Postby Maserati » January 17th, 2007, 8:54 pm
The Event
This weekend the Subaru World Rally Team begins its challenge for the 2007 World Rally Championship on one of the most demanding and unpredictable events of the season.
The team starts the year with an unchanged driver line-up, with Petter Solberg/Phil Mills and Chris Atkinson/Glenn Macneall at the wheel of the Subaru Impreza WRCs. One aspect of the team that has changed is the tyre supplier, because a new deal has been forged with BFGoodrich for 2007.
It is the 75th running of Rallye Monte Carlo and to commemorate the anniversary the organisers have revised the route to include some classic special stages which have not been used for many years. For the first time the rally is based in Valence, near the river Rhône in south-east France, and most of the asphalt stages will take place on roads in the mountainous Ardeche and Vercors regions, which hosted some of the most famous Monte Carlo stages in the past.
The area contains some breathtaking scenery, but the mountainous terrain can also lead to rapid changes of weather. Although conditions in the area are currently quite mild – the average temperature is about 9 degrees Celsius – ice and snow is often a feature of Rallye Monte Carlo and can make the stages treacherous. Add the threat of high winds and dense fog, and it is little wonder that the event is one of the toughest on the WRC calendar.
The challenging route also includes two night stages on Thursday evening and a 46.02km test on Friday – one of the longest ever used on Rallye Monte Carlo and potentially one of the places where the outcome of the rally could be decided.
On Sunday, the WRC circus will travel from Valence to the sumptuous surroundings of Monte Carlo to tackle a super special around the harbour section of the Grand Prix circuit in Monaco. The ceremonial finish of the event will be in the Place du Palais, Monaco, at 15.00 on Sunday. In all, there are 15 stages, and the rally totals 1185.22km (competitive 328.54km, liason 856.68km).
Entries
The Subaru World Rally Team will start the 2007 season with a revised version of last year’s Impreza WRC2006. Petter Solberg/Phil Mills will drive car number seven, while Chris Atkinson/Glenn Macneall will be in car number eight. Petter has contested Rallye Monte Carlo six times, with a best result of sixth place in 2002. Chris made his debut on the event in 2006 and impressed onlookers with a measured drive to sixth position.
Team Quotes
Paul Howarth, Subaru World Rally Team operations director: “Monte Carlo is unlike any other rally on the WRC calendar and there are lots of variables to consider. The conditions in Valence at the moment indicate that it could be damp or even dry, and not the snow and ice we usually associate with this event, although that could change by the time the rally starts.
“Having both Petter and Chris in the team for another year is a huge bonus. Petter is the number one driver who we will try to win the championship with, while the aim with Chris is to continue his ongoing development. We expect him to deliver a high level of consistency throughout the year. It’s a very important year for him, because this is his third year with the team and there’s probably a little bit more pressure on him to deliver results and move forward in his experience.â€
Last edited by
Maserati on January 18th, 2007, 10:02 am, edited 2 times in total.
