How do you like your WRC? Are you a ‘Formula 1 of the forest’ fan, or are you more of a traditionalist? Perhaps you’re a bit of both.
Last weekend in Turkey, as tyres punctured, suspension was smashed, rocks were relocated and engines seized, you could almost hear the groans and the cheers from your comfy lounge room.
The groans, of course, were from the drivers and their teams. For some, any chance of a good result, a podium, or a win simply disappeared like the air from their tyres, or the oil from their engines.
Conversely, the cheers were from fans who loved the action, the excitement and the drama that a rough rally provides.
The WRC teams probably hate them, but for me, there’s nothing quite like a rough rally – especially if I’m not paying the repair bills or having to drive around the rocks.
The Safari Rally, the Acropolis, Cyprus, and now Rally Turkey. They’re rallies that give you punctures, broken cars, unpredictability, and best of all, unexpected results.
On rallies like Finland or Estonia, the cars rarely break down, punctures are not usually a problem, and in most cases the fastest driver in the fastest car will win. It makes for high-flying, edge of your seat rallying, and is the spectacle that sells the sport more than any other.
That’s fine for some events, and even on tarmac, but the championship needs variety, and Rally Turkey provided exactly that.
On the monster 38km stage on Sunday morning, there was complete carnage, and at one stage there were five cars stopped on the stage changing punctures or sorting other issues.
And we loved it!
For fans of Sebastien Ogier, Teemu Suninen or Thierry Neuville, you may not have been smiling, but you can’t deny that it spiced things up and made for exciting viewing.
At the end of it all, Welshman Elfyn Evans survived best, taking his second victory of the season. Yep, you could say Evans was lucky, but then again, it’s not his fault that others dropped by the wayside or had time-sapping problems.
Just a fortnight ago, in Estonia, he had a rear tyre delaminate at high speed, so it’s not as though he’s been blessed by the good luck fairy.
For sure, he may not have had the raw speed of Ogier or Neuville in Turkey, but earlier in the season, in Sweden in February, he outshone all his rivals to take a commanding win.
Evans is now the WRC leader, and with troubles for Tanak, Ogier and Neuville in recent events, there’s a very good chance he’ll be World Rally Champion in 2020. And nobody would begrudge him that.
GIZZY for Jacks Ridge
Kiwi Supercars star, Shane van Gisbergen, will contest the Battle of Jack’s Ridge in November in a real coup for the event.
The 2016 Supercars champion has been one of the most successful drivers of the past decade and is renowned for his unique ability to drive any kind of car on any kind of event competitively.
31-year-old Van Gisbergen’s father, Robert, was a well-known and talented rally driver and Shane has often expressed an interest in competing on gravel.
“It is pretty cool and something I grew up with,” Van Gisbergen said.
“I remember playing in the mud at Dad’s rallies and at rally sprints and stuff and always watching and loving it.
“It was something I never really got the chance to do when I was young – I did a lot of gymkhana and sprints and stuff but never really did a proper rally so it is pretty exciting that our season finishes early so I can come to New Zealand and do some cool events.
“It was a shame Rally New Zealand didn’t happen for all these reasons going on in the world at the moment but the alternative we have got in the City of Auckland Rally and Battle of Jacks Ridge is pretty special and I am looking forward to getting there.”
The Red Bull Holden racer grew up just down the road from the purpose-built Jacks Ridge stage on 2017 national champion Andrew Hawkeswood’s Whitford property.
The Rally of Auckland and the Battle of Jack’s Ridge will take place on November 15 and 15.
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