JAN KOPECKY SCORED HIS FIRST WRC 2 PRO VICTORY OF THE SEASON WITH A SECOND SUCCESSIVE SUPPORT CATEGORY VICTORY AT ADAC RALLYE DEUTSCHLAND ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON.
The Czech driver had more than half a minute in hand going into the final day’s four speed tests in the bumpy Mosel vineyards. He increased his margin to cross the podium at Bostalsee with a 1min 06.9sec advantage in his Skoda Fabia.
Kopecký took the lead on Saturday morning when team-mate Kalle Rovanperä twice went off the road and his only problem was a puncture late last night which halved his lead.
Eric Camilli finished second in a Ford Fiesta, despite incurring a 30-sec penalty today. Rovanperä completed the podium, to increase his championship lead, with Mads Østberg taking fourth.
Fabian Kreim scored his first WRC 2 victory when he headed a home 1-2. The German national champion in 2016 and 2017 finished 18.5sec clear of 2018 title winner Marijan Griebel. Both were at the wheel of Fabias.
German driver Fabian Kreim claimed the WRC 2 victory on the picturesque vineyard roads.
Kreim had the luxury of easing through the final leg, while keeping a watch on a terrific battle behind between Griebel and Poland’s Kajetan Kajetanowicz, driving a Volkswagen Polo.
Fastest time in the penultimate test promoted Kajetanowicz into second with a slender 2.0sec advantage, only for Griebl to respond in the closing test with a quickest time of his own to regain the runner-up spot by 3.0sec.
Fabio Andolfi crashed out of fourth in the penultimate test, allowing Simone Tempestini to come home 7.5sec ahead of Russia’s Nikolay Gryazin. Fifth was sufficient for Gryazin to take the championship lead of the absent Benito Guerra.
Germany’s Dominik Dinkel completed the top six in a Hyundai i20.
OTT TÄNAK WON HIS THIRD CONSECUTIVE ADAC RALLYE DEUTSCHLAND ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON TO TAKE ANOTHER HUGE STRIDE TOWARDS A MAIDEN FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE. He survived a late scare to claim his fourth victory in five rounds, leading Toyota to its first clean sweep of the podium since 1993 and the first in the WRC since this rally four years ago.
Brake problems on his Toyota Yaris in the penultimate speed test forced Tänak to drive cautiously through the closing Wolf Power Stage. But he had enough in hand to head Kris Meeke by 20.8sec with Jari-Matti Latvala a further 15.2sec behind.
The Estonian extended his championship lead to 33 points with four rounds remaining. His Toyota Gazoo Racing squad closed to within eight points of leaders Hyundai Shell Mobis in the manufacturers’ standings after its 1-2-3 finish.
The four-day encounter was fought out on bumpy vineyard tracks in the Mosel, gruelling multi-surface tank training roads and smooth country lanes in the Saarland countryside.
Tänak gained control yesterday afternoon after a thrilling duel with title rival Thierry Neuville came to a premature end when the Belgian stopped to change a puncture on his Hyundai i20.
He admitted he had mixed feelings after being unable to attack for bonus points in the final test.
“We started to have some issues in the previous stage so I couldn’t push. We only had one brake at the front. I’m not really happy about that but we’re here and I am happy about that. The team has missed out on a 1-2-3 a few times so it is good to do that finally,” he said.
Dani Sordo purposely booked in late at the finish control to enable teammate Thierry Neuville to claim fourth.
Meeke and Latvala eased through the final leg among the Mosel grapes, content to hold their positions and guarantee a stellar result for the Japanese manufacturer.
Dani Sordo completed the stages in fourth, but the Spaniard sacrificed the place when he incurred a penalty by leaving the final service late to allow team-mate Neuville to move up from fifth and collect more championship points.
There were more team tactics behind. Esapekka Lappi was sixth, but adopted the same strategy as Sordo to enable Citroën C3 team leader Sébastien Ogier to climb from eighth to seventh. Lappi dropped two places and Andreas Mikkelsen also profited as he inherited sixth.
Ogier and Lappi both struggled with major understeer and world champion Ogier now trails Tänak by 40 points and Neuville by seven.
Gus Greensmith and Takamoto Katsuta completed the top 10.
Suzuki star steals victory from Championship leader’s grasp at Woodcote as we witness two big-hitters crash at Turn 1
Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) claimed a sensational victory at the GoPro British Grand Prix as he and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) treated us to a phenomenal MotoGP™ race, the Suzuki man eventually beating the Honda rider to the line in a stunning finish. Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) picked up P3 but there was drama at the first turn involving Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team).
Silverstone was set for a barnstormer, but nobody saw what was coming at the first corner. The lights went out and heading into Copse for the first time, Quartararo’s back end slipped round as the Frenchman reacted to Rins getting out of shape in front of him. Quartararo crashed and unable to take avoiding action, Dovizioso collided with the stricken Petronas Yamaha as two leading race contenders crashed out on Lap 1. Dovi headed to the medical centre for a checkup after landing heavily and was later transported to Coventry hospital, confirmation that Dovi has no broken bones, but he needs further checks after taking a big knock to the head.
Meanwhile, Marquez had got away well from pole and was leading the race from second place Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), with Rins third. The latter didn’t take much time to pass ‘The Doctor’ though and the number 42 slipped into second, with himself and Marquez slowly edging clear of Rossi in third. On Lap 4, the leading duo were over a second clear, with the gap to Rossi stretching lap by lap as Viñales smelt blood on his teammate. Lap 6 ticked by and Viñales pounced, passing Rossi down the Hanger Straight but at this point, Marquez and Rins were over two seconds up the road.
Rins was locked onto the tailpipes of Marquez. Sector one and three looked like the areas where Rins had an edge on the number 93 and on Lap 8, the Suzuki was leading. Coming up the hill from Copse, Marquez sat up slightly to seemingly tell Rins: ‘go on then, you can lead for a bit.’ That didn’t last long however, Rins was wide at Stowe corner and it was Marquez who had the baton once more. There was nothing to separate the pair, with Viñales flirting around the 1.5/2 second margin behind.
With four laps remaining, an error. On the exit of the Vale chicane, Rins was out the seat. This dropped Rins 0.6 back to give Marquez some breathing space but would it be the turning point of the Grand Prix? No. Rins reeled in Marquez by the end of the lap as we set ourselves for a tense final three laps. In the meantime, Viñales was still hovering at 1.5 seconds back.
On the penultimate lap, Rins made a move stick. A unique one too, the GSX-RR dived under the RC213V at Turn 15 but immediately, on the Wellington Straight, Marquez blasted back past. Last lap time, nothing between them. But a Yamaha rider was now just 0.5 back from Rins – surely Viñales couldn’t claw this back? A little further down the road, Marquez was on the defensive. Heading into Sector 3 – a place Rins had been strong all race – the Repsol Honda was holding the tight line. No way through at The Loop for Rins, but would Marquez’ run onto the straight be hampered? Seemingly not. Marquez held it into Brooklands – the last real overtaking manoeuvre – but Rins was strong round Luffield and through Woodcote. The lap previous saw Rins get alongside Marquez round the outside at the finish line – Roberts and Sheene esque from 1979 – but was ran wide. At the final corner, Marquez knew Rins had the advantage and tried to cover it off. The Repsol Honda had a slight twitch as Rins took a wide, sweeping line on his Suzuki and spectacularly won the race to the line to win by just 0.013! Later on, Rins revealed he thought it was the last lap on the penultimate lap...
Viñales was close, but not close enough to challenge in third. Rossi’s dreams of a return to winning ways faded as the race went on but nevertheless, ‘The Doctor’ will take the positives from another P4. Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) had his mentor in sight but couldn’t quite hunt him down, a top-five for the Italian equals his best MotoGP™ result. Home hero Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) takes a P6 away from Silverstone after starting from ninth, the Coventry-born rider held off a late charge from Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) and close friend Jack Miller (Pramac Racing). The Ducatis finished seventh and eighth respectively, as Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had the trio in his sights to land KTM a top 10. And completing the top 10 was Aprilia Racing Team Gresini’s Andrea Iannone – the Italian claiming his best result on board an RS-GP.
Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Miguel Olveira (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) crashed out at The Loop with 12 to go, with Aleix Esparagro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) the other non-finisher.
A dramatic British GP ends with Rins on top of the world once more. 40 years on, the Suzuki man was able to do what MotoGP™ Legend Sheene couldn’t – pass a reigning World Champion at Woodcote to win at Silverstone. However, Marquez now sits 78 points clear in the Championship standings with Dovizioso’s early exit as we look ahead to San Marino.
Le Top 10 : 1. Álex Rins - (Team Suzuki Ecstar) - 40:12.799 2. Marc Márquez - (Repsol Honda Team) - +0.013 3. Maverick Viñales - (Monster Energy Yamaha) - +0.620 4. Valentino Rossi - (Monster Energy Yamaha) - +11.439 5. Franco Morbidelli - (Petronas Yamaha SRT) - +13.109 6. Cal Crutchlow - (LCR Honda Castrol) - +19.169 7. Danilo Petrucci - (Ducati Team) - +19.682 8. Jack Miller - (Pramac Racing) - +20.318 9. Pol Espargaró - (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) - +21.079 10. Andrea Iannone - (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) - +25.144
The Frenchman is back on the top step of a Grand Prix podium for the first time in over a decade
Round two of the FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup certainly didn’t disappoint with EG 0,0 Marc VDS’ Mike Di Meglio mastering the wet conditions at the myWorld Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich to take victory, over a decade on from his last Grand Prix triumph in 2008. The Frenchman was joined on the podium by Xavier Simeon (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) and Bradley Smith (One Energy Racing) as a handful of title favourites crashed out.
The race was reduced to five laps due to rain falling at the Red Bull Ring and once round two got underway, it was Simeon who took the holeshot from second on the grid. Poleman, Di Meglio, retaliated immediately though, drafting his way past the Belgian on the run into Turn 3.
The fight for third was too close to call, with five riders all aiming for the same bit of track through Turn 3 as Eric Granado (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) came out on top. Then the first bit of drama would unfold as the inaugural MotoE race winner and World Cup leader Niki Tuuli (Ajo MotoE) ran wide into Turn 4 and into the gravel trap. Smith also made an error into Turn 4 and a result slipped down to ninth.
Brazilian Granado continued to make progress through, having started ninth on the grid, and momentarily took second away from teammate Simeon before a big moment allowed the Belgian to retake the position. It wouldn’t be for long though as Granado bounced back, first retaking second and then the lead at the start of the second lap.
He began to break clear, seemingly having the edge on everybody else in the difficult conditions, but then disaster struck. On lap three, on the brakes into Turn 3, the front end washed from beneath him and hopes of a first MotoE™ victory ended.
Di Meglio retook the lead as a result, whilst behind Tech 3 E-Racing’s Hector Garzo and Simeon would go elbow to elbow in the fight for second place, with Garzo coming out on top by rolling around the outside into Turn 9. With just two laps left, Garzo set his sights on Di Meglio, who by this stage was a second clear.
Behind, Smith had battled his way through to fourth following his lap one error as he tried to recoup as many valuable points as he possibly could. As the leaders started the final lap, Di Meglio’s lead was cut in half as a last-lap lunge from Garzo began to look increasingly likely. That was, however, until the Spaniard crashed out at Turn 4 and subsequently handed the 25 points and the second-ever MotoE™ victory to 2008 125cc World Champion, Mike Di Meglio.
Simeon held on to take second place and a first visit to a Grand Prix podium since 2015, whilst Smith kept himself in title contention after a second podium of the World Cup in third. Frenchman Di Meglio now heads to the third round at the San Marino Grand Prix as the title leader after Tuuli could only manage a solitary point, five points clear of Smith.
Alex De Angelis (OCTO Pramac MotoE) took fourth, a tenth clear of compatriot Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE). A best ride of the season from Sete Gibernau (Join Contracts Pons 40) saw the former MotoGP™ star battle his way through from twelfth on the grid to sixth. Josh Hook (OCTO Pramac MotoE) ended seventh with Niccolo Canepa (LCR E-Team) in eighth. Jesko Raffin (Dynavolt Intact GP) was given a penalty for passing under yellow flags and was demoted a place to ninth, ahead of Lorenzo Savadori (Trentino Gresini MotoE), who completed the top ten.
The FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup is next in action at the San Marino Grand Prix in Misano, with a double header sure to shake up the fight to become the inaugural MotoE™ World Champion even further.
Top 10: 1. Mike Di Meglio (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) 2. Xavier Simeon (Avintia Esponsorama Racing) + 2.238 3. Bradley Smith (One Energy Racing) + 4.368 4. Alex de Angelis (Octo Pramac MotoE) + 5.071 5. Matteo Ferrari (Trentino Gresini MotoE) + 5.155 6. Sete Gibernau (Join Contract Pons 40) + 6.845 7. Josh Hook (Octo Pramac MotoE) + 7.961 8. Jesko Raffin (Dynavolt Intact GP) + 8.907 9. Niccolo Canepa (LCR E-Team) + 10.331 10. Lorenzo Savadori (Trentino Gresini MotoE) + 11.637
Fabio Andolfi crashed out of fourth in the penultimate test, allowing Simone Tempestini to come home 7.5sec ahead of Russia’s Nikolay Gryazin. Fifth was sufficient for Gryazin to take the championship lead of the absent Benito Guerra.
Germany’s Dominik Dinkel completed the top six in a Hyundai i20.
He survived a late scare to claim his fourth victory in five rounds, leading Toyota to its first clean sweep of the podium since 1993 and the first in the WRC since this rally four years ago.
