[WRC] News & Rumours 2019

[Allez Andruet]

His resume is not exactly bulletproof.

Still waiting for you to name a WRC manager with better one...

You mentioned only two Sebs, but Solberg, Burns and Gronholm won 4 championships in total in same period.

After a period (1986-1999) in which Jouhki's clients had took 8 out of 14 available titles. And as was already mentioned in this topic, Jouhki already retired (i.e didn't look for new drivers) after Latvala and actually returned with new talent only in 2015 with Suninen.

Hirvonens career almost got destroyed by the too early move to a full time drive at Subaru (granted this was also due to Burns illness).

I struggle to figure out what Burnsie has to do with all this, but the fact that Hirvonen's career DID NOT get destroyed has to be counted as a major accomplishment for Jouhki as that's what managers are being paid for, right?

His method of "buying" seats for "almost" ready drivers is disliked by a lot of people. The typical argument is that it created a new "norm" where even relatively established drivers with good speed are expected to "bring budget". Recent example Tidemand as a WRC2 champion didn't bring money, while Suninen who often was slower than him was pushed in with budget.
(btw. Veiby's method of never paying anything seems to be the other extreme, probably not good either). Sure this effect of "buying" places has been there for ages, but it becoming a norm is associated with Jouhki prbly due to that 2004 Hirvonen year.

This way the amount of money people bring is becoming more important than actual skills, so that you risk getting more "weaker" drivers with money than very good ones without money. Since none of his drivers won the title in last 20 years it's not so easy to argue that the drivers he brought in were really the best.

Oh yes, "buying seats", maybe the most hypocrite of all excuses. As team managers had never heard about that possibility before the big bad Jouhki introduced the method... Newsflash: securing funding has always played a big role especially in all motorsport.