Champion Crocker wins in China
Series Champion Cody Crocker snatched a last stage victory over fellow Subaru driver Hiroshi Yanagisawa to win the China Rally, final round of the FIA's Asia Pacific championship despite losing time earlier with gearbox problems. This event was held at Longyou and was the first of two major rallies to be run in China event in four weeks. After an initial superspecial stage the first day's competition consisted of a loop of three stages run three times, but heavy rains turned the stages into mud and the first stage on the third loop was cancelled when official cars helplessly blocked the route.

Hiroshi Yanagisawa went straight into the lead, taking advantage of Crocker's troubles who passed into the lead on stage 5, but he then suffered another such problem letting Yanagisawa ahead at half way. Crocker eventually caught him back again on the second day, which now was dry all day and won the event by 1,7 seconds. Herridge was also delayed by transmission trouble.

The rally also qualified for the national Chinese championship in which guest drivers from abroad can take part. Leading the foreign invasion was Juha Salo and David Higgins. Salo had many problems with punctures and brakes, while Higgins slid off the road on the first day and was too late to carry on. The other China Rally in one month's time, this time based at Shaowu, will be the final round of the IRC.

New Everyman Turbo Peugeot Rally Car
Peugeot has released details their new 207 RC Rallye, a turbocharged front wheel drive 1.6 litre car aim at the customer market and available for the 2009 Peugeot Coupe series of asphalt and gravel rallies in France. Developed in pre-production form by Stephane Sarrazin and Bryan Bouffier, lower cost and higher performance are the attractions. Sarrazin is to drive one of these new cars as zero-car on the forthcoming Criterium Cevennes and Rallye du Var events later this year. The car has already been homologated for the newly announced Group R3T category for turbocharged cars. This is the latest version of production car from Peugeot intended for private competitors, a range which has continued for over twenty years and helped shaped the career of countless top French drivers.

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