Rally Sweden 15th - 18th February 2018
NEUVILLE MAKES NO MISTAKE THIS TIME
Leg 1 - A large amount of snow fell over the 2017/18 winter meaning that the crews would have some of the biggest snowbanks to lean on in years but before the entry could head into the forests, there was the rally opening Karlstad Superspecial to complete. A Toyota 1-2 led by Ott Tänak from Jari-Matti Latvala topped the standings, split by 0.3 seconds, from the Citroën of Mads Østberg, another 0.3 seconds back in third. Friday dawned amid more overnight snow, which would hand the advantage to the crews starting further down the running order. Tänak belied this fact on SS2, Hof-Finnskog 1, to go fastest and open a 6.8-second lead over Østberg but, with snow falling heavily, he would soon start to slip down the leaderboard - second after SS3, Svullrya 1, behind new leader Thierry Neuville, then seventh after SS4, Röjden 1. Opening the road on Friday saw four-time world champion Sébastien Ogier floundering as his Fiesta WRC couldn't gain any traction in the loose snow, sitting eleventh at service before slipping to twelfth overnight some 2 minutes 48.8 seconds off the lead. Esapekka Lappi's Toyota headed the chase of Neuville after SS5, Hof-Finnskog 2, but an excursion on SS6, Svullrya 2, blocked the air intakes of his Yaris WRC, which dropped him to seventh as the Hyundai of Andreas Mikkelsen slotted into second overnight, 4.9 seconds down on his team-mate Neuville. An impressive performance came from Craig Breen during the afternoon loop, the Citroën man setting the second-fastest time on SS5 before winning SS6 and SS7 to climb up to third, which became fourth by day's end behind the third-placed Hayden Paddon - who completed a Hyundai 1-2-3 by winning SS8, Torsby 1.
Top 6 after Leg 1
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 1:16:13.1
2. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC +4.9
3. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC +12.1
4. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC +12.9
5. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC +13.2
6. Teemu Suninen/Mikko Markkula - Ford Fiesta WRC +29.6
Leg 2 - The day consisted of six forest stages, plus two short spectator stages to complete the day's competitive mileage. It was Irishman Breen who started brightest of the front runners, passing Paddon for third on SS9, Torntorp 1, then jumping ahead of Mikkelsen on SS10, Hagfors 1, after the Norwegian spun and fell to fourth, moving to just 4.2 seconds behind Neuville - who also had a spin on the same corner as Mikkelsen. The Belgian stemmed the tide a little on SS11, Vargåsen 1, to hold a 5.9-second lead at service, Mikkelsen and Paddon's Hyundais completed the top four after the pair swapped places on SS11. Breen started the afternoon on the front foot, grabbing 1.3 seconds back on SS12, Torntorp 2, but then Neuville won three of the next four stages to head the Citroën by 22.7 seconds overnight - the Belgian surviving a hairy landing on Colin's Crest in SS14, Vargåsen 2, when his left-side wheels caught the snowbank mid-flight. Behind Breen came Neuville's team-mates Mikkelsen and Paddon, with the Norwegian 9.3 seconds down on Breen and New Zealander Paddon a further 16.6 seconds in arrears. Further back there was a messy incident on SS13, Hagfors 2, when the works Citroën of Kris Meeke slid off into a snowbank. The Northern Irishman was soon on his way again thanks to a group of spectators, however, he was soon caught by the Toyota of Tänak but when the Estonian attempted to squeeze past the limping C3 WRC, Tänak only succeeded in bouncing off the Citroën and into a snowbank himself! Meeke retired for the day at the stage end whilst Tänak lost over two minutes extricating the Yaris WRC from the scenery.
Top 6 after Leg 2
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:23:23.8
2. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC +22.7
3. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC +32.0
4. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC +48.6
5. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC +56.8
6. Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm - Toyota Yaris WRC +1:05.8
Leg 3 - Three stages remained for Neuville to complete a job he looked like finishing in 2017 but a steady run through SS17, Likenäs 1, saw Breen eat a 7.9-second chunk out of his lead, which brought the gap down to 14.8 seconds with two stages to go. A much more committed drive from Neuville through SS18, Likenäs 2, yielded a 1.4-second gain on Breen, so the gap sat at 16.2 seconds with just the bonus points-paying Powerstage, SS19 Torsby 2, to go. Lappi went through fastest to grab the five extra points and second fastest was Ogier, who had taken 4 minutes 10 seconds in road penalties for a late arrival at the Powerstage to ensure a better road position. Third fastest was Neuville to wrap up a deserved 19.8 seconds victory, Breen took his best WRC result to date with second from Mikkelsen and in fourth came the leading Toyota of Lappi, whose prodigious pace on Sunday vaulted him past both Paddon, who stalled on the final stage, and Østberg, who bagged a top-six result in a one-off drive for Citroën.
Top 10 Results
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:52:13.1
2. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC 2:52:32.9 +19.8
3. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:52:41.4 +28.3 +8.5
4. Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:52:58.9 +45.8 +17.5
5. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:53:07.5 +54.4 +8.6
6. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC 2:53:28.4 +1:15.3 +20.9
7. Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:54:18.0 +2:04.9 +49.6
8. Teemu Sunninen/Mikko Markkula - Ford Fiesta WRC - 2:05:55.3 +2:52.2 +47.3
9. Ott Tänak/Märtin Jarveoja - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:55:57.5 +3:44.4 +52.2
10. Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia - Ford Fiesta WRC 3:00:58.5 +8:45.4 +5:01.0
Neuville quote - "It's an incredible weekend. We didn't expect to be so fast over here this year but the team and the car gave us the chance to fight for victory. We deserved it last year, even more this year. There are more than 200 people in the team, they are committed and gave us everything. I'm really happy with the weekend and looking forward to the coming events."
Leg 1 - A large amount of snow fell over the 2017/18 winter meaning that the crews would have some of the biggest snowbanks to lean on in years but before the entry could head into the forests, there was the rally opening Karlstad Superspecial to complete. A Toyota 1-2 led by Ott Tänak from Jari-Matti Latvala topped the standings, split by 0.3 seconds, from the Citroën of Mads Østberg, another 0.3 seconds back in third. Friday dawned amid more overnight snow, which would hand the advantage to the crews starting further down the running order. Tänak belied this fact on SS2, Hof-Finnskog 1, to go fastest and open a 6.8-second lead over Østberg but, with snow falling heavily, he would soon start to slip down the leaderboard - second after SS3, Svullrya 1, behind new leader Thierry Neuville, then seventh after SS4, Röjden 1. Opening the road on Friday saw four-time world champion Sébastien Ogier floundering as his Fiesta WRC couldn't gain any traction in the loose snow, sitting eleventh at service before slipping to twelfth overnight some 2 minutes 48.8 seconds off the lead. Esapekka Lappi's Toyota headed the chase of Neuville after SS5, Hof-Finnskog 2, but an excursion on SS6, Svullrya 2, blocked the air intakes of his Yaris WRC, which dropped him to seventh as the Hyundai of Andreas Mikkelsen slotted into second overnight, 4.9 seconds down on his team-mate Neuville. An impressive performance came from Craig Breen during the afternoon loop, the Citroën man setting the second-fastest time on SS5 before winning SS6 and SS7 to climb up to third, which became fourth by day's end behind the third-placed Hayden Paddon - who completed a Hyundai 1-2-3 by winning SS8, Torsby 1.
Top 6 after Leg 1
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 1:16:13.1
2. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC +4.9
3. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC +12.1
4. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC +12.9
5. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC +13.2
6. Teemu Suninen/Mikko Markkula - Ford Fiesta WRC +29.6
Leg 2 - The day consisted of six forest stages, plus two short spectator stages to complete the day's competitive mileage. It was Irishman Breen who started brightest of the front runners, passing Paddon for third on SS9, Torntorp 1, then jumping ahead of Mikkelsen on SS10, Hagfors 1, after the Norwegian spun and fell to fourth, moving to just 4.2 seconds behind Neuville - who also had a spin on the same corner as Mikkelsen. The Belgian stemmed the tide a little on SS11, Vargåsen 1, to hold a 5.9-second lead at service, Mikkelsen and Paddon's Hyundais completed the top four after the pair swapped places on SS11. Breen started the afternoon on the front foot, grabbing 1.3 seconds back on SS12, Torntorp 2, but then Neuville won three of the next four stages to head the Citroën by 22.7 seconds overnight - the Belgian surviving a hairy landing on Colin's Crest in SS14, Vargåsen 2, when his left-side wheels caught the snowbank mid-flight. Behind Breen came Neuville's team-mates Mikkelsen and Paddon, with the Norwegian 9.3 seconds down on Breen and New Zealander Paddon a further 16.6 seconds in arrears. Further back there was a messy incident on SS13, Hagfors 2, when the works Citroën of Kris Meeke slid off into a snowbank. The Northern Irishman was soon on his way again thanks to a group of spectators, however, he was soon caught by the Toyota of Tänak but when the Estonian attempted to squeeze past the limping C3 WRC, Tänak only succeeded in bouncing off the Citroën and into a snowbank himself! Meeke retired for the day at the stage end whilst Tänak lost over two minutes extricating the Yaris WRC from the scenery.
Top 6 after Leg 2
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:23:23.8
2. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC +22.7
3. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC +32.0
4. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC +48.6
5. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC +56.8
6. Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm - Toyota Yaris WRC +1:05.8
Leg 3 - Three stages remained for Neuville to complete a job he looked like finishing in 2017 but a steady run through SS17, Likenäs 1, saw Breen eat a 7.9-second chunk out of his lead, which brought the gap down to 14.8 seconds with two stages to go. A much more committed drive from Neuville through SS18, Likenäs 2, yielded a 1.4-second gain on Breen, so the gap sat at 16.2 seconds with just the bonus points-paying Powerstage, SS19 Torsby 2, to go. Lappi went through fastest to grab the five extra points and second fastest was Ogier, who had taken 4 minutes 10 seconds in road penalties for a late arrival at the Powerstage to ensure a better road position. Third fastest was Neuville to wrap up a deserved 19.8 seconds victory, Breen took his best WRC result to date with second from Mikkelsen and in fourth came the leading Toyota of Lappi, whose prodigious pace on Sunday vaulted him past both Paddon, who stalled on the final stage, and Østberg, who bagged a top-six result in a one-off drive for Citroën.
Top 10 Results
1. Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:52:13.1
2. Craig Breen/Scott Martin - Citroën C3 WRC 2:52:32.9 +19.8
3. Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:52:41.4 +28.3 +8.5
4. Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:52:58.9 +45.8 +17.5
5. Hayden Paddon/Sebastian Marshall - Hyundai i20 WRC 2:53:07.5 +54.4 +8.6
6. Mads Østberg/Torstein Eriksen - Citroën C3 WRC 2:53:28.4 +1:15.3 +20.9
7. Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:54:18.0 +2:04.9 +49.6
8. Teemu Sunninen/Mikko Markkula - Ford Fiesta WRC - 2:05:55.3 +2:52.2 +47.3
9. Ott Tänak/Märtin Jarveoja - Toyota Yaris WRC 2:55:57.5 +3:44.4 +52.2
10. Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia - Ford Fiesta WRC 3:00:58.5 +8:45.4 +5:01.0
Neuville quote - "It's an incredible weekend. We didn't expect to be so fast over here this year but the team and the car gave us the chance to fight for victory. We deserved it last year, even more this year. There are more than 200 people in the team, they are committed and gave us everything. I'm really happy with the weekend and looking forward to the coming events."
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WRC2 - In the supporting WRC2 class came one of the drives of the rally as Toyota Junior driver Takamoto Katsuta fended off the works Škoda Fabias of Swede Pontus Tidemand and Norwegian Ole Christian Veiby by 4.5 seconds in his Ford Fiesta R5, despite much less experience on snow. The Škoda pair briefly got ahead after the first stage on Saturday morning, SS9 Torntorp 1, but the Japanese youngster soon regained the lead on SS10, Hagfors 1, and established a margin he wasn't to lose, aided by winning half of the day's stages. Behind the top three came Mattias Adielsson in fourth from Janne Tuohino, who finished in fourth overall on my first visit to Sweden in 2004, and Finnish youngster Jari Huttunen in sixth - the Finn had been sat in fourth until a trip into a snowbank on Saturday sent the Hyundai Junior driver down the order.
1. Takamoto Katsuta/Marko Salminen - Ford Fiesta R5 3:01:27.5
2. Pontus Tidemand/Jonas Andersson - Škoda Fabia R5 3:01:32.0 +4.5
3. Ole Christian Veiby/Stig Rune Skjærmoen - Škoda Fabia R5 3:01:58.0 +30.5
1. Takamoto Katsuta/Marko Salminen - Ford Fiesta R5 3:01:27.5
2. Pontus Tidemand/Jonas Andersson - Škoda Fabia R5 3:01:32.0 +4.5
3. Ole Christian Veiby/Stig Rune Skjærmoen - Škoda Fabia R5 3:01:58.0 +30.5
WRC3 & JWRC - Swedish youngsters Dennis Rådström and Emil Bergqvist slugged it out for WRC3 and JWRC honours, with the former bagging the victory by a slender 7.3 seconds. Such was the pace of the JWRC contenders that the first non-JWRC runner in WRC3 finished down in sixth position.
1. Dennis Rådström/Johan Johansson - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:16:26.0
2. Emil Bergqvist/Ola Fløene - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:16:33.3 +7.3
3. Julius Tannert/Jürgen Heigl - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:21:09.2 +4:43.2
Rally Sweden Historic
Three-time Rally Sweden Historic winners Petter and Pernilla Solberg were back with a newly built Ford Escort Mk2 but were unable to defeat the total traction Mazda 323 4x4 Turbo of victor Kenneth Thomasson.
1. Kenneth Thomasson/Per Wiksten - Mazda 323 4x4 Turbo 1:28:40.5
2. Petter Solberg/Pernilla Solberg - Ford Escort Mk2 RS1800 1:29:27.4 +46.9
3. Mats Jonsson/Johnny Johansson - Mazda 323 GTX
1. Dennis Rådström/Johan Johansson - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:16:26.0
2. Emil Bergqvist/Ola Fløene - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:16:33.3 +7.3
3. Julius Tannert/Jürgen Heigl - Ford Fiesta R2T 3:21:09.2 +4:43.2
Rally Sweden Historic
Three-time Rally Sweden Historic winners Petter and Pernilla Solberg were back with a newly built Ford Escort Mk2 but were unable to defeat the total traction Mazda 323 4x4 Turbo of victor Kenneth Thomasson.
1. Kenneth Thomasson/Per Wiksten - Mazda 323 4x4 Turbo 1:28:40.5
2. Petter Solberg/Pernilla Solberg - Ford Escort Mk2 RS1800 1:29:27.4 +46.9
3. Mats Jonsson/Johnny Johansson - Mazda 323 GTX
