before the Rallye de Portugal
Showing posts with label Junior Team. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Junior Team. Show all posts
Friday, May 21, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Rally Turkey: Citroen Jr leg 2 summary
Kimi Raikkonen makes up places in Turkey
Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia led the overall classification right up until SS15, when they lost three minutes this afternoon with a puncture. They will start the final day in fifth place, just in front of their Citroen Junior Team team mates. Kimi Raikkonen and Kaj Lindstrom, who are currently sixth, made up two places today.
Kimi Raikkonen and Kaj Lindstrom started the day in eighth place and used the first loop of stages to move up the leaderboard. By the end of SS10, the former F1 World Champion was already sixth overall."
"The Citroen C4 WRC always feels easy to drive," said the Finn. "On the asphalt I was maybe a little too careful until I realised how much grip was available. I'm pleased with our pace: it was a good day without the slightest problem. The only thing was that I stalled twice in the same place on each of the loops of stages. We improved our pace in the afternoon. Tomorrow will be a new day where we will try to keep our position to the end."
Benoit Nogier, the Citroen Junior Team Manager, said: "Sebastien was driving what was virtually a perfect rally. It's disappointing that he was unable to keep fighting for victory all the way to the end, but the rally is far from over. Sebastien and Julien are fifth, which would still be a good result. This takes nothing away from the top performance they have been putting in since yesterday morning. Kimi is also making very good progress. He has managed to break away from the drivers he was fighting with at the start of this event. It's all very encouraging."
Source: Citroën
Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia led the overall classification right up until SS15, when they lost three minutes this afternoon with a puncture. They will start the final day in fifth place, just in front of their Citroen Junior Team team mates. Kimi Raikkonen and Kaj Lindstrom, who are currently sixth, made up two places today.Kimi Raikkonen and Kaj Lindstrom started the day in eighth place and used the first loop of stages to move up the leaderboard. By the end of SS10, the former F1 World Champion was already sixth overall."
"The Citroen C4 WRC always feels easy to drive," said the Finn. "On the asphalt I was maybe a little too careful until I realised how much grip was available. I'm pleased with our pace: it was a good day without the slightest problem. The only thing was that I stalled twice in the same place on each of the loops of stages. We improved our pace in the afternoon. Tomorrow will be a new day where we will try to keep our position to the end."
Benoit Nogier, the Citroen Junior Team Manager, said: "Sebastien was driving what was virtually a perfect rally. It's disappointing that he was unable to keep fighting for victory all the way to the end, but the rally is far from over. Sebastien and Julien are fifth, which would still be a good result. This takes nothing away from the top performance they have been putting in since yesterday morning. Kimi is also making very good progress. He has managed to break away from the drivers he was fighting with at the start of this event. It's all very encouraging."
Source: Citroën
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Ogier gets New Zealand bonus
Citroen Junior Team driver Sebastien Ogier will contest next month’s Rally New Zealand - but his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen remains uncertain for the Auckland-based event.
Ogier’s 2010, Red Bull-backed programme was scheduled to include every event except New Zealand, but extra budget has been sourced to put the 26-year-old on the plane to the other side of the world. There remains a chance former Formula 1 World Champion Raikkonen will join him in New Zealand, but Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier said it’s more likely only one car will head south for the start of the fifth round of the World Rally Championship on May 6.
Nogier said: “Yes, it’s right, Sebastien [Ogier] will go to New Zealand, but we did not have the last answer for Kimi. We don’t think so, probably we will have only one car. I think it’s 80 per cent sure that Kimi won’t go. We took the decision for Sebastien to go to New Zealand after Mexico because of the budget. We did not plan to go before because of the budget, but now we have found some sponsors to go.
Nogier emphasised the decision to send the former Junior World Rally Champion was taken before last week’s Jordan Rally, quashing speculation in the service park that Citroen had funded Ogier’s trip as payback for the Frenchman dropping from second place to sixth in order to run ahead of Sebastien Loeb on the final day of the Dead Sea event.
This will be Ogier’s first trip to compete in New Zealand. In his 23 world rallies, he has only twice ventured south of the equator, once for Rally Argentina in 2009 and once for Rally Australia later that year.
Source: WRC
Ogier’s 2010, Red Bull-backed programme was scheduled to include every event except New Zealand, but extra budget has been sourced to put the 26-year-old on the plane to the other side of the world. There remains a chance former Formula 1 World Champion Raikkonen will join him in New Zealand, but Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier said it’s more likely only one car will head south for the start of the fifth round of the World Rally Championship on May 6.
Nogier said: “Yes, it’s right, Sebastien [Ogier] will go to New Zealand, but we did not have the last answer for Kimi. We don’t think so, probably we will have only one car. I think it’s 80 per cent sure that Kimi won’t go. We took the decision for Sebastien to go to New Zealand after Mexico because of the budget. We did not plan to go before because of the budget, but now we have found some sponsors to go.
Nogier emphasised the decision to send the former Junior World Rally Champion was taken before last week’s Jordan Rally, quashing speculation in the service park that Citroen had funded Ogier’s trip as payback for the Frenchman dropping from second place to sixth in order to run ahead of Sebastien Loeb on the final day of the Dead Sea event.
This will be Ogier’s first trip to compete in New Zealand. In his 23 world rallies, he has only twice ventured south of the equator, once for Rally Argentina in 2009 and once for Rally Australia later that year.
Source: WRC
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Rally Mexico: Citroën Junior Team Review Day 1
KIMI GETS DOWN TO SOME ROCK AND ROLL ON RALLY MEXICO
Despite steering that was still not entirely straight, Kimi managed to set some good times on the following two stages. In SS7, his rally came to an end though when he was caught out just before the finish of the stage. "The car just slid into the side of the road as we were going into a corner," he said. "We rolled, but myself and Kaj are both fine."
Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier concluded: "Kimi lost time this morning with a technical problem that was not at all his fault. Afterwards, he set some impressive times. He decided to up the pace on SS7, a stage where he felt comfortable. Unfortunately, he went off shortly before the stage finish and he won't be able to start again under the Super Rallye rules tomorrow as the car is too badly damaged. Sebastien and Julien confirmed again today that they were able to mix it with the best drivers in the world. Thanks to their speed and their road position, they are in a well-deserved second place. We're very pleased with our work today, which saw cars from Citroen Racing Technologies set every fastest stage time, thanks to Petter Solberg and Sebastien Ogier. This is an important first for us!"
Source: Motorsport
Remember Speedy Gonzales? He was well-known as "the fastest mouse in all of Mexico". Shouting "Andale, andale, arriba, arriba!" from underneath his trademark sombrero, he managed to outwit all of his rivals (usually cats) through speed, cunning and judicious use of chilli sauce.
Red Bull driver Kimi Raikkonen also showed plenty of speed and cunning throughout the opening day of the Rally Mexico, setting an eighth, a seventh, and a fifth fastest time today: his highest-ever overall stage result in his short World Rally Championship career. For a long time, it was looking very good.
It went wrong on the final proper stage of the day though, when the Red Bull driver rolled into retirement virtually within sight of the finish line. After making great progress throughout the day, Kimi learned a tough lesson from the school of hard knocks. With his Citroen C4 too badly damaged to continue, Kimi's Rally Mexico is over.
Kimi Raikkonen had a frustrating day. The Finn's Citroen C4 WRC initially hit a rock on SS1. "The steering arm was bent, but we were able to repair it before the start of the next stage," said the `Iceman'. "On the following stage, we then had to stop after three kilometres. It took us a while to find out the cause of the problem. It was simply a connector that had become undone."
Red Bull driver Kimi Raikkonen also showed plenty of speed and cunning throughout the opening day of the Rally Mexico, setting an eighth, a seventh, and a fifth fastest time today: his highest-ever overall stage result in his short World Rally Championship career. For a long time, it was looking very good.
It went wrong on the final proper stage of the day though, when the Red Bull driver rolled into retirement virtually within sight of the finish line. After making great progress throughout the day, Kimi learned a tough lesson from the school of hard knocks. With his Citroen C4 too badly damaged to continue, Kimi's Rally Mexico is over.
Kimi Raikkonen had a frustrating day. The Finn's Citroen C4 WRC initially hit a rock on SS1. "The steering arm was bent, but we were able to repair it before the start of the next stage," said the `Iceman'. "On the following stage, we then had to stop after three kilometres. It took us a while to find out the cause of the problem. It was simply a connector that had become undone."
Despite steering that was still not entirely straight, Kimi managed to set some good times on the following two stages. In SS7, his rally came to an end though when he was caught out just before the finish of the stage. "The car just slid into the side of the road as we were going into a corner," he said. "We rolled, but myself and Kaj are both fine."
Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier concluded: "Kimi lost time this morning with a technical problem that was not at all his fault. Afterwards, he set some impressive times. He decided to up the pace on SS7, a stage where he felt comfortable. Unfortunately, he went off shortly before the stage finish and he won't be able to start again under the Super Rallye rules tomorrow as the car is too badly damaged. Sebastien and Julien confirmed again today that they were able to mix it with the best drivers in the world. Thanks to their speed and their road position, they are in a well-deserved second place. We're very pleased with our work today, which saw cars from Citroen Racing Technologies set every fastest stage time, thanks to Petter Solberg and Sebastien Ogier. This is an important first for us!"
Source: Motorsport
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Raikkonen Rally Mexico recce report
Mexico has a long and rich history in motorsport, with the first Mexican Grand Prix held in 1962. Mexico's Formula One fixture lived on in its most recent format between 1986 and 1992 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez: named after the two brothers who made history in Mexican motorsport.
But this was somewhat before Kimi Raikkonen's time, as when the last Mexican Grand Prix was held he was only 12. So Mexico is an entirely new experience and a new country for the Red Bull driver, who will take part in just his seventh rally this weekend.
"It's actually really nice to go somewhere new and see something different," said Kimi, who has now completed the recce of the 22 stages that make up the Rally Mexico. "The event's not exactly what I was expecting. The stages are quite demanding and twisty, but there are also some more flowing bits that are a little similar to Rally Finland. The good news is that there seems to be a bit more consistency in the surface than there was in Sweden. Even in the recce car, you feel that the amount of grip doesn't vary too much. What it will be like when we come to doing the stages at full speed in the rally car, I don't really know: but there are a lot of things that I don't know about rallying yet!"
Having been forced to sit out the Citroen Junior Team's pre-event test after aggravating an old back injury picked up in F1, Kimi feels confident that it will not trouble him further during the rally.
"My back feels OK now," he said. "I'm going to wear a kidney belt - a type of back brace - during the rally just to keep everything in place but I am sure I won't have any further problems. If I was going to experience some pain I would have had it during the recce, but it was fine. I'm actually not too worried about having missed the test: the team has some very good data for this rally anyway."
One of the biggest improvements that Kimi has made since Sweden is in his pace notes, read out by co-driver Kaj Lindstrom. "The level of detail in them is really good now," added Kaj. "Our recce was really good and I could tell that Kimi had a great feeling with the stages. I hope that all the stages are going to go well for us, but there are a quite a few that we thought might be really good such as SS3 and SS12. The roads clean up quite a lot, so I think that our start position will help us too."
After learning a lot in Sweden, the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion is planning on taking the same approach in Mexico. "Most of the speed to come is from me learning more about the car, so that is going to be the main focus here," he concluded. "We're going to just build on everything we've learned so far at our own pace, and hopefully a few good stage times will come out of it too. At the shakedown tomorrow we plan to do as many runs as we can to get a feel for the roads. So far I'm really enjoying Mexico, although even on the recce I was quite surprised by how much power you lose with the altitude. We've had a really great welcome from everyone here and I like Mexican food, so I know we're going to have a good time. After all, Mexico is famous for that!"
Tomorrow's shakedown stage will start at 08:00 (local time), from the service park in Leon's Poliforum.
Source: RallyBuzz
But this was somewhat before Kimi Raikkonen's time, as when the last Mexican Grand Prix was held he was only 12. So Mexico is an entirely new experience and a new country for the Red Bull driver, who will take part in just his seventh rally this weekend.
"It's actually really nice to go somewhere new and see something different," said Kimi, who has now completed the recce of the 22 stages that make up the Rally Mexico. "The event's not exactly what I was expecting. The stages are quite demanding and twisty, but there are also some more flowing bits that are a little similar to Rally Finland. The good news is that there seems to be a bit more consistency in the surface than there was in Sweden. Even in the recce car, you feel that the amount of grip doesn't vary too much. What it will be like when we come to doing the stages at full speed in the rally car, I don't really know: but there are a lot of things that I don't know about rallying yet!"
Having been forced to sit out the Citroen Junior Team's pre-event test after aggravating an old back injury picked up in F1, Kimi feels confident that it will not trouble him further during the rally.
"My back feels OK now," he said. "I'm going to wear a kidney belt - a type of back brace - during the rally just to keep everything in place but I am sure I won't have any further problems. If I was going to experience some pain I would have had it during the recce, but it was fine. I'm actually not too worried about having missed the test: the team has some very good data for this rally anyway."
One of the biggest improvements that Kimi has made since Sweden is in his pace notes, read out by co-driver Kaj Lindstrom. "The level of detail in them is really good now," added Kaj. "Our recce was really good and I could tell that Kimi had a great feeling with the stages. I hope that all the stages are going to go well for us, but there are a quite a few that we thought might be really good such as SS3 and SS12. The roads clean up quite a lot, so I think that our start position will help us too."
After learning a lot in Sweden, the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion is planning on taking the same approach in Mexico. "Most of the speed to come is from me learning more about the car, so that is going to be the main focus here," he concluded. "We're going to just build on everything we've learned so far at our own pace, and hopefully a few good stage times will come out of it too. At the shakedown tomorrow we plan to do as many runs as we can to get a feel for the roads. So far I'm really enjoying Mexico, although even on the recce I was quite surprised by how much power you lose with the altitude. We've had a really great welcome from everyone here and I like Mexican food, so I know we're going to have a good time. After all, Mexico is famous for that!"
Tomorrow's shakedown stage will start at 08:00 (local time), from the service park in Leon's Poliforum.
Source: RallyBuzz
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Swedish Rally: Citroën Jr. Team Preview
The Citroen Junior Team under the spotlight
For its second consecutive season in the FIA World Rally Championship, the Citroen Junior Team will enter two Citroen C4 WRCs for Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia and Kimi Raikkonen / Kaj Lindstrom. The season's opening round is held over the snowy stages of Rally Sweden, which takes place around Karlstad from February 11-14.
After a learning year in 2009, the 2010 season holds plenty of promise for the Citroen Junior Team. Sebastien Ogier, who formed part of the team last year, is joined this season by the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen. By pairing up one of world rallying's brightest young stars with a well- known driver embarking on the ultimate challenge, the Citroen Junior Team will be well and truly under the spotlight this year!
The wintry conditions of the Rally Sweden present a tough task to the crews on the season-opener, but most drivers love the high speeds reached on the ice and snow. Thanks to stages that sometimes have an average speed of more than 120 kph and racing lines that thread their way precisely through imposing snow banks, spectators are sure to witness a breathtaking spectacle.
Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia enjoyed a remarkable first full season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC in 2009 and they start the 2010 season with the same motivation and a year's worth of extra experience under their belts. "I just can't wait to start driving the Citroen C4 WRC in the heat of competition again," said the Frenchman. "It seems a very long time now since the 2009 season ended!"
Having contested the Monte Carlo Rally at the start of the year, Sebastien was in Finland last week to prepare for Rally Sweden with a day of testing close to Rovaniemi. "We covered around 200 kilometres in order to get to grips with the car again and work on the set-up of the Citroen C4 WRC," he reported. "I'm very pleased with the way that the car is handling. I quickly felt comfortable again and I love driving in these conditions."
Rally Sweden will be a brand new experience for Sebastien Ogier. Nonetheless, he hopes to put the experience he gained on Rally Norway last year to good use. "Actually, we're getting rather used to driving on rallies for the first time," added Sebastien. "I hope that we can show what we are capable against what is always very strong opposition on these winter rallies. Our objective on this first event of the year is just to continue to progress."
Making his debut alongside the 2008 Junior World Rally Champions is Kimi Raikkonen. The handful of rally events he contested in 2009 has given the Finn the desire to embark on a full season with the Citroen Junior Team.
Following some test sessions and a run on the Arctic Lapland Rally a few days ago, Kimi Raikkonen has covered nearly 600 kilometres with the Citroen C4 WRC. "I'm just really keen to get to the start of Rally Sweden now," he said. "With Citroen, we have made some good preparations for this event. All the kilometres I already have behind me will allow me to begin the rally with no particular worries. I know that I still have many things to learn though and plenty of experience to accumulate. My goal is simply to do my best with the Citroen C4 WRC. My debut in the World Rally Championship is an enormous challenge but any driver who has competed in motorsport at a certain level always maintains the same way of working and the same desire to push themselves. I feel that I'm ready to take on this challenge now."
Three questions to... Benoit Nogier - Citroen Junior Team Manager
The Citroen Junior Team is starting its second season in the World Rally Championship. How do you prepare for this new challenge?
"Just starting this new season is already great news for us. Our plan is to pick up on where we left off with our achievements last year. We've certainly not lost sight of the reasons why the Citroen Junior Team was created in the first place: our drivers are with us to learn, discover what the WRC is all about and make progress. Our job is to give them the equipment that allows them to acquire the maximum possible experience at the top level of the sport and show off their talent to the best of their abilities."
In 2010, Sebastien Ogier will start his second season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC while Kimi Raikkonen is a new arrival at the Citroen Junior Team. That's quite some line-up...
"Yes, that was my first reaction as well! After a debut season with us in which he put in performances that were more than just promising, Sebastien Ogier will be able to continue his career path. He has learned quite a lot already, so now he is in a position to show a bit more of his potential. It's an honour for us to welcome Kimi Raikkonen, and for a driver of his standing to choose Citroen and the Citroen Junior Team is obviously a source of huge satisfaction."
What are your objectives for this season?
"We've got different goals with Sebastien and Kimi. We're hoping that Sebastien starts the 2010 season in the same way that he finished 2009, with the same commitment, hard work and speed. In due course he should be in a position to finish on the podium. The final few steps are always the most difficult ones to take though and this is a fact that both he and ourselves are well aware of. Nevertheless, this is the target we need to bear in mind for him throughout the season. As for Kimi, he's obviously just starting. So his goal is simply to make progress on each rally. Kimi is taking his first steps in the sport and there is a steep learning curve for him to climb. But his natural talent behind the wheel clearly needs no introduction!"
Sources: Citroën, Motorsport
For its second consecutive season in the FIA World Rally Championship, the Citroen Junior Team will enter two Citroen C4 WRCs for Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia and Kimi Raikkonen / Kaj Lindstrom. The season's opening round is held over the snowy stages of Rally Sweden, which takes place around Karlstad from February 11-14.
After a learning year in 2009, the 2010 season holds plenty of promise for the Citroen Junior Team. Sebastien Ogier, who formed part of the team last year, is joined this season by the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen. By pairing up one of world rallying's brightest young stars with a well- known driver embarking on the ultimate challenge, the Citroen Junior Team will be well and truly under the spotlight this year!
The wintry conditions of the Rally Sweden present a tough task to the crews on the season-opener, but most drivers love the high speeds reached on the ice and snow. Thanks to stages that sometimes have an average speed of more than 120 kph and racing lines that thread their way precisely through imposing snow banks, spectators are sure to witness a breathtaking spectacle.
Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia enjoyed a remarkable first full season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC in 2009 and they start the 2010 season with the same motivation and a year's worth of extra experience under their belts. "I just can't wait to start driving the Citroen C4 WRC in the heat of competition again," said the Frenchman. "It seems a very long time now since the 2009 season ended!"
Having contested the Monte Carlo Rally at the start of the year, Sebastien was in Finland last week to prepare for Rally Sweden with a day of testing close to Rovaniemi. "We covered around 200 kilometres in order to get to grips with the car again and work on the set-up of the Citroen C4 WRC," he reported. "I'm very pleased with the way that the car is handling. I quickly felt comfortable again and I love driving in these conditions."
Rally Sweden will be a brand new experience for Sebastien Ogier. Nonetheless, he hopes to put the experience he gained on Rally Norway last year to good use. "Actually, we're getting rather used to driving on rallies for the first time," added Sebastien. "I hope that we can show what we are capable against what is always very strong opposition on these winter rallies. Our objective on this first event of the year is just to continue to progress."
Making his debut alongside the 2008 Junior World Rally Champions is Kimi Raikkonen. The handful of rally events he contested in 2009 has given the Finn the desire to embark on a full season with the Citroen Junior Team.
Following some test sessions and a run on the Arctic Lapland Rally a few days ago, Kimi Raikkonen has covered nearly 600 kilometres with the Citroen C4 WRC. "I'm just really keen to get to the start of Rally Sweden now," he said. "With Citroen, we have made some good preparations for this event. All the kilometres I already have behind me will allow me to begin the rally with no particular worries. I know that I still have many things to learn though and plenty of experience to accumulate. My goal is simply to do my best with the Citroen C4 WRC. My debut in the World Rally Championship is an enormous challenge but any driver who has competed in motorsport at a certain level always maintains the same way of working and the same desire to push themselves. I feel that I'm ready to take on this challenge now."
Three questions to... Benoit Nogier - Citroen Junior Team Manager
The Citroen Junior Team is starting its second season in the World Rally Championship. How do you prepare for this new challenge?
"Just starting this new season is already great news for us. Our plan is to pick up on where we left off with our achievements last year. We've certainly not lost sight of the reasons why the Citroen Junior Team was created in the first place: our drivers are with us to learn, discover what the WRC is all about and make progress. Our job is to give them the equipment that allows them to acquire the maximum possible experience at the top level of the sport and show off their talent to the best of their abilities."
In 2010, Sebastien Ogier will start his second season at the wheel of the Citroen C4 WRC while Kimi Raikkonen is a new arrival at the Citroen Junior Team. That's quite some line-up...
"Yes, that was my first reaction as well! After a debut season with us in which he put in performances that were more than just promising, Sebastien Ogier will be able to continue his career path. He has learned quite a lot already, so now he is in a position to show a bit more of his potential. It's an honour for us to welcome Kimi Raikkonen, and for a driver of his standing to choose Citroen and the Citroen Junior Team is obviously a source of huge satisfaction."
What are your objectives for this season?
"We've got different goals with Sebastien and Kimi. We're hoping that Sebastien starts the 2010 season in the same way that he finished 2009, with the same commitment, hard work and speed. In due course he should be in a position to finish on the podium. The final few steps are always the most difficult ones to take though and this is a fact that both he and ourselves are well aware of. Nevertheless, this is the target we need to bear in mind for him throughout the season. As for Kimi, he's obviously just starting. So his goal is simply to make progress on each rally. Kimi is taking his first steps in the sport and there is a steep learning curve for him to climb. But his natural talent behind the wheel clearly needs no introduction!"
Sources: Citroën, Motorsport
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
