*Victory for ŠKODA driver six days after China Rally Longyou success
*Gonon wins ERC Production Car Cup for Subaru, Michel takes ERC 2WD laurels
*Ancian receives Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy following charging drive
The all-action 2013 FIA European Rally Championship reached its climax in Switzerland this afternoon with rising star Esapekka Lappi underlining his huge potential by winning an action-packed Rallye International du Valais alongside co-driver Janne Ferm.
Lappi began Saturday’s final leg – the longest of the rally at 146.30 kilometres – with an advantage of 43.7s over Andreas Aigner. Although Aigner trimmed Lappi’s lead to 35.7s when the ŠKODA Motorsport ace overshot a junction this morning, the Finn’s tenure of top spot was never truly threatened and he cemented his second ERC victory by going fastest of all on the final stage in his Michelin-shod Fabia Super 2000.
“It’s been quite a good two weeks,” said Lappi, who won the China Rally Longyou six days ago. “I never believed I would win here and this is absolutely fantastic. For sure it’s special on Tarmac, my first proper win. It’s very good to end the season like this. We’re improving on Tarmac and this is good for next season. The plan for next year is to do some races with ŠKODA. I have a contract with them and the ERC would be a good option.”
Florian Gonon secured ERC Production Car Cup honours after fellow Subaru Impreza R4 STI driver Aigner crashed out one kilometre from the start of stage 14. Sylvain Michel clinched the ERC 2WD spoils in a Citroën DS3 R3T by overhauling Laurent Reuche on the final stage when the two-time Valais winner’s Renault Clio R3 developed an engine fault. Ekaterina Stratieva won the ERC Ladies’ Trophy, while there were strong performances from GPD Mit Metal Racing Team and Team Renault Sport Technologies.
While Lappi shone out front, Aigner was also hugely impressive in his production-based Subaru. The Austrian was second overall when he hit trouble. While he and driver Barbara Watzl were uninjured, their Yokohama-shod car suffered extensive damage and they retired. Watzl’s non-finish means Aigner’s former navigator Jürgen Heigl wins the ERC Production Car Cup for Co-drivers*.
“We said we would try today because Andi is already the Production champion,” explained Aigner’s team boss Manfred Stohl. “We never give up but finally luck was not on our side. It’s very disappointing because it was a great performance by them.”
With Aigner out, Olivier Burri moved into second place with Vasily Gryazin climbing to third. Unfortunately for Russian teenager Gryazin, a crash close to the start of stage 15 left his Ford Fiesta S2000 sporting damage to the rear. Although Burri began the final two stages more than one minute clear of Craig Breen, an engine misfire robbed his Fiesta RRC of vital power. But the eight-time Valais winner held on to the runner-up spot albeit by a significantly reduced margin of eight seconds following a tense finale. “It was getting worse and worse on the last two stages,” said Burri. “I don’t know if we would have finished if we had another stage.”
For Breen, his capture of the final podium spot marked a reversal of fortune after a time penalty and broken powersteering added more than three minutes to his total time and dropped him out of contention for victory. His failure to score the 27 points needed to overhaul Bryan Bouffier in the battle to finish runner-up to champion Jan Kopecký in the final standings* means he settles for third in the overall classification.
“Third place is not what I came here for or hoped for before the rally,” said Breen. “It’s not an improvement from the beginning of the season but taking everything into account it’s not so bad.”
Peugeot Rally Academy team-mate Jérémi Ancian was saddled by four minutes of penalty but fought back from this setback and a puncture on stage 14, which he stopped to change, to snatch fourth spot from Jaroslav Orsák on the last stage. Ancian scored a total of seven stage wins in his 207 Super 2000, including both runs through the new Verbier stage today. His battling performance earned him the prestigious Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy.
Orsák, meanwhile, marked his first ERC appearance in a Fabia S2000 and his comeback from injury with fifth place and a stage win for GPD Mit Metal Racing Team. Nicolas Althaus finished sixth with Gonon seventh and Pascal Perroud eighth after a minor off-road excursion. Behind ERC 2WD winner Sylvain Michel in ninth, Romain Salinas came home a highly creditable 10th overall on his ERC debut for Team Renault Sport Technologies. Stéphane Lefebvre was leading the R2 category when he retired with engine failure on his Peugeot 208.
The 2014 ERC season begins in Austria with the 31 Int. Jännerrallye, Oberösterreich from 3-5 January followed by Rally Liepāja in Latvia from 31 January-2 February.
WATCH INSIDE ERC ON EUROSPORT: TUESDAY 12 NOVEMBER, 23:15hrs-23:45hrs CET
TOP 10 POSITIONS (after 18 stages, 287.84 kilometres)
1 Esapekka Lappi (FIN)/Janne Ferm (FIN) ŠKODA Fabia S2000 3h13m42.8s
2 Olivier Burri (CHE)/André Saucy (CHE) Ford Fiesta RRC +3m28.2s
3 Craig Breen (IRL)/Lara Vanneste (BEL) Peugeot 207 S2000 +3m36.2s
4 Jérémi Ancian (FRA)/Olivier Vitrani (FRA) Peugeot 207 S2000 +6m21.1s
5 Jaroslav Orsák (CZE)/Lukáš Kostka (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia S2000 +6m26.7s
6 Nicolas Althaus (CHE)/Alain Ioset (CHE) Peugeot 207 S2000 +6m42.9s
7 Florian Gonon (CHE)/Michel Horgnies (CHE) Subaru Impreza R4 STI +7m57.7s
8 Pascal Perroud (CHE)/Quentin Marchand (CHE) Peugeot 207 S2000 +13m59.9s
9 Sylvain Michel (CHE)/Sandra Arlettaz (CHE) Citroën DS3 R3T +13m17.7s
10 Romain Salinas (FRA)/Benjamin Micheli (FRA) Renault Mégane R.S. N4 +14m12.4s
ERC Production Car Cup:
Florian Gonon (CHE)/Michel Horgnies (CHE) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Sylvain Michel (CHE)/Sandra Arlettaz (CHE) Citroën DS3 R3T
Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy:
Jérémi Ancian (FRA)
RALLY LEADERS
SS1: Jérémi Ancian and Craig Breen
SS2: Craig Breen
SS3: Andreas Aigner
SS4-SS18: Esapekka Lappi
STAGE WINNERS
Day one (Thursday 7 November, 30.80 kilometres):
SS1: Crans-Montana (11.66kms): Overall: Ancian and Breen/PC: Aigner/2WD: Michel
SS2: Anzère (12.96kms): Breen/Aigner/Michel
SS3: Les Casernes 1 (6.18kms): Lappi/Aigner/Michel
Day two (Friday 8 November, 110.74 kilometres):
SS4: Vercorin 1 (26.58kms): Ancian/Aigner/Reuche
SS5: Veysonnaz 1 (13.62kms): Ancian/Aigner/Reuche
SS6: Nendaz 1 (12.08kms): Ancian/Aigner/Reuche
SS7: Vercorin 2 (26.58kms): Lappi/Aigner/Reuche
SS8: Veysonnaz 2 (13.62kms): Lappi/Aigner/Reuche
SS9: Nendaz 2 (12.08kms): Ancian/Aigner/Reuche
SS10: Les Casernes 2 (6.18kms): Orsák/Aigner/Michel
Day three (Saturday 9 November, 146.30 kilometres):
SS11: Champex 1 (9.53kms): Breen/Aigner/Michel
SS12: Bruson 1 (19.96kms): Breen/Aigner/Reuche
SS13: Verbier 1 (15.52kms): Ancien/Aigner/Stage cancelled for ERC 2WD crews
SS14: Les Cols (37.13kms): Breen/Gonon/Reuche
SS15: Champex 1 (9.53kms): Breen/Gonon/Michel
SS16: Bruson 1 (19.96kms): Lappi/Gonon/Reuche
SS17: Verbier 1 (15.52kms): Ancian/Gonon/Reuche
SS18: Col des Planches (25.15kms): Lappi/Gonon/Michel
KEY STATISTICS
ERC rally wins in 2013: Jan Kopecký 6; Giandomenico Basso 1; Bryan Bouffier 1; Kajetan Kajetanowicz 1; Jari Ketomaa 1; Esapekka Lappi 1; Freddy Loix 1.
ERC stage wins in 2013: Jan Kopecký 49; Bryan Bouffier 25; Craig Breen 23; Robert Kubica 18; Jari Ketomaa 8; Jérémi Ancian 7; Esapekka Lappi 6; Freddy Loix 6; Kajetan Kajetanowicz 5; Roman Kresta 4; Raimund Baumschlager 3; Andreas Aigner 2; Paolo Andreucci 2; François Delecour 2; Martin Kangur 2; Bernardo Sousa 2; Pieter Tsjoen 2; Pavel Valoušek 2; Giandomenico Basso 1; Jan Černý 1; Beppo Harrach 1; Luis Monzón 1; Ricardo Moura 1; Jaroslav Orsák 1; Hayden Paddon 1; Václav Pech 1; Umberto Scandola 1; Juraj Šebalj 1.
ERC event winners in 2013
01: International Jännerrallye (Austria)
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Beppo Harrach (AUT)/Leopold Welsersheimb (AUT) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX R4
ERC 2WD Championship:
Hannes Danzinger (AUT)/Kathi Wüstenhagen (GER) Renault Clio R3
02: Rally Liepāja-Ventspils (Latvia)
Jari Ketomaa (FIN)/Kaj Lindström (FIN) Ford Fiesta RRC
ERC Production Car Cup:
Vytautas Švedas (LIT)/Žilvinas Sakalauskas (LIT) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X
ERC 2WD Championship:
Risto Immonen (FIN)/Mikko Lukka (FIN) Citroën C2 R2 Max
03: Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Inglés (Spain)
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Andreas Aigner (AUT)/Jürgen Heigl (AUT) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Gorka Antxustegi (ESP)/Alberto Iglesias (ESP) Suzuki Swift Sport S1600
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Ekaterina Stratieva (BGR) Citroën C2 R2
04: SATA Rallye Açores (Portugal)
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Alessandro Bruschetta (ITA)/Justin Bardini (ITA) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Zoltán Bessenyey (HUN)/Yulianna Nyirfas (HUN) Honda Civic Type R
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
No eligible driver was classified in the final results
05: Giru di Corsica-Tour de Corse (France)
Bryan Bouffier (FRA)/Xavier Panseri (FRA) Peugeot 207 Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Andreas Aigner (AUT)/Jürgen Heigl (AUT) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Kornél Lukács (HUN)/Mark Mesterhazi (HUN) Citroën C2 R2 Max
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Molly Taylor (AUS) Citroën DS3 R3T
06: Geko Ypres Rally (Belgium)
Freddy Loix (BEL)/Frédéric Miclotte (BEL) ŠKODA Fabia S2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Andy Lefevere (BEL)/Andy Vangheluwe (BEL) Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X
ERC 2WD Championship:
Xavier Baugnet (BEL)/Eric Borguet (BEL) Peugeot 208 R2
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Melissa Debackere (BEL) Peugeot 207 S2000
07: Sibiu Rally (Romania)
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Toshi Arai (JPN)/Anthony McLoughlin (AUS) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Sebastian Barbu (ROU)/Horatiu Baltador (ROU) Citroën DS3 R3T
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Molly Taylor (AUS) Citroën DS3 R3T
08: Barum Czech Rally Zlín (Czech Republic)
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Miroslav Jakeš (CZE)/Igor Norek (CZE) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX
ERC 2WD Championship:
Jan Černý (CZE)/Pavel Kohout (CZE) Peugeot 208 R2
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Molly Taylor (AUS) Citroën DS3 R3T
09: LOTOS 70 Rally Poland
Kajetan Kajetanowicz (POL)/Jarosław Baran (POL) Ford Fiesta R5
ERC Production Car Cup:
Dominykas Butvilas (LTU)/Renatas Vaitkevičius (LTU) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX R4
ERC 2WD Championship:
Radosław Raczkowski (POL)/Łukasz Gwiazda (POL) Citroën DS3 R3T
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Molly Taylor (AUS) Citroën DS3 R3T
10: Croatia Rally
Jan Kopecký (CZE)/Pavel Dresler (CZE) ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Andreas Aigner (AUT)/Barbara Watzl (AUT) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Aleks Humar (SVN)/Florjan Rus (SVN) Renault Clio R3
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Asja Zupanc (SVN) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX
11: Rallye Sanremo (Italy)
Giandomenico Basso (ITA)/Mitia Dotta (ITA) Peugeot 207 Super 2000
ERC Production Car Cup:
Federico Gasperetti (ITA)/Federico Ferrari (ITA) Renault Mégane R.S. N4
ERC 2WD Championship:
Alex Vittalini (ITA)/Sara Tavecchio (ITA) Citroën DS3 R3T
12: Rallye International du Valais (Switzerland)
Esapekka Lappi (FIN)/Janne Ferm (ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000)
ERC Production Car Cup:
Florian Gonon (CHE)/Michel Horgnies (CHE) Subaru Impreza R4 STI
ERC 2WD Championship:
Sylvain Michel (CHE)/Sandra Arlettaz (CHE) Citroën DS3 R3T
ERC Ladies’ Trophy:
Ekaterina Stratieva (BUL)
CHAMPIONSHIP POSITIONS
Go to www.fiaerc.com for the championship positions following round 12 of 12.
ERC Champions in 2013*
FIA European Rally Championship for Drivers: Jan Kopecký (CZE)
FIA European Rally Championship for Co-drivers: Pavel Dresler (CZE)
FIA European Rally Championship for Teams: GPD Mit Metal Racing Team (CZE)
FIA Production Car Cup for Drivers: Andreas Aigner (AUT)
FIA Production Car Cup for Co-drivers: Jürgen Heigl (AUT)
FIA Production Car Cup for Teams: Napoca Rally Academy (ROU)
FIA 2WD Championship for Drivers: Zoltán Bessenyey (HUN)
FIA 2WD Championship for Co-drivers: Yulianna Nyirfás (HUN)
FIA 2WD Championship for Teams: Eurosol-Honda Civic Type R (HUN)
FIA ERC Ladies’ Trophy: Molly Taylor (AUS)
A brand-new app for iPhone and android provides live timing, news and other essential information as well as live ERC Rally Radio. Visit the official ERC website, www.fiaerc.com. Follow the ERC on Facebook and Twitter and watch the action on Eurosport and Eurosport Player.
*Subject to confirmation of the results by the FIA