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Rally France-Alsace. 29th September – 2nd October. 11th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Day One.

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Miniology’s continuous coverage of MINI WRC brings you..

Strasbourg, 30th September, 2011.  The MINI WRC Team is leading Rally France-Alsace at the end of day one after Dani Sordo (ES) proved just how fast he is with his MINI John Cooper Works WRC on tarmac stages. After taking 1hour 23 minutes to complete the 148.38 kilometres over eight stages Sordo and Carlos del Barrio (ES) were a second ahead of Petter Solberg (NO) in his Citroen. It was also a good day for Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) on their debut in this event as they were fourth overall in the number 52 MINI.

The rally has not been without its dramas as on the third stage, which at 36 kilometres is the longest on the rally, World Champion and local hero, Sebastian Loeb (FR), retired his Citroen. Also on this stage the Fords of Mikko Hirvonen (FI) and Jari-Matti Latvala (FI) also encountered problems. However, the MINIs ran like clockwork and both survived moments when hitting marker poles put there to stop drivers cutting corners that had come lose.

The story of the day was Sordo and Meeke seventh and eighth after stage one, fifth and seventh after stage two, third and fourth after stage three, and then with his second fastest stage time Sordo took the lead on the last stage of the day. Ahead of the crews on day two are another nine stages over 148.39 kilometres, but this time they will have a remote service in Colmar and only return to Strasbourg in the evening.

Dave Wilcock, Technical Director:

“What a day. We came here on a high after Germany. We managed a day of testing between then and here, which was half a day with each driver, so to be here at the end of day one in first and fourth is great. This is our testing year, and if it continues this way with the rate of development then hopefully it won’t be long before the MINI gets its first win.  There is still an awful long way to go on this rally, but we shall enjoy this for now as these positions far exceed our expectations. Dani is in a fantastic position and mentally is taking it all in his stride. He really knows how to pace and control himself. Kris is performing really well and is a star in the making. This is only his second WRC tarmac event and he is improving all the time.”

Dani Sordo:

“It is good to be leading, but to be honest I am really happy today as for the whole time we have been fighting with the leaders.  It is really incredible to be fighting with the Fords and Citroens. Tomorrow we shall try to do the same. It is another big day so we need to do a big push, drive flat and perhaps take some risks to keep this position. However, we have to remember that this is just day one and there are still two days of rallying to go. I enjoy these stages and the MINI has been really good to drive and reliable.”

Kris Meeke:  

“I think from the team’s point of view it is very, very good that Dani is leading the rally.  We haven’t done much testing since Germany, but certainly the car is working very well, which has shown in our times. Dani has the experience on this rally and in the WRC, but all credit to him for leading the rally with the car in its first year, as that’s something really special.  For me I have to be quite happy, although I was a bit disappointed in the last stage as I had a big spin and lost about ten to 15 seconds. To be holding my own in fourth place first time here is good. We are comfortably on the pace of Mikko Hirvonen, if not a little bit faster, but after our mistake it has now let Jari-Matti Latvala within about twenty seconds of us. ”

 

[Source: BMW Group PressClub Sport]

 

MINI WRC continues in France at 11th of 13 rounds of the FIA WRC (Preview)

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Rally France-Alsace. 29th September – 2nd October. 11th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Preview.

[Source: BMW AG, Munich 9/23/2011]

The MINI WRC Team will again be competing on asphalt when it arrives in Strasbourg for its fourth event of 2011, Rally France-Alsace. The team is keen to capitalise on its third place in Germany for Dani Sordo (ES) and the tarmac performance shown by the MINI John Cooper Works WRC.

While the rest of the World Rally Championship competitors have been in Australia, the number 37 and 52 MINIs have been back in Banbury at the Prodrive headquarters.  Since Rally Germany, both drivers have been getting valuable time behind the wheel with Kris Meeke (GB) attending the Rallyday at Castle Combe, and Dani Sordo shaking the car down at Prodrive’s test track in Warwickshire as the team continues the MINI WRC’s development.  The team is also holding a one day pre-event test in France this weekend.

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MINI WRC TEAM Summary: Interviews, CVs, and Tech Specs

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This is an absolutely HUGE article, containing several transcripts with our interviews with some of the key people behind MINI WRC including technical details about the JCW MINI WRC car, background on the management and drivers, a synopsis of Mini’s earlier rally heritage from the 1960′s, and so much more!  (special thanks to BMW PressClub Sport for all the great photos, presskits, and video footage!)

We’re using the “more” tag in this article so that it won’t take up pages and pages to scroll from on our main site.

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MINI finishes 3rd place in FIA World Rally Championship, Germany Day 3!

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[Source: BMW AG, Trier, 21st August, 2011.]

A podium position on the ADAC Rally Germany was the reward for the MINI WRC Team after Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) finished third in their number 37 MINI John Cooper Works WRC after a flawless drive. It also looked as if their team-mates, Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR), were set to make it to the finish in Trier, but then on the penultimate stage an electrical gremlin struck and the car stopped while they were still fighting for fourth.

Sordo had a rally long battle with the Ford of Mikko Hirvonen (FI) and after 19 stages and 359.59 kilometres of competition finished 48.1secs ahead of him. For Kris he started the final day in fourth ahead of Petter Solberg (NO) in his Citroen. Despite a rear puncture on the first stage of the day, Meeke only lost 1.1secs to Solberg. However, on the second one what Meeke described as an ‘optimistic’ pace note saw him have an excursion into the vineyards and drop to fifth. Despite this he started a fight back, but then when the car stopped on stage 18 the battle with Solberg was over.

It was only 11 months ago on the 15th September that the MINI rally car first turned a wheel in testing in Portugal. In that time the team has competed on only three World Rally Championship events and made it to the podium on its first tarmac event. While this may be the team’s first podium, for the second time this season it has been awarded the Abu Dhabi Spirit of the Rally Award for Sordo’s great drive.

David Richards, Team Principal:

“I don’t know where to start to thank all the people who have made this possible. If I look at the long list of everyone who has had faith in this project from the very first day we started it’s a long one, and I would like to thank everyone of them as without them none of this would be possible. Dani has driven an impeccable event, and never put a foot wrong. I never doubted his abilities. Poor Kris – if there was any bad luck it was always with him. To have such cruel luck on the second to last stage I really feel for him, but his day will come. He has proved how competitive he can be here and I am sure he is looking forward to France.”

Dave Wilcock, Technical Director:

“We knew what we had to do today. Kris was up for getting in front of Petter Solberg. Dani just had to keep his nose clean and keep the gap to Mikko Hirvonen. The morning stages were dry and we took a bit of a gamble. All the competitors took soft tyres, but we did a split and took the safe option for Dani and Kris went for hard. It was absolutely the right choice, as we could see after ten kilometres into the first stage the hard tyres had warmed up and I was confident we were on for our first fastest stage. Unfortunately he picked up a puncture just before the end. Then at the lunchtime service the heavens opened for the afternoon stages and soft was the obvious choice for everyone. In the afternoon Dani was matching Hirvonen, and picked up the pace when he had to and drove a stunning finish. For Kris we had a loss of electrical power three kilometres into the penultimate stage. The battery managed to keep it running for a further seven minutes, but then we had total electrical failure so had to retire the car after many fraught minutes on the phone and radio to try and sort out the problem. The problem was a broken terminal, a really simple problem as you can do thousands of miles testing and never have this problem. It was the sort of problem buried in the wires that you could not have seen it if you had been looking for it.”

Dani Sordo:

“I am really, really happy for me and the team. For the first rally of the car on tarmac this is very good. This is a surprise and the times were so close to Ford and Citroen that we have a lot of confidence for the next rally. The car is really good on tarmac. We have a good set-up and the suspension is perfect. Obviously we can improve and get the car better and better but this weekend it was okay. We shall now work a lot to try and beat Citroen as well. I tried to push hard on the power stage and it was great to be third, but I didn’t want to take any risks. The mechanics have worked really hard and not made any mistakes so I hope to spend some time with them tonight.”

Kris Meeke:

“The day started out as going to be a bit of a battle with Petter Solberg. We held him in the first one and then on the second we had a little error on the pace note side as the note I had made on the recce was a little bit optimistic and I missed my braking point and lost ten seconds there. After lunch it was very wet and there was only a second between myself and Petter on the first stage, and then on the next about halfway through the car started to cut out on me, eventually stopped completely and there was nothing we could do. It was quite clear it was an electrical issue as there was no power to the control box inside the car. It was traced to just a little wire that had come off and it was one of those things. ”

ADAC Rally Germany. 18th – 21st August. 9th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Day 2.

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[Source: BMW AG, Trier, 20th August, 2011.]

The MINI WRC Team has every reason to feel satisfied after day two of Rally Germany, as Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) are now third overall in their MINI John Cooper Works WRC number 37. While Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) in number 52 are still in fifth, they have had a far from easy day with a puncture on stage 13 and a broken rim on stage 14 causing them to lose over a minute on the leading cars.

Number 13 proved unlucky for not only Meeke, but also the man chasing him for fourth, Petter Solberg (NO). While Meeke came off the 15.23 kilometre stage 23.3 seconds behind the leader, Sébastien Loeb (FR), the Norwegian was even further behind with a loss of 31 seconds, also due to a puncture. The 34.18 kilometre final stage of the day on the Baumholder tank training ground also caused high drama for Loeb, as he became one of numerous drivers to suffer a puncture during the day and dropped to second behind his Citroen team-mate, Sébastien Ogier (FR).

Day two was held in extremely hot and sunny conditions, but there is a question mark over the weather for the final day as heavy thunder showers are forecast for late morning. The remaining crews have another five stages and 76.31 kilometres of competition before the Power Stage at Circus Maximus back in Trier early in the afternoon.

Dave Wilcock, Technical Director:

“That has been a pretty good day as we started fourth and fifth and finished third and fifth. Dani has had a clean run through and set really quick times with Mikko Hirvonen. Then on the last stage he put in a blistering pace and finished within a couple of seconds of Sébastien Ogier and was second quickest. We were clearly faster than the Fords on that stage, and that was the one I really wanted to see where we really were with the others working perfectly. This is only our third rally and we know we can improve and from where we are now that is a really good benchmark. Kris had a fantastic day starting in fifth. Petter Solberg jumped him on the first stage this morning, but then had his problems, as did Kris including a little scare on the last stage of the day where he had a slow run through after sustaining a little bit of damage to a wheel. He is still just in front of Solberg. Tomorrow Kris has to keep his nose clean, and Dani has to consolidate third if he can as Hirvonen will come out charging. The target is to stay on the podium, as we like it there and don’t want to get off it.”

Dani Sordo:

“Honestly we didn’t expect to be here in third on our first tarmac rally for the car. I am really happy with the car. We did some changes to the set-up and today the MINI was quite good and helped me do the good times. We will continue to do the same tomorrow and try to finish on the podium. We don’t have enough of a margin to feel safe, as you can have a puncture, you can spin or the the weather may be bad. I am not going to start thinking about the podium, but just to try to drive well as we still have another day. The most important thing is we are still close to the opposition, and if we do modifications to the car for the future we are planning we can then be really close.”

Kris Meeke:

“We have had a few wee problems, and we picked up another puncture on stage 13. Everyone seems to be hitting trouble. Dani and Sébastien Ogier are the only two in the top eight or nine who have not picked up a puncture, so it is proving to be a challenge. We were just a little bit unlucky in that sense. Then on the second run through Panzerplatte the car was a little bit nervous underbraking, it cut away from me and stopped very gently against a small stone, it broke the rim and we had a massive vibration for the rest of the stage. When we have had a clean run we have really been on the money, and have been able to be right up there with the times. We have not been consistent enough, but that will come as this is only my second ever start on a WRC event on tarmac. ”

ADAC Rally Germany. 18th – 21st August. 9th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Day 1.

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[Source: BMW AG,  Trier, 19th August, 2011]

Day one of the ADAC Rally Germany ended with the MINI WRC Team in a very encouraging fourth and fifth overall. From the very first of today’s six stages Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) in the MINI John Cooper Works WRC number 37 and Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) in the number 52 sister car were putting in competitive stage times. As the cars arrived in Trier for the overnight halt the Spanish duo were in front by just 17.3 secs, although the honour of a top three stage time went to Meeke.

While the weather had been hot and dry up to the start of the event, as the cars got onto stage two the rains came. The Citroen duo of Sébastien Loeb (FR) and Sébastien Ogier (FR) had opted for a different Michelin tyre strategy, as in Germany they could choose either hard or soft compounds. They took soft, while the other top teams took hard and this proved quite crucial in the wet conditions that only affected part of the one stage but gave them an advantage.

With six stages over 133 kilometres covered today, the crews are now ready for another eight stages and 150 kilometres tomorrow. Ahead of them they have the very tough Panzerplatte stage on the Baumholder tank training ground, which is 34.18 kilometres long. This stage, which is run twice, has often been a major decider in the outcome of this rally.

Dave Wilcock, Technical Director:

“It was a good day for us. The weather played a big part in our positions and performance in the morning loop, with the rain on stage two. Everyone was on hard tyres and Citroen, with their weather information, took soft. They took 30 seconds off the rest of the field! Our battle is now with Ford and into the second loop we were chasing Mikko Hirvonen. Very quickly both Fords struck problems, so we find ourselves in a reasonable position at the moment in fourth and fifth. We are very pleased with where the MINI is in tarmac form, and very optimistic for the rest of the rally. I am sure tomorrow’s stages will suite Dani, and Kris is also really optimistic. Kris had a small fuel surge problem, but we have replaced all the parts and are confident that is sorted for tomorrow.”

Dani Sordo:

“I am very happy as the performance from the MINI in this rally is quite good. Fourth is not so bad, and honestly I didn’t expect to be in this position after day one. This morning the times were really close, but now they are not so close, as I think everyone has started to wake up on these tarmac roads. We have a little bit of work to do on the understeer in the corners, but as we are only on our third rally with this car we are not so bad. The times from Citroen are very fast, but Kris and myself will keep pushing hard and I think the work the team has done today is very good.”

Kris Meeke:

“It has been a really enjoyable rally and driving here has given me a smile. I have always liked this rally and gone well in the junior categories. This is my first time here in a world rally car and everything is coming at you a little faster. This morning there were places where I was hesitating, and we had the damp stage on the hard tyres which was quite difficult. I got comfortable and was really happy, but had a little problem on the second stage of this afternoon’s loop. The engine started cutting out towards the end of the stage, and then on heavy breaking it stalled completely and I spun and lost six or seven seconds. Overall I have to be very encouraged by the pace and to be setting times in the top three has to be encouraging. We have a 45 minute service so we have to get to work now to try and resolve that little issue, even though I did not have it on that last stage. ”

ADAC Rally Germany. 18th – 21st August. 9th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Preview.

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[Source: BMW AG, Munich, 12th August, 2011.]

With two FIA World Championship Rallies behind it, the MINI WRC Team is now ready for its next test and that will be on the asphalt stages in next week’s ADAC Rally Germany. This will be the first WRC event of the year on this surface for not only Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) in the MINI John Cooper Works WRC number 37, and Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) in the number 52 car, but also the rest of the competitors in the championship.

The drivers have put in many kilometres of testing in readiness for this asphalt debut, and this is even continuing this weekend in the UK with the team competing on the Richard Burns Memorial Rally, at RAF Marham in Norfolk. Also contesting the event in Norfolk, in preparation for Germany, in a customer MINI John Cooper Works WRC is Pierre Campana (FR). The 26-year-old has just been given backing by the FFSA, the French motorsport federation. This means the driver from Corsica will be following in the footsteps of his two very famous rallying countrymen, Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier, who also received this support early on in their careers.

David Richards, Team Principal:

“We have high expectations going into Rally Germany. The MINI has shown a great deal of promise in recent tarmac tests in Germany and Italy and both drivers have told me how much confidence they have in the set up. Dani, in particular, very much likes this rally and I know that he and Kris have traded times on these stages in the past. Unlike Finland, where our number one priority was to get valuable competitive mileage on the car, in Germany we will be looking for both drivers to begin to demonstrate the true performance of the MINI.”

Dani Sordo:

“This is a rally I am really looking forward to. I like the stages in all three areas – the vineyards, the military training ground and the normal roads. It has lots of hairpins, which are very different to the tight corners we get in Spain. I always remember the military training area of Baumholder, as there are some very big rocks there so you have to be careful not to get punctures. I particularly enjoy driving in the vineyards as these roads are narrow and fast. The fans who come to watch us in their thousands are really nice. Obviously rallying is very popular in Germany, and so it will be good for us to have some ‘home’ support this year for the MINI.”

Kris Meeke:

“I think it is a fantastic rally. I have done it three times before, and all of these have been good experiences. The stages are demanding and, because of the different surfaces, it is more like three rallies in one. You have the vineyards, Baumholder and the Saarland region. The weather can also be very changeable there, so this is another challenge. The year I remember best was in 2005 in the junior category when I was fighting with Dani, and after three days with two stages to go we were just six seconds apart. Unfortunately I then had a puncture, but it was a fantastic battle. I also like the event because it is very popular with the fans. It is based in central Europe so it is easy for the spectators to get there. I know I shall have lots of support as many of my friends from home are heading there.”

History and Background:

This rally joined the WRC in 2002 and since then it has been won every year by the reigning world champion, Sebastien Loeb (FR). However, this rally actually started back in 1982 and then was based in Frankfurt am Main. Since then it has moved several times and has been at its current location of Trier, Germany’s oldest city based in the Mosel wine growing region, since 2000. It is the first asphalt rally of the 2011 season, but over the three days there are three different types of sealed surfaces for the stages. On Day 1 it is the vineyards, on Day 2 it is the normal roads in the Saarland region and the military training ground of Baumholder, where there are large boulders on the side of the roads and these are known as hinkelsteins, while Day 3 sees the crews returning to the vineyards and the Power Stage on Sunday afternoon is at the famous Circus Maximus in the centre of Trier.

The event’s ceremonial start is on Thursday, 18th August in Trier at Porta Nigra at 20.00. However, the competition doesn’t start until the next morning. The first car leaves the service park at 09.30 and the first of the day’s six stages is at 10.13. The first day of action is over 133.14 kilometres and the first car is due back at the service park at 18.18. Day two starts at 07.00 from Trier and after eight stages, covering 150.14 kilometres, returns to service at 20.17. Then for the third and final day of action the start is at 07.00 and then there are five stages over 76.31 kilometres before the cars are due into service from 14.29, with the podium ceremony at 16.45. The rally was the longest last year in the WRC in terms of competitive mileage and this year there are 359.59 kilometres in a total route of 1,245.96 kilometres.

ADAC Rally Germany. 18th – 21st August. 9th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Preview.

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[Source: BMW AG, Munich, 12th August, 2011]

With two FIA World Championship Rallies behind it, the MINI WRC Team is now ready for its next test and that will be on the asphalt stages in next week’s ADAC Rally Germany. This will be the first WRC event of the year on this surface for not only Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) in the MINI John Cooper Works WRC number 37, and Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) in the number 52 car, but also the rest of the competitors in the championship.

The drivers have put in many kilometres of testing in readiness for this asphalt debut, and this is even continuing this weekend in the UK with the team competing on the Richard Burns Memorial Rally, at RAF Marham in Norfolk. Also contesting the event in Norfolk, in preparation for Germany, in a customer MINI John Cooper Works WRC is Pierre Campana (FR). The 26-year-old has just been given backing by the FFSA, the French motorsport federation. This means the driver from Corsica will be following in the footsteps of his two very famous rallying countrymen, Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier, who also received this support early on in their careers.

David Richards, Team Principal:

“We have high expectations going into Rally Germany. The MINI has shown a great deal of promise in recent tarmac tests in Germany and Italy and both drivers have told me how much confidence they have in the set up. Dani, in particular, very much likes this rally and I know that he and Kris have traded times on these stages in the past. Unlike Finland, where our number one priority was to get valuable competitive mileage on the car, in Germany we will be looking for both drivers to begin to demonstrate the true performance of the MINI.”

Dani Sordo:

“This is a rally I am really looking forward to. I like the stages in all three areas – the vineyards, the military training ground and the normal roads. It has lots of hairpins, which are very different to the tight corners we get in Spain. I always remember the military training area of Baumholder, as there are some very big rocks there so you have to be careful not to get punctures. I particularly enjoy driving in the vineyards as these roads are narrow and fast. The fans who come to watch us in their thousands are really nice. Obviously rallying is very popular in Germany, and so it will be good for us to have some ‘home’ support this year for the MINI.”

Kris Meeke:

“I think it is a fantastic rally. I have done it three times before, and all of these have been good experiences. The stages are demanding and, because of the different surfaces, it is more like three rallies in one. You have the vineyards, Baumholder and the Saarland region. The weather can also be very changeable there, so this is another challenge. The year I remember best was in 2005 in the junior category when I was fighting with Dani, and after three days with two stages to go we were just six seconds apart. Unfortunately I then had a puncture, but it was a fantastic battle. I also like the event because it is very popular with the fans. It is based in central Europe so it is easy for the spectators to get there. I know I shall have lots of support as many of my friends from home are heading there.”

History and Background:
This rally joined the WRC in 2002 and since then it has been won every year by the reigning world champion, Sebastien Loeb (FR). However, this rally actually started back in 1982 and then was based in Frankfurt am Main. Since then it has moved several times and has been at its current location of Trier, Germany’s oldest city based in the Mosel wine growing region, since 2000. It is the first asphalt rally of the 2011 season, but over the three days there are three different types of sealed surfaces for the stages. On Day 1 it is the vineyards, on Day 2 it is the normal roads in the Saarland region and the military training ground of Baumholder, where there are large boulders on the side of the roads and these are known as hinkelsteins, while Day 3 sees the crews returning to the vineyards and the Power Stage on Sunday afternoon is at the famous Circus Maximus in the centre of Trier.

The event’s ceremonial start is on Thursday, 18th August in Trier at Porta Nigra at 20.00. However, the competition doesn’t start until the next morning. The first car leaves the service park at 09.30 and the first of the day’s six stages is at 10.13. The first day of action is over 133.14 kilometres and the first car is due back at the service park at 18.18. Day two starts at 07.00 from Trier and after eight stages, covering 150.14 kilometres, returns to service at 20.17. Then for the third and final day of action the start is at 07.00 and then there are five stages over 76.31 kilometres before the cars are due into service from 14.29, with the podium ceremony at 16.45. The rally was the longest last year in the WRC in terms of competitive mileage and this year there are 359.59 kilometres in a total route of 1,245.96 kilometres.

MINI WRC Team – Neste Oil Rally Finland – Day 3

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Miniology.com coverage of the MINI WRC Team continues with the 8th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship; Neste Oil Rally (Day 3) in Jyväskylä, Finland.

So, today we have some sorta bad news.

30th July, 2011.

The MINI WRC Team cannot pretend to be satisfied that neither of its MINI John Cooper Works WRCs made it to the end of Neste Oil Rally Finland, but this doesn’t mean it has been an unsuccessful outing. The first retirement was of car number 52 for Kris Meeke (GB) and Paul Nagle (IR) after 19 of the 22 stages, while Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) only missed out on the very last stage.

Both retirements were precautionary after a lot of sand and dirt was sucked into the cars’ cooling system, which could have caused damage to the engines.

The problems started on stage 17, Leustu 2, when Meeke suffered from a puncture and then overheating. At that stage he had been lying ninth, but the loss of over a minute and a half to the leaders dropped him to 14th. It was soon obvious how rough the stages were proving on the second run through, and on the next stage, Surkee 2, Sordo, then seventh, also had problems with the sand blocking the air intake and lost 45 seconds to the leaders. The team’s engineers knew they would learn nothing more from cars limping through stages, although Sordo was able to go quicker than Meeke. After Urria 2 the team decided to retire Meeke’s car, and then after Isojärvi 2 Sordo was told to drive back to Jyväskylä and not attempt the Power Stage to avoid engine damage.

David Richards, Team Principal said: “There is obviously a great sense of disappointment throughout the team that the rally should end for both Dani and Kris within sight of the finish. However, we have to take heart from the performance of the cars throughout the event, with their pure speed and the fact we were close to the pace right from the word go. We now go to a very different surface, with the asphalt rally of Germany which will present further challenges and another step in the learning curve for our new team.”

Next up, Technical Director Dave Wilcock stated: “The first loop of stages today was very good, and these were stages Dani was familiar with. Here he showed us that the pace of the car on certain splits was very, very good. This was encouraging for us, so in general we were very happy with his performance. Kris was surprised by the speed of the others this morning, but, as we have always said, for him it was just about getting experience and getting through the stages. On the second loop it all started to go wrong for us. The stages had cut up far worse than expected and, even though we had raised the car for the second pass, we ran into some problems with collecting sand into the cooling and air intake systems, which eventually made us call an end to our rally and retire the cars rather than suffer any damage. This was mainly because we didn’t want to damage the engine with dirt getting into or through overheating.”

Dani Sordo chimed in to say, “I am a little disappointed as it would have been really nice to finish here in Finland, but motorsport is like that. We have had some small problems, but this helps for us to understand our car and improve for the future. I am quite happy today as the stages in the morning today were very good and we were close to the top times. I enjoyed today as they were really nice stages. I would have liked to do the power stage, but it was best not to risk damaging the engine. ”

And from Kris Meeke, “It was good to get very nearly a full rally distance under our belts, as it has been a long time since we have done a full rally. I began to really get into the groove yesterday and start to really understand the car in rally conditions. I think yesterday afternoon we felt comfortable, and to get within half a second a kilometre of the top guys on this rally is something that I think we can be very encouraged with. Today we were back to the traditional type of stages, and this morning I was really having to learn them. I think anybody coming here for the first time is bound to be blown away by those stages, as the lines these guys take are impossible to do the first time. I am glad I have seen it all and I have video footage of the entire rally. I will be studying that very closely over the next few days, and will even start making corrections to our notes for next year. It is all an experience exercise, but with that we also proved the car is quite fast when the conditions are good, but we just have a bit more work to do when the conditions get rough.”

Stay tuned to Miniology.com for more MINI WRC action and reports as they are delivered fresh from the event.

Rauno Aaltonen supports MINI WRC Team on his home rally

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Neste Oil Rally Finland
28th – 30th July
8th of 13 rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship

Rauno Aaltonen supports MINI WRC Team on his home rally.

Jyvaskala , 30th July, 2011. With the World Rally Championship visiting his home turf, it would have been inconceivable that Rauno Aaltonen would not be on the Neste Oil Rally Finland to give support to the next generation of MINI drivers. He was there to repay the compliment after Dani Sordo (ES) and Kris Meeke (GB) went to see him on the Historic Monte Carlo Rally in January.

A very happy Aaltonen explained his role with MINI: “As a representative of MINI I have the honour to be here for both the road going MINI for the normal people and, as you know the rally people are not quite normal, so for them we have this MINI John Cooper Works WRC car. I think this is fantastic as in Finland the word MINI is synonymous with the word winning, and now, of course, the whole of Finland is expecting the MINI to win. However, we have to be realistic and understand that no car has ever won a world championship rally during its first year. I think we are doing very well indeed and the spectators say it is so nice and it is going well and they are all very pleased.”

Aaltonen has spent the three days of the rally both in and around the event’s headquarters in the central Finnish town of Jyväskylä, and in the Lahti region for Saturday’s remote service. He is no stranger to the rally as when he was rallying a Mini in the sixties he has been on the podium on this event that was then known as the Rally of the 1000 Lakes.

His packed schedule has included wishing the two MINI WRC Team crews – Sordo and Carlos del Barrio (ES) with their no 37 MINI John Cooper Works WRC and Meeke and Paul Nagle (IR) in no 52 – good luck when they left the service park each morning. He has also featured on tv and radio as a real expert on everything about MINI in rallying and the sport in Finland. Today he presented a MINI Countryman to two of his fellow Finns, Arttu Pihlainen, the world’s fastest downhill skater who won the Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championship, and Peetu Piiroinen, a successful snowboarder who won the Burton Global Open Series. They won these cars, which were given by BMW Suomi Oy, in races last winter and both have been customised according to the winners’ designs.

Rauno Aaltonen was born in Finland in 1938 and started his rallying career in 1956. In a long and illustrious career he has been famous for not only winning the European Rally Championship in a Mini Cooper S in 1965, but also going on to win the third Monte Carlo Rally victory with the car. The first win on this famous event for the team was in 1964 for Paddy Hopkirk (GB), then the next year it was Timo Mäkinen (FI) and Aaltonen’s win came in 1967. They were known as the ‘Three Musketeers’ and Aaltoen the ‘Rally Professor’.