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2006 WRC: RALLY ARGENTINA

• Rally 6 of 16: Apr 28-30, 2006, Rally of Argentina
• 22 stages
• 351.44km competition; totalf 1474.82km

RALLY RESULT

		LEG 3	APRIL 30, 2006	AFTER SS22
	POS	DRIVER	CAR	GAP
	1	Sébastien Loeb (FRA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	2	Petter Solberg (NOR)	Subaru Impreza WRC	44.6s
	3	Gigi Galli	Peugeot 307
	4	Manfred Stohl	Peugeot 307
	5	Dani Sordo (SPA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	6	Chris Atkinson (AUS)	Subaru Impreza WRC
	7	Hennig Solberg	Peugeot 307
	8	M. Wilson	Ford Focus RS WRC
	9	L. Perez	Ford Focus RS WRC
	10	Marcus Gronholm (FIN)	Ford Focus RS WRC

CITROEN KRONOS FINAL REPORT    (TOP OF PAGE)

• Sebastien Loeb and Daniel Elena leave Cordoba with 10 championship points as reward for their second consecutive victory on the Rally Argentina. This success, their second gravel win of the year after Mexico, is also the fourth of the year for the Franco-Monegasque pairing - who now take their total of career victories up to 24. Sebastien currently has an equal number of wins to Tommi Mäkinen, and is now headed only by Colin McRae (on 25 wins) and Carlos Sainz (on 26). DanielElena equals the record number of wins for a co-driver.
• Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "Everything about this rally is breathtaking. The scenery, the high-speed water splashes and above all the fantastic welcome we get from the Argentine fans, who give us the best reception in the world. My Citroen was as reliable, fast and consistent as usual. That was just as well, because this rally was particularly difficult this year - mostly down to the weather. We had a good fight with Marcus on the first day and that continued with Petter yesterday. For all those reasons, winning here is a special pleasure for me. As well as that, myself and Daniel extend our lead in the drivers championship while Kronos does the same in the constructors standings. As I still think we'll have a tight battle on our hands this year, that's no bad thing."
• Xavier Pons/Carlos Del Barrio: "One of my objectives is to gain confidence. There's nothing better than setting fastest times to help that along. Seb has proved that the Xsara has nothing to fear from any of its rivals. With some experience and hard work, I need to make more and more use of the car's potential. My goal is to help Kronos defend its position at the head of the manufacturers' championship."

SUBARU FINAL REPORT    (TOP OF PAGE)

• Petter Solberg finished Rally Argentina in second place. Solberg set the fastest time through one of the toughest tests in the WRC, the classic El Condor pass, to secure his second podium of the season. The Subaru World Rally Team concluded a successful Rally Argentina with a double-points finish as Chris Atkinson recorded two top five times to finish sixth.
• Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "I wanted to win here but I think to finish second is still very good, we can't complain because things went almost according to the plan. I tried everything and we would have had a very good chance of winning this rally if it wasn't for the problems we had, but underneath it all I'm feeling much more positive. The car is getting there now, we're back fighting for the lead and I can go for an attack - it's been a long time since I felt like this. I'm looking forward to the next rally!"
• Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: "It's been a difficult rally for us, it started out quite well, we were running in a high position early on, but then some problems with the car and a mistake from me cost us a lot of time. We struggled back up the order and then got a minute penalty - if it wasn't
  for that, I think we could have been fighting for a much better result. But that's life, we learned a lot here and we'll see what we can do in Sardinia."

FORD FINAL REPORT    (TOP OF PAGE)

• Ford extended its record-breaking run of points finishes in the FIA World Rally Championship to 66 when Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen finished 10th on Rally Argentina today. The Finns recovered from first-day transmission troubles while leading to climb back onto the leaderboard and claim a manufacturer point to extend the longest scoring run in the history of the FIA World Rally Championship.
• Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "The time loss on Friday was a shame and left us struggling for a result. Tenth gave the team a point but it obviously wasn't what I wanted and I'm disappointed. I had hoped for more. At least I was able to come back and set several fastest times over the second and third legs and show again that the car has plenty of pace. The rally wasn't hard on tyres, despite the long sections with no opportunity to fit new rubber, and our engineers and those from BFGoodrich made some good choices. The stage in the soccer stadium was a spectacular show. As a driver, it's great to perform in front of so many people in such a great atmosphere."

		LEG 2	APRIL 29, 2006	AFTER SS18
	POS	DRIVER	CAR	GAP
	1	Sébastien Loeb (FRA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	2	Petter Solberg (NOR)	Subaru Impreza WRC	43.1s
	3	Gigi Galli	Peugeot 307	2m 26.4s
	4	Hennig Solberg	Peugeot 307	3m 36
	5	Manfred Stohl	Peugeot 307
	6	Dani Sordo (SPA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	7	Chris Atkinson (AUS)	Subaru Impreza WRC
	8	L. Perez	Ford Focus RS WRC
	9	M. Wilson	Ford Focus RS WRC
	10	Marcus Gronholm (FIN)	Ford Focus RS WRC

		LEG 1	APRIL 28, 2006	AFTER SS10
	POS	DRIVER	CAR	GAP
	1	Sébastien Loeb (FRA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	2	Petter Solberg (NOR)	Subaru Impreza WRC	19.8s
	3	Gigi Galli	Peugeot 307	59.4s
	4	Manfred Stohl	Peugeot 307
	5	Hennig Solberg	Peugeot 307
	6	Dani Sordo (SPA)	Citroen Xsara WRC
	7	Chris Atkinson (AUS)	Subaru Impreza WRC
	8	M. Wilson	Ford Focus RS WRC
	9	L. Perez	Ford Focus RS WRC
	10	G. Mac	Ford Focus
	20	Marcus Gronholm (FIN)	Ford Focus RS WRC

CITROEN KRONOS LEG REPORT    (TOP OF PAGE)

• At the end of a gruelling first leg, which comprised almost half the competitive distance of the rally, Sébastien Loeb, Daniel Elena and their Kronos-run Citroen Xsara WRC returned to the Feriar Complex in Cordoba leading the event. Dani Sordo and Marc Marti were sixth overnight, having predictably climbed a steep learning curve. Xevi Pons and Carlos Del Barrio
  were forced into retirement halfway through the day following a small 'off'. They will re-start tomorrow under the super rally regulations.
• Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "On the last stage of the day, I really thought for a moment that I was going to lose my lead. The first few kilometres were really sandy : there was no grip and I made a series of mistakes. I hit the side of the road about three times and I nearly spun
  twice. I really had to calm things down then. It's on stretches of road like that where you realise how much work the active differentials used to do. Tomorrow is going to be almost as long as today and the stages are going to be just as varied. We're going to have a lot of fun, although our plan is still to attack. Marcus is no longer in the running, but there's always Petter."

SUBARU LEG 1 REPORT

• Petter Solberg holds second place overall at the end of Leg one of Rally Argentina. Solberg was fastest on three of the Leg's nine stages and will start tomorrow's second day of competition less than 20 seconds behind rally leader Sebastien Loeb. On only his second Rally Argentina, Chris Atkinson lies in seventh place.
• Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "It's been a very interesting day, a lot has happened to us, but it's good fun fighting at the top and winning stages, that's where we belong. The gap between me and Sebastien is less than 20 seconds now - of course it's hard not to imagine where I could have been without losing time here and there today, but that's the game and we have two days still to come. I'm feeling very good about things and am really looking forward to tomorrow."

FORD LEG 1 REPORT

• BP-Ford World Rally Team drivers Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen led Rally Argentina for much of today's opening leg until problems halted their Focus RS World Rally Car this afternoon. The Finns won two speed tests to build an advantage on this sixth round of the FIA World Rally Championship but their hopes of a third win of the season were dashed. Team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen were third in a similar Focus RS when engine troubles brought their day to a premature end.
• Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "About 8km after the start of the stage I came into a corner and the car stalled. I restarted the engine but could not select any gears. I locked the differentials and covered another 300 metres but then we came to another tight corner and that was it. I don't know what the problem was but obviously I'm really disappointed to retire when things were going so well"

RALLY PREVIEW

CITROEN (KRONOS) RALLY PREVIEW  (TOP OF PAGE)

• Sixth round of the 2006 FIA World Rally Championship, the Rally Argentina offers to the competitors their first trip to the Southern hemisphere this season.
• Welcome in the country of Evita and Fangio, also the fatherland of tango, proud gauchos and fantastic steaks.
• Three Citroën Xsaras have travelled for a long journey to Córdoba. Two of them, in compliance with the 2006 specifications, will be entered under the Kronos Total Citroën World Rally Team banner, currently leading the `Manufacturers' championship. They will be driven by reigning World champions, Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena, the 2005 Rally Argentina winners, and by their Spanish team-mates Xevi Pons and Carlos Del Barrio.
• The third Citroën Kronos Racing 2005 version's Xsara is rented since the start of the season by Dani Sordo thanks to the support of his Spanish partners. Marc Marti who won the event in 2004 next to Carlos Sainz co- drives as usual the Junior World Champion.
• The 2006 edition of the rally includes big news. Córdoba `La Docta', Argentina's second city and Córdoba Province's capital, takes over from the balneal town of Villa Carlos Paz as host city. Rally HQ, service park, shakedown and super special stage all move around 30 kilometres to the East.
• However, the `playground' remains similar. The rally route covers the same stages as for previous years, as most drivers appreciate its various terrains including a large number of jumps and water-splashes. The event will take the competitors through the Córdoba's Sierras, located West of the town and will pay a visit to the three different valleys of Punilla, Calamuchita and Traslasierra.
• Taking place for the past two years during the Argentine winter, the event comes back to its 2003 date. Competitors will not experience snowy stages like last year in the area of Mina Clavero or `Camino de las Altas Cumbres, and fall promises much more clement temperatures and probably dry weather... It was the case three years ago but one thing needs to be remembered: in the stages, the drivers will have to face heavy dust suspended in the air when no wind blows.
• Dry conditions might also mean `road sweeping' on Friday for the first drivers in the rankings, like Sébastien Loeb current leader of the Drivers' championship. Another similarity with the 2003 edition is that the first leg covers over 110 competitive kilometres. The first day's classification might depend on the thickness of gravel to be cleaned from the surface. In any case, Seb or Marcus Grönholm starting just behind will experience pretty similar conditions.
• For the fourth year in a row, a thrilling battle might oppose Marcus to a Xsara driver. In 2003 and 2004, the Finn fought against Carlos Sainz. They both won one event. Last year, Seb took over from his experienced former team- mate and succeeded in winning over his main rival for this year's title...
• "The fight can be a party" has written the Argentine Jorge Luis Borges. In the sumptuous decor of the sierras and in front of hundred thousands of enthusiastic and passionate spectators, the Kronos team hopes this can be the case...
• Questions to Marc Van Dalen, team principal:
• Your team has discovered Argentina last year. What do you remember from this participation?
  "What comes first to my mind is the popular, warm and joyful side of the event. It's a rally that all drivers and co-drivers appreciate particularly. We experienced a problem-free race last year especially for the water-splashes as we were well advised by Citroën Sport. We were delighted with our finish with Manfred Stohl and Xevi Pons being the two first privateers. The conditions were wintry. This year some things would have changed as the rally takes place almost three months earlier, in autumn in the Southern hemisphere. But it won't be completely unknown as the Citroën team had competed in the event in 2003."
• You certainly have learned from the Mexican round...
  "We have verified with a great pleasure that the Xsara still has the potential to fight in front. Seb could make up the time he had lost on Petter Solberg after he had to clean the road. Regarding Marcus Grönholm we still have the same question mark as before Corsica. In Mexico, like in Catalunya, Marcus was delayed just at the same time as Seb, having changed his set-up, increased the pace. Of course, I wish that this continues and that another rally-free mistake of the team allows the `Xsara/BFGoodrich/Loeb/Elena' package to fight for the win. I also expect a good performance from Xevi Pons who will benefit from last year's experience here behind the wheel of the Xsara WRC."
• What is Dani Sordo's target in Argentina ? And what programme for him next?
  "For Dani, we can also think of `parallels' between the pairs Catalunya/ Corsica and Mexico/Argentina. In Corsica, he had to confirm his excellent Spanish result and he did it brilliantly. In Argentina, we hope to see him drive on a higher pace than Mexico but he has to keep in mind that his priority number one is to be at the finish to pile up the most experience he can. Regarding the rest of his programme, there are good news. His Spanish supports and partners have decided to help him competing on a WRC in Sardinia and Greece which will be the two remaining events before the season break. He participated in these two events last year in Super 1600. In Sardinia, he will be like every time so far our `Third man'...."
• Questions to Sébastien Loeb:
• In 2003, you have said that because of the variety of roads it was difficult to describe THE Argentine special stage. What do you think after three participations?
  "I already liked this country after we completed the recce in 2002. Now I really love the rally and its public, the warmest of the Championship I think. Globally, the terrain isn't aggressive. It's quite sandy with a uniform grip but can be rutted on the second passage in a stage. The speed tests are various, technical and specific. On the recce, it is difficult to note the jumps on which you don't take off flat but which launch the car in spectacular poses. It's also tricky to evaluate the water's level the day of the rally in the water-splashes which we will cross at high speed. On the driving side, I put Argentina in my top five rallies. The sensations are great and we take a lot a pleasure driving there."
• Can you tell us how you prepared the event with Citroën Sport's test team?
  "For this rally, we had at disposal a solid technical basis. Since 2003, the Xsara has always fought for a win on the Argentine ground. To this data, we have added the information gathered during the season's first gravel round in Mexico, especially regarding the mechanical differentials' working. We have worked like our rivals in Sardinia where you can find some stages with quite a lot of similarities to Argentina. The classical preparation work included the usual tyre tests with BFGoodrich's technicians. We also tried to fine-tune every single detail. This is important as the fight is very tight..."
• By the way, how do you imagine the Argentine round?
  "In Mexico, Petter [Solberg] took profit from his starting order and proved afterwards that he was still in the pace on gravel. Marcus [Grönholm] after a rather long road cleaning session was 4 seconds ahead of us. He also has always been very competitive in Argentina. So, the strategy is very simple: opening the road, we will have to drive flat out from the very first meter and clean the road on more than 110 kilometres. Marcus will start just behind me and Petter will only have four cars in front of him. I hope that Friday night the victory could still be possible. In the opposite case, we will see. With thee consecutive wins and a small cushion in the championship leaderboard, it gives us a bit of fresh air...."

FORD RALLY PREVIEW  (TOP OF PAGE)

BP-Ford looks to strengthen its hand on Argentine gravel

• The asphalt of Mediterranean Europe gives way to the gravel of south America as the BP-Ford World Rally Team crosses both the equator and the Atlantic Ocean for Rally Argentina (27 - 30 April) next week. Remarkably for a series in which 11 of the 16 rallies are gravel, this sixth round of the FIA World Rally Championship is only the second traditional loose surface event of the year.
• The new Ford Focus RS World Rally Car showed its speed on gravel in Mexico last month when both Marcus Gronholm and Timo Rautiainen and team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen fought for the lead. With BP-Ford second in the manufacturers' championship and just three points from the lead, and Gronholm second in the drivers' standings, the first of three loose surface events which end the first half of the season provides a perfect opportunity to strengthen their positions.
• Rally Argentina is probably the most varied event of the season. Each leg visits different parts of Cordoba province and the roads vary in their surface and characteristics. In the main, they are soft and sandy. They frequently become rutted during a second pass and quickly become muddy in the wet. However, Sunday's notorious El Condor and Giulio Cesare tests are among the most demanding of the year, as rocky ribbons of road wind through a spectacular lunar-like landscape.
• Tricky river crossings abound (organisers state there are 27 rivers and fords to be crossed!) and stunning scenery across the wide open plains provides superb viewing for the passionate Latin American fans who flock into the speed tests in massive numbers. They generate a crackling atmosphere as impromptu roadside fiestas spring up alongside the stages and despite the long journey, the special ambience that surrounds the event is enjoyed by all in the BP-Ford team.
• Thirty-eight-year-old Gronholm has a good record in Argentina. The Finn won in 2003 and has twice finished second from his seven previous starts. "This is a rally that I know well," he said. "We have three gravel rallies in succession now and it is important that we do well in all of them. I need to close the gap on Sebastien Loeb in the drivers' championship and I'm looking at the gravel events to do that. The Focus RS showed in Mexico that it is fast on the loose and I'm sure we will be quick in Argentina also.
• "It's not a particularly difficult rally. The stages are not so technical and quite straight forward but each leg is different. The roads down near Santa Rosa de Calamuchita, which we drive on the second day, are the fastest and my favourites - they seem to suit me.
• "One thing that I am unsure about is the river crossings. I don't know how fast I can go into them in a Focus so I will have to be cautious initially. Much of the under bonnet cooling package is located at the front so it will be important not to enter the water too fast and damage that. It seems silly to talk about water damaging a car but when you cross a river at speed, the force of the water really can cause problems and we must avoid that," he added.
• Hirvonen has only competed here twice, his best result coming in 2004 when he was fourth. The 25-year-old Finn is enthusiastic about his chances. "In Mexico the car was going very well before I went off the road and I can't wait to see if I can find a similar speed in Argentina," he said. "These next three rallies are the most important part of the first half of the season for me. The points I scored on the last rally in Corsica were good for my confidence but also moved me up the championship standings and mean I have a good start position for the first leg in Argentina.
• "The Focus RS handled perfectly in Mexico and I think high-speed gravel events bring the best out of the car. Argentina has plenty of fast sections with big jumps but also slower roads where my driving will have to be more precise. The rally has a bit of everything. Sunday's final day is the most fascinating in the whole championship. The landscape is how I would imagine the moon to be, with solid rock everywhere and a narrow road down the middle," he added.
• Team News
• * BP-Ford will use BFGoodrich's g-Force low wear gravel tyres and teams are only allowed to nominate one tread pattern this year. The pattern is relatively compact to ensure a maximum amount of rubber is in contact with the ground for the best possible grip and traction. The grooves can be hand cut to open them if there is a lot of loose gravel on the road surface or if the tracks become muddy. The tyres will be available in soft, medium and hard compounds.
• * The privately run Stobart-VK-M-Sport Ford Rally Team has entered two 2004-specification Focus RS WRCs. Britain's Matthew Wilson / Michael Orr and Argentines Luis Perez Companc and Jose Maria Volta will drive. The rally is the fourth round of the Junior World Rally Championship and Estonia's Jaan Molder and German co-driver Katrin Becker will drive a Fiesta S1600.
• * Ford TeamRS director Jost Capito, BP-Ford director Malcolm Wilson and Marcus Gronholm spent two days in Moscow this week as part of Ford Russia's Focus ST road car launch. Media drove the car, upon which the Focus RS WRC is based, while Gronholm undertook photoshoots and interviews for various Russian magazines.
• Rally Route
• The rally follows a similar format to 2005, visiting the three valleys of Cordoba province, each offering stages of differing character and landscape. However, the rally base has moved from the Pro-Racing motorsport complex near Villa Carlos Paz to Cordoba's Feriar exhibition halls. The Pro-Racing super special has been switched to Cordoba's soccer stadium, opposite Feriar, which will open the action on Thursday evening and bring it to a close on Sunday lunchtime. The first full day is the longest, covering 159.73km in the Punilla Valley, north of Carlos Paz. It includes two tests unused since 2003 and two more used in the opposite direction to 2005. The second day is a mix of the same tests and faster roads in the Calamuchita valley to the south. The final leg covers just 41.30km and initially heads south-west to the Traslasierra mountains for the rocky El Condor and Giulio Cesare stages, two of the most famous and toughest in the championship, which peak at 2195 metres. Drivers face 22 stages covering 351.44km in a route of 1474.82km.

(TOP OF PAGE)

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