Rally Discussion and Bar Talk Thread

[PLuto]

I'd like a thread of rally drivers who are famously known for something else.

You can start that thread ;)

[deephouse]

As it was expected Toyota deepens co-operation with Haas F1 team. I know it's not rallying related, but having Rovanpera left for glory in formula, we can only see in some years Kalle driving for TGR F1 team.

[240RS]

Slightly off WRC, there are some interesting names at this year's Safari Classic event.

Jourdan Serderidis navigated by Greg Munster. PG Anderson co-driving Evgeny Kireev. Jos Verstappen in a Porsche 911. A host of well-known names such as Martin Rowe, Stefan Prevot, Alex Gelsomino, Osian Pryce, Michel Perin on the list of those entered.

https://results.statusas.com/events/657/classifications

[Jarek Z]

https://www.ewrc-results.com/profile/280327-vivian-campbell/

I'd like a thread of rally drivers who are famously known for something else.

It's interesting what Vivian Campell says here:

"It amazes me that it is such a great, great motorsport, and the people who do follow it are so passionate about it. It's such a great community and a very, very helpful and inclusive community. But it's really a little bit under the radar here in North America, where it's such a massive sport in WRC in Europe and the rest of the world."

source:
https://www.performanceracing.com/magazine/industry-news/12-01-2025/def-leppards-vivian-campbell-pri-show

[Fast Eddie WRC]

https://www.ewrc-results.com/profile/280327-vivian-campbell/

I'd like a thread of rally drivers who are famously known for something else.

André Villas-Boas, the former manager of Chelsea and Tottenham, who stepped away from football to compete in the Dakar Rally and Rally Portugal.

[Rallyper]

Ok, first test for Kalle, but he interrupted and didn´t test in the afternoon at Suzuka. After being 22nd out of 22, and 7 secs behind, his "illnes" seems mystic. They told media he needs rest after a hectic year, but to me it seems like a wake up...

My bet is he joins WRC in 2027 again.

[deephouse]

He will have paved way into F1 with Toyota. Why would he quit so early

[denkimi]

Ok, first test for Kalle, but he interrupted and didn´t test in the afternoon at Suzuka. After being 22nd out of 22, and 7 secs behind, his "illnes" seems mystic. They told media he needs rest after a hectic year, but to me it seems like a wake up...

My bet is he joins WRC in 2027 again.
It wouldn't suprise me. It will be a good reality check.

[focus206]

Ok, first test for Kalle, but he interrupted and didn´t test in the afternoon at Suzuka. After being 22nd out of 22, and 7 secs behind, his "illnes" seems mystic. They told media he needs rest after a hectic year, but to me it seems like a wake up...

My bet is he joins WRC in 2027 again.

Autosport.com:
On social media, Rovanpera wrote: “During [the] midday break I got symptoms of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, which affects balance and vision through [the] inner ear. I got [a] ban from the doctor to drive this week. Really disappointed as we didn’t have any chance to do any proper driving other than our aero test this morning."

I don't think he made up the illness. It sounds like something similar I have, I can't drive when it happens.

[TypeR]

Lol, yea he made it up that his medical condition and doctor doesn't allow him to drive for some time..
Super formula + suzuks is pretty difficult combo for first outings..

Doohan, who drove in F1, was ca 4s down

[Kras]

Vertigo is what chicks fake when they want some time off work lol

[TypeR]

Haven't seen proper vertigo then.. 50+ dad had it out of nowhere, couldn't stand or sit properly and took couple weeks to fully recover the balance/stability while walking..

[focus206]

I had it only once as a severe case, other times more lightly, but in the severe case I couldn't do anything. Even standing still felt like I was falling if I moved my head, every object was out of focus, so reading or grabbing things was very difficult. But I have no idea of the scientific names, so I can't judge what Kalle said.

[Kras]

I'm sure vertigo exists. It's just that it's often faked due to the fact that it's impossible to disprove

[Rallyper]

Maybe the G-forces was to much?

[deephouse]

Ben Sulayem re-elected as FIA president. And again we will listen to that imbecil for four years

[Rallyper]

So what happened at Suzuka and Kalle? Did he do anymore testing?

[denkimi]

So what happened at Suzuka and Kalle? Did he do anymore testing?
I think he got banned from driving for the entire week.

[Rallyper]

I think he got banned from driving for the entire week.

Banned or retired because of fatigue?

[TypeR]

Doctors didn't allow him to drive no more for some time

[Steve Boyd]

Maybe the G-forces was to much?
If it's brought on by high G-forces, he can kiss goodbye to a top single seater or sports protoype drive.

[Rallyper]

If it's brought on by high G-forces, he can kiss goodbye to a top single seater or sports protoype drive.

That´s what I thought. Just look at the top drivers necks... from long time in F1 and training.

[WRCStan]

Martijn Wydaeghe didn't disgrace himself on his first driving start

https://www.ewrc-results.com/results/98202-rallye-regional-du-pays-vencois-2025/

[Jarek Z]

Martijn Wydaeghe didn't disgrace himself on his first driving start

https://www.ewrc-results.com/results/98202-rallye-regional-du-pays-vencois-2025/

Yes, not bad! He even managed to win one stage :)

[Jarek Z]

A very interesting article about the last time when a private team won the World Rally Championship - Kronos and Loeb in 2007, told by the man at the helm of the operation: Marc Van Dalen:
https://dirtfish.com/rally/wrc/when-a-part-time-driver-won-the-wrc-with-a-privateer-team/

P.S. I'm over 40 and I find it interesting, but it may be considered too long for the members of Generation Z ;)

[Steve Boyd]

A very interesting article about the last time when a private team won the World Rally Championship - Kronos and Loeb in 2007, told by the man at the helm of the operation: Marc Van Dalen:
https://dirtfish.com/rally/wrc/when-a-part-time-driver-won-the-wrc-with-a-privateer-team/

P.S. I'm over 40 and I find it interesting, but it may be considered too long for the members of Generation Z ;)
I didn't think it was too long.

I'm over 70 and could still remember the beginning when I got to the end. :)

[GigiGalliNo1]

You guys had any time to vote for:

WRC Photo of the Year?

https://www.riddle.com/view/x7iyrU8t

I'm the 11th one down :D

[Jarek Z]

You guys had any time to vote for:

WRC Photo of the Year?

https://www.riddle.com/view/x7iyrU8t

I'm the 11th one down :D

We can't even see those photos in higher resolution. What kind of a photo competition is it?!

Your photo is good, but it will be hard to top the first one!

[GigiGalliNo1]

Timo's if the car is on fire? It's a cropped in version of the last image...

I'm surprised they didn't cut it down to 10 images... :)

[GigiGalliNo1]

Also

https://rallyjournal.com/jari-matti-latvala-completes-multi-million-deal-buys-a-successful-rally-team?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=comment&fbclid=IwY2xjawO_DYhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFJRm5qU 2NJQzZob1RwMUE5c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg 5MgABHj1Goz1ZSPLdbUobWav5HTjfLX-p0i9hhhSqVGPEaYPfgz5YLHNhmnI44ykz_aem_xTcGUwe-JuncYnGTy4YbxA

[dimviii]

We can't even see those photos in higher resolution. What kind of a photo competition is it?!

Your photo is good, but it will be hard to top the first one!

right click in the photo,open photo in new page,and it opens in full size.

[Jarek Z]

right click in the photo,open photo in new page,and it opens in full size.

Works in Chrome, but not in Firefox.

[dimviii]

this would be my choice

https://cdn.riddle.com/embeds/v3/images/transformed/w_1439,h_960/049/0492da22b5443a04b63b7ec1edbb0eb0.webp

[Jarek Z]

Timo's if the car is on fire? It's a cropped in version of the last image...

I'm surprised they didn't cut it down to 10 images... :)

So it's cropped? In my opinion that should not be accepted!

I quite like this one:
https://cdn.riddle.com/embeds/v3/images/transformed/w_1440,h_960/2a2/2a2fdd77be251322486a8a84988837b7.webp

[TypeR]

Timo Anis himself about the photo:

This photograph was taken at this year’s WRC Rally Chile, on the Power Stage finish jump.
I noticed how high the cars were jumping, which allowed me to shape the composition in a very specific way — capturing only the sky, the car, and the flames.

My intention was to keep the frame as clean and minimal as possible, letting only the most important and striking elements define the image.
I positioned myself behind the take-off ramp, waiting for that one precise moment.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

New Lancia first gravel test ! ;)

https://youtu.be/NEi-ie-k3ME?si=vIm3e3Epv75pITun

[GigiGalliNo1]

So it's cropped? In my opinion that should not be accepted!

I quite like this one:
https://cdn.riddle.com/embeds/v3/images/transformed/w_1440,h_960/2a2/2a2fdd77be251322486a8a84988837b7.webp

What I mean is it's a differently framed version. Still cool with the flames/fire but if you scroll down the other entrant has the same image - but wider.

[Eli]

Happy New Year everyone! May we have a great year of rallying with seeing these magnificent beasts with a proper livery for each for one more year!

[Fast Eddie WRC]

What a passenger ride is really like with Ott Tanak in the i20 Rally1...

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15230403/Why-needed-fireproof-underwear-leisurely-spin-Bavarian-countryside.html

[Rallyper]

What a passenger ride is really like with Ott Tanak in the i20 Rally1...

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15230403/Why-needed-fireproof-underwear-leisurely-spin-Bavarian-countryside.html

Most laughs at the end on gravel...

[AndersX]

If anyone else here is following Dakar, then i strongly recommend official Dakar Youtube channel - this year they have introduced super exciting and very well edited 1h material from every day, called The Film of The Day. Superb material. And, it seems that Ford Racing is on a mission - M-Sport know how to build fast cars.

[deephouse]

Cool, I only watched extended highlights from prologue and stage 1. Will check that out instead. Thanks

[Jarek Z]

You guys had any time to vote for:

WRC Photo of the Year?

https://www.riddle.com/view/x7iyrU8t

I'm the 11th one down :D

And? Did you win? ;)

[GigiGalliNo1]

And? Did you win? ;)

I have no idea when it's announced!! :D :D

[M3 Jambo]

Stefan Bejenaru's image of Munster over the jump at CER has been announced as the winner. Too large a percetage of the image of the fans and not enough car for me!

[GigiGalliNo1]

Who?

[satnav]

https://www.wrc.com/en/news/bejenaru-s-central-europe-stunner-crowned-wrc-photo-of-the-year

[GigiGalliNo1]

Yes, but who?

[Jarek Z]

Perhaps you should have tried also here?
https://www.fiaerc.com/en/news/voting-opens-to-decide-best-erc-photograph-of-2025

[Jarek Z]

Photographer André Lavadinho explains how his vision of new Rally Series:
https://dirtfish.com/rally/the-lessons-the-world-can-learn-from-rally-series/

[deephouse]

It's funny how Nasser Al-Atiyah is so bad in WRC, while on Dakar he beat up nine time world championship driver every single time

[giu canbera]

It's funny how Nasser Al-Atiyah is so bad in WRC, while on Dakar he beat up nine time world championship driver every single time

Wait.... He is a two time WRC2 champion.

[WRCStan]

I've created a MF league on fantasy WRC if anybody is interested: https://fantasywrc.com/c/viewleague2.php?LeagueID=14246

Motorsport Forums
League # 14246

[GigiGalliNo1]

I've created a MF league on fantasy WRC if anybody is interested: https://fantasywrc.com/c/viewleague2.php?LeagueID=14246

Motorsport Forums
League # 14246

Lets Goooooo!!!!

[Jarek Z]

Sven Kollus, from Germany, wins the ERC Photograph of the Year competition for 2025:
https://www.fiaerc.com/en/news/sven-kollus-wins-erc-photograph-of-the-year-contest

[GigiGalliNo1]

At least we know who Sven is :D

[becher]

So how long was the forum gone? Or was the issue just on my side?

[skarderud]

So how long was the forum gone? Or was the issue just on my side?Been of and on last month or so for me.

Sent fra min SM-S901B via Tapatalk

[satnav]

Been of and on last month or so for me.

Sent fra min SM-S901B via Tapatalk

The same here for me as well, wouldn't open then eventually it would, on and off .

[deephouse]

Usually became very slow when the night is coming. I thought that is maybe overcrowded. Probably because F1 fans haha. I'm only checking out WRC section.

[EstWRC]

its been bad for two months at least for me, so slow and loads so long

[saco0o]

it gets so slow here for me too sometimes. cant log some other times.

[WRCStan]

It's haemorrhaging time Becs.

But it's free beer, free speech and free spirit unlike most other things on the internet.

[Rallyper]

Just have some patience guys. The sight works but sometimes slowly.

[wyler]

some section (expecially private msg) is still broken for me.

[becher]

Ah thanks, on my side it died right around the Monte Powerstage. I gave up trying after a few days.

[WRCStan]

Also 'valuer' has been the newest member for several months. It may be necessary to stop spam or something I don't know, but is a great shame new human members cannot join and contribute, which will contribute to its downfall and the rise of alternative spaces.

[saco0o]

saw an "ask me anything" clip with Jon Armstrong on wrc yt channel... one can only hope wrc's new promoter doesnt transform wrc into what f1 has become: social media content.
"oi, but this is how you promote stuff nowadays. if they dont move into that direction wrc is dead" .

dammit, im getting old. LET IT DIE THEN. dont want to see grown man getting media training so they can guess each other's height or favorite pizza in front of a camera, jeezz.. cringe

thats NOT wrc vibes imo

[Fast Eddie WRC]

Also 'valuer' has been the newest member for several months. It may be necessary to stop spam or something I don't know, but is a great shame new human members cannot join and contribute, which will contribute to its downfall and the rise of alternative spaces.

Yep a shame, but there's probably not many younger rally fans that would join a forum nowadays anyway. Social media is the place they use, but you dont get proper serious discussions there.

I just hope this place can keep going. I'd be willing to help fund it if required.

[saco0o]

petter solberg went on a great new rallycross podcast where he told some really awesome stories from his early carrear.
he mentioned something about WRC 2012 to 2013, where he left the sport very angry because of something that he cannot share (around 29 min maybe?) - I wonder what that may be... ? i would say maybe something related to new promoter and/or vw coming in demanding stuff like "no, petter cannot build his cars from scratch anymore, nope" but idk, he had a good relationship later in RX with VW, so i have no idea. he also mentions these next wrc rules 'were not FIA, were the teams trying to find a solution", which is curious in a way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzC7R_rSQ2s

[Fast Eddie WRC]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HA8scdJbsAYmFmn?format=jpg&name=small

[Dimitris]

Not sure if this is the correct place to post this, but I made a database where you can compare drivers based on their average s/km deficit across a season:

https://www.powerslideblog.com/stats

Inside the database you can find more than 90 drivers across 20 seasons, as well as individual performances from 250+ rallies from 2005 to present day!

I will continue to update it as well.

[saco0o]

damn this forum became so slow to navegate...
are you european fellas watching the ice hockey championship in the olympics?
boooy the czechia game today was good. watching suomi vs swiss now. also really fun
never paid much attention to hockey, better start following some of the leagues. reaally fun

[saco0o]

yep... f1/liberty PAVED THE WAY for the complete enshitification of motorsport.
i always thought indycar were more roots, more hardcore. those guys race cars with no powersteering in terrible street track conditions, scary ovals. thats really impressive.... but eeeeeeeeeh, nope, we gotta filme these grown man making GUESSES IF THESE NAMES ARE ACTUAL HONDA CARS... https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6AU6gAroc8o
...sure, there are lots of younger drivers on the grid apparently. every series needs newcomers and young guns
but look how , idk, will power looks unconfortable doing these silly stunts.
haha i know its just a matter of "well, dont watch these contents then" - but thats whats happening to everything. its so weird, fellas
im old... im yelling at the cllouds now, dont know how to 'not care' about this enshitification.
"WRC NEEDS TO DO THAT TOO IN ORDER TO SURVIVE" aaahhhh ffs

[Steve Boyd]

im old... Sounds to me like you might not be old enough.

I'm in my 70's, so I'm completely oblivious to social media sh*te. Much happier than if I was younger!

[saco0o]

im 40 and not on social media - but youtube is where i watch most stuff.
i was checking to see something on dario franchitti returning to do a race with those nascar trucks during indycar's first round this weekend - found that instead lol

[Negaiss]

petter solberg went on a great new rallycross podcast where he told some really awesome stories from his early carrear.
he mentioned something about WRC 2012 to 2013, where he left the sport very angry because of something that he cannot share (around 29 min maybe?) - I wonder what that may be... ? i would say maybe something related to new promoter and/or vw coming in demanding stuff like "no, petter cannot build his cars from scratch anymore, nope" but idk, he had a good relationship later in RX with VW, so i have no idea. he also mentions these next wrc rules 'were not FIA, were the teams trying to find a solution", which is curious in a way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzC7R_rSQ2s


Sounds like he is talking about the situation, that Manufacturesr are playing dirty. That it is not possible to win with a private team. Sounds like he was told, that he will not win if in a private car. I think he is telling, that manufacturers ar messing up with cars maybe even remotely. I have also had thoughts about this, for example Sesks was faster than evey manufacturer in Saudi and sudenli engine issue. Maybe even slow puncures could be remotely induced.

[deephouse]

M-Sport is desperate for good results and I don't think that they would mess up the only car who could actually bring them those, as all others were slow, hit the troubles and were conpletely nowhere. It could be, if full season drivers would fight for the win, but they weren't.

[PLuto]

M-Sport is desperate for good results and I don't think that they would mess up the only car who could actually bring them those, as all others were slow, hit the troubles and were conpletely nowhere. It could be, if full season drivers would fight for the win, but they weren't.

Maybe he was thinking that it was other manufacturers meesed up his car/tyres :D

[focus206]

Today Sandro Munari has passed away.
He was 1973 European champion and won the 1977 FIA Rally Drivers Cup, which was basically the first drivers world championship in everything but the name. He was also the highest scoring driver in the 1974 and 1976 seasons, if I recall correctly, but there was no driver title those years.
RIP

[becher]

I always found it strange how he was the man in a Stratos but disappeared basically together with the original Lancia Squadra Corse.

[focus206]

I always found it strange how he was the man in a Stratos but disappeared basically together with the original Lancia Squadra Corse.

I guess he decided to retire few years before the average (great) driver of the time. He was 38 in 1978, his last "full" season. He helped FIAT develop the 131 Abarth, after they decided to close down the Lancia team.
After that, he tried to win Safari few times but never managed to.

[Jarek Z]

Sandro Munari and Lancia Stratos will be rally legends forever. They say he was in poor health since 2022 here:
https://www.fiaerc.com/en/news/sandro-munari-1940-2026

[deephouse]

https://dirtfish.com/rally/wrc/the-idea-to-bring-back-modern-group-b/

Wow, it's like someone listened to me. Haha joke. I completely support that idea. People like watching old cars and put legends in it would be awesome aswell.

[wyler]

https://dirtfish.com/rally/wrc/the-idea-to-bring-back-modern-group-b/

Wow, it's like someone listened to me. Haha joke. I completely support that idea. People like watching old cars and put legends in it would be awesome aswell.

i don't like the idea of a friday off, but maybe a sunday could be done, with morning running before the wrc stage, and an added show afternoon.

btw, i remember in some rally germany they were doing it a little on the parzerplatte day, having legends to drive legend cars before the wrc.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

Aberdeen, Scotland takes another step in bid for a WRC event:

https://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/news/bid-world-rally-championships

I did say it was coming ... ;)

[Humber]

Kalle Rovanpera - posted on social media(instagram), he is pulling back on Japanese Super Formula this year, to work on a long-term health issue.

[TypeR]

Wishing good recovery for him! Maybe it's time for him to take it easier, relax and enjoy life. Rally goals are achieved :)

[Eli]

https://youtu.be/e9BQp0M5uzI?si=fFZQUlewl2rpORBQ
I’m not sure if this was posted here in this forum but in case it hasn’t here it is. Richard Hammond alongside Oliver Solberg, THIS is how you promote this beloved sport!

[Eli]

I don’t know why the forum has been giving me trouble lately, sometimes it says it’s unsecured because it doesn’t encrypt with https, in my 13 (next week) years on this forum, I’ve never had any sort of issues like that and from what I gather I’m not the only one?

[flat_right]

I have the same issues for sometime. Sometimes it is very very slow, sometimes I can't get access.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

I couldnt access the forum at all this morning but now it's up again.

It's a shame those responsible cant be around regularly to monitor and fix the issues.

I posted on the Feedback section weeks ago but had no reply.

[saco0o]

its sucking so bad here for me that i even lost interest in coming more to the forum over these last months.
most of the times the page dont even open for me

[skarderud]

Its been on and off for months, sometimes i just give up for days.
Sad if this place dies bcs of bad service from hosts.
Specially for us that tries to quit facebook.

Sent fra min SM-S901B via Tapatalk

[Fast Eddie WRC]

If this site ever dies, maybe we could all migrate to another forum, like the following one ?

Bookmark this for possible future use:

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/#irish-british-and-world-rallying.3

It's way more modern and similar to other car forums I use.

[Rallyper]

If this site ever dies, maybe we could all migrate to another forum, like the following one ?

Bookmark this for possible future use:

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/#irish-british-and-world-rallying.3

It's way more modern and similar to other car forums I use.

Good advice. No specific WRC topic, what I could recognize.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

Good advice. No specific WRC topic, what I could recognize.

What there has been is in "World Rallying" ...

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/world-rallying.9/

[spark13]

If this site ever dies, maybe we could all migrate to another forum, like the following one ?

Bookmark this for possible future use:

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/#irish-british-and-world-rallying.3

It's way more modern and similar to other car forums I use.
Thanks for that, would be great if all active members will be able to join, as as it seems this forum can die in any moment.
I try to visit here every day and out of 10 attempts its works for me every 3 on average.
Still not giving up though =)

[WRCStan]

I don’t know why the forum has been giving me trouble lately, sometimes it says it’s unsecured because it doesn’t encrypt with https, in my 13 (next week) years on this forum, I’ve never had any sort of issues like that and from what I gather I’m not the only one?

It's been flawless for me since last week, very surprising because it's been awful for months before.


I posted on the Feedback section weeks ago but had no reply.

There's two spam posts in there too, I guess the report feature is broken even. PLuto?

[Rallyper]

What there has been is in "World Rallying" ...

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/world-rallying.9/

From 2025-ish...

[Fast Eddie WRC]

From 2025-ish...

Yes, strange.

I dont know anything about this forum but it just seems a waste that it's a functioning rally forum that's barely being used.

[ZoomanSP206]

I have a question for the technical experts here:

Back in the days, drivers would often use the Scandinavian flick to set up the car for a corner. It is often said that this changed when Sébastien Loeb introduced a cleaner, more racing-like style, which was faster and subsequently got adopted by the other drivers.

Now I was wondering: Was the cleaner style always the faster one, and people just didn't know better? Or was the Scandinavian flick actually faster for the cars in the 70's/80's/..., but less fast when used with modern-day rally cars?

If it is the latter, what were the changes that led to the advantage of the cleaner style? Would it be possible to undo these changes or introduce new regulations that lead again to an advantage of using the Scandinavian flick, without compromising safety?

[flat_right]

Cleaner style came with the technical development of the cars. There were several issues depending on how far back should we go. So there was turbo lag. Older systems were all or nothing. If a driver braked traditionally and dropped the RPMs, the car would have zero power on the exit for couple of seconds. By throwing the car sideways (or using left foot braking), drivers could stay heavy on the throttle to keep the turbo spooling while using the slide to scrub speed. It was fixed when they introduced Anti-Lag System (ALS) which came with group a cars (I think). Group b had this turbo lag issue.

Also diffs.. early 4wd was quite dumb compared to today. They often suffered from massive understeer (the car wanting to go straight). The flick was a way to force the car to rotate early so it was already pointed at the exit by the time it reached the apex.

Also the suspension was nowhere near what we have now. Tyres didn't have so much lateral grip.

So this faster style is mainly result of different technological advancements.

[WRCStan]

See also this thread from yesteryear, insight from user 'Pentti'


Huge flicks have gone because these silly motorbike gearboxes! You can,t skip gears any more in down shifts.

Which funnily enough I had randomly read only yesterday.

[Jewy46]

What there has been is in "World Rallying" ...

https://www.rallyforums.com/forums/world-rallying.9/

RallyForums was an Irish centered forum that was hugely popular in the late 2000/2010s.
It was brilliant and I used to log in there for all the rumours etc before joining here.

Nice to see it is still there but looks like it's rarely used now

[Steve Boyd]

See also this thread from yesteryear, insight from user 'Pentti'For those who weren't here while user 'Pentti' was still with us, his real name was Pentti Airikkala and his results are listed here:
https://ewrc-results.com/profile/1326-pentti-airikkala
A great character and sadly missed.

[ZoomanSP206]

Thanks for the explanations!

[PLuto]

It's been flawless for me since last week, very surprising because it's been awful for months before.
There's two spam posts in there too, I guess the report feature is broken even. PLuto?

Sorry for later answer, I have just returned from Sierra Morena (when I am present on events, I dont post info anywhere (except Rally-base) as I have lot of work to do there). I will try to contact Mark (owner of this forum) via email and ask him to check the situation with hosting and errors. But I know very well how difficult is to run this old forums on modern sites (we are running similar on forum.autosport.cz). Every forced upgrade of software on server means another troubles with this old forums systems. And any new try to upgrade or fix the current settings can destroy everything... But like I told, I will try to write to Mark.

[Franky]

Every forced upgrade of software on server means another troubles with this old forums systems. And any new try to upgrade or fix the current settings can destroy everything... But like I told, I will try to write to Mark.

Maybe to have one time pain than eternal suffering? The current forum version was released in 2013 and it can only get worse. Logically all the modifications would be lost but at least everything should run smoother.

[PLuto]

I have answer from Mark:

Hello!
The server had run out of disk space, I have cleared away some old test forums which were taking up space. And I have fixed the user registration options, at least I hope I have.
The server is pretty old now, it has a continuous uptime of 11 years now! I should probably do something with it, my job is working for web hosting company after all, maybe that's the issue!

Mark

[Fast Eddie WRC]

I have answer from Mark:

Hello!
The server had run out of disk space, I have cleared away some old test forums which were taking up space. And I have fixed the user registration options, at least I hope I have.
The server is pretty old now, it has a continuous uptime of 11 years now! I should probably do something with it, my job is working for web hosting company after all, maybe that's the issue!

Mark

Thanks guys, we were getting worried ! ;)

Here's to many more years of the Forum ! :)

[Rallyper]

Seems like the server or software doesn´t remember that you´re logged in... Need to do it everytime one been away for just hours.

[GigiGalliNo1]

Let me know if there is any monetary way of supporting the forum. If I could DM you I would :D

[PLuto]

Seems like the server or software doesn´t remember that you´re logged in... Need to do it everytime one been away for just hours.

I had issues with this in the past when I was starting at page motorsportforums.com ; since I am starting at https://www.motorsportforums.com/forum.php, I dont have any issues.

[WRCStan]

Even DMs are back, profile views, can't fault it!

And welcome to new member LebJe252!

Thanks.

[flat_right]

So what do you guys think of this rumour? https://rallyjournal.com/report-wrc-set-for-new-promoter-in-25-year-deal-with-former-f1-boss/

According to the report, the commercial rights are set to be acquired by an investment group led by former Formula 1 team boss Eric Boullier. According to Dirtfish, the promotion deal is a major one and could run until as late as 2051. This would make the contract as long as 25 years.

[GigiGalliNo1]

Coming from the service park, it's true. An announcement will be made on day before the rally starts in Greece.

[wyler]

another liberty media?

[Doon]

It was interesting hearing the comments of current and former drivers in the Diftfish video about the how the next promoter can improve the WRC.

One of the comments which i keep hearing is the need to create a buzz about the drivers and personalities. This is a deep rooted issue, and i believe the demise of the WRC has coincided with two major issues which are intertwined. Cost at the top, and the lack of local / specialist drivers.

The cost issue is apparently being fixed. If it were my choice, I'd make an immediate shift to Rally 2 cars.

The local hero element may partially be remedied by cost reduction too. However, i feel that there's an even more obvious reason why we have less local drivers competing on their home events. They simply aren't fast enough anymore. I believe this is owing to the advantage they have lost from local knowledge and national events allowing them to practice the stages more often than WRC regulars. They can of course still apply their local knowledge, but this has all but been neutralised by WRC regulars analysing hours of in-car footage. I have no idea how this can be remedied, but the days of local heroes are gone which is sad for the fans, and ultimately means less entries.

[PLuto]

Boullier is of course only "head" of the main investor. And I am afraid it will be only an investment and all current people will stay on their positions. So I am afraid there will not be so much changes...

[flat_right]

Boullier is of course only "head" of the main investor. And I am afraid it will be only an investment and all current people will stay on their positions. So I am afraid there will not be so much changes...

I wouldn’t be so pessimistic. I think the bigger issue than the “current people” has been the lack of decision making, which is directly tied to the promoter and how they view the series. If they can’t make clear decisions, then the people working on the series can’t do much to improve it either. And I’ve always liked Boullier. For me he has seemed a analytically minded, ambitious and goal oriented person. And as it's an investment, there need to be some changes with plans how to improve the series and generate revenue.

[EstWRC]

Boullier is of course only "head" of the main investor. And I am afraid it will be only an investment and all current people will stay on their positions. So I am afraid there will not be so much changes...

this!!!!

they need a whole new blank sheet

[rallyfiend]

It was interesting hearing the comments of current and former drivers in the Diftfish video about the how the next promoter can improve the WRC.

One of the comments which i keep hearing is the need to create a buzz about the drivers and personalities. This is a deep rooted issue, and i believe the demise of the WRC has coincided with two major issues which are intertwined. Cost at the top, and the lack of local / specialist drivers.

The cost issue is apparently being fixed. If it were my choice, I'd make an immediate shift to Rally 2 cars.

The local hero element may partially be remedied by cost reduction too. However, i feel that there's an even more obvious reason why we have less local drivers competing on their home events. They simply aren't fast enough anymore. I believe this is owing to the advantage they have lost from local knowledge and national events allowing them to practice the stages more often than WRC regulars. They can of course still apply their local knowledge, but this has all but been neutralised by WRC regulars analysing hours of in-car footage. I have no idea how this can be remedied, but the days of local heroes are gone which is sad for the fans, and ultimately means less entries.

You can't market drivers that are unmarketable.....

[rallyfiend]

this!!!!

they need a whole new blank sheet

Liberty didn't come in and immediately replace everyone from 'Bernie's' company at F1. They did it more by growing the number of people involved for a start.

It's no different any acquisition. They will learn the business and gradually replace people as they feel necessary. This is the way business's work.

[EstWRC]

Liberty didn't come in and immediately replace everyone from 'Bernie's' company at F1. They did it more by growing the number of people involved for a start.

It's no different any acquisition. They will learn the business and gradually replace people as they feel necessary. This is the way business's work.

Cmon man I didn’t mean they would fire everyone everywhere at once

[WRCStan]

I think the bigger issue than the “current people” has been the lack of decision making, which is directly tied to the promoter and how they view the series.

What's an example decision they didn't make? Not following you here.

[flat_right]

What's an example decision they didn't make? Not following you here.

For example we haven't seen the final version of 2027 regs. Monte is about 270 days away.

[WRCStan]

For example we haven't seen the final version of 2027 regs. Monte is about 270 days away.

Not on the promoter to decide, write or publish. Best they can do is propose ideas.

[WRCStan]

I know this topic is mainly focused on the technical part of WRC27 category, but since the discussion expanded to teams and where/how the WRC should go with the new Promoter, I'd like to paste a comment I really liked in the comment section of the Dirtfish article, which IMHO would be great to introduce people and all those "Average Joe" that doesn't have a really clue about rallying.



What do you think about this idea? I think it would be very refreshing for the sport, even though I would add some money prizes, like it was years ago the Golden Stage Rally in Cyprus (IRC era) to spice things up even more.

Too many spices, solves no problem and won't mean a thing for average joes. The same idea was mooted by VW's boss when they arrived.

It's also odd and asks why push or bother for the first few days if you're not into constructor points.

[WRCStan]

How a Ford Kuga shows where WRC and motorsport is going wrong https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkHFw1_p3qw

I think Jon's on the path to seeing why WRC27 is both necessary and inevitable. But not sure why he thinks the WRC and motorsport is going wrong? Maybe the title should be How a Ford Kuga shows why WRC and motorsport is going wrong.

[deephouse]

Everyone knows that SUVs are total nonsense but still buy them. It's just that human is very stupid regarding their own thinking and using their brains. But on the other hand what could they do? Even if they would boycott manufacturers who sell only those, eventually every one of those brands will sell only those cars, no matter what interest or wishes would be in other segments. And that's why Toyota will probably still be on first place around the world. They cover all possible segments, offer fun cars in GR versions, are involved in many motorsport activities around the globe. It's just like they know how thinhs should be done. I say, let the brand die if they think that EV and SUV should be the only thing that should be out there. Is it not enough already that many of brands offer only one crappy 1.0 engine in "all their models" novadays.

[Fast Eddie WRC]

How a Ford Kuga shows where WRC and motorsport is going wrong https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkHFw1_p3qw

I think Jon's on the path to seeing why WRC27 is both necessary and inevitable. But not sure why he thinks the WRC and motorsport is going wrong? Maybe the title should be How a Ford Kuga shows why WRC and motorsport is going wrong.

I agree with him but also with you.

The car buying public are being sold SUV's and they are awful cars compared to hatches and saloons. Plus they wont make into a rally car and rallying wont promote them well.

But as this wont change any time soon the only possible answer is the spaceframe with panels attached.

Time will tell if this works. And with 8 months til Monte 2027 no Manufacturer apart from Toyota is convinced...

[WRCStan]

And with 8 months til Monte 2027 no Manufacturer apart from Toyota is convinced...

Which is precisely why it's time to stop talking in terms of production 'SUV' manufacturers taking part.

And it's also long past time to stop using this term SUV. Revive 'town car', or MV 'mobility vehicle', which is all they are. There's no sports, nor utility but personal luggage. Regulations say all cars need to have 4G/5G connection, microphones and automated data transmission to the authorities, so I go back to what I said before that these are Surveilled Urban Vehicles if anything 'SUV'. Just digital devices that the data-point masses will obey, comply and oblige. Once you get into that level of social engineering thinking, tinfoil hat aside, you can definitely stop thinking about manufacturers selling cars that driving enthusiasts want and motorsport programmes.

[Ferranis]

Out there oppinion, but in my oppinion WRC caters to the fundamentally wrong types of cars now.

We should be racing real wheel drive sports cars (Rally Porsche, Rally Ferrari -> RGT) and not family cars.

Buyers of that cars are for sure more likely to "win on Sunday, buy on Monday" than the everage normal guy today

[WRCStan]

the everage normal guy today

:D It's funny, but also funny because it's true

[Belrally]

Out there oppinion, but in my oppinion WRC caters to the fundamentally wrong types of cars now.

We should be racing real wheel drive sports cars (Rally Porsche, Rally Ferrari -> RGT) and not family cars.

Buyers of that cars are for sure more likely to "win on Sunday, buy on Monday" than the everage normal guy today

I’ve always wondered why no serious effort has ever been made to establish an RGT rally championship with RGTs as the top class. Separate from the WRC and ERC. Last year in the Belgian Championship, the Porsche 992 RGT driven by Cedric Cherain was very popular with the public. A championship featuring cars such as the Porsche 992, BMW M2/M3,… would be quite popular and attract a different kind of audience to rallies. Because these are the cars the average joe dreams of. And it would indeed attract an audience that can actually afford to buy such cars. But just to be clear: I don’t really see it as a solution for the WRC. But it might help the sport of rallying.

[GigiGalliNo1]

A return to the WRC?

https://www.carexpert.com.au/car-news/peugeot-boss-hints-at-308-gti-hot-hatch-return?_gl=1*x4dm8c*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTA4NDQxNTI0LjE3N zg0OTUxMDE.*_ga_4EYEMWDTVH*czE3Nzg0OTUxMDEkbzEkZzA kdDE3Nzg0OTUxMDEkajYwJGwwJGgxNTcyNzE3NzYy

[Jarek Z]

I’ve always wondered why no serious effort has ever been made to establish an RGT rally championship with RGTs as the top class. Separate from the WRC and ERC. Last year in the Belgian Championship, the Porsche 992 RGT driven by Cedric Cherain was very popular with the public. A championship featuring cars such as the Porsche 992, BMW M2/M3,… would be quite popular and attract a different kind of audience to rallies. Because these are the cars the average joe dreams of. And it would indeed attract an audience that can actually afford to buy such cars.

You are probably a new member of our forum and you don't know that we had a thread about GT class here. Unfortunately, it didn't generate much enthusiasm. Actually, to the contrary - there appeared people who hated Porsches and claimed that those cars don't belong in rally. I like GT cars, but some people hate them:
https://www.motorsportforums.com/showthread.php?21279-GT-Class

[240RS]

Amazingly, we are back to discussing how to make WRC a clone of Formula 1.
Read the text in the link below. It looks like we are back to trying the impossible:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WRC/s/Dw5RXwoZTK

[Franky]

Amazingly, we are back to discussing how to make WRC a clone of Formula 1.
Read the text in the link below. It looks like we are back to trying the impossible:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WRC/s/Dw5RXwoZTK

It sounds more like just beefing up what happens in the service park area. Hasn't Rally Estonia been doing it already for over a decade with all the extra stuff happening in the service park? I haven't attended it for over 10 years myself now, so don't know what exactly is going on there nowadays.