Djerba Vintage Rally: New "back-to-the-roots" rally for Bikes&Quads in Tunisia.

Rally, Raid, Travel, Ride. The range of the events related to off-road "adventure" background is too wide, and the events so many. The contents of these events are all based on the original event that gave the start to the evolution of it, but they reproduce just minimally the original spirit.

"Djerba Vintage Rally" cuts-off this trajectory of uncertain and "misleading" evolution and sets the goal of a return to the origins of "species", in order to permit its participants to live those travel and “competition” scenarios that were the soul of the adventure. To do this, it traces the lines of a substantially new and original event with a strong call to "Ancient times", to Legend.

"Let’s ban the new competition bikes and let’s go with the Dantan bikes, no more sophisticated tools and navigation systems, away from all the comforts accessories, but not necessary, to go to find the basic elements of an authentic and genuine adventure-journey in the spirit of the original Rally-Raid," the organizers describe the event.

"And so also put away the racing component as we understand it today. Rally was created to bring an adventure to life. Today, this "philosophy" is repeated in an event that has all the features of the authentic Rally, but is dedicated to an audience of amateurs. And for Desert Racing legend lovers."

Maps, compass, manual odometer, essential road book and not scrambled. Navigating back to being subjected to the use of simple tools and old bikes and return the absolute protagonists of an Age.

In this way the Djerba Vintage Rally wants to replay faithfully the spirit of the first, adventurous Rally, and make understand how you could get in trouble in the first African rallies, even for a small mistake in the interpretation of the road-book, for the approximate mileage provided by the instrument of the time, or the limits of the bikes that often were not the most appropriate for a way to travel that at that time had never existed.

Djerba Vintage Rally brings back to reality those unforgettable moments and that way of living the adventure of the great journey in the big rally, through the proposal of an event that is able to renew and translate on the level of reality that dream whose testimonies are only now, in the old videos.

The scenario of the 1st Djerba Vintage Rally is Tunisia, with a program of 6 stages over the Gateway to the Sahara, from November 15th to 23rd 2014. All information about the rally you can find at the official website here [ DJERBAVINTAGERALLY.IT ]. 

’07 Buell Ulysses XB12X – Studio Motors

 Written by Ian Lee.

Nothing ever really goes to plan. The multitude of options available to us at any one time makes it hard to know where we will end up. Unless it’s time to go to the pub, because that is a given. This indecisiveness through an excess of options affects the custom motorcycle world as well, with culture/drivetrain/performance/bike styling choices making it hard to settle on one result. This is what happened with today’s feature bike, the latest offering from Indonesian bike builders Studio Motor. Over the course of the build process the engine capacity tripled in size and gained a nationalist motif, all while staying true to the café racer spirit. Built from the ground up using Indonesian ingenuity in the face of a limited custom bike scene, Studio Motor knows certainly knows the best options when it comes to bringing a bike to life. Ladies and Gentleman, we’d like to introduce you to ‘The Patriot’.

The bike was initially commissioned by a cafe racer fan, who had the plan of utilising a Honda CB350 twin engine in the build. After much discussion, it was decided a Harley sourced V-twin would make for a much more favourable option due to it’s “tremendous sporting power”. The layout for the bike was adjusted accordingly, and a blueprint for a full café racer style bike to be wrapped around the American V-twin. Building on previous experience, a ‘featherbed’ style chassis style was to be utilised. One inch seamless pipework laid the groundwork, and was overlaid with 1.5mm galvanised plate in the form of cafe racer inspired bodywork. The fuel tank is of a 60s TT aesthetic, the main influence being the Norton TT fuel tank from the period.

Helping to give the bike it’s sporting stance, the front end is fitted with a set of 41mm telescopic forks, donated by a Honda CF400SF. At the rear sits a set of 13 inch Sportster shocks, customised to suit the more aggressive riding style the bike would be subjected to. Rim choice for both front and rear is TK Japan, shod in Coker Diamond tread rubber. Tire specifications on this build are 18×4 on the front, and 18×4.5 on the rear, giving that awesome balloon profile that café racers desire. To ensure the custom machine pulls up in a hurry, brakes all round are Nissin cylinder equipped.

Happy with the factory output of the Buell XB12R powerplant, the boys from Studio Motor decided to leave the internals alone. The custom air filter and exhaust system, fashioned inhouse at the workshop, is more focussed on improving the engine note at speed rather than motivating the bike itself. To ensure the rider is able to carry out the cafe racer riding position (and to stop their right foot from cooking), a pair of rearsets was mounted to the machine. Finally, the whole package was painted by Comet Studio in the colours of the Indonesian flag. Using Sikkens paint products, the finish is a beautiful composite of Indonesian nationalism and 60s flair.

With the build concept moving away from the original intention to create a small capacity small scale bike, the change to a 1200cc bruiser was a choice for the better. The ability to produce a frame to suit the V-twin helped with the build as well. A proud workshop with a patriotic attitude and ability to carry out the majority of work themselves, has allowed Studio Motor to create something beautiful. With the build finished, there is only one thing left to do, and it is best summed up by Studio Motor themselves: “Let’s do the ton, brother!”

WTCC Moscow Raceway : Citroen domine

Course 1 : López remporte une quatrième victoire

José Maria López a décroché une impressionnante victoire lors de la première des deux courses de la manche russe du FIA WTCC.

L’Argentin a été brièvement sous la pression de Gabriele Tarquini au départ de la course, mais une mésentente entre Tarquini et Monteiro qui a mené à un léger contact lui a permis de s’installer confortablement en tête après le premier virage.

Sébastien Loeb prend la 3^e place, à 2/10 de seconde derrière la Honda de Tarquini, tandis que le champion du monde en titre Yvan Muller a ravi la 4^e place à Tom Chilton dans le dernier tour.

Ma Qing Hua, le dernier venu chez Citroën, a inscrit ses premiers points en WTCC en terminant à la 6^e place. Rob Huff obtient le gain de la 10^e place pour LADA.

En TC2T Franz Engstler remporte une nouvelle victoire, devant son coéquipier Pasquale di Sabatino.

Moments forts :

Départ – Tarquini essaye de prendre l’avantage au départ mais il est percuté par Monteiro et perd de son élan. Lopez peut ainsi prendre le large. Loeb passe à la 3^e place.

Tour 1 – Huff dépasse les Chevrolets de Borković et Valente pour le gain de la 11^e place. Muller passe à la 4^e place.

Tour 2 – Tarquini est sous la pression de Loeb pour la 2^e place. Borković manque son freinage en fin de ligne droite et touche son coéquipier Valente. Les deux voitures sont contraintes à l’abandon.

Tour 3 – Ma dépasse Michelisz pour la 7^e place. Dans le même temps, Huff double Bennani pour la 10^e place.

Tour 4 – Monteiro et Muller sortent un peu large à la sortie du virage 15, Chilton passe en 4^e position. Monteiro retombe au 7^e rang, derrière Muller et Ma.

Tour 5 – Pas de changement en tête. Lopez dispose d’une avance de deux secondes sur Tarquini et Loeb.

Tour 8 – Coronel prend l’avantage sur Michelisz pour la 8^e place sur la ligne de départ/arrivée. En TC2T, les deux BMW Engstler sont en tête. Au virage 15, Misiulia rate son freinage et perd la 3^e place de sa catégorie.

Tour 16 – Muller dépasse Chilton pour la 4^e place au virage 1. Lopez inscrit sa quatrième victoire de la saison.

Course 2 – Ma entre dans l’histoire du sport automobile

Ma Qing Hua, le quatrième pilote d’usine Citroën, vient d’écrire une page de l’histoire du sport automobile, en devenant le premier pilote chinois à remporter une course dans un championnat du monde FIA.

Grosse déception en revanche pour le leader du WTCC José Maria López. L’Argentin a callé sur la grille de départ pour finalement abandonner. C’est la première fois cette saison sue le pilote Citroën ne marque pas de points. Les voitures d’usine Honda n’ont pas non plus été à la fête. Gabriele Tarquini et Tiago Monteiro ont tous les deux déclaré forfait pour des soucis techniques alors qu’ils se battaient en vue d’une place sur le podium.

Le pilote privé Honda Mehdi Bennani sauve la mise pour le constructeur japonais en terminant à la 3^e place. Dans la catégorie TC2T, la victoire revient de nouveau à Franz Engstler.

Temps forts :

Grille de départ – La voiture du poleman Valente n’est pas correctement en place à cinq minutes du départ. Il écope d’un drive through.

Trour 1 – Ma manque son départ et retombe à la 3^e place derrière Michelisz. Valente prend la tête. López calle sur la grille et se retire de la course. Muller essaye de remonter mais sort de la piste après un contact, il se retrouve 9^e.

Tour 2 – Ma et Michelisz se disputent la 2^e place. Huff et Kozlovskiy entrent en contact et le pilote russe est contraint à l’abandon.

Tour 4 – Ma et Michelisz poursuivent leur bataille. Ils peuvent prétendre à la tête de la course dans la mesure où Valente doit encore effectuer sa pénalité. Loeb sort large du virage 1 et concède une place à Muller.

Tour 5 – Les trois Honda de Bennani, Tarquini et Monteiro et la Chevrolet de Chilton se suivent de près en 4^e, 5^e, 6^e et 7^e positions. Monteiro pousse un peu Chilton et gagne une place.

Tour 6 – Muller dépasse Bennani et Monteiro à l’entrée du deuxième virage.

Tour 7 – Valente effectue sa pénalité et Ma s’empare de la tête de la course. Léger contact entre Morbidelli et Loeb dans la ligne droite. Tarquini abandonne à cause d’un problème de direction assistée.

Tour 8 – Muller s’installe en 2^e position aux dépens de Michelisz en bout de ligne droite. Valente prend la 10^e place à Münnich.

Tour 10 – 1.2 secondes seulement séparent Monteiro, Bennani, Coronel et Loeb, aux 4^e, 5^e, 6^e et 7^e positions.

Tour 11 – Abandon de Huff, tandis que Borković prend l’avantage sur Thompson pour la 13^e position.

Tour 12 – Monteiro abandonne.

Tour 14 – Loeb est sous pression de Chilton pour le gain de la 6^e place.

Tour 16 – Coronel touche Michelisz, ce qui permet à Bennani de prendre la 3^e position. Coronel est 4^e. Loeb et Chilton dépassent Michelisz dans le dernier virage. Ma remporte la course, devant Muller.

Ogier rejoint Auriol / Ogier becomes Auriol’s equal

Sébastien Ogier et Julien Ingrassia ont remporté leur 20e victoire mondiale au Rally Italia-Sardegna 2014, leur 13e succès avec Volkswagen Motorsport. Ils sont aussi montés pour la 30e fois sur un podium mondial… Avec 20 victoires, Sébastien Ogier rejoint son compatriote Didier Auriol au palmarès.

C’est au Rallye de l’Acropole 2009 que les champions du monde en titre avaient décroché leur 1^er podium en WRC. Quelques mois plus tard, au Rallye du Portugal 2010, Sébastien Ogier et Julien Ingrassia ont confirmé leur potentiel en remportant leur 1^er succès mondial au volant d’une Citroën C4 WRC. Depuis, les Français ont disputé 39 rallyes en World Rally Car et en ont gagné 19 ! Ce qui fait environ un sur deux…

Avec cette 20^e victoire, le duo Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia dépasse au palmarès un autre duo historique du WRC, Markku Alèn/Ilkka Kiwimaki, vainqueur de 19 rallyes, mais jamais titré. Avec 20 victoires, Sébastien Ogier rejoint un autre Français, champion du monde 1994, Didier Auriol.

D’autre part, grâce à cette 13^e victoire obtenue avec Volkswagen Motorsport, Sébastien Ogier égale le nombre de victoires de Petter Solberg chez Subaru. Le record appartient évidemment à Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena avec 78 victoires mondiales avec Citroën.

Sur le port d’Alghero, Sébastien Ogier et Julien Ingrassia sont aussi montés pour la 30^e fois sur un podium mondial depuis le Rallye de l’Acropole 2009 et égalent le duo Walter Röhrl/Christian Geistdorfer. Là aussi, le classement est toujours dominé par Loeb avec 116 podiums.

Prochains objectifs pour Sébastien Ogier : les 23 victoires de Juha Kankkunen, les 31 podiums de Walter Röhrl, les deux titres de Röhrl, Sainz, Grönholm et Biasion…

Côté Constructeurs, Volkswagen a porté le record de victoires consécutives à 10. VW a signé son 6^e succès cette saison et remporté sa 17^e victoire en WRC. Prochain objectif, Fiat et ses 21 lauriers, puis Audi et ses 24 succès. Encore sept victoires et Volkswagen sera le constructeur allemand le plus victorieux en WRC…

The Rally Italia-Sardegna saw Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia pick up their 20th world championship victory to equal the score of Didier Auriol. It was also their 13th win with Volkswagen Motorsport and their 30th WRC podium finish.

 reigning world champions earned their first WRC podium victory in Greece, back in 2009. A few months later, the 2010 Rallye du Portugal produced the pair’s first victory in the championship, in a Citroën C4 WRC. Since then, they have contested 39 rounds in a World Rally Car and won 19 of them, as success rate of 50 percent!

The score of Ogier and Ingrassia takes them past Alèn/Kivimaki (who won 19 events but never the title) and equal with Auriol, another French world champion (in 1994).

Ogier’s 13^th win with Volkswagen takes him level with Petter Solberg who notched up the same total at Subaru, although the record – 78 with Citroën – is still safely in the hands of Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena.

Sunday’s finish on the harbour-side in Alghero was also Ogier and Ingrassia’s 30^th podium ceremony since the 2009 Acropolis, and equals the score of Walter Röhrl/Christian Geistdorfer. Once again, the record is held by Loeb (116).

Upcoming targets for Ogier are 23 wins (Juha Kankkunen), 31 podiums (Röhrl) and a second title (Röhrl, Sainz, Grönholm and Biasion).

Meanwhile, Volkswagen recorded its 10^th consecutive victory in Italy, as well as its sixth of the season and its 17^th in the championship, compared with 21 for Fiat and 24 for fellow German make Audi. 

BARBOUR INTERNATIONAL A225

When Triumph and Barbour came on board as sponsors of BSMC III, the idea for a bike born of the two iconic brands was formed. And who better to do justice to that idea than Tim & Kev at Spirit of the 70′s.

The Barbour International A225 (named after the original Barbour International one piece racing suit) is of course a 2013 Triumph Scrambler. A bike so damn near perfect as standard, that there really was no need to go crazy and make changes for changes sake. Plus timings were tight, this build needed to be done and dusted in 12 weeks, while the guys completed 6 other client builds at the same time. Things are pretty full on down there in Kent right now.

Obviously doing justice to the look, feel and heritage of the Barbour brand was the main aim of this build, something Spirit wanted to achieve with more than just a green paint job. So the guys went for bespoke details like the seat which was upholstered in quilted Barbour International fabric by Glenn Moger, and even features a Barbour stash pocket on the rear. Tim says the fabric was matched to his trusty old Barbour jacket that he’s owned for years – hopefully they didn’t match the dirt and sweat stains too. The bike also has a side pannier which is a standard Barbour International Stainton Map Print Retriever Bag, fitted on a bespoke Spirit frame.

The bike may be pretty standard, but as ever it’s the attention to detail that Spirit are renowned for that makes this bike special. And not just aesthetic details either. This bike features Fox Podium RC shocks which were supplied by Mojo Suspension. Kev designed the Enduro style exhaust himself and says that if they get more than 10 orders, they’ll sell it as a Spirit accessory. The paint job was Kev’s too, executed immaculately by D-Luck’s in Brighton.

The motocross style handlebars are graced with Oury grips. The headlamp, petrol tank cap, shorty seat unit and carbon fibre front and rear mudguards are all Spirit’s own. The Brembo front disc and calliper, and many other parts came courtesy of Norman Hyde. Spirit used their own front indicator bracket to mount the Oberon indicators, and mounted the rear indicators in the frame rails which were shortened. The ignition was relocated, and various official Triumph accessories like the front brake reservoir, skid plate and EFI carb caps were bolted on.

The bike was launched to a great reception at BSMC III and has now started its summer tour. You can see it next if you’re lucky enough to be at Wheels and Waves.  After that it will be in Berlin at a trade show.  Then it will be coming back to Blighty for a Barbour International shop fit in Harrods.  Being as pretty as she is, she will no doubt be used in countless photoshoots too.   It’s another classy Triumph special that’s up to the usual high standards we’ve come to expect from Tim & Kev.  Thanks for making this one happen guys.  And obviously a huge thank you to Triumph and Barbour for having the vision for this bike, and for all their support of The Bike Shed.

2003 Yamaha XJR 1300 – it roCkS!bikes

It’s a fantasy that every road bike owner must have had at some time in their lives. ‘What if I could build a bike that was invisible to radar?’ The thought of those charming boys in ‘law enforcement’ totally unable to get a reading on you as you glide through your favourite set of corners. And not at a speed calculated to be ‘safe’ for everyone from the tanker truck full of petrol to the little old lady with failing eyesight, but instead at speed that perfectly suits your skills, the bike’s performance and the conditions of the day. It’s what the afterlife must be like. The afterlife and whatever inspired the owner of this beautiful Yamaha to brief her builders, Portugal’s It roCkS!bikes, to turn his stock XJR into the two-wheeled equivalent of a Stealth Fighter you see here.

The guys were generous enough to provide us with a little interview. We hope you like it.

Who are you guys? 

“Our names are Osvaldo Coutinho and Alexandre Santos and we own the brand “it roCkS!bikes”. We are from Oporto, Portugal; we are both Engineers and addicted to motorcycles.”

Why did you build this bike?

“This was a commissioned bike for a friend of ours. At first, he just wanted a new tail, seat and to fit some parts like up-side-down forks, Brembo calipers and the Motogadget Motoscope, but we told him that if we put our hands on his bike, it’d have to be all or nothing… and so it was!”

What year and model is the donor? 

“The CS_04 “Stealth” was built from a 2003 Yamaha XJR 1300 SP. It was bought by its owner to replace the Honda CB 750 that he had sold, and it was in excellent mechanical condition.”

What was your brief ?

“We heard the ideas that the owner had for his bike, like the rear end and the name “Stealth”, because he is somehow related to the real stealth airplanes. So, starting from there we just got to work to finish the bike just in time to show in Lisboa Art&Moto show last April.”

What did you do to the bike?

“All the parts of the bike were disassembled and from the original bike we kept the gas tank, engine, part of the frame, swing arm, rear shocks, wheels and brakes. In the front, we fitted a Kawasaki ZXR up-side-down fork and Brembo brake calipers. To fit it all together we had to fabricate aluminium CNC 3D adapters for the calipers and axles for the wheels and steering column. On the rear, we refurbish the original Ohlins double shocks and replaced the original tires with a set of Dunlop Sportmax, in stock sizes.

The engine, which was in fairly good condition, was painted in matte black and all the bolts were replaced. The original air box was removed and we designed our own set of velocity stacks with filter, custom built by us especially for this project. To protect the air filters from direct water and dust, we also fabricated a fender for the rear wheel. The exhaust is a 4-2-1 titanium piece, with thermal wraps on the headers. Since the air flow was improved, the carbs were re-jetted and properly tuned. The oil cooler is a very small, high performance part fitted with new oil lines.

The lithium battery was moved to the rear end of the bike. We also fitted a digital dashboard from Motogadget. This unit was mounted in an aluminium bracket, also designed by us and CNC’d.

Since we had to keep the stock gas tank in this bike, we fabricated the seat and the metal rear section with a shape that follows the tank’s lines. The front and rear fender are custom fabricated aluminium parts and the seat is an exclusive handmade light brown leather piece.

All the paint was spray on and then covered with a thin layer of matte varnish. On the front we fitted a small headlight and matched the colour of the rest of the bike. Also the mount was also custom-made.”

What do you think of how it turned out?

“It turned out just like we wished, so we wouldn´t change a thing in this bike!”

How does she ride? 

“Since we reduced the massive weight of the original XJR, the bike feels very light and the tuned engine’s power really stands out… it just pulls hard at any speed The steering geometry is now much more radical, so the bike really encourages you to ride hard on twisty roads and have fun in the corners.”

The boys from it roCkS!bikes take a quick break from beating each other to pose with the new bike

[Fotographia: Rui Banderia]

WRC : M-Sport sur deux fronts / M-Sport on two fronts

Cette année, la structure de Malcolm Wilson est engagée au niveau international dans deux disciplines du sport automobile : rallye et circuit. L’équipe britannique a remporté sa première victoire fin mai en Blancpain Series avec la Bentley GT Continental.

La 1^ère victoire de M-Sport en WRC remonte au Rallye de l’Acropole 1997 où Carlos Sainz et Juha Kankkunen avaient offert un doublé aux Ford Escort WRC préparées par l’équipe de Malcolm Wilson. C’est en rallye que l’écurie britannique a acquis sa notoriété sur la scène internationale.

« C’est sans doute grâce à nos compétences développées en rallye que Bentley nous a approchés en septembre 2012 pour monter ce programme GT. », explique un Malcolm Wilson assez tourmenté depuis l’incendie de la Ford d’Hirvonen hier. « On n’a pas d’explications et on n’en aura sans doute jamais car on n’a rien pu récupérer. L’incendie est parti de l’arrière droit, selon Mikko, après 5 ou 6 km sur la liaison. Il n’y a eu aucune alarme en spéciale et ils n’ont rien noté non plus en faisant le tour de la voiture après l’arrivée. Notre mois de juin est déjà très chargé. Pour le Rallye de Pologne, nous allons préparer Fiesta WRC de réserve, nous en reconstruirons une plus tard. »

Le mois de juin est effectivement très chargé pour M-Sport avec les Rallye de Sardaigne et de Pologne, plus le Festival of Speed de Goodwood et la manche de Blancpain Endurance Series sur le circuit Paul-Ricard à la fin du mois (même week-end que Pologne).

M-Sport s’est lancé en circuit cette année, en Blancpain Endurance Series et British GT Championship, avec une Bentley GT Continental GT3 développée par Christian Loriaux et les ingénieurs M-Sport. Un projet né d’une feuille blanche, mené à bien en seulement six mois dans les ateliers de Cumbria, avant les 1^ers tours de roue officiels de la voiture il y a un an à l’occasion du Festival of Speed de Goodwood.

« M-Sport n’avait aucune expérience en circuit, mais nous avions les compétences humaines et techniques. En dix jours, le contrat était signé avec Bentley : M-Sport était responsable du design et du développement de la voiture. »

La Bentley GT Continental GT3 (V8, 4000 cm³ bi-turbo, 600 ch.) a débuté en course aux 12 Heures d’Abu Dhabi le 13 décembre 2013 par une 4^e place. La campagne 2014 a démarré par un top-10 sur le circuit de Monza avant une 1^ère victoire offerte par Guy Smith, Andy Meyrick et Steven Kane sur le circuit de Silverstone fin mai.

« Jamais je n’aurais cru me retrouver un jour sur un circuit et gagner. L’Endurance et le Rallye partagent de nombreux points communs, comme la stratégie, la façon de travailler… Le travail lors d’un pit-stop par exemple ressemble beaucoup à un celui lors d’un service-park. Il faut être rapide, précis, organisé…M-Sport avait déjà une certaine expérience dans cette façon de travailler. Nous avons beaucoup progressé et nous avons encore tant de choses à apprendre. Mais l’Endurance me plaît assez, oui… »

La plus grande course d’Endurance au monde va se dérouler la semaine prochaine au Mans. « Je suis sûr que Bentley aimerait y retourner, mais pas avec la voiture que nous avons développée car les GT3 ne sont pas acceptées. Je n’ai pas d’avis sur la question GT3/GTE, il y a quelque temps seulement, je ne savais même pas ce qu’était une GT3 ! Les 24 Heures du Mans seraient un énorme défi, oui. »

Matthew (le fils de Malcolm) gère la partie racing de M-Sport. « Il s’investit pleinement, il est très pointilleux. Je peux compter sur lui. Moi je me consacre à la partie commerciale avec Bentley car nous souhaitons monter un programme similaire au rallye en commercialisant des Bentley GT Continental GT3 pour nos clients. »

This year, M-Sport is active in both rallying and racing. Last month, the Malcolm Wilson-owned operation secured its first victory in the Blancpain Series with the Bentley GT Continental.

M-Sport’s first WRC victory dates back to the 1997 Acropolis when Carlos Sainz and Juha Kankkunen came first and second in the team’s Ford Escorts, and it’s in rallying that the British outfit forged its international reputation.

“It’s undoubtedly because of our expertise in rallying that Bentley first approached us in September 2012,” explains Malcolm Wilson, clearly fraught by the fire that destroyed Hirvonen’s Fiesta on Friday. “We don’t know what happened and probably never will. Mikko says the fire started at the rear-right, five or six kilometres along the road section. There were no warnings and the crew didn’t spot anything when they inspected the car after the stage. We’ve got a busy month ahead, so we will prepare the spare Fiesta for Poland and build another one later.”

In addition to Sardinia and Poland, M-Sport’s month effectively continues with the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Blancpain Endurance Series race at Le Castellet, the same weekend as Poland.

The team’s racing programme started with this year’s Blancpain Endurance Series and British GT Championship with a Bentley GT Continental GT3 developed by Christian Loriaux and M-Sport engineers from a clean sheet of paper. Six months after the green light, the Cumbria-born car made its first public appearance at Goodwood in 2013.

“M-Sport had no racing experience but we had the technical and human resources and we won the contract to design and develop the car.”

The Bentley GT Continental GT3 (V8, 4,000cc, bi-turbo, 600hp) kicked off its career with fourth place at the 12 Hours of Abu Dhabi on December 13, 2013. Its 2014 campaign began with a top-10 finish at Monza, Italy, before Guy Smith/Andy Meyrick/Steven Kane claimed its first win at Silverstone in May.

“I never thought I would be successful one day in racing. Endurance racing and rallying have a great deal in common, like strategy and the way you work. Pit stops are quite like service halts, for example. You need to be fast, precise and organised. We’ve made progress and we’ve still got much to learn but, yes, I quite enjoy endurance racing.”

The discipline’s biggest race takes place next weekend at Le Mans. “I’m sure Bentley would like to return, but not with the GT3 car we have developed because it’s not eligible. I’ve got no opinion on the GT3/GTE issue. Not so long ago, I didn’t even know GT3 existed! For sure, Le Mans would be a great challenge.”

The racing programme is managed by Malcolm’s son, Matthew. “He’s invested totally in it. He’s very attentive to detail and I know I can count on him. I look after the commercial side with Bentley because we would like to do what we do in rallying, i.e. sell Continental GT3s to customers…”

jeux .......