WRC Pickems 2023

[Kradovech]

I decided to go organize pickems for one more year!

Rules setup the same way as previous years, summed up below. If you have suggestions for improvement, post and discuss them here quickly - I want to have the rules locked for the season when first cars take off in Monte.

Scoring:
Points are awarded according to the table below.
https://i.ibb.co/tQHtZxX/rules.png (https://ibb.co/RYgmhBy)
In case of equal score, the win is given to the better prediction of 1st place. If that is equal then better prediction of 2nd place gets the win etc.
In overall standings the lowest scoring round of each player will be dropped, starting from second round.


Predictions
Predictions will be made either in a designated forum thread (automated system on the forum, should we get it working later in the season.
Predictions have to be made using the format and rules described in the prediction thread.
Each driver can only be selected once - prediction 1 Tanak 2 Tanak 3 Tanak will not give you points for all the predicted positions.

[Kradovech]

New season of pickems brought to you by me and Rallyper

Monte Carlo
We start the season with a highest scoring round in my experience. 60 points is often enough to place on the podium but this round it is just an average result.
Hsmed takes the win with 88 points - it is a repeat of a second highest score in my era of pickems! Harry hairpin and mknight follow in 2nd and 3rd.
https://i.ibb.co/T8fYxm6/monte1.png (https://ibb.co/Snj54Rb)
https://i.ibb.co/2FssxQB/monte2.png (https://ibb.co/p1RRc8p)

[Rallyper]

Thanks Kradovech.
I really thought with my heart Rovanpera should win...

[Berke]

Points table in the first post and the monte results don't match accordingly, or I am being stupid here (quite likely). It seems prediction/result section has to be the other way around.

[Rally Hokkaido]

Thanks Kradovech.
I really thought with my heart Rovanpera should win...

I am down the bottom of the points table with you. I blame the dry roads! Though opposite to your thinking, I thought Kalle might go off on some ice when first car on the road. I give myself a consolation point for picking Gryazin and Rossel to finish 7th & 8th.

[Kradovech]

Points table in the first post and the monte results don't match accordingly, or I am being stupid here (quite likely). It seems prediction/result section has to be the other way around.

I have had the Result/Prediction flipped on the table for 4 years, you are the first one to notice :) Fixed the first post.

[Kradovech]

Rally Sweden
Much more difficult than Monte - for me anyway. What I thought to be a moderate risk turned out to be an absolute disaster of a prediction, my lowest result ever...
Anyway, faith in Tänak and Ford paid off for many. EstWRC takes the win, cosmin_sb and raido follow in 2nd and 3rd.
https://i.ibb.co/Cmh6G7g/sweden1.png (https://ibb.co/QprkwNL)
https://i.ibb.co/QjX7JjB/sweden2.png (https://ibb.co/Nn7gFnh)
Overall
Not much change in overall just yet, high scoring Monte pretty much defines the order.
https://i.ibb.co/HDXLRgt/sweden3.png (https://ibb.co/zhNWCfX)
https://i.ibb.co/zsZjHzC/sweden4.png (https://ibb.co/Zdxt10v)

[Kradovech]

Rally Mexico
Fordson takes the win with respectable 73 points, he is followed by doubled1978 and Jaja
https://i.ibb.co/h7wHLwh/mexico1.png (https://ibb.co/kHv05vk)
https://i.ibb.co/gZ6KTxw/mexico2.png (https://ibb.co/JjCJ792)
Overalll
Still early days here so quite a lot of shuffling of positions. Lets see how long hsmed can hold on to the lead
https://i.ibb.co/BcYtv3c/mexico3.png (https://ibb.co/QpxfhQp)
https://i.ibb.co/NtyVS2Y/mexico4.png (https://ibb.co/XjC28xJ)
https://i.ibb.co/B6Zd0c6/mexico5.png (https://ibb.co/8x5T1Nx)

[Kradovech]

I have decided there will be no pickems for Rally Croatia. I cant imagine myself congratulating the winner of our little game at a time like this.
My deepest condolences to family and friends of Craig

[Rallyper]

I have decided there will be no pickems for Rally Croatia. I cant imagine myself congratulating the winner of our little game at a time like this.
My deepest condolences to family and friends of Craig

I respect your standing. But don´t agree. But it´s your call. I let the thread be opened, for those who like to make a pick anyway. No points given. It´s ok.
As you could see I had the list changed in a respectful way.

[Kradovech]

Rally Portugal
First place goes to yours truly. I have to say, this is quite a rollercoaster season for me, pretty much all or nothing every round.
Sidrun follows me close behind, steve.mandzij in 3rd.

https://i.ibb.co/fSxwJBq/portugal1.png (https://ibb.co/g7RKYHm)
https://i.ibb.co/2KDPXN6/portugal2.png (https://ibb.co/RHxPLyS)

Overalll
Tighter than ever, we have a double lead! Hsmed and sidrun share the first place.
https://i.ibb.co/FzfZHPR/portugal3.png (https://ibb.co/zZL96kq)
https://i.ibb.co/fHWrYL4/portugal4.png (https://ibb.co/DQFwDT5)
https://i.ibb.co/0nntrwG/portugal5.png (https://ibb.co/p11ydmL)

[Kradovech]

Rally Italy
Here are the results for Italy, quite a difficult one. Franky came first with a respectable 61 points. Jaja and Fordson follow in 2nd and 3rd.
https://i.ibb.co/b1nwkV2/Italy1.png (https://ibb.co/R2WrqKB)
https://i.ibb.co/ZdhrQN1/Italy2.png (https://ibb.co/2qjrz5Y)

Overall
Many changes in the top, including a new leader, Jaja. Entire top 10 is currently very tight
https://i.ibb.co/qr3KyHR/Italy3.png (https://ibb.co/RDkfvXC)
https://i.ibb.co/jRKLntK/Italy4.png (https://ibb.co/YZ9tHg9)
https://i.ibb.co/nksJgRW/Italy5.png (https://ibb.co/pXvF0nm)

[Kradovech]

Rally Kenya
Right of the bat I have to say there were suprisingly few surprises in Rally Kenya, at least as far as the finish order goes. Quite a high average score, a stark contrast to last year.
*Updated after Neuville's disqualification
After the update, win goes to Thousandlakes, 240 RS in second. Lead remains in 3rd

https://i.ibb.co/0sxhFDq/Kenya1.png (https://ibb.co/41HPYmW)
https://i.ibb.co/TWk0RPC/Kenya2.png (https://ibb.co/SfPm0VL)


Overall
Top 10 remains very tight. Quite a lot of shuffling of positions, including a lead change! This is the closest prediction battle I have seen mid-season.
https://i.ibb.co/Tmtvk3s/Kenya3.png (https://ibb.co/D5QVt2Z)
https://i.ibb.co/C2CNLgM/Kenya4.png (https://ibb.co/Wt8qCZP)
https://i.ibb.co/gy37RRm/Kenya5.png (https://ibb.co/jhT5rrb)

[240RS]

Absolutely delighted! Couldn't let this go without saying a thing. Stuck with Toyota, gut instinct, and it paid off. Super 😊

[Kradovech]

Absolutely delighted! Couldn't let this go without saying a thing. Stuck with Toyota, gut instinct, and it paid off. Super ��

Hate to take this from you but I needed to update the results after Neuville's disqualification. 2nd place still good though :)

[240RS]

Perfectly in order, Kradovech. Still happy!

[Rallyper]

Today I didn´t close Pickems in time. I closed it exactly 2100 hrs CEST.

As the clock in my forum isn´t to trust. I´d say we´ll approve all contenders anyway. That´s my suggestion. Your call Kradovech. I go for your decision.

[Kradovech]

Yeah, lets go with it. I cant trust the forum clock either. So if anyone did get a prediction in over the time, consider them lucky. Anyway, here we go:

Rally Estonia
A very high scoring round, probably beacause there were very few who bet against Kalle. Victory goes to Rallyper with 82 points! Wold and mknight follow in 2nd and 3rd
https://i.ibb.co/9hGDqsG/Estonia1.png (https://ibb.co/qCxSRkx)
https://i.ibb.co/FxTgjWG/Estonia2.png (https://ibb.co/3rZBLst)

Overall
Overall scoreboard remains very tight. Mknight joins moto69 in the lead, pushing hsmed to 3rd.
https://i.ibb.co/Cmpm37s/Estonia3.png (https://ibb.co/Ntgtdjn)
https://i.ibb.co/brXnZRD/Estonia4.png (https://ibb.co/zSZwYHD)
https://i.ibb.co/frkGvNF/Estonia5.png (https://ibb.co/r5xfsp0)

[Kradovech]

Rally Finland
A very low scoring round. In Rally Estonia last place score was 34 points, this time around that is good enough for podium! I suppose there weren't many who bet on failure for both Rovanperä and Tänak...
Anyway, victory goes to jcevc with 41 points, Bandit12 and hsmed follow in 2nd and 3rd

https://i.ibb.co/sCvvV1C/Finland1.png (https://ibb.co/0KjjG9K)
https://i.ibb.co/Jyzf35p/Finland2.png (https://ibb.co/0Ffgsh9)

Overall
Bronze from finland pushes hsmed to lead, however it remains very close.
https://i.ibb.co/7bRV6KY/Finland3.png (https://ibb.co/QXCn1Mb)
https://i.ibb.co/smKWjhr/Finland4.png (https://ibb.co/qyNJBzw)
https://i.ibb.co/Gv9T6FV/Finland5.png (https://ibb.co/0jKt7Qf)

[lankey555]

DNS = did not score or start?

[Kradovech]

DNS = did not score or start?
Its did not start. I looked and my half automated system did not recognize your prediction because you did not have a space between "1" and "Tanak". I will add you in the evening.

[jcevc]

Finally faith in Evans paid off after season and the half, only one who pick him as winner :D

[lankey555]

Its did not start. I looked and my half automated system did not recognize your prediction because you did not have a space between "1" and "Tanak". I will add you in the evening.

Thanks for that 😁 wouldn’t want to miss out on all my points 🤣

[Kradovech]

Rally Greece
A very secure victory goes to spyros. Seb_sh and Jaja follow in 2nd and 3rd, with 66 points each.
https://i.ibb.co/6rnz2Jf/greece1.png (https://ibb.co/pb0cgr9)
https://i.ibb.co/yX546yH/greece2.png (https://ibb.co/47M18Th)

Overall
Hsmed increases his lead but remains in the striking distance
https://i.ibb.co/LY4fWYb/greece3.png (https://ibb.co/q7bwf7X)
https://i.ibb.co/SwNqNPD/greece4.png (https://ibb.co/yF0L0Xm)
https://i.ibb.co/J5sQ2PK/greece5.png (https://ibb.co/4PVdMx7)

[spyros]

I'm very happy for my 1st win but i was vwry lucky.

[hsmed]

But you are also good, spyros, because you have high scores very often.

[spyros]

But you are also good, spyros, because you have high scores very often.

Thank you very much, I've been watching rally since I was 10 years old and now I'm 55 and I still love it.

[Kradovech]

Rally Chile
Rally Chile rewarded those who dared do bet on Tänak and his Puma. Victory goes to raffrantic with impressive 74 points. Same score for TanelP but only worth a silver medal :) Last on the podium is maailmameister

https://i.ibb.co/4RFF6GD/Chile1.png (https://ibb.co/v4cc7Gr)
https://i.ibb.co/0ndxsQP/Chile2.png (https://ibb.co/RgVqj7L)

Overall
This season remains as tight as ever! Jaja climbes to first but gaps remain close.
https://i.ibb.co/dMwT4PG/Chile3.png (https://ibb.co/54g0hrB)
https://i.ibb.co/DK9W220/Chile4.png (https://ibb.co/88rsZZ1)
https://i.ibb.co/T81ZwSw/Chile5.png (https://ibb.co/PhMRrnr)

[Kradovech]

Central European Rally
Win goes to Arko5 with respectable 71 points. Eib1 and ferrial follow close behind
https://i.ibb.co/brfY2Bv/Europe1.png (https://ibb.co/rZWqc6p)
https://i.ibb.co/vqQpZDs/Europe2.png (https://ibb.co/c3C0Dxb)
Overall
With only one round remaining, there are still a lot of position changes in the top. Lead takes the lead for now but anything can still happen.
https://i.ibb.co/r567krP/Europe3.png (https://ibb.co/Zc8LdDs)
https://i.ibb.co/XJgd3PT/Europe4.png (https://ibb.co/vzGrQW8)
https://i.ibb.co/GkF2nGv/Europe5.png (https://ibb.co/TRr8YJB)

[Rallyper]

Well, guys, now I have started last Pickems for this year. Even three minutes before noon...

I´ts not a big job doing this. A few times I wasn´t able to start or finish Pickems in time, but usually it went fine.

I´m ready to go for 2024 as well if Kradovech has the possibility as well...

My wish I could see som more of you guys often write on this forum, participate as well. Yes, I know most of you are here, but I miss some, no names, no names... :) :)

So hope you enjoyed this year and let´s hope for another Pickems year in 2024.

[Kradovech]

Here we are, end of the season. Before we go into it I would like to thank Rallyper for managing the prediction threads. Cheers!

Rally Japan
Win goes to Negaiss. Cod and 205-T16 fill up the rest of the podium
https://i.ibb.co/VxnWN2z/Japan1.png (https://ibb.co/T1jBTm7)
https://i.ibb.co/kmxh7f0/Japan2.png (https://ibb.co/CPzncZv)

Overall
I have done this for 5 seasons now and this year stands out. Usually there have been a few favourites fighting over the top spot. This year has been a lot more level at the top, many-many lead changes throughout the season. Its very fitting to end it the same way - Jaja took back the top position and passed Lead. He takes the overall win with just 2 points. Congratulations to Jaja, pickems champion 2023!
https://i.ibb.co/LvQxzWD/Japan3.png (https://ibb.co/DLG9DyP)
https://i.ibb.co/fGL8NGk/Japan4.png (https://ibb.co/Z17Hg1B)
https://i.ibb.co/xX0wm49/Japan5.png (https://ibb.co/q7fh0Zq)

[EstWRC]

Thanks for all the work and congrats to the winner!

[Rallyper]

Not bad at all. We had 93 participants o/a.
Next year looking forward to even more guys daring to guess.
Because that´s what we do. Guess.
And a bit of knowledge and a bit of luck, too.

[Jajá]

Thanks, Kradovech and Rallyper for managing the Pickems this year! I truly appreciate your engagement! It is an honor to end the year as the pickems champion! Looking forward to another great year of rally for all of us!

[satnav]

Well done to all who participated, and also to the team principles Kradovech and Rallyper, i always mean to join in but never get round to it, maybe next year.

[jcevc]

Congrats to all who were better than me (a lot of) :)
Many thanks to organizers who keeps this alive..
'See you again' in MC2024.

[CeskyOndra]

Thanks for your organization guys and looking forward to 2024, hopefully more people will participate!

[Negaiss]

YEEES !!, it took me couple of years to get the first WIN. Nice way to end the season !!! Many thanks to organizers who keeps this going.

[doubled1978]

Thanks guys for running the Pickems…good bit of fun throughout the year!

[krisgerhard]

Jaja also managed to finish an impressive P5 at wrcfan.com (out of 5800 users). Congrats for this pickems as well!

[hsmed]

Thanks for all the effort put into managing this competition - it has all been good fun.

[Eli]

Thankx again for the time and effort making the pickems year in year out, Can’t wait for next year!

[COD]

My best result in the last round! Old man warms up slowly ����*��

Thank you very much for organizing this and looking forward to 2024