Tag: Elfyn Evans

WRC Rally Monte Carlo, Sebastien Loeb & Ford victorious in electrifying curtain raiser for WRC’s new hybrid era.

Stephen Hodges

2022 is a year of change for the World Rally Championship. The biggest news, the new regulation cars. Gone are the high downforce record breaking monsters that ran from 2017 to 2021, replaced by a new breed of hybrid rally cars, more on that later. Sebastien Ogier, who has won 8 drivers championships, steps back from full season competition for 2022; Welshman and 2 time championship runner up Elfyn Evans now leading the Toyota world rally team. 9 time world champion Sebastien Loeb returns to do a partial season at…

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WRC Portugal, Elfyn Evans fends off Hyundai charge to take victory.

Stephen Hodges

The famed gravel roads of Portugal played host to round 4 of the 2021 World Rally Championship. Portugal is one of the anchor events on the calendar, the rough dusty gravel stages punish the cars & drivers and reward the brave. Elfyn Evans paced the shakedown prior to the start of the events, but there was an expectation that this might be Hyundai’s event, given their strong track record on gravel events.  The opening day on Friday saw Hyundai stealing a march on the chasing Toyota’s & Ford’s, tyre choice…

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WRC Monte Carlo, Ogier clinches victory from Evans & Neuville.

Stephen Hodges

Round 1 of the 2021 World Rally Championship kicks off on the winding, icy roads in the snow capped alps above Monte Carlo. It’s a miracle in itself that the event is taking place at all this year, the current rate of covid19 infections, travel restrictions as well as the mandatory 6pm curfew in France presented a massive challenge to teams, drivers & organisers. Add in the travel issues in & out of the UK along with the bureaucratic nightmare generated by Brexit, it made things extremely challenging for Ford…

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WRC Rally Ypres cancelled due to Covid19.

Stephen Hodges

The ongoing global Covid19 pandemic has once again struck the 2020 World Rally Championship. Belgium’s first time hosting the WRC, with Rally Ypres playing host on 19th-22nd November would have been the first full tarmac event on the calendar. The event characterised by fast flowing stages around the flats of the Belgian countryside. Event organisers following consultation with the Belgian authorities were left with no choice but to pre-emptively cancel the event. Europe is currently in the throes of the second wave of Covid19, other series have already fallen prey…

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WRC Sardinia, victory for returning Dani Sordo. 

Stephen Hodges

The sun drenched italian isle of Sardinia offers itself up for the sixth round of the 2020 WRC calendar, the event was the penultimate event on the calendar, but on Friday, with Rally Monza added to the calendar in December; Opening the championship fight back up. Further broke on Friday as the provisional 2021 WRC calendar was shown for the first time. Notable changes include Wales Rally GB moving to an end of August date, away from the traditional October date.  Shakedown saw drama before the event got underway as…

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