PELLIER WINS AS TEMPESTINI CLAIMS THE TITLE
in fifth and penultimate round of the FIA Junior WRC
The French contingent of drivers impressed in front of their home fans at the Tour de Corse, the fifth and penultimate round of the FIA Junior WRC. Following a closely-contested head-to-head battle over the three days, Laurent Pellier claimed victory ahead of Yohan Rossel, as the Slovakian Martin Koci took the final podium place. Simone Tempestini finished fourth to seal the title* with one round still to go. Next year, the Italian will drive a DS 3 R5 at six rounds of the WRC2.
The Tour de Corse kicked off in Ajaccio on Friday with an opening leg featuring four long stages completed without a service break – just a mid-leg tyre change. The first 49.72km-long stage enabled an initial pecking order to be established. The French drivers were immediately on the pace, as Laurent Pellier grabbed the early lead, trailed by Yohan Rossel and Terry Folb. Simone Tempestini was fourth, ahead of Romain Martel.
Ole Christian Veiby, Tempestini’s most serious rival for the title, saw his hopes of victory quickly evaporate. After a bizarre incident in which Veiby crashed into Koci’s car on the road section, the Norwegian started the stage with a disconnected turbo pipe. He lost almost fifteen minutes with the problem! SS2 began without William Wagner, who retired for personal reasons. This time it was Yohan Rossel’s turn to win the stage and replace Pellier as the new leader.
After changing tyres in Porticcio, the first leg continued with second runs on the stages. After tying for the SS3 stage win with Martin Koci, Pellier reclaimed the lead by just three tenths of a second! Fourth fastest on the stage, Terry Folb went off the road after crossing the finishing line and had to retire for the day.
On Friday’s fourth and final speed test, Rossel set the fastest time, meaning he headed back to Bastia as leader, only 4.4s ahead of his FFSA French Rally team-mate. Martin Koci was third, a minute behind Rossel and just ahead of Martel and Tempestini. Vincent Dubert was somewhat isolated in sixth, followed by Mohamed Al Mutawaa and Ole Christian Veiby.
On Saturday, the FIA Junior WRC’s usual suspects reminded everyone that they were also a force to be reckoned with! Tempestini began the leg by winning SS5, ahead of Koci and Veiby. Pellier finished ahead of Rossel on the test to reclaim the lead. This stage also saw Mohamed Al Mutawaa go off the road and roll his car after overheating the brakes. The Abu Dhabi Racing driver’s DS 3 R3-MAX caught fire before burning out, leading to the stage being cancelled.
On SS6, it was Martin Koci’s turn to step into the limelight as he bagged the stage win. All sorts of drama then ensued on SS7. Rossel won the stage to move ahead of Pellier, as the lead changed hands yet again. Romain Martel’s best performance of the season then came to a premature end as he went off and had to retire from the rally. Meanwhile, Vincent Dubert suffered a faulty sensor, meaning his day was over on this stage. Lastly, Simone Tempestini lost over three minutes with a puncture, but he still held onto fourth place behind Rossel, Pellier and Koci!
The day’s final stage was a bit calmer, as Rossel stretched his lead over Pellier to 14.9s. Koci remained in the final podium spot, with a comfortable lead over Tempestini.
Sunday’s third and final leg took the competitors to Porto-Vecchio. The opening stage of the day, the 53.78km-long Antisanti – Poggio di Nazza test looked set to be decisive in determining the outcome of the rally. And indeed, the FIA Junior WRC had a new leader by the end of the stage, as Laurent Pellier snatched back first place again! Struggling with brake issues and a loose turbo pipe, Rossel lost a minute and with it, his hopes of victory evaporated. Meanwhile, Simone Tempestini was helpless as he wrestled with his gearbox, which had become stuck in second gear…
There was no further drama on the short final test, which also served as the Power Stage. Laurent Pellier sealed victory on his first ever World Championship rally, ahead of Yohan Rossel and Martin Koci. Simone Tempestini’s fourth place finish earned him enough points to secure the FIA Junior WRC title ahead of the final round at Wales Rally GB. Next year, Tempestini will therefore drive a DS 3 R5 at six rounds of the WRC2 championship.
QUOTESLaurent Pellier: “This is a very special moment! It’s been a great battle with Yohan throughout the three days, but also with the championship regulars, who have put us under pressure. I certainly wanted to make a strong impression on my first appearance in the World Championship, but I wasn’t really thinking about winning here. I would have been happy to finish on the podium, so this result goes beyond my wildest expectations. It just goes to show that we prepared really well for this rally, both with the FFSA French Rally team and Citroën Racing.”
Simone Tempestini: “It was a really difficult race for me so I’m all the more pleased to win the FIA Junior WRC title. On these long stages, it was especially difficult to manage the brakes and the tyres. I also had a few problems with the gearbox. It ended up getting stuck this morning and I had to finish the rally in second gear. That doesn’t take anything away from the fantastic season that we are having. I’m pleased to thank all those who have helped me put together this programme in the best possible way. It’s fantastic to know that I will be competing in the 2017 WRC2 with Citroën. I hope I can seize this opportunity to impress even more.”
WRC2: PODIUM FOR BONATO!Among the crews competing in DS 3 R5s at the Tour de Corse, Yohann Bonato and Benjamin Boulloud produced a fine performance to finish third in the WRC2 class. Despite having to rejoin under Rally2 rules, Pierre-Louis Loubet/Vincent Landais and Quentin Gilbert/Renaud Jamoul still made it to the end of the rally, finishing fifth and sixth respectively in the category.
After scoring points in Monte-Carlo, Sardinia, Finland and now in France, Quentin Gilbert and Renaud Jamoul have earned themselves an outing at Wales Rally GB (27-30 October) in an Abu Dhabi Total WRT DS 3 WRC!
STANDINGSTOUR DE CORSE
1. Pellier / Neyret-Gigot 4:38:19.32. Rossel / Fulcrand +33.53. Koci / Kostka +1:15.94. Tempestini / Bernacchini +6:07.55. Folb / Le Floch’ +11:52.66. Dubert / Coria +19:40.17. Veiby / Skjaermoen +23:39.4
OVERALL STANDINGS
Simone Tempestini 105 ptsOle Christian Veiby 62 ptsTerry Folb 58 ptsMartin Koci 57 ptsVincent Dubert 52 ptsRomain Martel 40 ptsMohamed Al Mutawaa 26 ptsLaurent Pellier 25 ptsYohan Rossel 18 ptsJuuso Nordgren 15 ptsLukas Pieniazek 9 ptsFrédéric Hauswald 8 ptsAndrea Crugnola 2 pts
* Subject to publication of the official results by the FIA
