Publicat in: July 28, 2009, Vizualizari: 38
... There are ninety crews on the entry list, making this easily the biggest entry in the championship this year. Included are four S2000s. Nearly forty entries are in two-wheel drive cars, a remarkably high proportion for a gravel world championship rally
... Tommi Makinen Racing the Nordic official base supplier for Subaru Group N cars will run the Fiat Grand Punto S2000 cars for Kimi Raikkonen and Anton Alen.
... Former World Rally Car driver Janne Tuohino returns to the rally this time at the wheel of has the ex Juha Salo Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, the 2008 Group N championship winning car.
... The rally sees the first world rally car drive for Matthias Therman, whose family company is the brewery which produces Karjala beer, one of the official suppliers to the event organisers.
... Competitors with small engined cars have special entry concessions from the organisers. Nine entries are with for Polo 1.4 cars.
... For the first time year Sebastien Loeb does NOT start first car on the road for the opening leg of the event. Mikko Hirvonen has this duty.
... On a couple of days before the start their will be an initial shoot-out of candidate rally drivers from North Europe for the Pirelli Star Driver scheme. Apart from personal assessment tests, drivers will be examined on part of the Ruuhimaki stage close to Jyvaskyla. Then twice world champion seven times NORF winner Marcus Gronholm will be a guest driver at a rallysprint competition run at the Killeri track run on the Saturday evening, where the rally has run a superspecial stage the two previous evenings. Gronholm will be driving a 500bhp Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX.
... Mark Wallenwein takes over the TRT entry from Alessandro Bettega.
... Munchi’s will only be allowed to score points with Villagra’s entry even though they have three entries and even though their number two entry for Matti Rantanen will carry the team’s official competition number 10.
3mmm