Trial : Bou dans le livre des records / Bou in the record’s book

En décrochant sur ses terres son huitième titre mondial outdoor, Toni Bou (Montesa Michelin) entre dans la légende de son sport en devenant le premier pilote à obtenir autant de titres. Il fait mieux que Jordi Tarres et Dougie Lampkin, tous deux titrés à sept reprises.

Retrouvant ses bonnes habitudes à l’occasion de ce Grand Prix d’Espagne, Toni Bou a été littéralement imbattable et a porté un coup au moral de ses adversaires en les dominant dès la première des deux journées.

En s’intercalant entre Toni et Adam Raga (Gas Gas) son dernier rival pour le titre, Albert Cabestany (Sherco Michelin) avait fait les affaires du leader du Mondial, qui s’imposait avec vingt huit points de moins que ses rivaux groupés eux en quatre petits points !

Cabestany devançait Raga d’un point, ce dernier devançant Jeroni Fajardo (Beta Michelin) d’un point et Takahisa Fujinami (Montesa Michelin) de deux. Si les scores étaient beaucoup moins importants dimanche, Bou allait une fois encore dominer la situation, s’imposant avec quatorze points d’avance sur Raga et vingt cinq sur Fajardo. Victorieux de sept des douze journées de course cette saison, Bou clôt son championnat avec quinze points d’avance sur Raga.

Toni Bou: « Samedi fut la journée clé. Décrocher aujourd’hui mon huitième titre est une joie immense pour moi, je ne peux rien demander de plus! J’ai roulé différemment aujourd’hui, et j’ai pu à la fois me concentrer pour apprécier la course et la gagner. Le premier titre est toujours le meilleur, parce qu’on est champion du Monde et qu’on ne sait pas si on pourra le devenir une autre fois. Mais ce huitième titre est vraiment spécial, car mes adversaires m’ont mis la pression tout au long de la saison. »

Classement de l’épreuve :

Premier jour : 1.Bou (ESP, Montesa Michelin); 2.Cabestany (ESP, Sherco Michelin); 3.Raga (ESP, Gas Gas); 4.Fajardo (ESP, Beta Michelin); 5.Fujinami (JAP, Montesa Michelin); etc…

Second jour : 1.Bou; 2.Raga; 3.Fajardo; 4.Cabestany; 5.Fujinami; etc…

Positions au championnat : 1.Bou, 225; 2.Raga, 210; 3.Cabestany, 163; 4.Fajardo, 154; 5.Fujinami, 145; etc…

Claiming this weekend on his home soil his eighth Trial World Title, Toni Bou (Montesa Michelin) entered in the legend of his sport, as he became the first rider to be so successful. He did better that Jordi Tarres and Dougie Lampkin, both crowned seven times.

Back in his native Spain, Toni Bou was also back to his former habits and was unbeatable in this last GP of the season. In the first of the two days event, he destroyed the mental of his rivals as he beats them easily and got the support of Albert Cabestany (Sherco Michelin), who finished second and beats Bou’s last rival for the title, Adam Raga (Gas Gas).

If Bou beats his rivals by twenty eight marks, his rivals were closer than ever as Cabestany beats Raga by one mark, Jeroni Fajardo (Beta Michelin) by two marks and Takahisa Fujinami (Montesa Michelin) by three marks. On Sunday the scores were not so important but Bou remains unbeatable as he beats Raga by fourteen marks. Winner of seven of the twelve days this season, Bou ended the season with an advantage of fifteen points over Raga in the series.

Toni Bou: « Yesterday was the key day. Today being able to win the eighth title has been an immense joy for me. I couldn’t ask for anything more! Today, I rode in a different way and was able to concentrate on both enjoying the race and winning it. 
The first title is always the best, because you are the world champion and you don’t know if you are going to be able to repeat it. But this eighth title is very special, because my rival really put me up against it all season.”

WRC, Australie : 25 ans de Mondial / Celebrating 25 years since Rally Australia’s first WRC inclusion

25 ans de présence en WRC pour le Rallye d’Australie, 10e épreuve du championnat 2014, 250e rallye mondial pour l’équipe M-Sport, 50e départ en WRC pour Kris Meeke, 150e pour Mikka Anttila, 30 engagés, 20 spéciales et 315 kilomètres chronométrés…

De 1989 à 2006, le Rallye d’Australie s’est déroulé à l’ouest du pays-continent, à Perth. En 2009, l’épreuve a célébré son retour en WRC, sur la côte est cette fois-ci, en Nouvelle Galles du Sud, à 3500 km de là. Mais elle a conservé la plupart des difficultés qui ont fait sa réputation : des spéciales techniques et piégeuses, des virages masqués, une terre meuble et des conditions de grip changeantes…Nambucca (48,92 km) est la plus longue spéciale de cette édition 2014.

Pour ses 25 ans en WRC – 22^e édition – le Coates Hire Rally Australia n’offre que peu de changements par rapport à 2013 (deux nouvelles ES et quelques modifications), une édition mémorable puisque Neuville avait privé Ogier du titre grâce à sa 2^e place du général ET dans la Power Stage ! Avec 19 spéciales remportées sur 22, Sébastien Ogier avait pourtant ultra-dominé l’épreuve, mais il avait dû patienter un mois avant de savourer son premier titre…

Après avoir lancé les vendanges 2014 au Rallye d’Allemagne et vendangé chacun une belle opportunité au championnat Pilotes, Sébastien Ogier et Jari-Matti Latvala vont reprendre leur duel pour le titre. Les deux hommes sont séparés par 44 points au championnat, en faveur du Français. Le 3^e pilote VW, Andreas Mikkelsen, peut mathématiquement encore être titré.

Après son doublé historique en Allemagne, l’équipe Hyundai Motorsport n’a eu que peu de temps pour redescendre sur Terre et traverser la planète avant un Rallye d’Australie qu’elle n’a plus disputé depuis plus de 10 ans (2003) et pour lequel les essais sont prohibés sur place. Chris Atkinson, de retour depuis le Mexique, et Hayden Paddon ont effectué leurs tests en France (Vosges). Très loin de Coffs Harbour, donc…

Voilà près de 10 ans aussi que Citroën n’a plus gagné en Australie (Duval, 2005). En 2011, on se souvient du double abandon fracassant de Loeb et Ogier. L’an passé, Kris Meeke avait réalisé un festival avec une sortie de route quotidienne ! Cette année, le Britannique, qui a frôlé sa première victoire mondiale en Allemagne, va y célébrer son 50^e rallye WRC.

Les espoirs sont nombreux chez M-Sport qui fête son 250^e rallye mondial depuis 1997. Mikko Hirvonen avait ouvert son palmarès personnel en Australie en 2006 et compte trois victoires sur les quatre dernières éditions. Elfyn Evans va devoir mettre à profit l’expérience engrangée l’an passé au National Capital Rally sur une Ford Fiesta R2.

En WRC-2, six des dix leaders du championnat ont effectué le lointain déplacement en Australie avec Lorenzo Bertelli, Ott Tanak, Yury Protasov, Jari Ketomaa, Nasser Al-Attiyah et Yazeed Al-Rahji, tous sur Ford Fiesta.

In addition to celebrating the 25th anniversary of its being a WRC qualifier, Rally Australia is the 10th round of the 2014 championship, the 250th world class outing for M-Sport, the 50th WRC start for Kris Meeke and the 150th for Mikka Anttila. There are 30 entries, 20 stages and 315 competitive kilometres.

From 1989 until 2006, Rallye Australia was based on the continent’s west coast, in Perth. In 2009, it made its return to the WRC community in New South Wales, 3,500km to the east. Despite the move, it continues to offer the same challenging cocktail of tricky, technically demanding stages, blind corners, soft ground and frequently changing grip. This year’s longest stage is ‘Nambucca’ (48.92km).

To mark the 25^th anniversary of its WRC status, the Coates Hire Rally Australia will feature few changes (two new stages and some modifications) compared with 2013 when Neuville memorably deprived Ogier of the Drivers’ title by finishing second overall AND winning the Power Stage, despite the Frenchman’s domination of the event (19 stage wins from 22!). Ogier had to wait another month to wrap up the contest…

After they both wasted a chance to boost their championship chances in Germany, Sébastien Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala will resume their battle for the title split by 44 points, in favour of the Frenchman. On paper, their VW team-mate Andreas Mikkelsen can still take the 2014 crown, but nobody else.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motorsport has been busy recuperating from its landmark one-two triumph in Trier ahead of the make’s first visit to Australia as a factory team since 2003. Its task is complicated by the fact that testing on site is not permitted. Hayden Paddon and Chris Atkinson, who last drove for the squad in Mexico, prepared for the event in France’s Vosges Mountains, a very long way from Coffs Harbour!

It’s been a decade since Citroën last won in Australia (Duval, 2005). Loeb and Ogier both memorably retired in 2011, while Kris Meeke went off once a day in 2013! This time round, the Briton will be making his 50^th WRC appearance after coming close to his maiden win in Germany.

Hopes are high, too, at M-Sport which will celebrate its 250^th world class start since 1997. Mikko Hirvonen claimed his first WRC victory in Australia in 2006 and has since won three times there these past four years. Elfyn Evans will be counting on his experience of the country’s National Capital Rally last year in a Ford Fiesta R2.

Last but not least, six of the WRC-2’s provisional top 10 are making the trip to Australia, namely Lorenzo Bertelli, Ott Tanak, Yury Protasov, Jari Ketomaa, Nasser Al-Attiyah and Yazeed Al-Rahji, all in Fiestas.

Coffee Run - a cafe racer journey

Coffee Run - a cafe racer journey from Caronte Cycles on Vimeo.

DE BOLEX MK 4

de Bolex are still relatively new on the scene, but from their 1st build to this; their 4th, each one has been superbly thought out and put together. Their talents are greater than just bike building though; they even tell their own story well, so enough from me, here’s the low down on the bike, the build and the owner straight from de Bolex themselves…. see you at the end.

“So you’ve invested your hard earn cash into some nice wheels to get from A to B and to and from the 9 to 5 grind but the luxury of the leather seats, air con and cd player some how doesn’t fulfill your needs. This was Alex before he became the very proud owner of the deBolex Mk4.”

“A week spent in Biarritz resulted in a bet between 2 mates to tick a few things off that ever increasing bucket list; Learn to play the saxophone, bite the bullet and get that tattoo, and finally get a bike license.

So 6 months later, 4 sax lessons down, 2 tattoo’s and a bike license in the wallet – fair to say Alex won the bet. With his shiny new license and the summer in the not too far distance Alex didn’t think twice about putting his once treasured car up for sale to fund his dream of owning a custom motorcycle.”

“Being a good friend of Calum the founder of deBolex has meant that Alex has seen first hand the deBolex builds from concept to reality and now he wanted his turn. He had a clear vision of what he liked so they sat down and created first sketches of what is now the Mk4. It was here that it became clear that the bike was going to harp back to a more classic era.

The bike needed to be reliable so the later Cb750f2n was to be the donor. To achieve that classic look we started with fitting an early, sleeker, cb750 tank, this was no simple task and modifications had to be made to the bottom of the tank for it to fit over the frame and to give the right lines between the tank and seat.”

“We gave the tank some extra shape by adding some knee scallops, the fuel cap was then relocated to allow for the classic leather tank strap to run through the middle. The rear cowling has been hand beaten from aluminum, with added scallops to match the fuel tank, this cowling is then removable to reveal the pillion seat – a must for chucking a little somebody on the back!

Why the Number 7? Besides being a nod back to a motor racing legend, it is also Alex’s Birthday. This enabled us to give the bike that additional classic race appeal, but also houses an aluminum storage box which is opened via a key catch, this encloses a nice space for any small luggage.”

“Sucking the air in comes through 4 stainless trumpets and is then exhausted through 2, 2 into 1 polished stainless pipes with reverse cone mega’s. A classic smiths speedo keeps Alex’s speed in check while the recessed moto gadget led’s indicate the appropriate warning lights.

Lighting up the front is finished with the yellow lens and peak to keep to the classic appeal, the rear light housing was turned up and recessed into the rear tube and the indicators were kept small and subtle.”

“The classic brown leather was to be a feature throughout the bike; grips were wrapped and finished off with an aluminum bar end. Des our in house trimmer then took charge of trimming the seat in a diamond stitch pattern with the tank strap to match.

Alex was keen on the black on black finish, so we just highlighted the shaped features through the bike with a classic white pin striping.”

“We had a mad rush to get the bike completed (or so it felt!) for the bike shed event, but Alex was itching to get riding soon after, and its fair to say he is getting good use out of it, he totaled up over 3000 miles in just 4 weeks, riding come rain or shine.”

I’m sure you will agree that de Bolex have once again created a lovely bike, and for the 4th consecutive time. To see their past work check out their bikeshed page and visit them on Facebook and check out their website. Thanks for sharing this beauty guys, we look forward to seeing the MK5

via The Bike Shed

WES’ KAWASAKI W650 “SC RAMBLER”

By Wesley Reyneke | Rather Be Riding

I think it was a Deus Ex Machina tracker that first piqued my interest in the Kawasaki W650. But, down here in Cape Town, South Africa—a country where the W650 was never officially imported—they’re extremely hard to come by.

So when one suddenly came up for sale, I snapped it up without a moment’s hesitation. I had just sold my Husqvarna TE610 (the third dual-sport bike that I’d owned in as many years) and was looking for something completely different.

The W650 fit the bill, and it was paid for the same day I test rode it. The previous owner had fitted a set of ace bars and a Nitroheads seat, bobbed the fenders, removed the airbox and resprayed the tank. It wasn’t long before I installed a set of Husky dirt-bike bars and discovered just how easy-going the twin was on gravel roads.

About a year later I found myself passing through the dusty trails of the Cederberg and Tankwa-Karoo, and over the infamous Ouberg Pass into Sutherland. I’d done that pass before—on my TE610. It was considerably more challenging on the W.

I thought the worst of it was the two cracked exhaust headers that had to be welded in Sutherland, but a strip down of the bike back home revealed a busted battery and box, and a swingarm corroded by battery acid.

I parked it, and thanks to a mix of procrastination and lack of funds, left it for almost a year—eventually deciding to flog it out of pure frustration. As it turns out, you’re never too old to be disciplined by your parents. My mom—herself the proud owner of a Harley-Davidson 883 Sportster—caught wind of this, chastised me, and offered to help fund a full overhaul. It was just the kick in the pants I needed, and the project was underway.

Since I’m better at taking things apart than reassembling them, I commissioned Alex Stoos of Stoos Customs to handle the build. Alex’s forté is brutal and raw Harley-based customs—but he was amped to tackle a Jap bike with a different vibe. I would take the creative lead on the project and source the relevant parts, and Alex would handle the fabrication.

Aesthetically, I knew I wanted to build a scrambler of sorts—one that would be just as at home on city streets as it would exploring fire roads—without falling apart. The idea was to focus on tasteful, well-considered and practical changes. A lot of inspiration was drawn from Café Racer Dreams, Deus and Wrenchmonkees’ work, and a lot of time was spent hashing out ideas in Photoshop.

I started by dipping into a box of W800 parts that I’d recently acquired, installing the rear shocks in the hope that they’d be better than the stock Kawasaki W650 units. As it turns out, they’re just as soft.

I also fitted the W800 exhaust headers, which have a bend that follows the lines of the frame much tighter than the 650 headers did. Alex then added kinks into the ends and installed a pair of Cone Engineering Quiet-er Core mufflers that I procured from Dime City Cycles. The whole system was then sent out for ceramic coating. I had originally considered high pipes, but ditched the idea for the sake of cost-saving and practicality.

I wanted to lose the W’s side covers and needed a new battery box, so Alex fabricated one from aluminum. It houses a Ballistic 8-cell Lithium-Ion battery and the wiring. The ignition was relocated to the side of the bike, and he machined out the space on the triple clamp where it used to be. That now houses a Daytona Velona speedo, bought from the Wrenchmonkees’ web store.

Another place where I wanted to shave some visual weight was the tank. This involved removing the rubber kneepads, cutting off their brackets and filling in the remaining grooves. The tank then had to be smoothed off and re-lined.

Aluminum fenders were sourced on eBay, before being shortened and fitted. (Ask Alex how long I deliberated over the rear fender’s length—you might get some choice words in reply.) Finishing kit included a smaller headlight and tail light from Kickstarter Classics, and a pair of light grey Biltwell Kung Fu grips from Old Skool Trading. We also fitted a pair of K&N filters, replacing the generic filters that I originally got with the bike.

Alex made a custom aluminum bash plate, and trimmed the W800 chain guard before sending it, and a bunch of other parts, off for powder coating. I swapped the old bars out for a new set of Renthal Enduro Highs—which have proved to be great for extra leverage and comfort. Not wanting everything on the bike to be brand new and shiny, I retained the stock switchgear and the bullet indicators that I already had.

Halfway through the project we decided to go the whole nine, so Alex tore down the whole bike and detabbed the frame. In the process, he made up a nifty bracket to hold the stock seat latch. It’s based on an idea that my wife penned, and will allow me to remove the factory setup if I ever want to use a custom seat in the future.

Alex also installed new neck bearings, chain and sprockets and swingarm bearings, and serviced the forks. Along the way he made a troubling discovery: someone that had handled the swingarm previously had dented it. After much heating, bending, pressing and cursing, he managed to get it sorted.

Donald Walklett at Motoworx then handled the electrics, trimming down the stock wiring harness a tad. He also rebuilt the carbs which, thanks to my neglect, ended up needing a significant amount of work.

The paint is probably the thing I deliberated on the most—I lost track of how many ideas I mocked up. In the end I opted for something simple and classic—a deep pearl blue with a silver stripe and hand-painted Kawasaki logos. It was flawlessly executed by Bert Upton, who also splashed some matte black onto the fenders for me.

The valve cover and carb tops were sent off for powder coating, while the side covers were polished before being ‘Scotchbrited’. The plan was to powder coat the side covers too—but that would have meant replacing the oil sight glass, which would have to come from Japan. Anodizing the wheels would have strained the budget too much, so those were left stock.

In the end, everything came together just as I had envisioned it—so I really couldn’t be happier. Sure, there’s still work to be done—like replacing that spongy rear suspension—but eighteen months after parking it I’m finally enjoying my favorite bike again.

I’ve dubbed it the SC Rambler: SC as a nod to Stoos Customs for Alex’s excellent work, and Rambler because that’s what it’s used for.

And if you’re wondering what the tires are, they’re a Pirelli MT60 (front) and MT90 (rear). Still the same tires that carried me over Ouberg Pass.

All photos by Ewald Sadie. Head over to Rather be Riding to download six exclusivewallpapers from the shoot.

Many thanks to Dime City Cycles, Wrenchmonkees, Alex Stoos, Donald Walklett, Bert Upton, Ewald Sadie, Adventure Rider, Mike Hopkins Motorcycles, Craig’s Motorcycle Spares; Pedro at CRD and Fred at Blitz for their advice, Chris Hunter for the encouragement, and—of course—mom.

via The BIKEexif

Ambassadors of Distinction for The Distinguished Gentleman's Ride

Here are the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride Ambassadors. To find out what they will be wearing and riding head to www.gentlemansride.comand click on the Ambassadors link.

KTM 450 EXC BY WALT SIEGL

Walt Siegl is the embodiment of a life well lived. A former motorcycle racer, he now builds high-end Ducati customs in a picturesque New Hampshire mill town. His impossibly beautiful Leggero sportbikes are sought after and shipped all over the world.

Walt occasionally likes to mix things up though, and this is one of his most unusual creations. It’s a modern KTM 450 given a vintage motocross flavor without losing any of KTM’s legendary off-road prowess.

The commission came from a client who already owns several of Walt’s creations. “He asked me for a motorcycle that he can take off road on occasion,” says Walt, “and left the choice of donor bike up to me.”

Walt’s interest was piqued. As a boy growing up in Austria in the 1970s, he would watch the local motocross races with his father. It was a time when KTM was rising to prominence, so we can assume that Walt felt more than a little national pride.

“I’m even more impressed by today’s KTMs, so I decided to use the Austrian machine as a platform,” says Walt. But there was a catch. “My client is an extremely successful designer and businessman. His product has a high grade of hand-built quality to it. So he’s suspicious of anything that smells of computer design.”

The solution was to rework the razor-sharp edges of modern KTM styling. Could Walt give the bike timeless lines, ones that would sit well next to his client’s beloved Hodakas and Maicos? “I had my work cut out,” he notes wryly. “But I wanted to capture the visuals of past times, while taking advantage of the high tech performance of today’s KTMs—snorting, rowdy machines that perform like a shotgun.”

Walt started by shaping a mockup tank in foam, and had the mockup scanned. A hardwood plug was then machined, so Walt could make the fuel cell in aluminum. He also built a new aluminum subframe, but only after careful measurements—to allow enough suspension travel. The side panels are made of the same 60-series aluminum as the tank.

There’s a new aluminum seat pan too, with the seat core shaped in medium density urethane. It’s finished in leather by Vivian Smith, who does all Walt’s upholstery work.

The handlebars are vintage-style aftermarket items, and the rear fender is from Air-Tech, originally created for a Maico application. Walt made the front fender using fiberglass, and installed a headlight and shroud from eBay, extensively altered to fit.

The suspension and engine remained untouched: it’s hard to improve on the dynamics of a KTM 450, even if it’s a street legal EXC model. Walt did build a new muffler from stainless steel though, and re-jetted the Keihin carb.

The paint is simple and effective. “I wanted to juxtapose the vintage design elements with contemporary graphics in bright colors—as a reminder that the bike is a modern machine, after all.” The renowned Robbie Nigl of Peach Pit applied the colors.

The result is curiously appealing—a custom that’s been stripped back to its functional basics. There’s a love-it-or-hate-it aspect to the styling of modern KTMs—but it’s hard not to love what Walt has done.

Check out previous Walt Siegl builds on his stylish website, or follow his news viaFacebook. You can read extensive coverage of Walt Siegl’s life and builds in our bookThe Ride.

via BIKEexif

WRC, Australie : 25 ans de Mondial / Celebrating 25 years since Australia’s first WRC inclusion

Le Rallye d’Australie a intégré le Championnat du monde des Rallyes FIA il y a 25 ans, en 1989. Cinq constructeurs y ont triomphé à trois reprises (Ford, Lancia, Mitsubishi, Subaru [4] et Peugeot) et quatre y ont été titrés (Lancia, Subaru, Toyota, Peugeot). Cette année, Volkswagen pourrait y décrocher son second titre mondial.

Organisé seconde moitié de saison mondiale, le Rallye d’Australie a souvent consacré des Constructeurs avant terme. En 1992, la victoire de Didier Auriol a assuré Lancia/Michelin d’un 6^etitre consécutif – son dernier en WRC - face à Toyota dès le mois de septembre, le constructeur italien ayant déjà scoré ses sept résultats pleins.

En 1997, le succès de Colin McRae à Perth a permis à Subaru de décrocher le premier titre mondial de l’ère des World Rally Cars. Néanmoins, le constructeur japonais avait fait un grand pas vers son 3^e titre consécutif lors de la manche précédente, le Rallye Sanremo, avec le doublé McRae/Liatti.

Deux ans plus tard, la 2^e place de Carlos Sainz dans le Western Australia a suffi pour que Toyota remporte son 3^e titre mondial en rallye dans une ambiance très douce-amère: après des ennuis mécaniques, Didier Auriol et Carlos Sainz ont laissé filer le titre Pilotes à Tommi Mäkinen (son 4^ed’affilée, un record) et Toyota avait annoncé quelques mois plus tôt son retrait du WRC pour la F1.

L’année suivante, la fête d’après-rallye fut nettement plus joviale dans les rues de Perth pour les hommes de Peugeot Sport. Après la disqualification du vainqueur Mäkinen, Marcus Grönholm a hérité de la victoire australienne et offert le titre Constructeurs 2000 à Peugeot, le premier depuis le retour du Lion en WRC.

Contrairement à 2013 où le titre Pilotes pouvait être attribué à l’issue du Rallye d’Australie, il ne sera pas question de titre Pilotes en Australie, mais bien de titre Constructeurs.

Volkswagen Motorsport possède 167 points d’avance sur Citroën-Total Abu Dhabi WRT. Si le constructeur allemand repart d’Australie avec une marge de 129 points, il ne pourra être rejoint. Pour prolonger (encore) le suspense, Citroën devrait donc inscrire 38 points de plus que VW. Par exemple, en cas de double abandon pour Volkswagen (comme en Allemagne), les deux Citroën DS3 WRC officielles doivent être sur le podium final…

Après sa cruelle désillusion en Allemagne, Volkswagen devrait logiquement réagir et coiffer sa seconde couronne mondiale en Australie, en attendant qu’un de ses trois pilotes – Ogier, Latvala, Mikkelsen – le soit d’ici à la fin de saison, puisque le titre Pilotes 2014 ne peut échapper aux représentants de la marque.

Rally Australia first counted towards the FIA World Rally Championship in 1989. Five makes have won the event three times (Ford, Lancia, Mitsubishi, Subaru [4], Peugeot) and four have actually sewn up the title there (Lancia, Subaru, Toyota, Peugeot). This year, it could be Volkswagen’s turn…

Australia’s round has frequently decided the Manufacturers’ world title. In September 1992, success for Didier Auriol secured Lancia’s sixth consecutive crown (its last in the WRC) against Toyota thanks to the Italian team’s score of seven victories.

Five years later, Colin McRae’s victory in Perth, Western Australia, earned Subaru’s first title of the World Rally Car era after a one-two for McRae and Liatti in Sanremo had nicely set up the Japanese firm’s third consecutive championship honours.

In 1999, second place for Carlos Sainz was sufficient for Toyota to claim its third world title, although mechanical problems for the Spaniard and Auriol allowed Tommi Mäkinen to collect a record-breaking fourth consecutive Drivers’ crown. A few months earlier, Toyota had announced its decision to switch from the WRC to F1…

The following year’s post-event party in the streets of Perth was a far merrier affair. The winner Mäkinen was disqualified, handing victory to Marcus Grönholm which was enough to deliver the 2000 Manufacturers’ title to Peugeot, the first since the French make’s return to the WRC.

This year, the Manufacturers’ top prize might be decided once again in Australia, since Volkswagen Motorsport has a 167-point lead over Citroën-Total Abu Dhabi WRT. If the German brand completes the event with a gap of 129 points over its chaser, the outcome will be settled for 2014. In other words, to prolong the suspense, Citroën will need to score 38 points more than VW. For example, if both German cars fail to finish (as they did in Germany) both factory Citroën DS3 WRCs will need to be on the podium.

After its cruel setback on home soil, however, Volkswagen has a strong chance of wrapping up the championship, while the 2014 Drivers’ crown is now sure to end up on the head of Ogier, Latvala or Mikkelsen.

burn !