IRC Event Preview: Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc

IRC Event Preview: Tour de Corse E.Leclerc

IRC TOUR DE CORSE PREVIEW

Just under a month after the thrilling four-way battle for victory on Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Ingles electrified fans around the world, the chase for Intercontinental Rally Challenge glory resumes on the Mediterranean island of Corsica from 12-14 May with a live television spectacular.

Eurosport, Europe’s leading sports entertainment group and host broadcaster of the IRC, will broadcast six stages of Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc live to more than 123 million homes across 59 countries in Europe. There will also be coverage on Eurosport Asia-Pacific, Eurosportnews and Eurosport Player, the online simulcast service providing live and on demand access to Eurosport’s channels.

France 3 Corsica-Via Stella will also provide live coverage of the six stages, while several other television channels around the world will show highlights or delayed footage of the thrilling stage action.

Affectionately known as the Rally of 10,000 Corners due to the proliferation of twists and turns on challenging mountain roads, the legendary event will reflect its original spirit with stages spread over a larger area of the picturesque French island than in recent years, when it joins the IRC for the first time in 2011. The claim of the rally his year expresses this spirit, “the Return of the Myth”.

Starting in the town of Calvi on Corsica’s north west coast at 13:00hrs local time on Thursday 12 May, the event will include 14 all-asphalt special stages over a competitive distance of 320 kilometres.

Thursday’s itinerary features two runs over the 27.53-kilometre Le Fangu-Notre Dame de la Serra stage, which straddles the Calvi Coast and is the longest of the event. From the overnight halt in Calvi, crews head to stages around Corte on Friday 13 May with three repeated tests split by service halts at the town’s aerodrome. The final day’s action on Saturday 14 May again consists of three repeated stages and runs around Ajaccio in the south west of the island where the first car is due to finish at approximately 21:35hrs.

The first Tour de Corse took place in 1956 and it wasn’t long before the event became one of the world’s most iconic, albeit challenging rallies. It developed a fearsome reputation as drivers negotiated narrow mountain roads in high-powered cars, lined with unforgiving rock faces on one side of the road or steep drops on the other.

It was also an extreme test of endurance with the route covering significant parts of the island in a 25-hour stretch. In more recent times organisers have settled for a more compact and sedate route based around Ajaccio. However, the task facing drivers has not diminished and this year’s event, the 54^th running, is likely to be one of the highlights of the IRC calendar.

Although the bulk of the competitors will have some knowledge of the Corsican roads, most stage layouts are unchartered territory for IRC regulars with several classic tests from yesteryear returning to the itinerary including the Barchetta and Bocognano runs. However, most of the island’s undulating roads have undergone resurfacing over the years, which has eradicated much of the broken and bumpy asphalt that was once synonymous with the rally.

While hot and sunny weather is expected for the duration of the event, the island’s climate can be changeable, particularly in mountainous areas. This can make tyre choice a lottery in the event of rainfall during a stage.

All drivers will be in contention for the prestigious Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy, which is awarded on all rounds of the IRC to the driver whose performance best embodies the spirit of the rally legend, a two-time Tour de Corse winner.

After finishing a close second to fellow Skoda Motorsport driver Juho Hanninen on the last IRC round, Jan Kopecky will be looking to make the most of his team-mate’s absence in Corsica having gone almost 13 months without a win in the IRC.

Hanninen is not planning to defend his IRC title in 2011 despite topping drivers’ classification after two events, handing Kopecky the task of upholding Skoda honour on the Mediterranean event.

Like Kopecky, Freddy Loix was also a contender for victory on Rally Islas Canarias. The Belgian BFO Skoda driver knows that a first win of 2011 would propel him to the top of the drivers’ classification following his run to second overall on Rallye Monte-Carlo in January.

Thierry Neuville arrives in Corsica on a high following his impressive podium finish on round two where he narrowly missed out on winning in his Team Peugeot Belgium-Luxembourg 207. The 22-year-old was one of the revelations in the Canary Islands and starts the Tour de Corse on the back of a successful test with Peugeot Sport in France last month.

Guy Wilks, whose Peugeot UK 207 is run by the same Kronos Racing organisation responsible for Neuville’s car, has the pace to win in the IRC but was restricted to fifth overall on Rally Islas Canarias where he complained of a lack of stability in high-speed corners. Like Neuville, Wilks also tested in France in preparation for the island rally.

Bryan Bouffier, the current French rally champion, began his IRC bid with Peugeot France with victory on Rallye Monte-Carlo. On the last round in Canary Islands, however, he was never quite satisfied with the handling of his car, nor of his own performance behind the wheel. While he has never competed in Corsica before, Bouffier is more than capable of fighting for first place.

Norway’s Andreas Mikkelsen has more recent knowledge of Corsica’s demanding roads than the many of his rivals after contesting a regional rally on the island back in March. The Skoda UK Motorsport driver claimed a comfortable victory on the event and also scored a confidence-boosting sixth on round two of the IRC following his early retirement from Rallye Monte-Carlo.

Bruno Magalhaes will be a contender for a strong haul of points in his Peugeot Sport Portugal 207. However, it won’t be an easy task for the talented 30-year-old from Lisbon who has never rallied in Corsica before and won’t get the opportunity for a pre-event test.

One driver with plenty of Corsica experience is Pierre Campana, who hails from Corte. Campana, the joint leader of the IRC 2WD Cup following his victory in Monte-Carlo, steps up to Super 2000 technology for his home rally when he will drive a 207 for the Italian Munaretto squad.

Patrik Sandell begins his seven-event IRC programme in a Skoda Sweden Fabia. The 29-year-old has previous experience of competing on the island from his stint in the World Rally Championship where he won the Junior title in 2006. Sandell, who will be co-driven by Staffan Parmander, also has good knowledge of driving Skodas, something he has done since 2010.

Toni Gardemeister is doubling up as a team boss in the IRC this season at the wheel of a Fabia S2000, which he took to 10^th overall on Rally Islas Canarias. The Finn was a regular on the event when it formed part of the world championship.

Other Super 2000 drivers in action include Massimiliano Settembrini (Peugeot 207), Julien Maurin (M-Sport Ford Fiesta) and Pascal Lescloupe, who will drive an Abarth Grande Punto.

Subaru will debut its R4-specification Impreza in the IRC on Tour de Corse. Driven by veteran Japanese Toshi Arai, the car has been designed to narrow the performance gap between pacesetting Super 2000 cars and Group N production models.

IRC Production Cup
Florian Gonon, who won the inaugural IRC Production Cup event on Rallye Monte-Carlo in January, returns to the series in his Subaru Impreza. The Swiss will face opposition from several Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer drivers including Jean-Marc Sanchez and Irishman Eamonn Boland.

IRC 2WD Cup
The IRC 2WD Cup entry is bulging with quality and quantity with 31 runners competing in the two-wheel drive class in Corsica. Harry Hunt, the defending IRC 2WD Cup champion, heads the entry and will face strong opposition from Stefano Albertini, Eric Mauffrey, plus Honda Civic Type R driver Martin Kangur.

MISS FRANCE TO LEAD THE FIELD IN CORSICA
Miss France, Laury Thilleman, will lead the field over the opening stages of Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc. The 19-year-old will be a passenger in one of the Peugeot RCZ course cars. She said: “I like extreme sports but for motorsport it will be the first time in Corsica. I’m really happy to be opening the rally.”

Bryan Bouffier (France), Peugeot 207 S2000: “Apart from two days of tests a few years ago I have no knowledge of the stages. For sure it will be very nice rally and a close battle with the front guys. I hope to be among them and because I will be in France I will be a little bit more motivated.”

Pierre Campana (France), Peugeot 207 S2000: “I am extremely excited and proud to be participating in this year’s Tour de Corse. Coming from Corsica, it is an amazing experience to drive in front of a home crowd and I remember it well from taking part in the event back in 2008.”

Patrik Sandell (Sweden), Skoda Fabia S2000: “My two best results last year were on Tarmac so I will push for a podium in Corsica as it will be important to score as many points as possible on my first event. I know there will be lots of others who are also fast on Tarmac but I am confident.”

TV TIMES

The IRC’s media partner Eurosport, Europe’s leading sports entertainment group, and France 3 Corsica-Via Stella, will show six stages of Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc live as follows:

Thursday 12 May:
22:30-22:50: Highlights of day one (Eurosport France)
24:30-25:00: Highlights of day one (Eurosport)

Friday 13 May:
09:00-10:00: LIVE SS3 Erbajolo-Pont d’Altiani (Eurosport and Eurosport France / France 3 Corsica-Via Stella)
12:00-13:00: LIVE SS5 Taverna-Pont de Castirla (Eurosport 2)
17:30-18:30: LIVE SS8 Erbajolo-Pont d’Altiani (Eurosport France and Eurosport Player / France 3 Corsica-Via Stella)

Saturday 14 May:
09:00-10:00: LIVE SS9 Sarrola-Plage du Liamone (Eurosport, Eurosport France, Eurosport Asia-Pacific / France 3 Corsica-Via Stella)
15:00-16:00: LIVE SS12 Marato-Acqua Doria (Eurosport 2 / France 3 Corsica-Via Stella)
20:00-21:00: LIVE SS14 Sarrola-Plage du Liamone (Eurosport and Eurosport France / France 3 Corsica-Via Stella)

Sunday 15 May:
22:15-22:40: Magazine – Rally Review (Eurosport)
22:30-23:00: Magazine – Rally Review (Eurosport Asia-Pacific)
23:00-23:25: Magazine – Rally Review (Eurosport France)

Daily highlights will also be shown at www.rally-irc.com and via the IRC iPhone and iPad App.

All times are CET.

IRC Event Preview: Tour de Corse E.Leclerc

EVENT ESSENTIALS

Event: Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc
Base: Ajaccio
Starts: Calvi, Thursday 12 May
Finishes: Ajaccio, Saturday 14 May
Entries received: 56
IRC appearances: None
2010 winners: Event did not run
Surface: Asphalt
Number of stages: 14
Special stage distance: 320.88 kilometres
Liaison distance: 839.79 kilometres
Total distance: 1160.67 kilometres
Itinerary (all times shown are local):

Day one (Thursday 12 May):
Special stages: Two
Special stage distance: 55.06kms
Liaison distance: 68.08kms
Total distance: 123.14kms
Start: Calvi, 13:00hrs
Service A: Calvi (0:15hrs), 13:10hrs
SS1: Le Fangu – Notre Dame de la Serra (27.53kms), 14:03hrs
Regroup: Citadelle (01:00hrs), 14:43hrs
Service B: Calvi (0.30hrs), 15:48hrs
SS2: Le Fangu – Notre Dame de la Serra (27.53kms), 16:56hrs
Service C: Calvi (0:45hrs), 17:36hrs

Day two (Friday 13 May):
Special stages: Six
Special stage distance: 127.38kms
Liaison distance: 401.74kms
Total distance: 529.12kms
Service D: Corte Aerodrome (0:15hrs), 08:40hrs
SS3: Erbajolo-Pont d’Altiani (25.15kms), 09:10hrs
SS4: Barchetta-La Porta (23.26kms), 10:58hrs
SS5: Taverna-Pont de Castirla (15.28kms), 12:06hrs
Regroup: Corte Citadelle (0:40hrs), 12:46hrs
Service E: Corte Aerodrome (0:30hrs), 13:41hrs
SS6: Barchetta-La Porta (23.26kms), 15:09hrs
SS7: Taverna-Pont de Castirla (15.28kms), 16:17hrs
SS8: Erbajolo-Pont d’Altiani (25.15kms), 17:40hrs
Service F: Corte Aerodrome (0:45hrs), 18:25hrs

Day three (Saturday 14 May):
Special stages: Six
Special stage distance: 138.44kms
Liaison distance: 369.97kms
Total distance: 508.41kms
Service G: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:15hrs), 08:15hrs
SS9: Sarrola-Plage du Liamone (26.70kms), 09:10hrs
SS10: Marato-Acqua Doria (22.47kms), 10:43hrs
Regroup: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:36hrs), 11:53hrs
Service H: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:30hrs), 12:29hrs
SS11: Bocognano-Bastelica (20.05kms), 13:47hrs
SS12: Marato-Acqua Doria (22:47kms), 15:10hrs
Regroup: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:50hrs), 16:35hrs
Service I: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:30hrs), 17:25hrs
SS13: Bocognano-Bastelica (20.05kms), 18:48hrs
SS14: Sarrola-Plage du Liamone (26.70kms), 20:10hrs
Service J: Port CCI Ajaccio (0:10hrs), 21:25hrs
Finish: Ajaccio, 21:35hrs

LEADING ENTRIES

1 Bryan Bouffier (FRA)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Peugeot 207 S2000
2 Freddy Loix (BEL)/Frederic Miclotte (BEL) Skoda Fabia S2000
3 Guy Wilks (GBR)/Phil Pugh (GBR) Peugeot 207 S2000
4 Jan Kopecky (CZE)/Petr Stary (CZE) Skoda Fabia S2000
5 Thierry Neuville (BEL)/Nicolas Gilsoul (BEL) Peugeot 207 S2000
6 Andreas Mikkelsen (NOR)/Ola Floene (NOR) Skoda Fabia S2000
7 Bruno Magalhaes (POR)/Paulo Grave (POR) Peugeot 207 S2000
8 Toni Gardemeister (FIN)/Tapio Suominen (FIN) Skoda Fabia S2000
10 Pierre Campana (FRA)/Sabrina de Castelli (FRA) Peugeot 207 S2000
11 Julien Maurin (FRA)/Olivier Ural (FRA) M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000
12 Patrik Sandell (SWE)/Staffan Parmander (SWE) Skoda Fabia S2000
14 Toshi Arai (JPN)/Dale Moscatt (AUS) Subaru Impreza R4

IRC STANDINGS

Drivers after round two of 12
1 Juho Hanninen (Finland) 33pts
2 Bryan Bouffier (France) 31pts
3 Freddy Loix (Belgium) 30pts
4 Guy Wilks (United Kingdom) 25pts
5 Jan Kopecky (Czech Republic) 22pts
6 Thierry Neuville (Belgium) 15pts
7 Stephane Sarrazin (France) 12pts
8 Francois Delecour (France) 10pts
9 Andreas Mikkelsen (Norway) 8pts
10 Nicolas Vouilloz (France) 6pts etc

Manufacturers after round two of 12
1 Skoda 73pts
2 Peugeot 67pts
3 Subaru 18pts
4 PROTON 16pts
5 M-Sport 13pts
6 Honda 8pts
7 Ralliart 6pts
8 Abarth 1pt

IRC Production Cup after round two of 12
1 Jose Barrios (Spain) 25pts
= Florian Gonon (Switzerland) 25pts
3 Vojtech Stajf (Czech Republic) 18pts
4 Giacomo Ogliari (Italy) 15pts
5 Maurizio Verini (Italy) 12pts etc

IRC 2WD Cup drivers after round two of 12
1 Pierre Campana (France) 25pts
= Joan Vinyes (Spain) 25pts
3 Gorka Antxustegi (Spain) 18pts
= Michael Burri (Switzerland) 18pts
5 Renaud Poutot (France) 15pts
= Angel Marrero (Spain) 15pts etc

IRC 2WD Cup manufacturers after round two of 12
1 Peugeot 53pts
2 Honda 49pts
3 Abarth 33pts
= M-Sport 33pts

KEY STATISTICS

IRC rally wins in 2011 (drivers)
Bryan Bouffier: 1
Juho Hanninen: 1

IRC rally wins in 2011 (manufacturers)
Peugeot: 1
Skoda: 1

IRC stage wins in 2011 (drivers)
Juho Hanninen: 7
Jan Kopecky: 5
Stephane Sarrazin: 4
Bryan Bouffier: 2
Guy Wilks: 2
Giandomenico Basso: 1
Francois Delecour: 1
Freddy Loix: 1
Nicolas Vouilloz: 1

Stage wins in 2011 (manufacturers)
Skoda: 14:
Peugeot: 10