HANDBRAKESHANDBRAKESHAIRPINSHAIRPINS&&Issue 294 • 20 September 2013 •

Issue 294 • 20 September 2013 • http://wp.me/pkXchttp://wp.me/pkXc

The world’s FIRST dedicated rally eMagazine - every week!

The world’s FIRST dedicated rally eMagazine - every week!

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CONTACT INFORMATIONCONTACT INFORMATION

Editor Evan Rothman

Favourite rally car? Audi Quattro S2Current favourite WRC driver? Mads ØstbergFavourite WRC rally? WRC Rallye DeutschlandFavourite rally? Total Rally, South Africa

Tweets too much about rallying, loves nothing more than spectating on a forest rally, and has aspirations of being the world’s greatest rally journalist. He’s also oftentimes seen with a camera in one hand and his mobile phone in the other.

E-mail us evan.hhmag@gmail.comCall us +27 83 452 6892Surf us http://wp.me/pkXc

EDITORIAL INFORMATIONEDITORIAL INFORMATIONIssue 294Issue 294 • • 20 Sept 201320 Sept 2013

Photojournalist Eva Kovkova

Favourite rally car? Citroën C4 WRCCurrent favourite WRC driver? Mads ØstbergFavourite WRC rally? Vodafone Rally de PortugalFavourite rally? White Nights Rally, Lahdenpohja, Russia

Likes to walk in the Swedish snow forests or on Portuguese dusty hills, likes to freeze, to get wet in the rain or to melt from the heat during photo hunts for fl ying cars and smiling faces. Also is known as a press ice bear working for South Africa :)

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATIONADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Your insight into the world of rally!Your insight into the world of rally! INSIDEINSIDETHIS WEEK

05 • Chat with Jan Kopecky06 • ERC LOTOS Rally Poland review

08 • WRC Rally Australia review11 • SARC Toyota Cape Dealer Rally review

Handbrakes & Hairpins has created this rally-powered wallpaper for the Apple iPhone 5. To download, simply save the image to your Camera Roll, or click on this link to download: http://wp.me/apkXc-4xU.

The high-fl ying Belgian Thierry Neuville and his co-driver Nicolas The high-fl ying Belgian Thierry Neuville and his co-driver Nicolas Gilsoul have notched up another fantastic performance in 2013... Gilsoul have notched up another fantastic performance in 2013... This pairing and their Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team wil make This pairing and their Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team wil make for a formidable combination in 2014.for a formidable combination in 2014.Picture: WorldRallyPicsPicture: WorldRallyPics

OPENING OPENING SHOTSHOT

Words by Words by Liga Stirna • Liga Stirna • Picture by Picture by ERC MediaERC Media

KOPECKY: “I’M STILL LEARNING!”KOPECKY: “I’M STILL LEARNING!”Czech driver Jan Kopecky might be 2013 European Rally Champion, but he’s still learning and gaining experience from different rallies, surfaces and situations. And he does So with great enthusiasm. Liga Stirna met up with Kopecky at the ERC Rally Poland on the weekend, and had a chat with him for H&H:Q: May I congratulate you as a new European Champion?JK: “I don’t know; I was not counting. My mathematics always has been quite bad, you know.”

Q: But you might be the fi rst champion of the new-look ERC?JK: “Yes, it’s interesting and very good that IRC and ERC are now together in one event and here in Poland we saw that it is good challenge for everyone. And it’s nice also that local drivers have a chance to win: they do not need a factory car, and still can win a rally!”

Q: Rally Poland was very specifi c. Have you seen and driven in conditions like that?

JK: “No, no, no! It was quite diffi cult. Last year it was fully dry and not so many fast drivers at the start. We had to change setup, for the last long stage, and we were quite fast to keep our position.”

Q: What have you learned from this event?JK: “That I still have many things where to improve on gravel as in Czech Republic we don’t have a single gravel rally. Last year I did one gravel rally, this year: three. And, I am learning!”

EVENT

H&H

Words by Words by H&H • H&H • Picture by Picture by ERC MediaERC MediaPOLAND’S MUDDY TRECNCHESPOLAND’S MUDDY TRECNCHESKajetan Kajetanowicz has claimed the new-generation Ford Fiesta R5’s maiden victory in the FIA European Rally Championship (ERC) with his third win on LOTOS 70 Rally Poland this past weekend. Kajetanowicz, who wrapped up his fourth Polish title on Saturday’s opening leg, had only completed 200km of running in the M-Sport-built car prior to the gravel event. He had little trouble adapting to his new surroundings by going fastest on four stages alongside co-driver and fellow Pole Jarosław Baran. “It’s one of the best days of my life,” said the 34-year-old Kajetanowicz. “We have the best team, car and co-driver. The Polish title didn’t really matter this weekend; it was this rally that I wanted to win. I now have a big smile on my face because I am very happy. I just hope we can do some more rallies in this car.”

And Kajetanowicz’s victory, which made him the fi fth different winner in this year’s ERC to underline the serious competition ahead in the all-action championship, earned him the prestigious Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy, which was being awarded on the sixth anniversary of the rallying legend’s passing. Lithuanian champion Dominykas Butvilas clinched ERC Production Car Cup honours in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX R4 with Radosław Raczkowski (Citroën DS3 R3T) taking the spoils in the ERC 2WD Championship after rising star Stéphane Lefebvre dropped out of the Class lead on the penultimate stage when he broke his Peugeot 208 R2’s suspension striking a rock. Molly Taylor secured the ERC Ladies’ Trophy laurels for the fourth time this season despite completing the fi nal stage with a cracked suspension beam. Ekaterina

Stratieva battled back from the time loss she endured when she got stuck nearing the fi nish of Saturday’s fi nal stage. Simone Tempestini top-scored for Napoca Rally Academy in the ERC Production Car Cup for Teams. However, it might have been a different story for Kajetanowicz had Bryan Bouffi er’s Peugeot 207 S2000 not suffered a broken right-rear suspension damper on the fi nal day’s fi rst stage. With two more stages until service in Mikołajki, Bouffi er was unable to prevent Kajetanowicz from powering ahead. He settled for second, 23.3s behind Kajetanowicz, with ERC title leader Jan Kopecký completing the podium in his Skoda Fabia S2000 after overcoming a minor scare on Sunday morning when a propshaft bolt worked loose. “I did my best and really tried to push but it was not enough to catch Kajto who really deserved to win this

EVENT

race,” said Bouffi er, who was fastest on four stages. “Apart from a small technical problem it was a very nice race with very strong competition.” Kopecký, meanwhile, conceded that running fi rst on the road in the heavy mud and rain on Day One had cost him time although he was more than satisfi ed with his seventh consecutive podium in this year’s ERC. “There was defi nitely more grip with the sand below for the drivers behind,” said Kopecky. “Finishing third means more points for the championship and that’s the most important thing.” Michał Kościuszko overcame early mechanical woes to snatch fourth from compatriot Michał Sołowow on the fi nal stage when the latter suffered a puncture. Kościuszko, in another Fiesta R5, had heroically driven the entire rally with a fractured vertebra. With Craig Breen also picking up a puncture on his Peugeot on the last stage, Krzysztof Hołowczyc jumped from seventh to fi fth with Sołowow taking sixth and Breen dropping to seventh. It was a frustrating outing for Peugeot Rally Academy driver Breen. The four-time podium fi nisher in this year’s ERC admitted he was at a loss to explain why he wasn’t able to run closer to the front of the fi eld alongside

new co-driver Lara Vanneste. “This defi nitely was not the result I was looking for but Lara has done a fantastic job so at least we’ve got some positives to take away,” he said. There was also frustration for Martin Kangur, who dropped out of the top ten on the fi nal stage with broken powersteering and a puncture. The 20-year-old from Estonia had excelled with two fastest times in his Markko Märtin Motorsport-run Fiesta R5 to become one of the youngest stage winners in the European championship. He had to make do with 14th, one place behind Toshi Arai, who scored more ERC Production Car Cup points in his Yokohama-equipped Subaru Impreza R4 STI. Kangur’s misfortune handed Zbigniew Staniszewski eighth spot with young Russian Vasily Gryazin taking ninth and Maciej Oleksowicz tenth. After completing Day One’s fi nal stage with the front-right wheel missing from his Citroën DS3 RRC following contact with a rock on a high-speed right-hander, Robert Kubica was unable to restart on Day Two after it was discovered that his car’s turbocharged engine had ingested mud and had suffered terminal damage. The Formula One race winner was in second overall at the time

of his moment. However, he once again underlined his blistering pace by setting two fastest stage times. LOTOS 70 Rally Poland marked the last of Kubica’s four planned runs in the ERC this season although a fi nal appearance is still under consideration.

Final Overall Classifi cation:01) K. Kajetanowicz/J. Baran Ford Fiesta R5 - 01h 58m 40.6s02) B. Bouffi er/X. Panseri Peugeot 207 S2000 + 23.3s03) J. Kopecký/P. Dresler Skoda Fabia 2000 + 01m 28.4s04) M. Kościuszko/M. Szczepaniak Ford Fiesta R5 + 02m 14.1s05) K. Hołowczyc/Ł. Kurzeja Ford Fiesta RRC + 03m 15.5s06) M. Sołowow/S. Rozwadowski Ford Fiesta RRC + 03m 17.4s07) C. Breen/L. Vanneste Peugeot 207 S2000 + 03m 33.5s08) Z. Staniszewski/P. Drahan Ford Fiesta S2000 + 03m 48.2s09) V. Gryazin/D. Chumak Ford Fiesta S2000 + 04m 08.0s10) M. Oleksowicz/M. Kuśnierz Ford Fiesta S2000 + 04m 13.5s

H&H

After a fairly straightforward run in this year’s FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), it seems that Volkswagen Motorsport and Sebastien Ogier are fi nding it tricky to nail down the Championship early. It is inevitable that the Frenchman and his German team will triumph, but after last month’s ADAC Rallye Deutschland in which Ogier and Volkswagen were in a position to claim the title on their home event, they have now been thwarted by a single point in Australia.

Frenchman Sebastien Ogier claimed his sixth victory of the 2013 WRC season, but fell short by a single point from clinching the Drivers’ title after a dramatic fi nal stage of Coates Hire Rally Australia. Ogier was in control from the start on Thursday night last week, winning 19 of the 22 stages in his Volkswagen Polo R WRC to win by 01min 32.1sec when crews returned to the coastal city of Coffs Harbour on Sunday afternoon. The 22nd Rally Australia attracted big crowds who

braved plenty of dust to see the world’s best rally drivers - however, when it came to Ogier’s rally, it was done but not dusted. An ironic twist sank Ogier’s anticipated title celebrations. A fi nal-stage puncture for Mikko Hirvonen, who had been running second in his Abu Dhabi Citroën World Rally Team DS3 WRC, allowed Ogier’s nearest championship rival Thierry Neuville (Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team) into the runner-up spot. The extra points for Neuville, allied to two bonus

OGIER FALLS SHORT OF TITLE IN AUSTRALIAOGIER FALLS SHORT OF TITLE IN AUSTRALIAEVENT

Words by H&H • Picture by Volkswagen Motorsport, Citroën Racing, WorldRallyPics

points for taking second in the Power Stage, meant Ogier fell just short of the title after four days of gravel competition covering 352.36km around the Coffs Coast of New South Wales. “The team told me at the fi nish line that I had missed the title by one point because Mikko had a problem. I tried my best,” said 29-year-old Ogier, who was congratulated at the end of the stage by his father, mother and sister.

“The most important thing is that we did another perfect rally and we thought it was OK for the title, but it can’t be written down yet. When you do a perfect job like that, you expect to get it but it’s going to happen soon,” warned Ogier. Hirvonen enjoyed one of his best performances of the season in his Citroën DS3 WRC until his left rear tyre punctured midway through the 29.44km-long Power Stage. “I have absolutely no idea what happened. I

drove in the middle of the road all the time and I can’t understand how we got a puncture,” said the Finn. He lost almost a minute and that was enough to allow the ever-consistent Neuville through to second for a fi fth consecutive podium in his Ford Fiesta RS WRC. He fi nished 30.0sec ahead of Hirvonen in third after a trouble-free event. Jari-Matti Latvala fi nished fourth in the second Volkswagen Polo R WRC, the Finn recovering from a

lacklustre start to fi ght back up the leader board. He, too, lost a minute with left front tyre issues in the fi nal stage, but it didn’t cost any places. Fifth was Mads Ostberg for the Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team in his Fiesta RS WRC. The Norwegian was unhappy with his pace notes early in the rally and lost more time on Day Three when he spun into a ditch, but he managed to fi nish 20.4sec ahead of fellow countryman Andreas Mikkelsen in the fi nal Volkswagen Motorsport Polo R WRC. Mikkelsen led a WRC round for the fi rst time after Thursday night’s curtain-raising tests. He fell back during the fi rst full day of competition after an overshoot and refused to become drawn into a battle with Ostberg for fi fth on the fi nal day of competition. A subdued Evgeny Novikov took seventh for the

Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team in his Ford Fiesta RS WRC, the Russian settling for a clear run after a series of accidents in 2013. Australian Coffs Harbour resident Nathan Quinn delighted home fans with eighth overall in a MINI Countryman John Cooper Works WRC to score his fi rst WRC points. The top ten was completed by Khalid Al Qassimi’s Abu Dhabi Citroën DS3 WRC and WRC2 category winner Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari in a Ford Fiesta RRC. There was more disappointment for Kris Meeke in his bid to regain a seat in the WRC for 2014. Having rolled out of fourth position on Day Three, Citroën’s mechanics worked for 02hr 50min to repair his DS3 WRC to allow him to restart the rally under Rally2 regulations on Day Four. However, he retired again after destroying his car’s right rear suspension late in the fi nal test.

Final Overall Classifi cation:01) S. Ogier/J. Ingrassia Volkswagen Polo R WRC - 03h 19m 55.0s02) T. Neuville/N. Gilsoul Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 01m 32.1s03) M. Hirvonen/J. Lehtinen Citroën DS3 WRC + 02m 02.1s04) J-M. Latvala/M. Anttila Volkswagen Polo R WRC + 02m 57.4s05) M. Ostberg/J. Andersson Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 03m 17.2s06) A. Mikkelsen/P. Nagle Volkswagen Polo R WRC + 03m 37.6s07) E. Novikov/I. Minor Ford Fiesta RS WRC + 07m 31.2s08) N. Quinn/G. Macneall MINI Countryman John Cooper Works WRC + 13m 10.2s09) K. Al Qassimi/S. Martin Citroën DS3 WRC + 15m 17.6s10) A. Al-Kuwari/K. Duffy Ford Fiesta RRC + 17m 27.7sH&H

It was fi ve wins from six starts for defending South African Rally Champions Mark Cronje and Robin Houghton (Ford Dealer Team Fiesta S2000) this past weekend, winning the Toyota Cape Dealer Rally by the narrowest of margins possible. Round Six of the 2013 South African National Rally Championship was a hotly contested event, with three four different leaders over the two days and 175km of action in the Malmesbury region of the Western Cape.

Adverse weather wreaked havoc on the already muddy and slippery stages in the farmlands outside of Cape Town, but the composed nature of his drive saw him reach the fi nish with not only an unscathed car but also a stronger lead in the Drivers’ points standings too. Second overall were Johnny Gemmell and CarolynSecond, just 01.8 sec behind after the ten special stages had been completed. The Castrol Team Toyota Yaris S2000 crew ran a close and intense battle with Cronje, and had

this weekend’s event played out in the favour of this team, they would have celebrated a one-two result. Team-mates Leeroy Poulter/Elvene Coetzee shadowed Gemmell and Cronje all through the fi rst seven stages of the event, and it was on SS8 that this pairing launched an attack for the lead. They grabbed the front, but it was shortlived as a rare engine problem with the all-new Yaris S2000 saw Poulter not complete the event’s penultimate stage, SS9, and thereby retire from the event and the rally battle.

CRONJE’S DOMINANCE CONTINUESCRONJE’S DOMINANCE CONTINUESEVENT

Words by Words by H&H • H&H • Pictures byPictures by Evan Rothman Evan Rothman

Two spins in SS8 for Cronje and one for Gemmell, the Toyota driver entered the fi nal stage 8sec ahead of Cronje. At the fi nish line, Cronje was pipped by 7.2sec. A 10sec jumpstart penalty on SS5, Day One’s fi nal stage, was rescinded at the end of the event, thereby handing the rally’s win to Cronje. The Toyota Yaris S2000’s fi rst national rally victory was taken away on its sponsored event, but Toyota Motorsport has appealed the results. At the same token, it was not a manner in which the sport’s most shining ambassador would have wanted to claim victory of any event. “This is not the way a rally should be declared, and I feel for Toyota and Johnny [Gemmell],” said Cronje. “If the penalty was not legitimate, then it would not have been successfully overturned. It is the timing of the decision that has left an imprint on this rally win, and

one that should not have happened after the rally ended. However, we’re glad to claim the important points and we head to the next rally with a view on the Championship.” Gemmell said: “It is the cruel side of the sport to win and then have it taken away because of a technicality that didn’t affect us, but that is how it sometimes goes. It was a crazy rally out there, and those roads were very slippery and tricky. We’ve got the Yaris going very well now, and we’ll keep pushing those Fords.” The stages are traditionally fast in this part of the Western Cape, and this year’s stages were no exception. Driving on their rev limiters in top gear down kilometres-long straights, over jumps and through sweeping bends into watersplashes, the crews were committed to gaining any advantage over their rivals. The event was staged around Malmesbury, Moorreesburg and Brackenfell, where hundreds of fans braved the cold and rain to cheer on

their favourite rally crews. The action kicked off on Friday morning and concluded on Saturday evening, with a number of cars succumbing to the demanding route and adverse weather conditions. A distant third overall behind the winners were former champions Hergen Fekken/Pierre Arries (Volkswagen Sasolracing Polo S2000), who recorded their best result of their luckless season to date. Fourth overall and winners of the S2000 Challenge for earlier specifi cation four-wheel drive cars were local favourites Jean-Pierre Damseaux and co-driver Hilton Auffray in their Team TOTAL Toyota Auris S2000. This S2000 Challenge pairing has fi nished strongly throughout 2013, and despite a DNF on Round Four they are currently third in the points overall and fi rst in the S2000 Challenge. Defending S2000 Challenge title holders Gugu Zulu/Carl Peskin were fi fth in their Volkswagen Sasolracing

Polo Vivo S2000, ahead of the Imperial Toyota Yaris S2000 of Giniel de Villiers/Greg Godrich, Leeroy Poulter/Elvéne Coetzee (in the second Castrol Toyota Yaris S2000) and Henk Lategan/Barry White (Volkswagen Sasolracing Polo S2000). Making up the rest of the top ten were the fi rst of the S1600 two-wheel drive cars of Thilo Himmel and Armand du Toit (Toyota Etios R2) and Clint Weston/Christoff Snyders (Reef Tankers Citroen C2R2 Max). The S1600 two-wheel drive Class saw a triumphant return to form of early season championship leaders, Namibian Thilo Himmel and codriver Armand du Toit. A gripping battle with chief rivals Weston/Snyders resulted in their winning nine of the ten stages between them, with fi ve going to Himmel and four to Weston. Third in their best result of the season were Lourens van Rensburg/Jason Plumbley (7 Films Ford Fiesta R2) ahead of Chris Coertse/Robbie Coetzee (Electrothread

Toyota Etios R2) and defending Two Wheel Drive Champion Craig Trott and co-driver Janine Lourens (Team TOTAL Toyota RunX S1600). Championship leaders Matthew Vacy-Lyle/Schalk van Heerden (Fragram Tools Toyota RunX S1600) were classifi ed eighth inthe S1600 Class after completing the event under Super Rally rules after retiring in SS2 on Day One with mechanical problems. The next round of the championship is the Polokwane Rally in Limpopo Province on 18 - 19 October next month.

Final Overall Classifi cation:01) M. Cronje/R. Houghton Ford Fiesta S2000 - 01h 37m 55.6s02) J. Gemmell/C. Swan Toyota Yaris S2000 + 01.8s03) H. Fekken/P. Arries Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 03m 57.7s04) J-P. Damseaux/H. Auffray Toyota Auris S2000 + 04m 42.2s05) G. Zulu/C. Peskin Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 + 06m 31.0s06) G. De Villiers/G. Godrich Toyota Yaris S2000 + 07m 42.7s07) L. Poulter/E. Coetzee Toyota Yaris S2000 + 09m 19.6s08) H. Lategan/B. White Volkswagen Polo S2000 + 10m 20.6s09) T. Himmel/A. Du Toit Toyota Etios R2 + 15m 26.2s10) C. Weston/C. Snyders Citroën C2R2 Max + 17m 09.0s

H&H

This is Africa. This is South Africa, after all.This is Africa. This is South Africa, after all.Picture: Evan RothmanPicture: Evan Rothman

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