KIMI KIMI - Mundo Motorizado

PICS: PHOTO4, MCKLEIN.DE Loeb:
New-for-2012 Fiesta
has internal tweaks
WRC
Ford makes cockpit tweaks to Fiesta
FORD’S FACTORY DRIVERS WILL SIT
lower and further back than ever in their
cars in 2012 following changes made to the
Fiesta RS WRC that will challenge Citroen.
While regulations preclude significant
technical changes to the current World
WRC
Hirvonen can fight
World champion rubbishes rumours of number-two status for new Citroen team-mate
Sebastien Loeb has scotched
suggestions that his new
Citroen team-mate Mikko
Hirvonen will not be allowed to
fight him for the World Rally
Championship this year.
It has been rumoured that
Hirvonen has been signed as Loeb’s
number two for 2012, but the
eight-time world champion is
adamant that the pair will be
allowed to fight each other for
the first half of the season.
Loeb said: “Mikko is the number
two, but if the number two is
beating the number one then he
will be the number one – it’s not
really a number two. If he beats me
in Monte Carlo and Sweden, then
he is in front. At the moment, I
consider that Mikko will be quite
an interesting rival in the season
and I think he has some good
feeling with the car.”
Hirvonen moved to Citroen after
Loeb’s 2011 team-mate Sebastien
Ogier departed for Volkswagen. The
two Frenchmen struggled to work
together in the Versailles-based
team and the relationship ended
with an acrimonious split.
Loeb admitted he and Hirvonen
Rally Cars, Ford has sought to further lower
the centre of gravity of the car ahead of the
Valence-based season opener.
Jari-Matti Latvala said: “I am sitting
10cm lower and further back. Sometimes
I have to lift my head a little bit when we are
Loeb hopes for happier
time than with Ogier
would be starting on a better
footing. While the new Citroen
team-mates haven’t yet worked
together at a test, they have shared
set-up data and information with
each other via their engineers.
“Mikko and I are friends. I hope
it will be different from last year,”
he added. “I hope we can do a good
and friendly job, but also we have
to fight together. If he is faster, he is
number one.”
In previous seasons, Citroen has
made it plain that its two drivers
start the season on equal footing
coming to the crest, but I will get used to it.”
The car Latvala and Petter Solberg
will drive was unveiled at AUTOSPORT
International today (Thursday). The new
colour scheme shows Solberg’s personal
sponsors on the front spoiler.
before making a strategic decision
halfway through the year. Loeb said
he expects that to continue.
He said: “If Mikko is leading the
championship after the first half
then for sure we will not tell him
to go behind [me].”
Loeb said he also welcomed news
of Yves Matton’s return to the
Citroen fold, in place of outgoing
team principal Olivier Quesnel.
He said: “I know him [Matton]
quite well from the past. I have a
strong relationship with him, so
it will be good.”
NEWS
SPECIAL STAGE
IN BRIEF
Ostberg gets 11-round deal
OSTBERG STAYS AT FORD
Mads Ostberg will remain in a Ford Fiesta
RS WRC for an 11-round programme in this
year’s world championship. Ostberg, who
twice finished on the podium in WRC
rounds last year, will not contest next
week’s Monte Carlo Rally and is also
likely to miss Rally New Zealand.
TOP TEAMS WRAP UP TESTING
Ford, Citroen and Mini will all be
concluding their Monte Carlo Rally tests
in the south of France this week. Ford and
Citroen have so far run on dry and wet
asphalt, but nobody has run on snow in
the Alps yet. The long-range forecast for
next week’s season-opening WRC round
is largely dry, with the possibility of snow
falling for the Saturday night (January 21)
run over the Col de Turini.
Ford has tested on dry asphalt
SKODA PAIR TOP JANNER
Skoda factory pair Jan Kopecky and Juho
Hanninen overcame heavy snow to take
a one-two finish on last weekend’s Janner
Rallye in Austria. The event was running
as a European Rally Championship round
for the first time. Former world rally
champion Stig Blomqvist finished 15th
in a Group N Mitsubishi.
MOUTON HONOURED IN FRANCE
WRC rally winner Michele Mouton was
honoured by French president Nicolas
Sarkozy with the Chevalier of the Legion
d’Honneur in Paris late last month.
Mouton dedicated the French equivalent
of a knighthood to her late father: “He
did everything for me,” said Mouton,
“including making the decision I should
become a driver rather than a co-driver.”
RALLYDAY NOW IN AUGUST
This year’s Rallyday has moved forward
due to Rally GB’s September date. The
Castle Combe event runs on August 18.
January 12 2012 autosport.com 23