[WRC] News & rumours (part IV) 2016

[Doon]

I have a feeling Ogier will sign for Citroen. They car is likely to be faster than the M-sport car, he knows the team (or some of it), the money will be better and most importantly he is in the same car as the bloke he probably considers his biggest threat in terms of speed.

Ogier wont risk playing catch-up to Meeke, so being in the same car seems like the sensible option. OK, the Citroen might be slow than the Ford and Hyundai, but it is unlikely.

From a sporting point of view and to add more excitement to a pretty dull championship fight, it would be better if Ogier was in a Ford; however, realistically his best option is Citroen.

[bluuford]

I think Meeke is the last driver he must be afraid of. Maybe Hyundai is the place where to look. He has very good speed but not the consistency that Ogier has and no more strating position advantage as well (if he wins something). It is clear that Ogier is for M-Sport, Latvala for Toyota and Mikkelsen for Citroen but it takes some time to rectify the contracts with all the drivers. There is also AbuDhabi-Total-red-Bull probelm in C3.

[spyros]

If Matton finds the budget then its a done deal,but i would love to see him in a fiesta.

[noel157]

They'd have to have him signed up well before then, in order to make the entry deadline for Monte Carlo...

December 16th so plenty of time.............

[er88]

I think Meeke is the last driver he must be afraid of. Maybe Hyundai is the place where to look. He has very good speed but not the consistency that Ogier has and no more strating position advantage as well (if he wins something). It is clear that Ogier is for M-Sport, Latvala for Toyota and Mikkelsen for Citroen but it takes some time to rectify the contracts with all the drivers. There is also AbuDhabi-Total-red-Bull probelm in C3.

If Meeke now has the best car he's a threat to Ogier. How big of a threat? Well we'll have to wait and see, but Meeke won't have to drive over the limit to match the VWs anymore in an older car. He's in the best team with a history of success, with a car that's been developed around him for a whole year. Plus, if Seb joins Msport you can be sure that he'll have to get used to some reliability issues that could maybe cost him pts. The VW was absolutely brilliant in that regard, to the point that I doubt the Ford can match that (particularly in the first half of the year with the expected teething problems).

Ogier is obviously massive favourite for the championship still, but to dismiss Meeke as the last driver Seb should be afraid of is wrong. What Kris needs is a good solid start to the championship, and that's possible after the pace he's shown previously on the Monte.

As for other contenders, Paddon is still quite a bit away. He's miles off the pace on tarmac and didn't kick on as much as everyone thought after his Argentina win. Tanak can be absolutely rapid, but the jury is out on how he can cope with the pressure of being in a main team, and whether he can hold his nerve when locked in a fight for wins. I have high hopes for him though.
Neuville seems to have his mojo back but it remains to be seen whether he has the raw speed to match the likes of Seb, Meeke or Tanak if he's in a fight to win. Andreas is one of the better drivers but who is he going to be driving for? Plus he's very rarely shown signs of rally winning pace, despite being in the best car and team for the last few years. Now he won't be.

Where Seb ends up depends on a few factors; Whether or not he wants to face Meeke in the car that's been built around Kris, but where he knows he'll have equal machinery. If he joins Msport, that to me says that the Fiesta made a big impression on him during the test. Ogier won't have really been comparing the Fiesta to the Yaris, he'll have been comparing the Fiesta to the feeling of the VW. If the Fiesta feels similar in quality to the Polo that Seb has spent a year testing, he'll be a Msport driver. However if it's quite a bit weaker, i can see Ogier going to Citroen without even needing to test that car before signing a contract. We know the C3 will be on the pace considering Citroen's history and them taking a year out purely to develop this car.

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[tomhlord]

Rule confirmations - http://www.motorsport.com/wrc/news/w...r-2017-855579/

[Jack4688`]

...It is clear that Ogier is for M-Sport, Latvala for Toyota and Mikkelsen for Citroen...

Is it?!

[EstWRC]

The World Rally Championship's controversial running order regulations have officially been changed for 2017, with the FIA World Motorsport Council also approving the calendar.

WRC champion Sebastien Ogier had campaigned for change all season, having run at the front of the field for the first two days of every rally under rules that hampered the points leader.

Wednesday's Vienna meeting confirmed the championship leader will only be at the front on day one, with Saturday and Sunday running the priority crews in reverse order, which means the slowest World Rally Car first.

The WMSC also rubber-stamped the creation of the WRC Trophy for drivers of World Rally Cars from 2016 or earlier.



Private crews will register for their favoured seven rallies from the 13-round calendar with six scores to count.

Michelin and DMACK are the only registered tyre suppliers for next season and M-Sport has been awarded the contract to supply R2 cars to the FIA Junior World Rally Championship.

Prior to Citroen's DS3 R3 being used, the Cumbrian firm's Fiestas were used when the series was known as WRC Academy.

The 13-round calendar was also confirmed with Poland included.

Turkey and China had been on a reserve list, but neither made the final schedule.

2017 WRC CALENDAR

January 20-22: Monte Carlo
February 10-12: Sweden
March 10-12: Mexico
April 7-9: Corsica
April 28-30: Argentina
May 19-21: Portugal
June 9-11: Italy
June 30-July 2: Poland
July 28-30: Finland
August 18-20: Germany
October 6-8: Spain
October 27-29: GB
November 17-19: Australia


https://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/127341

[MM WRC]

Tänak is fast only in fast gravel rallies such as Poland, Finland and UK (if it's dry). Otherwise he can't finish in top five if nobody retires.

I don't think we will see Ogier in Citroen. They can't pay him enough. Their budget is probably big enough but the image of PSA would suffer big time if they hired him for big enough sum of money, while making hundreds or even thousands of factory employees redundant.

[Andre Oliveira]

FIA World Rally Championship

The start order for World Championship rallies from 2017 has been amended and is now based purely on performance:

- Day 1: All cars start according to the actual Championship classification

- Day 2: P1 drivers start in the reverse order of the actual rally classification after Day 1. Other drivers start in the order of the rally classification.

- Day 3: P1 drivers start in the reverse order of the actual rally classification after Day 2. Other drivers start in the order of the rally classification.

P1 drivers re-starting in Rally 2 will start at the end of the P1 group.

The start order of the first rally of the Championship will be based on the Championship classification of the previous year.

A WRC Trophy has been created for drivers and co-drivers participating in pre-2017 specification WRC cars. The maximum number of qualifying rallies is seven and the driver and co-driver who have scored the highest total of points in six of the qualifying rallies will win the titles. If less than five competitors register, no titles will be awarded.

M-Sport has been awarded the contract to supply R2 cars for the FIA Junior WRC Championship for 2017 and 2018.

Michelin Competition and DMACK Tyres are the registered tyre companies for the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship.