The 2011 WRC season got underway last weekend and it is already shaping up to be a great one. The event marked the debut of the new breed of rally cars, namely the Ford Fiesta and the Citroen DS3. Ford was looking to get back on top after struggling and falling to the likes of Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier in 2010. And get off to a good start they did taking all 3 podium spots in Sweden.
Mikko Hirvonen drives his Ford Fiesta to victory at 2011 WRC Rally Sweden
Mikko Hirvonen wrapped up his first victory of the year, looking more like the Mikko of 2009 where he challenged Loeb for the driver’s championship. “I was really nervous before the last stage but what a fantastic start from the team with the new car,” Mikko said. “The car has been quick straight away and after a tough season last year I am really pleased with this. But I am not taking this feeling any further. We’ve won here and now we need to move on to the next round in Mexico where it will be a different game. But I’m very happy with this and it couldn’t be better to have a Ford one-two-three.”
Just behind Mikko was Mads Ostberg, also driving a Ford Fiesta, to his best ever WRC finish. Ostberg has typically driven Subarus, but the new WRC rule changes prompted him to switch to the new Fiesta. “It’s unbelievable,” Ostberg said. “We have been fighting quite hard for the whole weekend and today has been difficult. I tried a little bit to catch Mikko but I didn’t dare push as much as I could because he was quite quick. But I am absolutely very happy with this result.”
Jari-Matti Latvala, Mikko’s teammate on the Ford team finished in an impressive 3rd place, rounding out the Fiesta’s debut podium sweep. Latvala was able to move into third position as Citroen drive Sebastien Ogier glanced off a snow bank and filled his air filter with snow, depriving his DS3 of air and power on the penultimate stage. Latvala was happy with his finish, but felt like he didn’t drive as well as he could’ve. “I’m satisfied with the result but I have done so many mistakes during this rally,” said Latvala. “I thought I wouldn’t get on the podium this morning so to finally get here means I can breathe more easily tonight.”
The run in with the snow bank on the final stage dropped Ogier to 4th place at only his 2nd appearance in Sweden. Ogier’s 4th place was the highest finish for the new Citroen DS3 rally car. Ogier was also able to capture extra points by winning the newly implemented Power Stage, which is broadcast live.
Maybe the most exciting finish to the rally was had by Petter Solberg, as he was forced to have his co-driver Chris Patterson drive the final stage after being stopped for speeding (and having his license taken) in transit between stages. Swedish laws dictate that if you are caught speeding at 30 kph over the posted limit, you are banned from driving instantly. The speeding violation most likely cost Petter a position, as Patterson had never driven the DS3 before and finished 51 seconds behind the stage winner, Ogier. Patterson’s efforts were enough to hold off last years WRC champion Sebastien Loeb who finished in 6th in his debut in the DS3.
PG Andersson, normally a S-WRC driver finished in 7th in his debut in a Fiesta WRC, very impressive considering he rolled the car on it’s side, picked up a puncture and had power steering failure during the course of the event. His perseverance earned him the Abu Dhabi spirit of the rally award for his efforts.
Ken Block hooned his way to the Colin's Crest award at 2011 WRC Rally Sweden
Monster Energy Ford driver Ken Block finished in 14th as he struggled driving on studded tires. “This was an extremely tough rally for me. On Friday, we were farther off the pace of the top drivers than we have ever been in our WRC career. But slowly and surely we lessened the gap. We knew coming to Sweden it was going to be one of our biggest challenges this year. I just don’t have the experience on snow these other drivers do. After all, I am just a kid who grew up in southern California.” Block suffered an off on a downhill section and got stuck in a snow bank. Luckily fans quickly pushed him out and he was able to get going with only a minor loss of time. Block was able to capture the Colin’s Crest Award, set up to honor the late great Colin McRae, by jumping an incredible 121 feet.
The WRC season continues at Rally Mexico on March 3-6. For more information visit wrc.com
