Ogier expects Räikkönen to prove his ability in rally

A confirmation of Kimi Räikkönen continuing in WRC in 2011 can be expected in mid-january. This year the Finnish driver does not start his season in Tunturi-ralli nor does he start it in Monte Carlo either, he will start directly from the opening rally in Sweden, 10-13. February.

The contract has not yet been made. Räikkönen's family has been hit by a hard sorrow after Matti Räikkönen passed away in a sudden illness attack just before Christmas. Last year Raikkonen drove in Citroen team mostly as Sebastien Ogier's team mate.

Ogier sees Räikkönen continuing his rally career as a very logical solution.

- If Kimi wants to prove his abilities in rally also, then he must continue in WRC. One can't draw any conclusions based on only one year in rallying, Ogier pointed out.

Ogier was very supportive of Räikkönen's difficulties during his debut season.

- It would be difficult for any top driver to jump right into the WRC-serie without any rallying experience. The competitive level of the serie is very hard. Of course Kimi made a bunch of mistakes but I remember myself making big mistakes during my first season - although I however was born as a rally driver.

- It will be good for Kimi to continue in the WRC-serie so that he is able to gather more better results as his experience grows, Ogier says.

The French driver himself puts down the expectations his supporters have of him fighting for the championship during this year.

- My long-term goal is to win the championship. There is no rush yet.This year I would like to develop into an even better rally driver and of course collect better results. Loeb is the toughest possible teammate whom everyone wants to win - just like I do too, Ogier said.

Last year Dani Sordo was ranked before Räikkönen and he has now switched from Citroen to Prodrive and will drive a Mini together with Kris Meeke.

Petter Solberg who drove an even stronger season than Sordo, his rallying career is ending. The Norwegian's situation describes in a harsh way today's situation in rally series when there no longer is a car to be found for a world champion.

Turun Sanomat

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole

Citroën Junior Team - Rally Della Lanterna 2010

Source: citroenactive

WRC - Citroën Junior Team at Rally della Lanterna

Source: SudRallye

Pics of Kimi Räikkönen and Sebastien Ogier Testing the Citroën C4

Kimi has done some asphalt testing/training on Thursday and Friday

More Pics HERE +HERE

Source: extremrallye.com

Courtesy: Julia - wrc.is.free.fr

Ogier fastest in Rally Portugal Shakedown

One of the stars of this year's Rally New Zealand, Sebastien Ogier, was the fastest driver at the pre-event shakedown for Vodafone Rally de Portugal earlier today, with former World Rally Champion Petter Solberg his closest rival.

The four hour test - a prelude to this weekend's rally - took place on a 5.03km gravel road at Vale de Judeu, 12km from the main Service Park near Faro. The same piece of road was used for Shakedown in 2009. Weather conditions were dry and sunny throughout, with a temperature peaking at 23 degrees Celsius.

"I know Shakedown isn't important to the real rally but it's good for the confidence to be fastest and we have a lot of confidence now," said Ogier. "I found the car very good, like usual, and although we tried a couple of different set-ups we've ended up sticking with our usual one - there's nothing new. The road was slippery and cleaning a lot; more than the proper stages I think. I was 16 seconds faster though on my fourth pass compared to my first - that's more than three seconds per kilometre - so you can see the effect."

Fellow Citroen C4 WRC driver Petter Solberg was closest to Ogier's time, stopping the clock 1.3sec later, while Citroen team leader Sebastien Loeb was third. "It's a challenging stage; maybe the most difficult of the rally!" said Loeb, "The surface is loose and abrasive, just like the actual stages, but the road is very fast and narrow. We tried out a few suspension adjustments but nothing major. Everything was fine."

Vodafone Rally de Portugal gets underway this evening with the head-to-head Super Special stage in the Algarve Stadium. Crews will tackle the all-asphalt track in reverse-seeded order from 1925hrs.

Here are the Shakedown times of the leading WRC drivers:

1. OGIER. Citroen C4 WRC. 3:05.0
2. P. SOLBERG. Citroen C4 WRC. 3:06.3
3. LOEB. Citroen C4 WRC. 3:07.3
4. SORDO. Citroen C4 WRC. 3:07.9
5. HIRVONEN. Ford Focus RS WRC 09. 3:08.0
6. LATVALA. Ford Focus RS WRC 09. 3:08.4
7. H. SOLBERG. Ford Focus RS WRC 08. 3:09.2
8. RAIKKONEN. Citroen C4 WRC. 3:10.0
9. VILLAGRA. Ford Focus RS WRC 08. 3:11.1
10. WILSON. Ford Focus RS WRC 08. 3:12.1
11. Al QASSIMI. Ford Focus RS WRC 09. 3:12.2
12. BLOCK. Ford Focus RS WRC 08. 3:15.7

Source: WRC

Ogier gets New Zealand bonus

Citroen Junior Team driver Sebastien Ogier will contest next month’s Rally New Zealand - but his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen remains uncertain for the Auckland-based event.

Ogier’s 2010, Red Bull-backed programme was scheduled to include every event except New Zealand, but extra budget has been sourced to put the 26-year-old on the plane to the other side of the world. There remains a chance former Formula 1 World Champion Raikkonen will join him in New Zealand, but Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier said it’s more likely only one car will head south for the start of the fifth round of the World Rally Championship on May 6.

Nogier said: “Yes, it’s right, Sebastien [Ogier] will go to New Zealand, but we did not have the last answer for Kimi. We don’t think so, probably we will have only one car. I think it’s 80 per cent sure that Kimi won’t go. We took the decision for Sebastien to go to New Zealand after Mexico because of the budget. We did not plan to go before because of the budget, but now we have found some sponsors to go.

Nogier emphasised the decision to send the former Junior World Rally Champion was taken before last week’s Jordan Rally, quashing speculation in the service park that Citroen had funded Ogier’s trip as payback for the Frenchman dropping from second place to sixth in order to run ahead of Sebastien Loeb on the final day of the Dead Sea event.

This will be Ogier’s first trip to compete in New Zealand. In his 23 world rallies, he has only twice ventured south of the equator, once for Rally Argentina in 2009 and once for Rally Australia later that year.

Source: WRC

Rally Mexico: Ones to Watch

The Mexico form book says Loeb, Loeb, Loeb for the win – but we look at a few other drivers who will use their nerve and skill to challenge Sébastien for the Corona Rally Mexico's WRC crown this week.

Jari-Matti Latvala (FIN) – Ford

WRC’s youngest-ever winner, in Sweden in 2008, came tantalisingly close to back-to-back victories when the series visited Mexico in the next event. Latvala (pictured, above) led the way after day one, but then a fault with the turbo on his Focus engine, along with the built-in disadvantage of starting first on the road, saw the Finn’s lead gradually eaten away to nothing. Nevertheless, he did take third back then, and with a podium already in Sweden this year, perhaps the Ford man’s Mexican luck might change this weekend.

Mikko Hirvonen (FIN) – Ford

Dani Sordo and Sébastien Loeb might have set the early pace in their Citroëns in last month’s Rally Sweden, but in the middle of day two, Hirvonen grabbed Loeb’s lead and didn’t let it go. The Finn’s record in Mexico is rather ordinary by his high standards – 14th, third and fourth in the last three visits – and being first on the road here this time will mean he sweeps the road for everyone else on day one. It’s too early in the season for team orders, but perhaps what his wingman Latvala does here, whether by a win or other means, will decide whether it’s Hirvonen or Loeb on top of the WRC standings come Sunday.

Sébastien Loeb (FRA) – Citroën

Losing out to Hirvonen in Sweden is unlikely to have concerned Loeb too greatly. Snow has never been the six-time champion’s best surface, and he goes to Mexico knowing that his Finnish adversary will have to sweep the loose, gravelly surface for him from his rally-starting position. Nevertheless, Loeb is serious enough about ensuring Citroën success this season to turn down an offer to drive a Peugeot at Le Mans this year, so will be fully focused on securing a fourth consecutive Rally Mexico win.

Sébastien Ogier (FRA) – Citroën

Frenchman Ogier is no doubt fond of Mexico. In the last rally here back in 2008, he not only won the J-WRC class outright on his full debut in the Citroën C2 Super 1600 but also took a point in the overall WRC standings, the first S1600 driver ever to do so, after being promoted to eighth after local driver Ricardo Triviño was excluded for using unhomologated driving gloves. If this was a lucky break, Ogier’s fifth place in Sweden last month, now in a Citroën Junior Team C4, was not. Expect another impressive showing.

Kimi Räikkönen (FIN) – Citroën

Räikkönen’s entry into WRC has been, quite literally, a very bumpy ride so far. Having crashed out of the Arctic Lapland Rally, in which he’d entered his C4 WRC to get accustomed to conditions ahead of the WRC's season-opening Rally Sweden, he first hit traffic, in the form of strugglng Matthew Wilson, and then a snowbank when he was flying on his WRC debut in Karlstad, finishing 30th. A recurring back problem from his F1 days has now nobbled his chances of testing for his gravel debut, so Mexico will be a real unknown quantity. But Räikkönen will be undaunted… and this means watching him drive should once again be enormously entertaining.

Source: Red Bull

[Video] Drivers preview Rally Mexico

Source: WRC

The distance by Räikkönen

Kimi Räikkönen, who participates this weekend on his 1st WRC Rally, doesn't have a reputation of a sociable and joyful young man. In a delightful article published Saturday, L'Equipe writes about the Finn's behaviour towards his teammates... and the journalists.


In sporting terms, Kimi Räikkönen (Citroën Junior Team), was quite pestered on Friday. First, on SS1, Khalid Al-Qassimi, who had started before him and been stalled in a snowbank, came back right in front of him, which slowed him down. Infuriating! But not as much as his misfortune on SS6, when was stuck in a snowbank himself. That costed him 26 minutes as he had to clear the car with a shovel himself! Nothing else for Kimi to do but to struggle as much with the press. "I got muscles!" he laughed with his engineer. To gather feedback from the crew, the journalists had to rely on his co-driver Kaj Lindström, a lot more talkative. An example? On Friday, while the WRC drivers answered questions in the media area, Kimi waited in his car, leaving only for a moment to grab his jacket in the trunk before returning to the wheel. So much for journalists.

Sordo: "He introduced me to his buddies, he's really nice"

On the other hand, the Citroën clan stands up for him. "With us, he's more comunicative. He's not really much of a talker, but he is quite open," assured his engineer Cédric Mazenq, soon joined by Citroën Junior Team manager, Benoît Nogier. "I wouldn't say he's joyful, but he's far from being as cold as his image suggests." His teammate Sébastien Ogier exchanges information with the ex-F1 star. "He talks a lot to me," said Dani Sordo (Citroën C4). "We did the Arctic Rally in Finland together and he introduced me to his buddies and invited me to his home. He's really nice." Eventually, the 'Iceman' decided to give his only interview on Friday. He was short and factual: "It's hard to compete with the guys who do this for a long time, but I'm generally satisfied. Even if there's a lot of progress to make."

Source: L'Equipe
Courtesy of Ramses1348, Boudica @PF1
Translation/adaptation from French: Fran

WRC: Hirvonen takes 16 sec lead into final day in Sweden; Räikkönen is 35th overall...

Ford team-leader Mikko Hirvonen will take a 16.6 second lead into Sunday's final day of Rally Sweden, an advantage his chief opponent, Citroen driver Sebastien Loeb, acknowledged will be difficult to overturn on the five stage which remain.

Saturday's second day of the rally featured two identical loops of four stages in the Varmland region of central Sweden, clustered around the Hagfors Service Park. Under clear blue skies and in temperatures than plunged to -22ºC, crews tackled 117.76km of ice and snow covered gravel stages.

Hirvonen started Saturday's competition in the lead, 6.2 seconds ahead of Loeb, but after a back and forth scrap in the morning, this gap was down to 4.2sec by the midpoint service. The afternoon was another story, however, when Hirvonen and Loeb gambled on fitting fresh tyres at different times - a decision which ultimately went Hirvonen's way and netted him a 23sec lead after SS15.

"Okay, it's been a good day," said Hirvonen. "Sixteen seconds is not much, but it's more than we had in the morning. For sure there are long stages to go tomorrow and Seb will try hard, but we'll see. Hopefully I can keep him behind. First on the road today was not a problem, especially on the first pass it's pretty good to be there; you can make your own lines and there is no snow or ruts or anything."

Loeb ended the day well, clawing back 6.4sec on the final Sprint stage, but the Frenchman was angry at giving time away. "We made a stupid mistake today with the tyres; it was very much the wrong choice," he said. "[On SS15] I put fresh tyres on the front with some completely destroyed tyres on the rear and I couldn't use it. I lost a lot of time to Mikko. Can I catch him? I don’t know, but it will be very difficult. Normally 16 seconds is possible but when you look at the times between us today you can see it’s difficult to make any difference."

Hirvonen's team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala holds third place, after a mixed day at the wheel of his Ford Focus RS WRC. He got a lucky break on SS15, however, when the man ahead of him, Dani Sordo, stopped briefly with an overheating engine. "It’s been an okay day, but the morning was frustrating because Dani was running away," he said. "I thought we might lose the fight, but this afternoon we made a few set-up changes and everything came together. Okay, we were a little bit lucky with Sordo's problems as well. I plan to stay here until the end. It would be nice to start the season with a podium."

Fifty-four seconds behind Latvala, Sordo was left to rue a mistake on SS15 when he didn't remove an air flow blanking panel from the front his car and almost cooked his engine mid stage. "It’s really disappointing," he said. "Anyway I will try to get the best finish and take some points now. The season has only just started with this rally - we'll see how we get on in Mexico."

Citroen Junior Team driver Sebastien Ogier remained well cushioned in fifth all day and was content with his progress. "Our target was fifth place, so if we can carry on like this it will have been a very good first Rally Sweden for us." Stobart Ford team driver Henning Solberg also remained static in the standings, holding sixth all day. "It's okay but I don't think I have one stud in my rear tyres now!" he said at the end of SS16. "I did my best today, but I lost all my studs on Vargasen [SS13] and I don't know why. We'll try some different settings tomorrow. I can get better!"

Henning's Stobart team-mate Matthew Wilson is seventh, after moving ahead of rival Mads Ostberg on SS13. The Briton will take a 13.2sec advantage over Ostberg on Sunday. "We changed the car at lunchtime and it felt completely new; I wish we could start the rally again!" he said. It's been good fun this afternoon, around that Super Special we had no studs left at all, we just slid all the way around. I reckon I can stay ahead of Mads now the car's feeling better, we'll see." Ostberg, meanwhile, is equally determined to finish seventh. "It’s been a difficult day, especially when it comes to tyre wear, but I'm happy I'm here and definitely up for the fight with Matthew," he said.

After losing a lot of time on Friday, Citroen privateer Petter Solberg holds ninth, and was pleased to put another disappointing day behind him. "Maybe I'm using the tyres too hard - I have to drive smarter and more carefully," he said. "It sounds a bit boring but all I can say is I've tried and it is getting better."

Overall classification (check WRC.com for each stage's times):

Kimi's overall standings:

Source: WRC.com

Rally Sweden day one: Manufacturer team reaction

BP Ford Abu Dhabi Team principal, Malcolm Wilson on...

Mikko Hirvonen's leading performance: "I'm very happy. Everybody likes to be leading from the start, but Mikko made some small changes to his set up on SS4 and from then on he's had good confidence. We were a little bit worried that he might have destroyed the tyres by being maybe a bit aggressive, but now we’re starting to see the benefit of his experience - he just kept on pushing to get as far ahead as he could."

Jari-Matti Latvala's contribution: "He's done a good job. On the second stage this afternoon we saw what he's really capable of, but I think he pushed a little too hard there and did some damage to the tyres. But when you see those sorts of times you see he's got the potential."

Citroen Total World Rally Team director, Olivier Quesnel on...

Sebastien Loeb's cautious approach to tyre wear: "This afternoon we thought we should take care of the tyres, and maybe Seb didn't push enough, but this is it, and Mikko was right to push."
Dani Sordo and Sebastien Ogier: "Dani is doing a very good rally, but I must mention Sebastien Ogier too. This is his first time in Sweden and only his second time on snow. What he's done here is amazing."

Kimi Raikkonen's learning curve: "Kimi is learning. He went off the road but as I've said before we have to give Kimi time to learn. We have to wait until the middle of the season. In the second half he should be okay, but this is his first WRC rally with us. Everybody is very fast and Sweden is very complicated. For me there is no problem. He just has to learn."

Source: WRC.com

SS1: Sordo leads after Thursday night's Super Special

Citroen Total Team driver Dani Sordo is Thursday's overnight leader of Rally Sweden after setting the fastest time through the rally opening Super Special Stage in his C4 World Rally Car.

Thousands of spectators braved sub-zero temperatures to watch the first stage of the 2010 World Rally Championship - a floodlit, head-to-head blast around a 1.9km ice circuit in the rally's host city of Karlstad.

After recording a time of 1min 34.4sec around the figure-of-eight track Sordo was delighted with his performance. "We had a really good pre-event test, as well as a good time on the arctic rally a fortnight ago and that's helped me get a good feeling in the car," he said. "I know I can still go faster if I need to, but so far so good."

Citroen Junior team driver Sebastien Ogier, also in a C4 WRC, was nearest to Sordo's time, but a full two seconds slower. "I enjoyed the stage and I like to drive in these ice conditions," he said.

A deliberately careful start from Ford team leader Mikko Hirvonen netted him the third fastest time, while similar approaches put defending world champion Sebastien Loeb fourth and Marcus Gronholm fifth.

Super Special winner in 2008 Petter Solberg, however, paid the price for a more aggressive approach. The Norwegian nudged a snow bank and later spun his C4 WRC, reaching the finish control 18.3sec slower than Sordo and without a front bumper. "I got some very, very bad oversteer, but it was my fault - I tried too hard. That's just how it is," he explained.

On his first WRC stage with the Citroen Junior Team, Kimi Raikkonen set the ninth fastest time. "That was okay," he said. "A little bit cautious but I took it easy. It's okay, all you can do on these stages is lose it."

After this evening's prelude, the proper stage action begins on Friday morning at 0818hrs, when crews tackle the first of six stages in the countryside north of Karlstad, before a return to Karlstad for a repeat of the Super Special.

[EDIT] Link to full results of SS1 here

Sources: WRC.com, Motorsport

Swedish Rally: Citroën Jr. Team Preview

The Citroen Junior Team under the spotlight

For its second consecutive season in the FIA World Rally Championship, the Citroen Junior Team will enter two Citroen C4 WRCs for Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia and Kimi Raikkonen / Kaj Lindstrom. The season's opening round is held over the snowy stages of Rally Sweden, which takes place around Karlstad from February 11-14.

After a learning year in 2009, the 2010 season holds plenty of promise for the Citroen Junior Team. Sebastien Ogier, who formed part of the team last year, is joined this season by the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen. By pairing up one of world rallying's brightest young stars with a well- known driver embarking on the ultimate challenge, the Citroen Junior Team will be well and truly under the spotlight this year!

The wintry conditions of the Rally Sweden present a tough task to the crews on the season-opener, but most drivers love the high speeds reached on the ice and snow. Thanks to stages that sometimes have an average speed of more than 120 kph and racing lines that thread their way precisely through imposing snow banks, spectators are sure to witness a breathtaking spectacle.

Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia enjoyed a remarkable first full season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC in 2009 and they start the 2010 season with the same motivation and a year's worth of extra experience under their belts. "I just can't wait to start driving the Citroen C4 WRC in the heat of competition again," said the Frenchman. "It seems a very long time now since the 2009 season ended!"

Having contested the Monte Carlo Rally at the start of the year, Sebastien was in Finland last week to prepare for Rally Sweden with a day of testing close to Rovaniemi. "We covered around 200 kilometres in order to get to grips with the car again and work on the set-up of the Citroen C4 WRC," he reported. "I'm very pleased with the way that the car is handling. I quickly felt comfortable again and I love driving in these conditions."

Rally Sweden will be a brand new experience for Sebastien Ogier. Nonetheless, he hopes to put the experience he gained on Rally Norway last year to good use. "Actually, we're getting rather used to driving on rallies for the first time," added Sebastien. "I hope that we can show what we are capable against what is always very strong opposition on these winter rallies. Our objective on this first event of the year is just to continue to progress."

Making his debut alongside the 2008 Junior World Rally Champions is Kimi Raikkonen. The handful of rally events he contested in 2009 has given the Finn the desire to embark on a full season with the Citroen Junior Team.

Following some test sessions and a run on the Arctic Lapland Rally a few days ago, Kimi Raikkonen has covered nearly 600 kilometres with the Citroen C4 WRC. "I'm just really keen to get to the start of Rally Sweden now," he said. "With Citroen, we have made some good preparations for this event. All the kilometres I already have behind me will allow me to begin the rally with no particular worries. I know that I still have many things to learn though and plenty of experience to accumulate. My goal is simply to do my best with the Citroen C4 WRC. My debut in the World Rally Championship is an enormous challenge but any driver who has competed in motorsport at a certain level always maintains the same way of working and the same desire to push themselves. I feel that I'm ready to take on this challenge now."



Three questions to... Benoit Nogier - Citroen Junior Team Manager

The Citroen Junior Team is starting its second season in the World Rally Championship. How do you prepare for this new challenge?

"Just starting this new season is already great news for us. Our plan is to pick up on where we left off with our achievements last year. We've certainly not lost sight of the reasons why the Citroen Junior Team was created in the first place: our drivers are with us to learn, discover what the WRC is all about and make progress. Our job is to give them the equipment that allows them to acquire the maximum possible experience at the top level of the sport and show off their talent to the best of their abilities."

In 2010, Sebastien Ogier will start his second season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC while Kimi Raikkonen is a new arrival at the Citroen Junior Team. That's quite some line-up...

"Yes, that was my first reaction as well! After a debut season with us in which he put in performances that were more than just promising, Sebastien Ogier will be able to continue his career path. He has learned quite a lot already, so now he is in a position to show a bit more of his potential. It's an honour for us to welcome Kimi Raikkonen, and for a driver of his standing to choose Citroen and the Citroen Junior Team is obviously a source of huge satisfaction."

What are your objectives for this season?

"We've got different goals with Sebastien and Kimi. We're hoping that Sebastien starts the 2010 season in the same way that he finished 2009, with the same commitment, hard work and speed. In due course he should be in a position to finish on the podium. The final few steps are always the most difficult ones to take though and this is a fact that both he and ourselves are well aware of. Nevertheless, this is the target we need to bear in mind for him throughout the season. As for Kimi, he's obviously just starting. So his goal is simply to make progress on each rally. Kimi is taking his first steps in the sport and there is a steep learning curve for him to climb. But his natural talent behind the wheel clearly needs no introduction!"

Sources: Citroën, Motorsport