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2005 WRC: RALLY CATALUNYA

• Rally 15 of 16: Oct 28-30, 2005, Rally of Catalunya

RALLY RESULT:

• WINNER, LOEB, CITROEN: "I always wanted to win here one day ... It's great to have succeeded. But more important still for me is the fact that Citroën not only finished 1st and 2nd thanks to François, but also came close to monopolising the podium with the privately-run Xsara of Xevi Pons! At the same time, in addition to wrapping up the Manufacturers' title today, Citroën has also sewn up the JWRC thanks to Dani Sordo and his C2 Super 1600. It's been a dream weekend, the end result of the passion and the work put in by everyone in the team. This tenth win is a symbol of our perfect season and I would like to dedicate it to the them."
• CITROEN WINS MANUFACTURER TITLE:
  Guy Fréquelin: "The year got off to a difficult start. After Sweden and Mexico, Claude Satinet and I said something along the lines of 'every year is different'. I believe it's a fitting tribute to the team that not only was this season different to the others but it also turned out to be even better. Once again, I want to say how proud I am of them and I want to thank all those who brought their special talent to the table; Sébastien, François, Daniel, Stéphane
  and then Sven all contributed in their own way to Citroën's third title. Nor do I want to forget of course Carlos and Marc who helped us out in the difficult moments I was referring to. And I must thank Michelin too. Their tyres brought out the very best in the Xsara WRC. Last but not least, I am very pleased with the results obtained by those privateers who placed their confidence in us. Xevi Pons and his Xsara finished just off the podium today, while Dani Sordo is the 2005 Junior World Champion with his C2 Super 1600. This is all so motivating as we prepare to wrap up the season in Australia and prepare our comeback."
• 3rd, HIRVONEN, FORD: "I've finally scored my first podium and I can't believe it was on asphalt and not gravel ... It was my first asphalt rally for a year and it proved I can be quick on both surfaces. We had great help from Michelin with the tyres. When I saw Pons mess up his start on the final stage I decided to really attack and try to make my dreams come true. It was a great battle and I can't believe I had such a good weekend considering how long it is since I drove on this surface."
• 6th, BERNARDI, PEUGEOT: "I have the experience of two good rallies behind me, and I am very pleased with the results we have achieved. I started off carefully in Corsica, as unlike the other drivers I did not know my car intimately. I worked very well with my engineer Eric Mommet and the entire team has supported me brilliantly. From that Saturday of Corsica onwards, I was in the rhythm. I feel very proud that I was able to fight with and occasionally set times that were comparable with those of such an established star like Marcus Gronholm. Tomorrow I will get back behind the wheel of my Peugeot 206 WRC in order
  to get ready for the next round of the French Championship, which I hope to win this year."

FINAL, LEG 3, SUN, OCT 30, 2005, AFTER 15 STAGES

• 1 Sebastien Loeb (FRA), Citroen Xsara WRC *** WINS 8 STAGES ***
  2 Francois Duval (BEL), Citroen Xsara WRC +1m 21s
  3 Mikko Hirvonen (FIN), Ford Focus WRC +2m 46s
  4. Xavier Pons (Spain) Citroen +2m 47s
  5. Roman Kresta (Czech Republic) Ford
  6. Nicolas Bernardi (France) Peugeot
  7. Antony Warmbold (Germany) Ford
  8. Jan Kopecky (Czech Republic) Skoda
  9. Chris Atkinson (Australia) Subaru
  10. Harri Rovanpera (Finland) Mitsubishi
  "It's disappointing that the car hasn't worked as we thought this weekend. It's not what we expected and all we can say really is that we finished. On the positive side I am happy with the evolution of Pirelli's dry weather tire; that is good news for the future and we are certainly closer to the competition now".
  
• DNF:
• Gronholm - radiator/engine problem at end of Leg 2
• Solberg, Sarrazin

LEG 2, SAT, OCT 29, 2005, AFTER 11 STAGES

• 1 Sebastien Loeb (FRA), Citroen Xsara WRC *** WINS 8 STAGES ***
  "I tried to handle the day as best as possible because a few of the specials were quite delicate. On the ones that weren't I was able to put the pedal down a bit more, just to enjoy myself a bit."
  2 Francois Duval (BEL), Citroen Xsara WRC +57.8s
  3 Marcus Gronholm (FIN), Peugeot 307 WRC +2m 11s
  4 Mikko Hirvonen (FIN), Ford Focus WRC
  5 Xavier Pons (SPA), Citroen Xsara WRC
  6 Roman Kresta (CZE), Ford Focus WRC
  7 Nicolas Bernardi (FRA), Peugeot 307 WRC
  8 Anthony Warmbold, Germany, Ford Focus
  9 Jan Kopsecky, Czech Republic, Skoda Fabia
  10 Chris Atkinson, Australia, Subaru Impreza

LEG 1, FRI, OCT 28, 2005, AFTER 6 STAGES

• 1 Sebastien Loeb (FRA), Citroen Xsara WRC *** WINS 5 STAGES ***
  "A very positive day ...it's such a buzz getting the line just right over these very fast stages which run on a mostly uniform surface. The first pass was a bit delicate though after only two, low-speed runs in recce. They come at you very differently at rally speed."
  2 Francois Duval (BEL), Citroen Xsara WRC, +53.3s
  3 Marcus Gronholm (FIN), Peugeot 307 WRC
  "I am generally quite happy, although I lost my way a bit on the last pair of stages. I did not have complete confidence in the handling of the car in totally dry conditions: I am not quite sure why. Our tyre choices have been quite good all day and this has been the key to our position tonight. But tomorrow I think it will be more a question of defending our place from Toni Gardemeister and the rest behind, rather than attacking the Citroens in front."
  4 Toni Gardemeister (FIN), Ford Focus WRC
  5 Gigi Galli (ITA), Mitsubishi Lancer WRC
  6 Roman Kresta (CZE), Ford Focus WRC
  7 Mikko Hirvonen (FIN), Ford Focus WRC
  8 Dani Sola (SPA), Ford Focus WRC
  9 Xavier Pons (SPA), Citroen Xsara WRC
  10 Nicolas Bernardi (FRA), Peugeot 307 WRC

• Thursday 27 October: Ceremonial start
• Salou 20.00
• Friday 28 October: Leg 1 Port Aventura - Port Aventura
• Start Port Aventura 07.15
  SS1 Querol 1 25.43km 08.28
  SS2 El Montmell 1 24.14km 09.16
  Serv A Port Aventura (30 mins) 10.54
  SS3 Vilaplana 1 28.33km 11.57
  SS4 Pratdip 28.35km 13.32
  Serv B Port Aventura (30 mins) 14.55
  SS5 Querol 2 25.43km 16.38
  SS6 El Montmell 2 24.14km 17.26
  Serv C Port Aventura (45 mins) 19.11
  Finish Port Aventura 19.56
• Saturday 29 October: Leg 2 Port Aventura - Port Aventura
• Serv D Port Aventura (10 mins) 07.30
  SS7 El Lloar - La Figuera 1 20.01km 08.38
  SS8 Capafonts 1 27.54km 10.06
  Serv E Port Aventura (30 mins) 11.14
  SS9 Colldejou 1 28.48km 12.39
  SS10 Riudecanyes 1 11.27km 13.32
  Serv F Port Aventura (30 mins) 14.20
  SS11 El Lloar - La Figuera 2 20.01km 15.48
  SS12 Capafonts 2 27.54km 17.16
  Serv G Port Aventura (45 mins) 18.26
  Finish Port Aventura 19.11
• Sunday 30 October: Leg 3 Port Aventura - Port Aventura
• Serv H Port Aventura (10 mins) 07.30
  SS13 Colldejou 2 28.48km 08.35
  SS14 Riudecanyes 2 11.27km 09.28
  Serv I Port Aventura (30 mins) 10.11
  SS15 Vilaplana 2 28.33km 11.21
  Serv J Port Aventura (20 mins) 12.59
  Finish Salou 13.29

• LOEB: " It's an asphalt rally and, even though the Spanish stages are different to those of Germany and Corsica, the fundamentals are still pretty much the same. We are aware of course that we have some work to finish off in the Manufacturers' championship too. We really want the team to keep the title, so we won't do anything reckless. But a win would effectively be nice."
• DUVAL: " I drove during the team's pre-Catalunya tests and I think my car will be to my liking and competitive from the start. I was quite competitive on the stages further north last year, so I don't see why I shouldn't be competitive again this time round. I will be looking for a good result to make sure that Citroën wraps up the Manufacturers' title here in Spain."

SUBARU

• SOLBERG: "I think Spain will be a very interesting and exciting rally. The new roads look very good and it's always fun to try out fresh rally stages. Coming so soon after Corsica I'm still feeling positive about the way the latest tyres and suspension set-up worked. The guys at Subaru and Pirelli have worked very hard and together we've made a significant step forward in the asphalt performance. We achieved our objectives there, and I hope that we can deliver another good result in Spain. I'm looking forward to it."
• SARRAZIN: "Prior experience is so important in the WRC, but the fact that this rally is largely new to all competitors should help me in Spain. It's much more of a level fight and that's better for me. My performance in Corsica has given me a lot of confidence about the car and tyres, when I push I know I am capable of getting good times. I prefer the smoother roads in Spain and I think that I can improve on my Corsica result - maybe another step up the podium - who knows."
• ATKINSON: "Catalunya will be another now event for me, and another opportunity to learn more about the car and tyres in some unfamiliar conditions. From what I know of the event, we're going to be facing some very different stage conditions to the ones we saw in
  Corsica. They're a lot quicker and we'll be taking a lot more cuts, but I think we learned some useful things last week that will help us get off to a good start."

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