The WRC

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What an eventful season ender.

Petter Solberg is apparently related to Colin McRae.


And Seb killed them all winning his 9th WRC title.

And the big news of the series is Seb is only running a partial season in 2013, meaning he will not be going for championship points.

I read an interview from Loeb the other day and he is thinking Ogier in his Volkswagen Polo will be his championship successor and not his team mate Mikko Hirvonen.

Thoughts? Ideas? Other full size enthusiast?

For those of you looking for a good iPod/ Iphone app covering all the latest action download iRally and WRC 2011.

[CheapTwin]

spectators were lucky to survive that one, from all the "trees" he hit the one supporting power lines...

It's sad to see Ford quit for 2013

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Sad indeed. Im really curious if there will be any teams competeting a full season next year...

Found this online:

Date: October 15th-

"First MINI, now Ford; both manufacturers have now announced they will pull out of the 2013 World Rally Championship as a factory sponsor. The move is undoubtedly a bad one for the sport, and fans will no doubt see it as Ford turning tail after years of playing bridesmaid to the dominance of Citroen and star driver Sebastian Loeb in both the Manufacturer's and Driver's Championships for years now.

The official statement from the automaker is that it needs to deploy its resources in other areas, Autosport reported. According to Ford of Europe's VP of Marketing, Roelant de Waard, the decision wasn't an easy one as Ford has had a "long and proud history in the WRC."

Ford WRC also made the announcement to the public using Twitter.

M-Sport, the company that prepared the WRC Fiestas for competition, will continue to build them, though it will now count only on private teams as customers. Ford and M-Sport are said to be in negotiations on providing continued vehicle and engineering support.

Some fans see Ford's timing as especially bad, as the dominating nine-time WRC Champion Loeb has announced he won't compete in all rallies in 2013.

Fortunately for the sport, both VW and Hyundai have promised to enter the WRC as factory teams, though 2013 may not be full seasons for either."



I also found this article from October 4th-

"Jari-Matti Latvala has revealed that he is considering an offer that could see him leave Ford to join Volkswagen for the 2013 World Rally Championship season.

The Finn is out of contract with Ford at the end of the season and has been linked with a switch to partner Sebastien Ogier at VW when it debuts the new Polo WRC next year.

Speaking ahead of Rallye de France, Latvala – who took victory in the most recent event in Wales for his second win of the year – revealed that he had two options available for the new season and was undecided over which way to go.

The 27-year-old also revealed that he wouldn't make a decision about his future before Rally Sardinia later this month.

“It's not a secret,” he said. “My contract with Ford is ending at the end of the year and Ford is committed in rallying until the end of 2013, while Volkswagen has longer commitments. It's not easy to make a decision.

“I have worked with Ford for many years and would love to see Ford winning the Championship and I have had very happy years with this team. I don't have an answer for the moment. Leaving would be hard but I must consider the opportunities. I don't have any deadline for the moment. Both teams are flexible.

“I believe I won't make any decision before Sardinia, maybe after Spain? For sure before Monte Carlo!”

Sounds like Ford Dropping out was a surprise to Latvala too. I know I was surprised. All I heard this year was Ford was in for at least one more year and now that the Citreon team is no longer all powerful Ford is gone. Once again a bad move from a team that has been struggling behind Citreon for the last couple seasons.

[CheapTwin]

since VW Concern is coming back (after Skoda drop out) I would've seen Audis rather than Volkswagens but I guess Audi is too fancy for dirt bashing nowadays. I think the New MINI WRC was DOA so I won't miss it. I Hope Ford doesn't loose it's balls with this withdrawal from WRC because they have released some really nice passenger cars based to their Rally car line

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Originally Posted by CheapTwin

since VW Concern is coming back (after Skoda drop out) I would've seen Audis rather than Volkswagens but I guess Audi is too fancy for dirt bashing nowadays. I think the New MINI WRC was DOA so I won't miss it. I Hope Ford doesn't loose it's balls with this withdrawal from WRC because they have released some really nice passenger cars based to their Rally car line

Did Skoda Drop out of the IRC?


Yeah supposedly Just factory support is gone for Mini and Ford for the WRC, but they both have the points to keep running the cars in the series, so at the very least we will see private teams using the Fiesta and country men next season. I just don't want to see the WRC turn into a sea of Citreons.

Also Hyundia is in for 2013, regardless of how cars do, I want to see some variety. Toyota should also be in with the Yaris at some point in the future...

The real bummer is great drivers like Latvala, Solberg, Atkinson, Sordo are all left looking for new teams to go too. Without these guys its tough to even watch events. To crown the best driver in the world you need the best drivers competing.

[Sith Lord]

I haven't really followed 1:1 wrc since Subaru pulled out. First Mitsubishi (my faves), the. Subaru, it was quite boring with only 2 or 3 manufacturers. I was about to say at least now with Mini and......... Until I read above that mini and ford have pulled out. Yes, Loeb is a great driver, but he hasn't exactly had a lot of product or people competition over the last 9years. It must be getting quite routine and boring for him. No wonder he's dropping down his commitment for 2013. Can WRC recover? I don't know. It lost me a long time ago....

(I'm also a big motogp fan, but it is headed the same way with less and less manufacturers. Together with the second tier bikes in the same race).

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Originally Posted by Sith Lord

I haven't really followed 1:1 wrc since Subaru pulled out. First Mitsubishi (my faves), the. Subaru, it was quite boring with only 2 or 3 manufacturers. I was about to say at least now with Mini and......... Until I read above that mini and ford have pulled out. Yes, Loeb is a great driver, but he hasn't exactly had a lot of product or people competition over the last 9years. It must be getting quite routine and boring for him. No wonder he's dropping down his commitment for 2013. Can WRC recover? I don't know. It lost me a long time ago....

(I'm also a big motogp fan, but it is headed the same way with less and less manufacturers. Together with the second tier bikes in the same race).

There is still going to be a lot of different cars in the series including Subaru, Mitsubishi, Ford, Citreon, Mini, Hyundia, etc. They are just not factory teams.

Although the coverage is not as extensive there is the most variety in racing in the S2000 class and PWRC class.

Loeb has been checked out for a little while now. Years ago he tried to get into F1 and rumor has it that this coming year he is going to race touring car.

Its tough to say Loeb hasn't had any real competition. All the best have been there over the years competing with him, he is just a great driver with a solid car.

[Stburr91]

I'm bummed to hear that Ford is dropping out. Even so, next year will be very interesting, I'm sure that the top drivers will find teams.

As much as I hate to say it, Loeb's dominance has really hurt the WRC. He is a major reason why so many teams have pulled out in the past few years. Now that the title will be up for grabs, I hope some other manufactures will come in.

[CheapTwin]

Finnish Media confirmed today that Latvala signed 2+1 year contract with VW starting 2013

[stormridersp]

Pretty disapointing that Ford wont support the WRC anymore. Same as the Minis. Its the second time a team disappears on Solberg tho!

Good to have Hyundai back and VW committed but I think there's still a LONG way to go before they catch up with the Citroens.

In my opinion, the champ will fall to Mikko's hand this time. The belge despite inheriting the best car around, still lacks some experience and consistency.

No news on Subaru yet. This time, no news is not good news...

Also, during the past few seasons I've watching the WRC at WRCForeva's youtube channel. The producer is very committed to it, publishing daily reviews with a minimum delay. No HD videos tho.
WRCforeva - YouTube

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Have you seen how they are doing today in Italy yet?

All I have heard so far is I think Loeb qualified first...?

I did hear rumor that this could potentially be his last gravel race ever...

[stormridersp]

Yeah, that's right, according to WRC.com there were only 2 (28km) SS to be run today. Loeb 1st, followed closely by his team mate and Solberg already drifting behind in 3rd.

Regarding Loeb's 2013 season, it appears that he's gonna run a few rallies of his choice, most likely 5. My bet goes to Monte Carlo, Germany, France, Catalunya and I since these are the only tarmacs, I would say that the fifth rally is a gravel round that he's pretty damn good at, either Argentina or New Zealand.

[stormridersp]

Originally Posted by TURTLE

Did Skoda Drop out of the IRC?


Yeah supposedly Just factory support is gone for Mini and Ford for the WRC, but they both have the points to keep running the cars in the series, so at the very least we will see private teams using the Fiesta and country men next season. I just don't want to see the WRC turn into a sea of Citreons.

Also Hyundia is in for 2013, regardless of how cars do, I want to see some variety. Toyota should also be in with the Yaris at some point in the future...

The real bummer is great drivers like Latvala, Solberg, Atkinson, Sordo are all left looking for new teams to go too. Without these guys its tough to even watch events. To crown the best driver in the world you need the best drivers competing.

From the news I've heard, it looks like Toyota is coming back for the 2014 rally season. Lets just hope they're back as committed to it as they once were!

[binaryterror]

The rules changes are killing WRC.

Bring back GroupB style rules and many more manufacturers will be entering.

One rule I wish they'd enforce...drivetrain must be available to the public. I'm tired of seeing AWD fiestas, 206s, vws, etc. that can and will never exist. Think about it the only companies who make an AWD platform left WRC: Audi, Mitsu, Subaru, Mini.

[pixelnate]

Originally Posted by binaryterror

The rules changes are killing WRC.

Bring back GroupB style rules and many more manufacturers will be entering.

One rule I wish they'd enforce...drivetrain must be available to the public. I'm tired of seeing AWD fiestas, 206s, vws, etc. that can and will never exist.

It was the crazy expense of developing Group 5 cars that killed that class. It will never come back. While the Stratos was an amazing car - and still is, really - no team would be able to create a car like that again. In today's dollars it would be about the same cost to develop an F1 car and no team in WRC has that kind of budget. The reason why the cars are getting smaller and smaller is because it costs so much to field a race team and with smaller cars, the parts are cheaper to replace.


I agree that the WRC should require homologation of the drivetrain though. That's part of the reason I stopped watching rally racing, the cars they were racing had no resemblance to the cars we see here in the 'States. That and you can only watch Loeb win so many times. It was like watching the same movie over and over. I miss the days when McRae, Burns and Saenz used to duke it out. Back when Makinninen (sp?) was the guy that everyone feared.

[Stburr91]

Originally Posted by binaryterror

The rules changes are killing WRC.

Bring back GroupB style rules and many more manufacturers will be entering.

No not at all, if anything, the WRC needs to move towards less sophisticated cars to lower the cost for the teams.

Originally Posted by pixelnate

...you can only watch Loeb win so many times. It was like watching the same movie over and over. I miss the days when McRae, Burns and Saenz used to duke it out. Back when Makinninen (sp?) was the guy that everyone feared.

I agree, Loeb not entering all the rallies next year is the best thing to happen in the WRC in a long time. Next year should be very interesting.

[stormridersp]

Originally Posted by binaryterror

The rules changes are killing WRC.

Bring back GroupB style rules and many more manufacturers will be entering.

One rule I wish they'd enforce...drivetrain must be available to the public. I'm tired of seeing AWD fiestas, 206s, vws, etc. that can and will never exist. Think about it the only companies who make an AWD platform left WRC: Audi, Mitsu, Subaru, Mini.

Back in the days when I was just a child watching VHS of previous year's Group B, that's when I felt in love with Rally. But as said by pixelnate, its just unreal, especially nowadays. Can you imagine a car rated like a F-1 car, sliding through those tight and dangerous Monte Carlo roads? Not to mention that it would be unpractical to fund such development.

Despite having lived for a few years in the States, and still call Tahoe my home, I'm half brazilian half italian and I'm used and prefer european cars than american muscles. For me american cars are just way too big, drink way too much and are way too confortable to drive! ;) That may just be the reason why Ford withdrawn from the WRC. Ken Block Fiestas were getting way too popular, but at the same time, a flawed marketing strategy if it was to save american car factories from bailouts.

In my opinion the WRC is and must be the test ground and showroom for factories willing to create better road cars. Its the organizers duty, by constantly adapting its rules, to follow the marked needs. For the past 5 years I've been living in Europe and I more than anybody else, as an immigrant, can say how tough things are around here. The bankers stole all the money, and the regular people can only afford small economic cars now a days. So that's where the mass-demand is. I currently own a Subaru 2 litres, but I wished it was 1.6 Turbo. My car drinks way too much and being the regular naturally aspirated one, its not even close to be as efficient as the 1.6 Turbo engine.

The decade we're living is the first since the '30s that the children are poorer than his fathers. It would be NICE but unpracticable to ask the bankrupt factories to mass produce a limited edition, integral traction, 1.6 turbo engine version of their racing cars to be sold to the market. We can only wish! Other than that, you can always buy WRX and EVOs. They both were succesful marketing strategies developed in partnership with the WRC, but watching their last moves (BRZ...) one can only wonder what path they will take next.

Before Fords anouncements of withdrawal I had great expectations for 2013's season. New factories, Loeb's retirement... Dont take me wrong, I'm married to a french girl, so it was tough to like the guy, I tried my best not to like him, but the guy is just a machine and won my total respect. For me he's the best driver that the WRC has ever seen. I've never seen anybody as committed, as focused, as fast and as consistent as him. The guy is just perfect. But I'm happy that he's finally retiring!

As the years pass by, and Europe/Japan starts to recover economically, we'll probably see new factories joining in. Lets just wish so!

Cheers

[stormridersp]

Just as I cheered the guy, he's off the rally!

“We hit some rocks at the outside of a corner,” said Loeb. “I felt that the steering was damaged and tried to continue. But we had to stop.”

Loeb


and Latvala also struck problems, went off the road and is out.

"Latvala, who was fourth starting the stage, struck a bank in a high-speed right-hander. The impact burst his Ford Fiesta RS WRC’s radiator and although the Finn tried to carry on he went off again and stopped."

Will we finally see Solberg winning again?

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Originally Posted by stormridersp

and Latvala also struck problems, went off the road and is out.

Big shocker there. The kid has gone off on most of the rallies this year. The more I look at Latvala the less I like him. Hell I have been seeing him crash for nearly 10 years and he seldom finishes races...

Originally Posted by stormridersp

Will we finally see Solberg winning again?

I hope so Petter is one drive that embodies the rally spirit to me. He doesn't seem to care about all the crap, he drives for anyone who is will to hire him. He is a driver, driving every manufactures car out there.

Im going to see what footage I can track down from the race today.

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Good Volkswagen interview on WRC live right now.

As of right now the 1 2 3 is

Mikko
Petter
Madds

Edit: Scratch that it's all out chaos!