Citroen racing boss Yves Matton believes this season’s thrilling new-era WRC exceeded the returning french team’s hopes.

After a limited 2016 programme, Citroën rejoined the championship on a full-time basis with its new C3 World Rally Car. Despite a difficult campaign, Matton said the series rewarded that decision.

“In general terms, we have to be pleased with the quality of the competition offered by the WRC. The new generation of cars have more than lived up to expectations and we have seen exciting rallies from start to finish,” he said.

“It is a long time since four manufacturers and seven different drivers have won races in a single season. More than ever before, the World Rally Championship provides an excellent platform for a manufacturer looking to showcase its products.”

Suspension problems hampered the C3 early in the year and a series of accidents cost lead driver Kris Meeke his place in the team for June’s fixture in Poland.

But the Ulsterman won twice and Matton believes the mid-year return of Christophe Besse as technical director enabled the team to develop a clear idea of the areas requiring improvement.

“We were pleased to win two rallies, in Mexico and Spain. That matches the target set by Citroën’s senior management at the start of the season.

“I’m not overlooking the very tough times we experienced in the middle of the season, but the work undertaken in the summer has led to some concrete results since then.

“Preparations (for 2018) began several months ago. In the design office, the workshop and in testing, the C3 WRC is permanently undergoing development. Some upgrades have already been introduced, others are undergoing approval, pending homologation,” Matton explained.

source: wrc.com

Sebastien Ogier will remain with M-Sport world rally team next season to chase a sixth consecutive WRC title.

The British team ended months of speculation surrounding Ogier’s future on Tuesday evening by confirming he will stay for a second year in its Ford Fiesta World Rally Car.

M-Sport also announced that Elfyn Evans, who scored his maiden WRC victory in Britain last month and finished the season fifth in the points, will be Ogier’s team-mate.

Ogier will continue to be co-driven by Julien Ingrassia, and supported by energy drink giant Red Bull.

The Frenchman’s WRC future has been a long-running saga. Months of rumours came down to a decision to stay with M-Sport or retire after he rejected an offer to return to Citroën earlier this month.

M-Sport boss Malcolm Wilson has worked furiously to piece together a budget to match Ogier’s demands, as well as to convince him there is sufficient funding to continue development of the Fiesta and ensure it remains competitive in 2018.

Ogier said his love for the sport prompted him to push to one side any thoughts of retirement.

“This season has been very exciting with some of the closest-fought competition for years,” he said. “As a driver, I definitely want to be a part of that. I still get a lot of emotion from this sport, and this team has so much passion. That made my decision clear, and we will work hard to chase more success together next year.

“What we have achieved together has been truly amazing, and we want to see that continue – to continue this fantastic journey and to defend all that we have achieved together.”

Evans’ seat in place of the departing Ott Tänak was assured after an impressive season in which he and co-driver Dan Barritt also finished second in Argentina and Finland.

“After a fantastic season for the whole team, it’s great that we’ll be a part of it again next year. After getting that first victory under our belts, we’re ready to take the next step and I think we all have another exciting season ahead of us.

“Honestly, I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel and Rally Monte-Carlo can't come soon enough. We'll be working hard over the Christmas break to ensure we’re fully prepared, and the goal will be to build on the success of this year,” said the 28-year-old Welshman.

Both drivers inked their contracts in front of M-Sport’s 240-strong workforce during a celebration today at its Dovenby Hall base.

Wilson is confident M-Sport will mount a strong bid to defend the drivers’ and manufacturers’ titles, but acknowledged it won’t be easy.

“We’ve been working towards this goal for some time, so to finally have it confirmed is fantastic and means we can now focus our attention on the continued development ahead of next season,” he said.

“Our rivals certainly won’t have sat still and I’m expecting an even closer battle for the championship, but with these two crews we have a good chance.

“They’re both very intelligent drivers. There is no doubting their speed, but they also have a masterful approach to strategy that delivers results time after time.”

News on a third car is expected in the coming weeks. Teemu Suninen is forecast to drive a handful of rounds after outings in Poland and Finland this year, while WRC 2 champion Pontus Tidemand has been linked to several appearances.

source: wrc.com

Volkswagen took the wraps off its brand-new, R5-Specification Polo GTI rally car for the first time at a launch event in mallorca, Spain on Monday night.

The new machine has been built to challenge for honours in the WRC 2 category and will be made available to teams and drivers through Volkswagen's customer racing department.

Volkswagen unveiled its latest rally car – designed and engineered by many of the personalities that steered the manufacturer to four WRC drivers' and manufacturers' titles between 2013 and 2016 – during the official driving presentation of its road-going Polo GTI.

The car is currently being put through a rigorous testing programme that started in mid-November and has already encompassed significant gravel and asphalt mileage in Fontjoncouse, France.

VW will take the Polo GTI R5 to Great Britain for its next phase of testing later this month. The car is expected to be homologated at the end of the summer in 2018, before making its WRC 2 debut shortly afterwards.

Volkswagen Motorsport Technical Director, François-Xavier “FX” Demaison, said: “The Polo GTI R5 came through the initial tests without any problems. The feedback from the test drivers was very positive.

“It is beneficial to be able to call upon an experienced team of engineers and mechanics, who helped to develop the Polo that won the world championship.

"As we have in the past, we are also taking advantage of the close and excellent cooperation with the colleagues in the technical development department in Wolfsburg, as well as our Škoda colleagues, who have been offering their customers an R5 car since 2015.”

Volkswagen's brand-new R5-spec polo GTI has completed its first tests on asphalt and gravel roads in the south of France with Pontus Tidemand at the wheel.

The new machine is the first rally car to roll out of the German manufacturer's headquarters in Wolfsburg since it ended its factory WRC programme at the end of the 2016 season.

The R5 car is based on the latest generation Polo and will be made available to WRC 2 teams and drivers through Volkswagen's customer racing department.

As preparations for the car's anticipated WRC 2 debut during the second half of the 2018 season ramp up, the car completed a three-day test in Fontjoncouse. 

VW test driver Dieter Depping and Skoda Motorsport's Tidemand, winner of the 2017 WRC 2 title, both took the wheel on the same roads that VW used to test its original Polo R WRC car back in 2011.

The first test day involved general set up work on a 3.85km asphalt stage where the durability of the car's tyres, brakes, engine and cooling system were evaluated. The next two days were driven on rough gravel roads that VW said put 'a huge amount of strain on the chassis, dampers and suspension'.

“A successful first test is a good sign and great motivation,” Volkswagen Motorsport Director, Sven Smeets said. “After many hours and weeks spent working on our latest customer racing project on the computer, in the design process and in the workshop, the Polo GTI R5 can now finally show what it is capable of out on the road, and we can gain valuable data for the further development of the car.”

Depping was impressed with his first taste of the car. He said: "I can tell you one thing now: the R5 Polo is very good, very quick and precise. I immediately felt right at home!”

source: wrc.com