Tue January 7, 2014

 Six fastest times for Civic Type-R Zoltan Bessenyey and co-driver Yulianna Nyirfas made a very strong start in the Jänner Rally, the Austrian opening round of the European Rally Championship. The crew of the Civic Type R ended the second day of competition with five best times and moved up to 2nd place in 2WD, pro...

Sun January 5, 2014

 Kubica lands thrilling ERC victory Robert Kubica has secured the biggest win of his rally career as the FIA European Rally Championship season-opener once again came down to a thrilling final-stage decider in the stunning countryside of Upper Austria. Kubica, a race winner in Formula One, started the closing 2...

NEWS JUST IN

 A end - Pech surprisingly loses win @ 03:55 PM - Pech with a surprisingly slow time on the last stage, without really explaining it. He loses over 30s and the win to Kubica. Final results (after SS18)(subject to last road section and scrutineering):
1st= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), 2h26m42s4;
2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +19s9;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +1m38s9;
4th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +3m00s3;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +3m39s6;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +4m33s4;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +6m27s4;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +7m16s3;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +9m22s2;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +11m39s6

 A SS17 - Kubica wins long stage @ 01:35 PM - Kubica wins stage, but Pech still in the lead. Sensational time for Harrach in his groupN Mitsubishi he is only 1.1s over 25km off the stage win. Results after SS17:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 2h12m54s6;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +11s8;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +1m27s7;
4th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m45s5;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +3m10s3;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +4m18s8;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +5m08s4;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +6m21s5;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +8m13s6;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +10m11s2

 A SS16 - 2x 25km left @ 12:36 AM - Still big battle, and since it is not a WRC event the finale will be two long stages. Pech hit something slightly with the door but still was 1s faster than Kubica. Results after SS16:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h59m25s9;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +13s8;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +1m13s4;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +2m36s5;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m46s4;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +3m40s3;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +4m20s4;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +5m44s7;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +7m17s8;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +8m06s1

 A SS15 - Pech shines in fog @ 11:59 AM - Ding dong battle as Pech pulls 4.5s back from Kubica in the fog. Harrach met a tree and dropped back behind Tarabus. Results after SS15:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h54m06s7;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +12s8;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +1m08s3;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +2m34s6;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m43s;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +3m36s6;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +4m11s5;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +5m34s8;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +7m08s9;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +7m52s1

 A SS14 - Kubica very fast @ 11:02 AM - Kubica closes gap again by 2.2s. Harrach passes Tarabus for 4th. Results after SS14:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h46m28s5;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +8s3;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +52s8;
4th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m12s1;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +2m13s6;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +3m13s3;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +3m42s5;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +5m09s7;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +6m33s2;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +6m43s

 A SS13 - A new leader, just @ 08:39 AM - Vaclav Pech in the Mini takes the lead by 0.2s after Kubica cooked his brakes. Odlozilik briefly off road. Jump start penalty for Kubica added on SS12. Results after SS13:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h41m54s7;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +10s5;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +45s6;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +2m05s;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m09s3;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +3m08s;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +3m33s7;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +4m56s4;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +6m17s5;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +6m26s2

 A SS12 - Big fight for lead @ 08:07 AM - Pech wins 2nd stage in a row, but Kubica still keeps lead. Baumschlager seems to consistently lose to the top2 now. Consani gains place. (Kubica penalty added later) Results after SS12:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h36m50s0;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +5s9;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +43s3;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +2m01s5;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m06s1;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +3m01s5;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +3m27s3;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +4m35s4;
9th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +5m58s6;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +6m11s

 A SS11 - Pech tries to close @ 07:32 AM - Icy morning, but relative drama free. Fastest time for Pech. Like on last stages leg1 Baumschlager does not quite find the speed. Results after SS11:
1st= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), 1h29m27s3;
2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +4s7;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +28s4;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +1m53s1;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +2m03s9;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +2m48s9;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +3m10s1;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +4m21s1;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +5m33s5;
10th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +5m33s7

Sat January 4, 2014

 Kubica holds top spot in Austrian battle The 2014 FIA European Rally Championship has got off to a thrilling start with Robert Kubica on top on the 31 Int. Jännerrallye, Oberösterreich following Saturday’s 10 action-packed stages. Kajetan Kajetanowicz had led after the first three ice-coated tests but the Polish cha...

NEWS JUST IN

 A leg1 - Kubica takes lead @ 07:02 PM - At the end of the day Kubica takes lead for the first time in this rally. He is also the 4th leader of this rally. Results after leg1 (SS10):
1st= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), 1h24m52s6;
2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +6s4;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +20s9;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +1m47s9;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m59s1;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +2m41s3;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +3m00s6;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +4m03s8;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +5m12s;
10th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +5m16s1

 A SS9 - Kubica fastest @ 06:09 PM - Kubica wins stage but Pech keeps lead. Baumschlager feels gearbox was not the problem, but again he loses 6s. maybe this (repeat of SS7) is just not his stage. Results after SS9:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h11m06s4;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +1s9;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +8s1;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +1m29s5;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m46s;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +2m11s7;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +2m21s2;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +3m20s9;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +3m28s1;
10th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +4m29s5

 A SS8 - Top3 within 4s @ 04:11 PM - Top3 all change. Pech new leader, Baumschlager tumbles from 1st to 3rd but is going to change to the shorter gearbox again now. Aigner gains a place too. Cerny retired. Results after SS8:
1st= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, 1h06m38s3;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +2s9;
3rd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +3s4;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +1m21s6;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m38s9;
6th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +1m59s6;
7th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +2m02s1;
8th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +3m06s8;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +3m11s2;
10th= Consani/Landais, Peugeot, +4m05s1

 A SS7 - Struggle for the leader! @ 03:21 PM - Baumschlager changed for a longer ratio gearbox but lost 7s in 9km now with the next stage being 23km! That's going to be a close call! Results after SS7:
1st= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, 53m07s5;
2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +3s2;
3rd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +7s8;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +53s;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m10s1;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +1m33s5;
7th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +1m46s8;
8th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +2m05s1;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +2m23s2;
10th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +2m26s2

 A SS6 - Kajetanowicz crashed out @ 01:21 PM - Kajetanowicz hit a wall, crew OK. But what a shame, he seemed the spice in the top4 battle. 2nd stage win for Kubica instead. Results after SS6:
1st= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, 48m39s3;
2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +9s8;
3rd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +14s3;
4th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +55s8;
5th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m16s5;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +1m23s8;
7th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +1m45s6;
8th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +1m54s7;
9th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +2m13s6;
10th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +2m20s5

 A SS5 - Kajetanowicz fastest again @ 12:39 AM - But he wins this stage only 0.1s from Baumschlager, who is on different tyres. Baumschlager reckons his tyres should be ace for the next stage. Puncture for Aigner. Results after SS5:
1st= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, 44m09s8;
2nd= Kajetanowicz/Baran, Ford, +2s4;
3rd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +8s4;
4th= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +15s;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +53s9;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +1m12s3;
7th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m15s9;
8th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +1m39s5;
9th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +1m46s3;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +2m03s4

 A SS4 - Tyre wars @ 11:40 AM - Baumschlager is only driver on non-studded tires, wins stage & takes the lead. Kubica in turn collects a puncture. Results after SS4:
1st= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, 38m09s2;
=2nd= Kajetanowicz/Baran, Ford, +2s5;
=2nd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +2s5;
4th= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +11s6;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +43s9;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +1m;
7th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +1m00s7;
8th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +1m14s4;
9th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +1m31s6;
10th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +1m50s1

 A SS3 - Battle of Polish Fords @ 11:19 AM - First stage win for Kubica. Kajetzanowicz won the first two stages. Quite interesting battle, two Poles in a Fiesta, Kajetanowicz in an R5, Kubica in an RRC. Results after SS3:
1st= Kajetanowicz/Baran, Ford, 24m58s9;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +4s9;
3rd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +9s6;
4th= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +15s7;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +39s4;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +44s7;
7th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +48s7;
8th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +50s8;
9th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +1m07s9;
10th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +1m08s8

 A SS2 - Another stage for Kajetanowicz @ 11:12 AM - 2nd stage win for Pole Kajetanowicz, this time ahead of Pech. But Kubica now 2nd overall. Baumschlager drops to 4th for a 10s jump start penalty. Stilly icey patches. Results after SS2:
1st= Kajetanowicz/Baran, Ford, 20m16s9;
2nd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +10s6;
3rd= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +11s5;
4th= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +18s4;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +35s2;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +35s6;
7th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +42s3;
8th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +44s4;
9th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +1m01s5;
10th= Cerny/Kohout, Subaru, +1m02s1

 A SS1 - Very icey and tricky @ - No snow but lots of black ice! Drivers off in SS1: Aigner, Gryazin, Tlustak, Cerny, Pushkar, Odlozilik, Tempestini & Consani, but only Pushkar retires. Results after SS1:
1st= Kajetanowicz/Baran, Ford, 14m18s4;
2nd= Baumschlager/Wicha, Skoda, +1s5;
3rd= Kubica/Szczepaniak, Ford (RRC), +5s4;
4th= Pech/Uhel, BMW Mini, +8s9;
5th= Tarabus/Trunkat, Skoda, +20s2;
6th= Gryazin/Chumak, Ford (S2000), +20s7;
7th= Aigner/Watzl, Peugeot, +25s6;
8th= Neubauer/Ettel, Subaru, +31s5;
9th= Odlozilik/Turecek, Ford, +34s4;
10th= Harrach/Welsersheimb, Mitsubishi, +37s

Mon December 23, 2013

 No New Year party for ERC drivers FIA European Rally Championship stars will be keeping their New Year’s Eve celebrations in check later this month. ...

Sun December 22, 2013

 Full Jänner Rallye Preview Some of Europe’s best drivers will prove their worth as Ice Masters when the 2014 FIA European Rally Championship powers into action on the 31 Int. Jännerrallye, Oberösterreich from 3-5 January 2014. The asphalt showcase, which first ran in 1969 and attracted 100,000 spectato...

 ERC aces step up for Jänner Rallye Several regulars from the FIA European Rally Championship will be taking a step up in performance when the 31 Int. Jännerrallye, Oberösterreich opens the new season from 3-5 January. ...

 Kubica on top for ERC season opener There will be serious competition ahead when the 2014 FIA European Rally Championship starts in Austria next month. ...

Wed December 18, 2013

 Jänner Rallye entry list New season is here already, as the entry list of the Jänner Rallye 2014, 1st ERC round, has been published. And the WRC Rallye Monte Carlo entry list should follow still before Christmas. ...