Subiesport Magazine - February/March 2008 - (Page 74)

MOTORSPORTS aftER tHE DRama of Rally new Zealand, the WRC took a month’s break before resuming in Europe, where Sébastien loeb could look forward to two straight events on his favorite tarmac surface in Corsica and, first, in Spain. new Zealand had given marcus Grönholm a 10point advantage and the psychological edge when he won by the narrowest margin that the WRC had seen, but the finn would have his work cut out if he was to keep his grip on the overall leader board. for loeb, the situation was clear: victory in Spain to keep alive his hopes for a fourth successive world title. He would also be relying on his teammate Dani Sordo to perform on home territory and relegate Grönholm further down the order, leaving loeb to concentrate on taking his ninth win in a row on asphalt. The first leg ran in wet conditions following torrential rain on Thursday night, and the day provided a few surprises as five drivers took wins on the six stages, including francois Duval, back on the WRC in a Citroën WRC as a privateer. However, Grön- holm’s choice of cut medium-soft compound tires was to prove critical, as the roads dried and he ended leg one 50 seconds behind loeb. Game over? The SWRt trio of Petter Solberg, Chris atkinson and Xevi Pons, making his home debut in the Impreza WRC2007 since joining the team, had reasonable days, with Solberg the only driver to record a top-four stage time. The trio finished leg one in sixth, eighth and ninth, respectively, although atkinson might have been higher if he hadn’t overshot a junction on SS1 because of a serious lack of grip from the hard compound tires, while Pons lost time because of faulty windshield wipers. Whether or not the local support gave him a boost, Pons turned up the speed the following day and recorded four top-six stage times, including second place to Grönholm on the final test of the day. The Spaniard was happy with his day’s work and felt the changes to the car’s setup helped his cause. Solberg and atkinson could only reflect on average days, and all three held their positions going into the final day. It was the same throughout the top 10; positions recorded at the end of the rally were the same as those after leg one. In that respect, Rally Spain offered little in the way of a battle after the first day’s exchanges. Sordo finished the rally just 13 seconds behind his teammate but had been under orders not to challenge for the lead, a situation he was happy to accept in respect of loeb’s chase for the title, while a Citroën 1-2 was the perfect result in the manufacturer’s championship. —David Hobbs 74 MARCH 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Subiesport Magazine - February/March 2008

Subiesport Magazine - February/March 2008 Contents Travis Geny Letters Readers' Rides Subaru News Subie Sleuths Hatched Plans United in Subarus East Meets West WRC Rally Catalunya WRC Rally France WRC Rally Japan WRC Rally Ireland WRC Wales Rally GB The Future of Subaru WRC Team Orange Where to Buy Subiesport 1993 Impreza "Dreadnought" Performance Radiator Install Special Kei Ad Directory Spotted!

Subiesport Magazine - February/March 2008

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