WRC Testing

Last year, Neuville (Sordo too) tested in the stage where Ogier was today. I didn't like too much where I saw him, so today I went to its second part. This is a proper stage, very similar to the roads of the Rally of Portugal (in fact, Ponte de Lima stage is less than one kilometre far from where M-Sport tested today). Very fast zones and surrounded by trees, soft gravel and a lot of dust. Due to the problems during the morning, I went there only in the afternoon. About 16-18 runs between 4 and 6 PM. These pics show some of them, not the best ones because those were the flat out places where it's better watch than click buttons. :)

http://i66.tinypic.com/a9wkts.jpg
http://i68.tinypic.com/nuyj5.jpg
http://i65.tinypic.com/4sk1e8.jpg
http://i68.tinypic.com/2uixi84.jpg
http://i65.tinypic.com/nowjuc.jpg

nice photos Kielder! any news from test?

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Originally Posted by Fast Eddie WRC

Ogier test & meets the fans. :cool:

https://youtu.be/xlgECbRGP08

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Great attitude by champ!

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Originally Posted by dimviii

was the car reliable? did they had stops due to failures?

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Yes! Only stopped to normal changes in test sessions.

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Originally Posted by dimviii

nice photos Kielder! any news from test?

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The afternoon went normal, Ogier's problems ended in the morning. He was really angry when the car failed again. I heard some rumours about pieces of the car (demanded by him) that M-Sport was testing, which it's obvious aren't still ready to use. In the afternoon he did the usual four runs and stops between them (I believe there was only one occasion when he only run twice).
I forgot to ask if Evans will test tomorrow as it's believed. I suppose I'll know it before heading there in the afternoon.

Οgier
https://youtu.be/GrIRIdjG0ts

Yes, Evans test tomorrow.

https://www.facebook.com/fabioleitef...0917273&type=3

https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...38&oe=597CEA77
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Yesterday, https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...6966295&type=1

https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...1e&oe=59811245
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Tänak, friday, https://www.facebook.com/permalink.p...94512324265462

https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...17&oe=59C110F0
https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...49&oe=59825D0A
https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...5f&oe=59B182DB

Ogier https://www.facebook.com/pg/DannyPhotoRacing

https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...5a&oe=597B9AA8
https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...1f&oe=59821E4F
https://scontent.fopo2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...09&oe=59B133FB

So it seems still problems for m-sport and they still can't get the car working for the champ, two more rounds and we have passed half the season. If neuville continues his form then it will be very hard for ogier to defend the title

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Originally Posted by EstWRC

So it seems still problems for m-sport and they still can't get the car working for the champ, two more rounds and we have passed half the season. If neuville continues his form then it will be very hard for ogier to defend the title

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It is going to be a thriller.

Until Ogier starts to see DNFs from unreliability, or he starts to make mistakes pushing too hard, then I am not worried for him. Let's hope we get the close fight.

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Originally Posted by Simmi

Until Ogier starts to see DNFs from unreliability, or he starts to make mistakes pushing too hard, then I am not worried for him. Let's hope we get the close fight.

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If Neuville keeps his winning streak up and Ogier misses the podium a couple of times it is neck and neck already. Ogier really needs to find some more speed. What he has on his side is not making hasty errors and he only pushes when he has the confidence. A lot of it will be down to Neuville not losing his head like at the start of the season.

Yesterday i saw speed! A tremendous speed from champ.

Everything is tremendous for you about him....one thing is testing, rallying is another. But we will see

Toyota has started today their tests in Portugal. They will run in stages around Fafe until Friday. Today is Hanninen's turn.

Hänninen: https://youtu.be/VUb5dM8-Yso

Evans did only four runs between 15:15 and 16:30. At that time, his test ended (half an hour before the scheduled time). When we arrived, he was complaining about spectators placed at dangerous places. The way I see it, both facts are related.
Moreover, we had a lot of problems to reach the stage. A GNR didn't allow us to enter through the usual access, sending people to another one some kilometres away. Fortunately, I know the old end of the historical stage Arcos-Portela, which we used. I hadn't walked that road since the nineties. I have many photos taken there, for example of KKK & Auriol with their Toyotas and Sainz & McRae on Subarus. This walk saved the day.
These are the pics I took of Evans:

http://i66.tinypic.com/29gh8k1.jpg
http://i64.tinypic.com/24qil5k.jpg
http://i65.tinypic.com/2s8239j.jpg
http://i64.tinypic.com/316n2c4.jpg

Job done (momentarily) for the mechanics. Nice hearing their toast with beer bottles:

http://i64.tinypic.com/2zzkdqg.jpg

Evans
https://youtu.be/wps3EC7WuJE

On Sunday, I saw a drone while I was watching Ogier testing. I remembered it today because it was at the test again. After searching the web, I found the channel where the images have been uploaded. Today's test isn't still uploaded. These are the videos recorded on Saturday and Sunday:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNWnwO6Hu7U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrIRIdjG0ts
Great aerial images, awful music.

BILLIOT Jérémie‏*@planetemarcus
#WRC Face to face with Juho Hänninen by Dario Teles Fotos during Rally Portugal Test http://bit.ly/2dYuLSR

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C_U6HZ1XoAAa_Uh.jpg

Juho by MondegoSport: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvUbBttjy_4

Evans
https://youtu.be/oZeQ0PrOL4I

https://www.facebook.com/reflexstudiofotovideo/

Evans

https://scontent.fopo2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...61&oe=5985122E
https://scontent.fopo2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...2c&oe=597CA044
https://scontent.fopo2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...e2&oe=597490F1

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Originally Posted by Kielder

Evans did only four runs between 15:15 and 16:30. At that time, his test ended (half an hour before the scheduled time). When we arrived, he was complaining about spectators placed at dangerous places. The way I see it, both facts are related.
Moreover, we had a lot of problems to reach the stage. A GNR didn't allow us to enter through the usual access, sending people to another one some kilometres away. Fortunately, I know the old end of the historical stage Arcos-Portela, which we used. I hadn't walked that road since the nineties. I have many photos taken there, for example of KKK & Auriol with their Toyotas and Sainz & McRae on Subarus. This walk saved the day.
These are the pics I took of Evans:

http://i66.tinypic.com/29gh8k1.jpg
http://i64.tinypic.com/24qil5k.jpg
http://i65.tinypic.com/2s8239j.jpg
http://i64.tinypic.com/316n2c4.jpg

Job done (momentarily) for the mechanics. Nice hearing their toast with beer bottles:

http://i64.tinypic.com/2zzkdqg.jpg

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The test ended due to the degradatión of the track. Tanak had been there in friday, 70% of the track was shared. Spectator problems were at 15:15, at the begin of the track. It was because that part is dangerous enough, and the amount of arriving spectators made more safe told them to go on the other access. The organizers did a great job and elfyn tested again until the track was definitely out of order.

If security problem, they can start in front of problematic zone.

Attachment 1326Attachment 1327Attachment 1328
PET Rally Portugal Toyota Gazoo - Hanninen
Complete Album: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Rallyfac...85415494840247

Hanninen on Fafe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvUbBttjy_4

https://www.facebook.com/pg/LaTulaSp...54429937785404

Ogier

https://scontent.fopo2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...02&oe=5977AAE2
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https://www.facebook.com/pg/CrisRPho...48429748548318

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Took another ‘extended lunch break’, this time to see Hanninen, at the same spot Meeke tested last month (Toumilo). Good pace from Hanninen and good handling from the Yaris, even if the engine seemed to be the weaker from all the new cars.

After seeing Meeke, Neuville, Tanak and Haninen testing (I’m still trying to get the videos out from the damn phone…) in conditions that weren’t always similar, briefly I’d say that Meeke and the C3 were the most spectacular, but they lack Tanak’s Fiesta superior balance. Neuville’s i20 seemed close to Tanak/Fiesta level, while Hanninen and the Yaris looked overall a bit behind all competitors.

It’s just one fan opinion and many won’t surely agree, but what’s becoming obvious to everyone is that ’17 cars are the most fantastic cars WRC has known for a long time and they seriously can become a major boost for the series. For once, well done FIA!

Toyota cancelled their test today due to rain.

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Originally Posted by mArtini racing

The test ended due to the degradatión of the track. Tanak had been there in friday, 70% of the track was shared. Spectator problems were at 15:15, at the begin of the track. It was because that part is dangerous enough, and the amount of arriving spectators made more safe told them to go on the other access. The organizers did a great job and elfyn tested again until the track was definitely out of order.

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Of course organizers did a great job. However, from my point of view, it’s difficult to tell that the stage was so damaged to finish a test (just to clarify, I clearly heard by walkie-talkie an organizer saying that Evans was complaining about the spectators). It’s true that Tanak and Evans shared part of the track, but a year ago Ogier and Latvala also shared two days in a row part of the same track under harder conditions without any problem. Without going any further, last Saturday I walked the whole stage (5.5 km) used by Ogier, finding many places worse than the kilometre and a half that I could see on Monday. C’mon, Evans is coming from Argentina!
As you know, Martini, there is a Galician proverb which says that green wood and young people all is smoke. Security is always the main point, though I think this is a case where we can use the proverb.

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Originally Posted by Rally Power

Took another ‘extended lunch break’, this time to see Hanninen, at the same spot Meeke tested last month (Toumilo). Good pace from Hanninen and good handling from the Yaris, even if the engine seemed to be the weaker from all the new cars.

After seeing Meeke, Neuville, Tanak and Haninen testing (I’m still trying to get the videos out from the damn phone…) in conditions that weren’t always similar, briefly I’d say that Meeke and the C3 were the most spectacular, but they lack Tanak’s Fiesta superior balance. Neuville’s i20 seemed close to Tanak/Fiesta level, while Hanninen and the Yaris looked overall a bit behind all competitors.

It’s just one fan opinion and many won’t surely agree, but what’s becoming obvious to everyone is that ’17 cars are the most fantastic cars WRC has known for a long time and they seriously can become a major boost for the series. For once, well done FIA!

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Totally agree. However, the more I see the new cars the more I miss the Polo 2017. It was in another dimension. When I was last year watching Meeke testing with the C3, I had a talk with him. He had the same feelings, he expressed that no driver had a chance against that car.
After watching the new cars in a rally and testing, I searched to see again a video recorded the same day I saw the Polo for the first and last time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hqlg...ature=youtu.be. As I said, miles away from the other ones.

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Originally Posted by Kielder

Totally agree. However, the more I see the new cars the more I miss the Polo 2017. It was in another dimension. When I was last year watching Meeke testing with the C3, I had a talk with him. He had the same feelings, he expressed that no driver had a chance against that car.
After watching the new cars in a rally and testing, I searched to see again a video recorded the same day I saw the Polo for the first and last time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hqlg...ature=youtu.be. As I said, miles away from the other ones.

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I can see what You mean. I do remember some test videos of the pair Ogier/'17 Polo which blew my mind, but this one I see for the first time I think.

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Originally Posted by Kielder

However, the more I see the new cars the more I miss the Polo 2017. It was in another dimension. When I was last year watching Meeke testing with the C3, I had a talk with him. He had the same feelings, he expressed that no driver had a chance against that car.

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Seriously? After 9 years of complete domination by Loeb/Citroen (apart from the two Manufacturer titles of Ford) and 4 years of endless wins and titles by Ogier/VW the best thing that could happen was VW getting out. I don't care how great the Polo would have been I'm just glad to FINALLY seeing some competition again after 13 agonisingly long years. Imagine Ogier, Latvala and Mikkelsen in another superior car. That not happening is the reason why I got enthusiastic about the WRC again.

Breen starts Citroen test in Sardinia

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C_fcME_XkAI15Fi.jpg

https://www.facebook.com/pg/dariobte...85607228182815

Skoda (Tidemand) and Toyota (Hänninen) yesterday

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