neuville (23), who has only ever taken part in 9 IRC rallies prior to Corsica, became the youngest winner of an IRC event since Anton Alén (then 24), son of Markku, won in Russia in 2007. Jan Kopecky took second, 15.5 secs behind the Belgian, although the Czech driver kept Neuville honest throughout the rally, never being far away. Freddy Loix completed the Top 3 in his BFO Skoda Rally Team car, over 1 min off the lead.

Pierre Campana, who is actually from Corsica, took fourth in his impressive début in an S2000 car. An intercom gremlin lead to him focusing on finishing, but a puncture dropped him a lot of time. Then fellow Frenchman Bryan Bouffier crashed out protecting fourth, thus elevating Campana up to his final position. Brake problems are not something you want in Corsica, but Bruno Magalhaes managed to overcome them and improve his confidence to take a strong fifth. Andreas Mikkelsen ended up sixth after a puncture robbed him of a podium spot.

Julien Maurin was another to survive brake problems, as well as tyre wear issues, to take seventh in his Fiesta S2000 to his first IRC points for seventh, over 2 mins clear of Toni Gardemiester who had to contend with a broken gearbox on the last stage. Ninth went to Patrick Sandell on his IRC début. The final point for tenth went to Frenchman Jean-Mathieu Leandri, on a charge after suffering a puncture.

Reigning Champion Juho Hanninen became an IRC record breaker with victory in the Prime Yalta Rally, the Ukrainian event making it's début in the IRC. Hanninen's seventh win lifted him above his fellow Skoda driver Freddy Loix, who has six. Bryan Bouffier took second, 11.7 secs behind Hanninen, making up for his last-minute rally-ending crash in Corsica 3 weeks prior. Jan Kopecky made it a Skoda 1-3 by sealing third, thus lifting Skoda to the IRC Manufacturer's Championship lead.

Andreas Mikkelsen took fourth, chasing Kopecky hard for third. The margin between the Skoda-driving pair was narrowed to less than 13 secs until Mikkelsen crashed backwards into a tree on SS12. The collision damaged the exhaust and the right-rear corner of his car. He and co-driver Ola Floene devised a fairly novel way of fixing the problem, attaching the part of bodywork that was blocking the exhaust to a ratchet strap, which was connected on the other end to a lamppost, pulling the offending part of bodywork off. This approach to fixing the problem earned him the Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy, echoing McRae's various, and numerous, attempts at fixing cars on the road side (such as fixing his Subaru's suspension with a tree branch, in Wales 1995).

A puncture-filled weekend for Guy Wilks was rewarded with fifth, having suffered 2 punctures on Day 2. Another puncture greeted him after hitting a concrete block that held the stage flying finish board in place. Theirry Neuville took sixth after a high-speed crash and puncture on Day 2. Power problems in his Fabia left Toni Gardemiester in seventh. A puncture and pace-note issues gave Karl Kruuda eighth on his IRC début in a 4WD car. One of the few drivers managing to avoid punctures was Patrick Sandell, who took ninth. Tenth went to the IRC 2WD winner Jean-Michael Raoux in his Renault Clio, but with neither he nor Vlad Cosma eligible for IRC points, the point 10^th place gives went to Janos Puskadi.

'Fast' Freddy moved back to joint-top of the all-time IRC round winners with Juho Hanninen after taking his seventh win on home soil, the GEKO Ypres Rally. Bryan Bouffier originally took second, but he was excluded post-event. This promoted Hans Weijs Jr., on his IRC and Fabia S2000 début, up to second, albeit nearly 4 mins off Loix. Michal Solowow took third in his Fiesta S2000.

A lot of punctures and a spin held Guy Wilks back, leaving him fourth at the end. Karl Kruuda suffered many punctures too, and this time an intercom gremlin, but took fifth on his second event of the year. A puncture also held Toni Gardemiester back, but sixth was a strong finish for the Fabia-mounted Finn's first time at the Belgian classic.

European Champion and Ypres winner 4 years ago Luca Rossetti took seventh after punctures and spin cost him time. Bernard Ten Brinke took eighth, scoring his first IRC points. Irishman Robert Barrable, how was on his Ypres début, took ninth but suffered an overshoot on the last stage, but when PG Andersson, who he was trying to keep at bay, damaged his Proton Satria Neo S2000, Barrable kept the position. Julien Maurin was promoted up one place, along with the rest of the finishers, to 10^th and one point after Bouffier's exclusion.

This Is Rallying

An onboard video of a Polish driver, without his pacenotes for part of the stage, driving like his life depended on it!

With thanks to siemko79 for uploading.

GRN's 2011 round-up: World Rally Championship (Part 2)
Part 2 of GRN's WRC round-up kicks off with the summer spectacular that is Rally Finland, known for obvious reasons as the 'Grand Prix on gravel'.

Sebastian Loeb became the only non-Finn in the history of the World Rally Championship to win Rally Finland, or the 1000 Lakes Rally as it used to be known, twice. After pre-event favourite Mikko Hirvonen crashed on SS1, and Loeb's team-mate Sebastian Ogier picked up a puncture on SS17 so it came down to a fight between Loeb and Jari-Matti Latvala. Problems for Latvala and an on-form Loeb denied the Finn the win, but he did show what could have been with an amazing performance in the closing stages of the event, although by his own admission it came too late.

“It feels very good. For sure it was a very difficult race with the other drivers dropping behind me to make me clean the road. But finally we won and in the end it was a big relief and maybe the best win of my career.” said Loeb.

Ogier was demoted to third after his puncture, convinced he could have won the event. Mikko Hirvonen put in probably the best drive of the rally, and possibly of his career too, to fight back to fourth after his SS1 crash. Indeed, such was Hirvonen's pace, that he went from 34^th overall and 2 mins off the lead at the end of Day 1 to fourth overall and just over 1 min off the lead by the end of the rally. Oh yes, and he took 13 stage wins (including the Power Stage) along the way too, more than 50% of the stages of the rally. Fifth was Petter Solberg, who couldn't explain his own lack of pace after his pre-event tests showed all the right things. Fellow Norwegian Mads Ostberg took sixth in his Fiesta, showing some strong times, and sporting a black armband in memory of the victims of the terror attacks in his home county.

Sebastian Loeb was finally beaten in Germany, the rally he has come to dominate in the 8 years it has been run. However, it was another Sebastian in another Citroen that did win the event.

Sebastian Ogier took the lead after Loeb picked up a puncture, one he couldn't explain, on SS14. Dropping 1 min 11 secs to Ogier after the puncture, Loeb wiped over 30 secs out of Ogier, including 15 secs on the rain-hit Dhrontal 2 test. It wasn't enough in the end, with Ogier winning but Loeb won the Power Stage, some consolation at least.

“My team-mate is so strong on this rally so to get the victory and the extra points in the Power Stage is a very good result,” said Ogier. “Mathematically the championship is still possible and I have to believe I have a chance. As long as there is a chance then I am going to try.” said Ogier.

Dani Sordo took third in an excellent display onboard his MINI John Cooper Works WRC, it's tarmac début. Electrical problems halted team-mate Meeke's efforts, but it was nevertheless a good showing from the MINI's. Mikko Hirvonen took fourth, not a bad result considering there were 3 tarmac specialists in front of him, and it's not his favourite surface. Petter Solberg took fifth, plus one point from the Power Stage. Multiple punctures early on in the rally slowed him considerably however. Kimi Raikkonen took sixth in what was a rally with “too many mistakes” for the Finn's own liking.

Citroen's run of 8 straight wins came to an abrupt and embarrassing end when Mikko Hirvonen took the win 'Down Under' in Australia. Both Citroen drivers went out on Friday, with Loeb rolling his DS3 WRC and Ogier having an argument with a tree in his example. Unfortunately the tree won and he too was taken out. Both managed to fight back to 10^th and 11^th respectively, with Loeb winning the Power Stage.

“This is a fantastic feeling and a very important result for the team and for my championship chances. I have to say a big thank you to my team and also to Jari-Matti for slowing down. I’m back in the game but we have to work really hard now to improve our pace on Tarmac [the surface of the next two rounds].” said Hirvonen.

Hirvonen's team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala lead into the final day, but dutifully stepped aside to allow his team-mate to win. Petter Solberg took third, delighted to be “back on the pace”, marking his first podium since Italy. Matthew Wilson equalled his best result of fourth with a controlled drive. Khalid Al-Qassimi took his best ever finish of fifth, thanking his co-driver Michael Orr and his team for supporting him. Newly crowned P-WRC Champion Hayden Paddon took sixth in his Group N Subaru Impreza, marking his fourth win from four starts in this year's P-WRC.

The second tarmac event of the year went to Sebastian Ogier, in France. Sebastian Loeb's engine went 'bang' on Day 1, leaving Ogier the sole remaining Citroen works entry. He duly delivered, although after a fight with Dani Sordo's MINI. Sordo took second in the end up, something he was very happy about, only 6 secs behind Ogier. Mikko Hirvonen inherited third after Petter Solberg was excluded from the rally post-event after a technical infringement.

Ogier said: “It’s a very good feeling. It was difficult at the end because there was a lot of pressure after the problem for Seb [Loeb]. It’s very important for the championship but now I must do two good rallies.”

Jari-Matti Latvala took fourth after electing to drop behind his team-mate to aid him in the Driver's Championship. His sportsmanship was rewarded with 3 extra points on the Power Stage. Dennis Kuipers took his best finish, which was coincidently the best finish for a Dutch driver as well, in the WRC with fifth. Henning Solberg inherited seventh when Armindo Araujo crashed his MINI into a wall, and then seventh became sixth when his younger brother Petter was excluded.

Sebastian Loeb returned to winning ways 3 weeks later with a commanding win in Spain. His comfortable gap of 2 mins over Mikko Hirvonen didn't tell the entire story though. For most of the mixed-surface event, Ford's Jari-Matti Latvala scrapped with Loeb over the top spot, and Latvala only really relinquished the lead when he lost a lot of time in the hanging dust during the rather unpopular, with the drivers anyway, night stage. He then, as in France 3 weeks ago, dropped time to let Hirvonen, fighting for the Championship, up into second.

“It was a really good rally for us coming from three bad rallies We did the perfect race I would say with no mistakes. Mikko has taken a lot of points so we stay very close in the championship but the point for the Power Stage could be very important.” said event winner Loeb.

Dani Sordo failed to live up to pro-event expectation from his home fans, owing to a puncture and steering problems, but a strong fourth place in the end was surely deserved. Team-mate Kris Meeke gained his first points with a solid drive to fifth place, winning the Power Stage too. Ironically, Meeke had never taken part in a Power Stage, and was shocked to see he had beaten Sordo to the extra 3 points. Mads Ostberg continued to put in strong drives with a fine sixth place in the Stobart Fiesta.

With Ogier going out with an engine failure, it shaped up to be a tight finish to the season. Ogier was now mathematically out of the running, so it came down to just 8 points between Loeb and Hirvonen, an almost re-run of 2009. 8 points may have seemed like a lot, but with 7 points between first and second places and an extra 3 points for the Power Stage, it was as tight as you like.

Loeb and Hirvonen knew that neither of them could afford a slip-up and had to hell for leather to win the rally, and the Power Stage, and thus the title. The lead changed hands between the pair for the first 6 stages, never far apart. SS7 more-or-less handed Loeb the title after Hirvonen spun, hit a tree & did terminal damage to the engine. He tried to continue, but the engine gave up. Championship over for the young Finn.

Latvala, the sole remaining Ford, set about denying Loeb the Welsh win. He put in an amazing charge against the Frenchman, taking fastest time after fastest time, to knock Loeb's lead out from under him. Loeb wanted to finish the rally, so he duly backed off, and let the other young Finn rocket off into the distance. By the end of the rally, Latvala had taken 11 stage wins, and had a rather comfortable 3 min 42 sec cushion over second place. But it wasn't Loeb in second.

Leaving the Halfway 1 stage, Loeb was involved with a minor collision with a road car on the road section. No-one was injured in the accident (except maybe the pride of the Spanish fan driving the car, who was left with the unenviable title of being the man to have taken Sebastian Loeb out of a rally), but the DS3 WRC's radiator was holed, and he didn't go any further. That gave Latvala a bit of breathing space over second placed Mads Ostberg, who rounded out a consistent but cash-strapped year with a solid second place. Henning Solberg took third, his first podium since Poland 2009, after coming under immense pressure from Kris Meeke in the MINI. Starting the final day 35 secs behind Solberg, Meeke reduced the deficit right down to 1.8 secs. A spin on the Power Stage ultimately prevented his breakthrough podium in the WRC, but it is a sure sign of things to come. Indeed, such was Meeke's pace, Solberg was sure he'd lose his third spot to the flying Meeke.

Matthew Wilson took fifth in his Fiesta, rounding out a very consistent year for the young Briton. Sixth went to Ott Tanak in the DMACK Tyres Fiesta, impressing on his début in World Rally Car machinery.

So that's it for our review of the 2011 WRC Season, a close fought affair between the usual suspects, with a few new names thrown in for good measure. The new era of the WRC is shaping up to be an exciting time, with the arrival of MINI and the imminent and anticipated arrival of Volkswagen, and surely other will follow.

Keep a close eye on Global Rally News over the festive season, we'll be bringing you an equally in-depth review of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, an even more closely contested affair. After which we will be bringing you a team-by-team review of the WRC and IRC, to make sure nothing has been missed and you get to read about everything that went on within the two biggest rally championships in the world.

But for now, Global Rally News wishes you a very Merry Christmas, and an equally Happy New Year!

GRN 2011 round-up: World Rally Championship (Part 1)

To kick off Global Rally News' round-up of the 2011 WRC, we naturally start off with the first round of the season, Rally Sweden, and what an opener it was.

Ford and Mikko Hirvonen got their 2011 campaign off to the best possible start with victory on the Swedish spectacular. Indeed, he didn't lead all of the way. Mads Ostberg, also Ford-mounted, lead after Day 1 and, when Hirvonen took the lead, the Norwegian kept the Finn on his toes, never straying far from the works entry on the time sheets.

“I was really nervous before the last stage but what a fantastic start from the team with the new car. The car has been quick straight away and after a tough season last year I am really pleased with this. But I am not taking this feeling any further. We’ve won here and now we need to move on to the next round in Mexico where it will be a different game. But I’m very happy with this and it couldn’t be better to have a Ford one-two-three.”

Third was Jari Matti Latvala in the other works Fiesta entry. Having a strong rally, he fought for a while with Sebastian Ogier over third place, and took it when the Frenchman filled the Citroen's airbox with snow. In the end up, Ogier took fourth but went fastest over the inaugural Power Stage, netting an extra 3 points in the process. Fifth was Petter Solberg, who managed to get himself banned from driving in Sweden for speeding between stages. His ban kicked in just before the start of the Power Stage, so co-driver Chris Patterson stepped up to drive the stage for Solberg, ensuring they at least scored some points. Patterson dropped just over 1 min to stage winner Ogier, but considering he had never driven the car before and is far from used to driving competitively, it was no mean feat.

Sixth was reigning World Champion Sebastian Loeb. A puncture and a massive time loss running first on the road on Day 1 dropped him to ninth. An extra two points on the Power Stage came as a welcome bonus, with the World Champion saying he lacked motivation that he would usually get fighting at the front.

After the first event of the year, it looked as if the Fords would be on par with the Citroens, but the next few events would prove otherwise.

Loeb did, however, make up for the disappointment of Sweden with victory in the very next round, in Mexico. The Frenchman was involved in a fight with his team-mate Sebastian Ogier up until Ogier crashed out on the final day. Loeb won by 1 min 38 secs over Mikko Hirvonen, who was in turn 45.5secs ahead of his team mate Jari Matti Latvala. Hirvonen also took the Power Stage, and the 3 points it carries.

Petter Solberg, a former winner of this event, took fourth at the end. Taking only one spare and saving his tyres throughout the first two stages of the final loop, he went all out on the Power Stage, hoping the tyres he saved the less weight would help him. He took second in the end, 2.1 secs behind Hirvonen. Fifth place went to Mads Ostberg, a Mexico new-comer, in the Stobart Fiesta. A puncture on Day 1 halted him from a higher place. Sixth went to Henning Solberg, who fought though braking problems and power-steering issues to take sixth.

Back to Europe and back to French dominance. Rallye de Portugal was taken by Sebastian Ogier, the rally he won a little less than 1 years ago. Leading from Day 2, Ogier was never really troubled, but his team mate Loeb kept him honest, never far behind. At the end, Ogier took the winner's trophy by 31 secs over Loeb. Third, and well over 3 mins behind was the Ford of Jari-Matti Latvala.

A broken driveshaft and rear suspension problems slowed Mikko Hirvonen, leaving him 6 mins off the lead and fourth. Fifth was Matthew Wilson, who dropped from fourth after he elected to slow on the rain-hit SS16, but it did guarantee him points. Petter Solberg took sixth from Kimi Raikkonen on the final stage, after starting the day in ninth.

Jordan brought the unbelievable desert heat, but the pace of the WRC's young chargers was surely hotter. Sebastian Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala started the final day separated by over 30 secs, but with Ogier sweeping the road and Latvala driving his Fiesta RS WRC up to and over it's limits, it shaped up to be the closest finish in the WRC's 32 year history. Latvala overhauled Ogier on the penultimate stage, going into the Power Stage half a second ahead. A small mistake on the Power Stage dropped him 0.7secs, leaving him 0.2 secs behind at the end. Indeed, such was Latvala's pace on the stage, he was 4.5 secs behind at one point after the mistake, but reduced it to 0.7 secs.

Behind the Top 2, more specifically 27.7 secs behind, was Sebastian Loeb. Suffering from oversteer throughout the final day, he bided his time until the Power Stage, when he blasted through the stage, taking third, and the final bonus point. Fourth was Mikko Hirvonen, struggling in the conditions took second on the Power Stage, a welcome bonus. Matthew Wilson took fifth after fighting with Kimi Raikkonen for most of the rally. A puncture for the Finn gave Wilson a bit of breathing space, but Raikkonen only dropped to sixth, 30 secs behind Wilson.

Sebastian Loeb ended his team-mate's run of wins with a win in Italy. Loeb came home 11.2 secs ahead of Mikko Hirvonen. A timing mistake was corrected, in favour of Hirvonen, so the gap to leader Loeb was cut to 14secs, but it wasn't enough to give Hirvonen his second win of 2011. Third was Petter Solberg, his first podium of the year, 23.9 secs off the lead.

A broken rear suspension stopped Sebastian Ogier from making it two DS3 WRC's on the podium, but nevertheless he still took fourth, albeit over 1 min off the lead. Fifth was Mads Ostberg, who suffered a big scare on the Monte Olia stage, hitting a bank and spinning the car after mishearing a pacenote. Sixth went to Dani Sordo, in the new MINI John Cooper Works. Sporting an armband in memory of Seve Ballesteros, the golfing legend, he overcame a throttle problem to take sixth. Team-mate Kris Meeke ran as high as fourth on Day 1 on his first outing in a World Rally Car at World Rally level for almost 4 years, until a stuck throttle sent him into a tree.

Back to South America, to Argentina more specifically, and victory went back to Sebastian Loeb. Ogier was in command of the historic event event, only to roll his DS3 WRC on the opening test on Sunday. He got the car going again, but his lead had been slashed from 43.7 secs down to 21.5 secs. He hadn't finished losing time neither, power-steering failure as a result of the roll dropped even more time and made the car “impossible to drive”. This allowed Loeb into the lead, somewhere he thought he'd never be after his 1min Friday penalty, and Hirvonen up to second. Ogier ended up in third.

Day 2 power-steering failure for Petter Solberg took his shot at the win away, but a win on the Power Stage came as a welcome surprise, cementing his fourth as well. Fifth was Mads Ostberg, continuing to impress in his Fiesta. Local legend (he's a 10 times Argentinian National Champion) Federico Villagra took sixth, his best finish for over a year.

Back to Europe again and the Acropolis Rally's reputation for being a car breaker didn't stop Sebastian Ogier from winning in the searing Greek heat. Tactics were employed by Seb Jr. going into Day 2, starting 2.2 secs off his team-mate but crucially behind him. This frustrated his Citroen team, and team-mate, but he still went on to win the rally and the event-closing Power Stage. Mikko Hirvonen came within striking distance of Sebastian Loeb going into the Power Stage, but had to be content with third.

“It was a difficult start on Friday but I managed to find a good rhythm, especially yesterday when we pushed hard. I am very happy and it’s perfect to get this result.” said Ogier.

Even though he lead after Day 1, Petter Solberg came home fourth. Cleaning the road on Saturday slowed him considerably. Just behind his little brother was Henning Solberg, his fifth being the best finish of his season to date. Stobart driver and Solberg's team-mate Matthew Wilson took sixth.

Part 2 to come.

We will be back!

Just a short message explaining why there has been no updates on Global Rally News for the past couple of weeks. We've had a few technical problems and time constraints regarding various things, but we will return with a comprehensive look-back at the world of rally in 2011, with reviews of the WRC and IRC. We will also bring you a comprehensive team-by-team review of the WRC and IRC from 2011.

Even with our difficulties and time constraints, we've been keeping a close eye permanently on the world of rally, so we'll be back to bringing you up-to-date coverage and news stories. We've also got a couple of nice little surprises lined up for you in the coming weeks, in line with the festive season.

And finally, due to our lack of updates over the past few weeks, Global Rally News will not close our offices during the holidays. As 2003 World Rally Champion Petter Solberg showed recently, commitment pays off!

Solberg to bid 'au revoir' to Citroen?

2003 World Champion Petter Solberg has hinted at the fact his time driving a privateer Citroen may be coming to a close.

Solberg will drive his usual Citroen DS3 WRC at the Bettega Rallysprint, part of the Bologna Motorshow, tomorrow (Saturday 10^th December). The annual event is run in memory of Attilio Bettega, the former Lancia driver and winner of six World Rally podiums who tragically lost his life while competing on the 1985 Tour de Corse, his Lancia Rally 037 veering off the road on the fourth stage of the rally.

This weekend may herald the end of Solberg's Citroen privateer career, after campaigning the Xsara WRC, C4 WRC and the DS3 WRC, all in privateer form, since 2009. In his 2 years under the PSWRT banner, he has scored 12 podiums, including 5 second place finishes, but sadly no wins. In recent times, he has struggled to find funding, though has struggled on.

However, in an interview with Motorsport News, Solberg revealed he doesn't want to continue in privateer form. He currently has no plans in place for 2012, and with both MINI's and Citroen's seats full, his only option for a 2012 drive lies with Ford. Volkswagen have not announced their second driver, to partner Sebastian Ogier, but should he sign with the German firm, he would likely not drive competitively in 2012.

“I have one chance for next year and that is with Malcolm [Wilson, the Ford team boss]. I don’t want to do a privateer team any more.” he said.

Other big names from the world of rally are due to start the rally, with both Jari-Matti Latvala (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) and Kris Meeke (MINI John Cooper Works WRC) looking to put up a good fight for the Norwegian. MotoGP star Andrea Dovizioso will drive a Fiesta too, with World Motocross Champion Tony Cairoli driving a Citroen DS3 WRC. Experienced Italians Luca Pedersoli and Piero Longhi will both drive WRC cars, with Pedersoli driving a DS3 WRC for the first time, a car he hopes to be contesting selected WRC rounds in next year, and Longhi driving a John Cooper Works WRC.

Bye Bye Kimi

Kimi Raikkonen and Lotus Renault GP have announced that the man affectionately known as the 'Iceman' will leave rallying and return to F1, the sport that launched him to international fame, in 2012.

"I'm delighted to be coming back to Formula 1 after a two-year break, and I'm grateful to Lotus Renault GP for offering me this opportunity”

Rumours circulated around the Brazilian Grand Prix paddock that talks between Raikkonen and Williams Grand Prix had broken down and he would not be returning to F1 next year. Then, only two days later, Lotus Renault GP announced the Finn had signed a two-year contract with the Enstone-based squad.

What makes the new partnership even more unexpected is that there was a reported falling-out between Raikkonen and Lotus Renault GP team principal Eric Boullier, after the team “used my [Raikkonen's] name for their own marketing”. This came about when, after Raikkonen had been in contact with the team over a possible 2011 drive, the team said they were in discussions with him about a contact. Afterwards, an angry Raikkonen assured media and fans that he would “100 per cent…not be driving for them [Renault] next year [2011]”

Raikkonen said his decision to make the move to Renault was helped my the team's ambitions for 2012.

"It was an easy choice to return with Lotus Renault GP as I have been impressed by the scope of the team's ambition. Now I'm looking forward to playing an important role in pushing the team to the very front of the grid." he said.

Gerard Lopez, chairman of Genii Capital, who co-own the team, said that Raikkonen's signing was the first of “several announcements” that are aimed to push the team back up to the front of the F1 grid. He also welcomed Raikkonen to the squad.

"Kimi's decision to come back to Formula 1 with us is the first step of several announcements which should turn us into an even more serious contender in the future. Of course, we are all looking forward to working with a world champion. On behalf of our staff, I'd like to welcome Kimi to Enstone, a setting that has always been known for its human approach to Formula 1."

Whilst in F1, Raikkonen's stat sheet shows he was no slouch behind the wheel of an F1 car. From when he signed his first F1 contract in 2001 with the Sauber team to the end of the 2009 season, when he made an unusual switch to rallying, he took 18 wins, 16 pole positions, 35 fastest laps and one World Championship in his 157 entries for Sauber, McLaren and Ferrari. His rallying stats don't read so well however.

At the end of the 2009 season, Raikkonen made a shock announcement that he would leave F1 and switch to rallying, driving for the Citroen Junior Team.

Raikkonen had only taken part in two rallies prior to his career change. His first was the Arctic Lapland Rally in 2009, where he took 13th overall in a Fiat Abarth Grande Punto S2000. His second was the Neste Oil Rally Finland that same year, holding 15th overall and steadily moving up the ranks before spectacularly crashing out of the rally on the final stage of the second day.

Later that year, on the 4th December, it was announced he would join the Citroen Junior Team. Driving a Citroen C4 WRC, sponsored by personal sponsor Red Bull and co-driven by former World Rally Championship co-driver Kaj Linstrom, Raikkonen was in for a baptism of fire. Crashes in both of the first two rounds of the 2010 season were met by 8th, 5th (his best ever finish) and 10th in Jordan, Turkey and Portugal, respectively.

Another crash came in Bulgaria, while he was lying in fourth, and gaining on third. Car problems caused a poor finish at home in Finland, before a further 3 points and his first stage win came in Germany. Retirements in both Japan and France, and a shakedown crash in Spain cost him possible, and valuable, points. He did round out the year with eighth in Wales.

For 2011, the Junior Team was disbanded. Raikkonen instead entered his own team, ICE1 Racing with a new car, the Citroen DS3 WRC. It proved a successful venture, scoring points in all the events he entered, with highlights of sixth in Jordan and Germany. It all fell apart when the team made the decision to skip Rally Australia. ICE1 Racing was thrown out of the Manufacturer's Championship due to the fact that to be eligible for Manufacturers Points, all teams must compete in at least two events outside of Europe. Problems in France, Spain and Wales didn't net him any more points, so he rounded out the season 10th with 34 points.

After ICE1 Racing's exclusion from the Championship, Raikkonen's interest in rallying began to wane a little. The option to SupeRally in France, Spain and Wales was not taken, with SupeRally giving him the possibility of more mileage, thus more experience. Alarm bells began sounding after he tested an LMP1 Peugeot 908 and raced a NASCAR Truck in America. Time and mileage could have solved his teething problems in the WRC, but inevitably he decided that, after 2 years, the WRC and full-time rallying just wasn't for him, so he returned to the sport he knew best.

Ogier signs for VW, gets full 2012 calender

Citroen refugee Sebastian Ogier has signed a new contract with Volkswagen, the latest firm to announce their participation in the WRC from 2013.

Member of the Volkswagen Board of Management in the Development division, Dr. Ulrich Hackenburg said: “I am very happy about Sebastian Ogier and Julien Ingrassia joining us. Both of them are important pieces of the puzzle on our way towards building a successful team in the World Rally Championship. It is also a mark of confidence for our team if such a strong pairing opts for a new team in the WRC that is still in the process of being developed.”

News broke last week that Ogier had left Citroen, the team who launched him to prominence in the WRC, to be replaced by Mikko Hirvonen. After the move, there was no word of where Ogier would be going and who would fill the second Ford seat, with the Frenchman was widely expected to go to Ford.

Now Ogier is VW's first publicly announced driver he will have the 12 month development schedule of the new car ahead of him. However, he will also get a full 12-round season next year behind the wheel of a VW supported and run Skoda Fabia S2000. The full complement of rallies will allow him to stay “match fit” and “familiarise myself with those events that I don't know so well”.

The long development programme will allow Ogier to have a say in almost all of the Polo R WRC's development, which will allow him to tailor the car to his style of driving. He will also take some experience of the development of the championship-winning Citroen DS3 WRC, which may come in useful whilst developing the Polo R WRC.

It has also emerged that double-World Champion Carlos Sainz recommended that Ogier be signed to the squad. Sainz works as an advisor for Volkswagen and drove for the team in multiple Dakar Rallies, ultimately winning the mammoth rally in 2010. Sainz says that, for him, “Sebastien is one of the world’s three best drivers”.

Many drivers were linked to the VW seat, with Sebastien Loeb, Petter Solberg, Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala, as well as all the young drivers who drove VW-supported Fabia S2000's during the year, were all linked to the seat. In the end, Loeb decided to stay with Citroen and Hirvonen signed for Citroen, leaving Latvala and Solberg available. Latvala is now expected to stay at Ford, leaving only Solberg, who was been long-time linked to the German squad, plus the all the drivers who drove the Fabia's.

VW Motorsport's Kris Nissen said: “We are proud that such a successful and quick duo as Sebastian and Julien have decided to join Volkswagen. The aim of putting a competitive Polo R WRC on the road for them as quickly as possible will additionally drive our team. We look forward to working with them and are hoping for many victories and titles in the future.”

Ogier's first event as an official VW driver will be the Race of Champions next weekend in Düsseldorf, Germany. He will partner GP2 Champion and Lotus-Renault GP test and reserve driver Romain Grosjean under the Team France banner. Ogier's first World Rally event as a VW driver will be Rallye Monte Carlo in January, on which he will drive a Fabia S2000.

Semerad excluded from Wales results

Martin Semerad has been stripped of his Wales Rally GB results due to a technical infringement.

Semerad originally scored a fine second place behind P-WRC winner Patrik Flodin, but at post-event scrutineering, part of his Mitsubishi Lancer's front suspension was found to be different to the homologated version.

Semerad, and technical chief Ivan Matousek, were summonsed to appear in front of the stewards to explain their situation. Semerad and Matousek said they received the front upper suspension plates from the supplier, but failed to check them for compliance with the homologation form.

With the suspension parts in breech of Article 254-7.4.1, which states “It will be possible to use upper suspension plates homologated as a Group N Option Variant”, the Stewards took the decision to exclude Semerad from the final results.

The Czech's exclusion from the rally promoted Michal Kosciuszko up to second in the final results, as well as third overall in the final P-WRC standings.

Latvala lands Welsh win

Jari-Matti Latvala has ended his seventeen rally barren run of victories with a comprehensive win on the season-ending Wales Rally GB.

“It’s a great feeling because it’s been very stressful and frustrating since my last win [Neste Oil Rally Finland 2010]. It’s a great way to finish the season 2011. We now need to push for the world title with Ford next year.”

Latvala went into the final day with a 6.1 sec lead over Sebastian Loeb, and immediately set about taking more time. Winning the first stage of the Day, he extended his lead over Loeb to 7.5 secs. Then something no-one could have predicted happened.

After taking second on SS18, Halfway, Loeb & co-driver Daniel Elena were driving the road section on their way to SS19, when a car driven by a Spanish rally supporter collided with him on a narrow section of road. No-one was injured in the accident, but Loeb's DS3 WRC suffered a damaged radiator, forcing him out of the rally.

“We were on a road section and hit a car front on. I moved to the side [of the road] but we are in [Wales] and he is not [Welsh] so he went on the wrong side and we crashed. It was not a big impact but the radiator is holed, so we cannot go on. That’s it. But okay, we are world champion so no problems.” said the now eight-time World Champion.

Mads Ostberg took second place after Loeb's incident, rounding off the year with the same position he started it with. An ever present engine problem did cause some concern, but it didn't cause problems.

Henning Solberg, also in a Stobart M-Sport Ford Fiesta RS WRC, took third in what was his first podium appearance in over 2 years. Kris Meeke, fourth, put in an excellent drive today to reduce the gap to Solberg from 45 secs down to a scant 1.8 secs going into the Power Stage. In the end a spin denied Meeke a historic podium place, but it did net him his best finish at World Rally level.

The other Stobart car of Matthew Wilson took fifth in what was a largely consistent rally from the Briton. Ott Tanak managed to fight back to sixth place on his début in a World Rally Car. Launch Control problems on SS20 couldn't deny Evegny Novikov seventh place, the best finish of the year for Team Abu Dhabi.

Dennis Kuipers rounded out a largely successful year with eighth. Nearly six minutes back was Ken Block in ninth, the American with a consistent rally. Rounding out the points scorers was Armindo Araujo in tenth, taking his second points haul of the year, after Germany.

Victory on the Power Stage was a small amount of consolidation to Sebastian Ogier, who crashed out on SS1. 11^th place was a good fight-back from 73^rd place, better known as second-last. Dani Sordo slid into a ditch on Friday and had to SupeRally. 20^th place was as high a he got. Second on the Power Stage was a welcome boost for the MINI Team after team-mate Meeke's mistake though.

Just behind Ogier was the Volkswagen Motorsport entrant of Kevin Abbring, driving a good rally to 12^th in the Fabia S2000.

Patrik Flodin took the P-WRC class of Wales Rally GB, well over five mins ahead of second placed Martin Semerad. Indeed, it should have been Benito Guerra in second, but the Mexican rolled out of the rally on the final stage. Third was Michal Kosciuszko, a good result after retiring last night & needing to SupeRally.

“It’s very nice to win the last round and finish the season with some good results,” said Flodin. “I’m very, very happy and must thank Timo who did a very good job. The stages were fantastic today, and it was actually quite an easy day keeping our concentration with such a big lead.” said Flodin.

On Thursday, Ilka Minor was chosen as the latest recipient of the Michael Park 'Beef' Trophy, an award presented in memory of Park, who was tragically killed on this rally six years ago, to the co-driver who best embodies Michael's traits, being overall performance, attitude and commitment.

Prior to the rally, Jari-Matti Latvala was awarded the Abu Dhabi Spirit of the Rally award.

Latvala leads Loeb

Jari-Matti Latvala will head into Day 4 of Wales Rally GB with a slender 6.1 lead over newly-crowned eight times World Rally Champion Sebastian Loeb.

An overshoot on the Day's opening test saw Latvala lose 5.8 secs to Loeb, but a further four scratch stage times out of the Day's 5 stages saw Latvala rocket into the lead.

“It’s going really well and tomorrow morning I need to wake up with a very clean head. I have good confidence and I’m so hungry for the victory. Sebastien is eight-time world champion now and maybe he doesn’t have the spark to fight completely at 100 per cent. I do.” said the overnight rally leader.

A mysterious engine problem has been causing some concern for third-placed Mads Ostberg, with the Fiesta RS WRC having to be driven more like an S2000 variant, keeping the revs high to avoid the car lapsing onto 3 cylinders. However, with a 2 min 37 sec gap to Loeb in second and a 2 min 51 sec gap to team-mate Henning Solberg in fourth, barring disaster, Ostberg is guaranteed his second podium of the year.

Solberg is coming under pressure from Kris Meeke, with the Dungannon ace only 45 secs behind the Norwegian. Meeke could have caught Solberg, only for an engine mounting to break, which allowed the engine to move around slightly in the engine bay. This movement took a turbo pipe off, dropping him a noticeable amount of power, and it also caused a gear-shift problem.

45.6 secs behind Meeke is Stobart's Matthew Wilson. Understeer on the re-run of the Myherin stage, losing him some time. But, with 50 secs to seventh place Dennis Kuipers, who suffered a slow puncture on SS15, Wilson looks to have sixth place all sewn up, barring any problems, of course.

Ott Tanak is eighth in his Fiesta. Repairs in service after his SS14 problem ran a little longer than anticipated, giving him a 20 sec penalty. Mechanical problems dropped the Dmack tyres-shod car to eighth.

Evegny Novikov is ninth, filling in for Khalid Al-Qassimi, who has commitments at the Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Tenth is Ken Block, 13 mins off Latvala's pace.

Petter Solberg, who was running fourth, retired after a small fuel fire in the engine bay. It was traced to a broken fuel line, and the team decided to withdraw the car. Indeed, Solberg had already made the decision to skip Wales Rally GB, but after his SS1 retirement in Spain, and some extra help from his sponsors, he elected to compete. A Day 3 retirement is not what he would have been looking for. Kimi Raikkonen rolled on the Day's opener, but managed to get going again. However, he retired not far down the road. Neither will re-enter under SupeRally tomorrow.

Sebastian Ogier is 15^th after coming back from third-last after his SS1 crash. Dani Sordo is just outside the Top 30, fighting back well after sliding into a ditch yesterday.

Patrik Flodin holds a 4 min lead over Martin Semerad in the P-WRC leaderboard. Flodin has been on “safe-mode” for most of the day, but reported a big scare after hitting a hole just after a jump, nearly rolling his Subaru. Third is Benito Guerra is third, receiving a scare on SS16 after damaging his car's radiator.

“We’re on safe mode and don’t want to take too many risks. It’s difficult to stay focused when you are not fighting so we can’t lose the concentration as we’re eager to get this win. I’ve been really enjoying it but I had a really scary moment [on stage 16] and we nearly rolled after hitting a hole after the jump.” said Flodin.

Michal Kosciuszko is seventh after holding second after last night's final stage. However, an electrical fault causing retirement on the road section forced the Pole to SupeRally, dropping to over 12 mins off Flodin.

Craig Breen has won the first WRC Academy, and the €500,000 prize fund it entails. With fastest stage times offering points too, Breen needed to win the rally and win as many stages as he could to overhaul the 20 point deficit to Egon Kaur. Breen's rally win was confirmed once he crossed the finish line of SS17, the final stage for Academy crews, but he had to wait for Kaur to complete the test before he knew his fate. Kaur crossed the line, Breen discovered he had won the stage, and the celebrations from Breen's family and supporters began.

“I can’t find words to describe this moment,. For sure it’s the most amazing feeling to finally get here after all the effort we’ve put in all year, all the ups and downs we’ve made it to the finish. We’ve finished level on points but we’ve got it on stage wins so we’re absolutely thrilled.” said Breen.

Loeb leads as Hirvonen falls

11/11/11 has been said to be the luckiest day of the year, for some at least. It wasn't for a certain Ford-mounted Finn though.

Mikko Hirvonen went into Wales Rally GB only 8 points behind title rival, seven-times World Champion Sebastian Loeb. Indeed, it shaped up to be a thrilling fight between Loeb, Hirvonen & Jari-Matti Latvala, in the other works Ford. The commitment from all three drivers was a sight to behold, but Hirvonen dropped out of the fight, the rally and the fight for the World title with a spin on SS7. A spin is innocent enough sounding, however when you hit a hidden tree stump and damage your radiator, it can and did spell disaster. Hirvonen retired on the road section after the stage, and even after efforts by the Ford mechanics to repair the Fiesta, it was discovered the overheated engine was 'dead', spelling retirement for the Finn.

“It was very tricky in the morning and the grip level was changing quite a lot. On one braking [point] it was very slippery and I was too fast into the next corner. There was a big slide and the rear touched the bank. I spun and it pulled the front of the car into a bank where there was a tree stump. The wood came through the radiator. There was no real damage but we lost all the water in the engine. We carried on for five-six kilometres but that was it.”

“Like you said it’s over for sure. I have to thank the team for a really good effort and all the help. Unfortunately we have to look to the future and see what we can do in the future.” said Hirvonen.

With Hirvonen out of the picture, Jari-Matti Latvala will be going all out to score Ford's first win in Wales since 2007, when, ironically, Hirvonen took the win & Loeb came third. Latvala cut Loeb's 17 sec advantage after SS7 to just 1.1 secs after SS11. It could be argued that Loeb is just cruising, but the real racer within him will be trying to overcome his brain and fight Latvala. The next 2 days will tell if Loeb decides to cruise or take his eighth World Title in style.

Behind the battle for first, Mads Ostberg was thrown a life-line before the rally when an anonymous backer stepped in and produced the necessary funds for Ostberg to compete. He currently lies 3^rd, over 1 min off the leading duo. Fourth is four-times winner of Wales Rally GB, Petter Solberg. The Norwegian is 7.8 secs behind countryman Ostberg, but 40 secs on SS7 with a puncture and broken damper.

Fifth is the older of the Solberg brothers, Henning. He currently lies fifth, with Ott Tanak showing great pace in sixth. Tanak is also the only driver in the Top 10 on Mack tyres, with the rest on Michelins.

Only 5 secs separates Tanak, Kimi Raikkonen (seventh) and Kris Meeke (eighth). Meeke lost time this morning with an issue with the alternator, which he and co-driver Paul Nagle were forced to stop mid-stage to rectify. The 2009 Intercontinental Rally Champion is sure he could have been third had it not been for his problems. Nevertheless, he took his second fastest stage time of his MINI WRC career on SS9. Team-mate Dani Sordo's car made an unexpected trip to a ditch on SS5, a very uncharacteristic error, owing to the conditions.

Matthew Wilson lost well over a minute because of the conditions on SS11, dropping him to ninth whilst Dennis Kuipers is tenth.

A combination of mud, rain and fog have caused major headaches for some drivers. Sordo went out, as mentioned above, on SS5. Peter Van Merksteijn Jr. crashed out too, and Matt Wilson lost a lot of time on SS11.

Patrik Flodin leads P-WRC comfortably by over 2 mins after rally leader Jarkko Nikara crashed out on SS11. Flodin himself lost time with a spin too on SS7, but the 9 deficit was nullified when Nikara crashed out. Flodin is also sporting a new co-driver in Timo Alanne, due to Goran Bergsten's work commitments. Michal Kosciuszko is second, 20 secs ahead of Martin Semerad in third, who was slowed by an engine problem.

“It was quite okay today but the conditions were tricky. We still need to get used to each other and build a good relationship but it’s working well so far.” said Flodin, who is looking to cement second in the P-WRC table.

In the WRC Academy, Craig Breen commands a 4 min lead over Egon Kaur, who is in turn holds a 33 sec lead over Alastair Fisher, who slid off the road on SS11. Breen began the event with 20 points between himself and Kaur, but with his pace he has narrowed the gap to 13 points. Provided he can hold the lead of the rally to the end, and win seven more stages, he could become the first winner of the WRC Academy, and the €500,000 scholarship prize it entails.

Mikkelsen flies in Cyprus

Skoda UK's Andreas Mikkelsen leads the 2011 Cyprus Rally after an exceptional display of driving over the 3.2km LTV Super Special Stage.

“It’s a good start, a good stage and hopefully we’ll keep it this way for the whole rally. We won’t go flat out everywhere but if I drive fast and consistent I’ll be really happy.”

Mikkelsen won the short opening stage by a staggering 3.1 secs over Skoda Motorsport's Juho Hanninen, with the other Skoda Motorsport entry of Jan Kopecky in third, a tenth of a second behind his team-mate. Hanninen made the decision to bolt on a set of scrubbed gravel tyres, to improve the grip of the tyres.

Freddy Loix is fourth, with Theirry Neuville (who's surname sparked a debate on IRC Rally Radio) in fifth, 3.6 and 4.1 secs off the lead, respectively. Sixth is Toshi Arai in the Subaru Impreza R4, 8.9 secs off Mikkelsen's pace. Arai has been testing on gravel/tarmac stages in his homeland of Japan, in order to gain a better understanding of the car on mixed-surface events.

Patrik Sandell described his driving as “shit” during the stage, completing the 3.2km run nearly 11 secs slower than Mikkelsen. Eighth is last year's winner Nasser Al-Attiyah, 12 secs off the lead.

The stage proved a success, drawing in thousands of supporters. Spectator access to the stage was free of charge for members of the public. Several drivers noted the vast turn-out of spectators in the stage.