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Post by Mixa on Jul 16, 2006 18:35:45 GMT
Yeah congrats to Toyota team. BTW didnt you found any shots for Toyota Celica TCT?? There are quite a lot of them in the net but maybe its because this one was a snow rally as most of them are from Safari and a couple for RAC.
I was happy to be 8th with the 037. Actually I was already surprised for Monte win. The S4 is coming soon and I hope a boost for championship fight with it.
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Post by Danii on Jul 17, 2006 12:47:24 GMT
Another great finish and a 1-2 for Toyota. Fantastic ;D. Yap, that's really cool. ;D ;D ;D
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Post by Grenville on Jul 17, 2006 18:10:39 GMT
*Lada Report*
Team Boss- "Though we are not overjoyed by the end result, the Lada team is happy with the progress the car has made. Igor had a fantastic stage time on the 1st day but unfortunately problems on the second day killed any chances of him making it on the podium"
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Post by OverSauron on Jul 17, 2006 18:37:17 GMT
Lada Samara World Rally Team REPORT
Team owner – “ We’re more than satisfied with the results of the first two rounds of the championship. Any team must understand that autosport is a long-term investment, and only stayers can aim for wins and titles. The stage victory, achieved by our car, clearly shows, that we’re moving in the right direction, and from now on my drivers will be fighting only for the front row. We came her to win. Our drivers are one of the best, the 2108 is improving and is full of potential. Our time to succeed will come, that’s for sure. What we expect from the next round? A podium of course!”
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Post by Grenville on Jul 19, 2006 21:26:13 GMT
Well with 2 rallies gone the season is officially underway. In this issue we will take a look at each team and see how they are doing and what changes they may be planning. PEUGEOT- Heads are rolling at Peugeot! With 1 out of 4 finishes in the points, the championship favorite team have really had a wake up call. Extensive testing is underway. Improvements on the car's handling and engine are 2 key areas the team are focusing on. AUDI- Audi was another team that was favorite to win the championship. Overall the team is doing quite well. They sit in 3rd, 1 point behind the Lancia team. LANCIA- The Lancia team are said to be quite satisfied with results so far. Their driver Mixa sits 2nd in the driver's title and the team is 2nd overall. Rumor has it though, that the team hopes to introduce a new car based on the S4 to replace the 037. They hope that the new car will give Lancia a better advantage with its all wheel drive system. PORSCHE- Though Porsche hasn't been outstanding they have scored in both rallies which is more than other teams can say. The car is due for some revisions before the USA rally so the team hopes to see improvement. MG- MG had a magnificent Swedish rally. 4th and 5th place was an excellent result from the team that many had doubted coming into the championship. We have seen nothing but improvement from the English team. TOYOTA- WOW!! Thats all that we can say about this team. These 2 drivers have taken a Celica that is rear-wheel drive and without a doubt a little below-par compared to the other teams and have opened a gap of 12 points. If the Toyota team can keep up the good work they will be causing one major upset! FORD- The Ford team is another one that has disappointed many this season. The RS200 was supposed to be at the top of the leader board but 1 points finish has made sure that is not the case. The team is not worried though as they have completed a lot of testing and are confident of a turn around. RENAULT- Another underdog team that has done quite well. Vivski has really taken command of the R5 finishing in the points on both rallies. Now he just needs to pass that on to his teammate. LADA- For a team that came together late in the game, the Lada team hasn't surprised many by its lackluster performance. The car has potential as seen by the stage times, but the team NEEDS to be CONSISTENT if it has any hopes of winning a rally. Thats all for this edition of Rally Magazine. We hope you enjoyed our look at the teams of the RFC championship. Until next time!
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Post by Grenville on Jul 30, 2006 18:28:45 GMT
*Pre-Rally News* With just a day to go the Lada team delivered some shocking news. They announced that driver R83 would be pulling out of the season and would be replaced by Belgian driver Hurricane. According to sources this was R83's decision and not the team's. It was stated that R83 would take the role of test driver for the remainder of th season. *DAY 1* The much anticipated USA rally got off to a flying start. The weather was dry and very hot. The drivers were going to have a challenge on their hands. Curt was ready for the challenge, as he set the fastest time on stage 1. Vivski and Igor were the next drivers to set great times; they took joint 2nd place. Danii though got off to a less than stellar start. A bad tyre choice and a spin saw her end the day in 18th, 17 seconds off the leader. *DAY 2* Day two was a run through the world famous Pikes Peak. This is a true test of courage as every turn has a steep drop off. Danii was out to prove she could fight back as she set the fastest time along with Renault's SWolf. Keeping out of trouble FTRS set another great time. The Australian looking good for a solid finish. Though Mixa's early splits were looking good he was destined to retire. After coming into a corner too fast he rolled his 037. It was a bad roll but both driver and co-driver were OK. At the end of the day Igor held the rally lead with CFinch trailing by 1 second in 2nd place. *DAY 3* The 3rd and final day would take the drivers through the country side of Boulder. SWolf won stage 3, giving him 7th place in the rally. Cfinch didn't have the greatest time, but all the good work done in the previous days helped him consolidate 2nd place. Peugeot's RJ had a clean rally and took 3rd place. A great boost to his title chances. CossieK's title hopes took a dip as he had to retire his Porsche with a broken gearbox. Worrying times for the Porsche team. In the end though Igor did what nobody thought was possible. Driving with amazing precision he took his Lada home in 1st place. An amazing result for the underdog team. His teammate Hurricane finished in 12th. A respectable finish for the rookie's 1st rally.
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Post by evospi on Jul 30, 2006 23:14:58 GMT
Any team must understand that autosport is a long-term investment, and only stayers can aim for wins and titles. Haha sooooo unlike the French teams
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Post by FordTeamRS on Jul 31, 2006 6:21:01 GMT
"A very solid result considering the dismal start to our season. The car felt great, I felt great, the roads were fantastic to drive on. I hope we can keep this momentum going"
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Post by Mixa on Jul 31, 2006 14:12:19 GMT
Mixa is happy to survive from the accident but not too happy as he needed to retire and that means the team lost some valuable points as well did Mixa. ´´I just decided to go on the corner with my own way. My co-driver clearly said that the corner will be so tight but it didnt looked to anything so I just gived a go. When I was in midpoint I noticed that I dont have anything to do anymore and the car hitted to bank and rolled heavily. Luckily me and my co-driver are ok but this 037 career ended quite heavily. Maybe we can get a few parts to it. Its actually a little bit shame that I retired on this stage because as we know Pikes Peak is an excellent showdown and this was the one I would have really liked to drive but what you can do. Now we are just looking on to next rally´´. BTW congrats to Igor to the win on Lada but I specially want to say big thanks and congratulations for great 2nd place and also for the first points on the season. Also big thanks for Gren to fantastic work again. Also The rally mag was camed quite early was a top idea
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Post by Vivski on Jul 31, 2006 14:39:49 GMT
Good to see my teammate score some points. After a fantastic start for me, the wheels fell off for legs 2 & 3.
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Post by Mixa on Jul 31, 2006 20:39:07 GMT
question: I see Lancia only has 9 points but we should have 19. I think its just a mistake or has the team lost 10 points for something I havent noticed?
Still the championship fight looks to be tight once again!
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Post by Mitch on Jul 31, 2006 22:38:27 GMT
An interesting event for me. 2 Wheel drive was definately a disadvantage on the hillclimbs as we struggled for traction the whole time . Somehow we combated this on Stage 2 with both Toyotas (Danii and me!) setting decent times. Still a bad event for the team but I still lead the title race! **Gren: Is there a stage called ineshaft in USA or are you getting confused with Rally of Canberra in Aus???**
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Post by Hurricane on Jul 31, 2006 23:21:54 GMT
"I'm still pleased with the result as I hadn't had much time to test the car. I received the offer to drive for Lada next to world famous driver Igor ( ) five days before the start of rally USA, and just couldn't say no. I still need to learn the way the Lada drives and get to grips with the new type of tyres. I'm hoping to set better and better results the more rallies I do."
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Post by evospi on Aug 5, 2006 20:20:15 GMT
THIS IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT POST IN THE THREAD
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Post by Grenville on Aug 6, 2006 16:35:12 GMT
In this issue of rally magazine we talk one on one with Rallying83 and discuss his departure from Russian team Lada. Also we look at the turnaround of the Ford team and preview Rally GB. Q&A with R83Editor- So what made you leave the Lada team? R83- I haven't left the Lada team, I have just taken myself off of the rally scene. I am still playing a big role in testing. I felt that my performance wasn't what it should be and Hurricane was a good driver looking for a drive. It is important for a new team to do well and hopefully Hurricane will be able to do that along with Igor. E- Do you have any plans on coming back? R83- For the moment I am happy where I am and after I gain more experience I could make my comeback. E- What are you thoughts on Lada's 1st win? R83- Of course the entire team is delighted. To have a win so early into the year is great for the team. It really helps motivate the team for the next rally. E- R83 thank you very much for talking with us. R83- You are very welcome. A look at the Ford teamThe Ford team's season was looking rather bleak after Sweden. The team had only scored 2 points and were in 7th place. The team turned around in USA though. After scoring 4th and 6th place the team has moved into 5th place overall. Though the team still has a long way to go they are definitely moving in the right direction. According to sources a new engine from cosworth is the reason for the team's new found speed. The new engine is a lot more balanced and sits a lot lower in the car. The new engine is also more powerful, estimated hp is at about 450. Rally GB previewSo what does Rally GB hold for the drivers? Rally GB is one of mud, mud, and some more mud. Weather plays a huge role in this rally. The rally runs through the english forests. Trees and logs line the roads so a driver must be at 100% concentration. In recent years the Peugeot 205 has come to dominate this rally. Will history change this year? Don't miss Rally GB, Aug 20th 2006!
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