Handbrakes & Hairpins issue 313

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07/ BRC Media. 09/ H&H Social Media Service. 10/ Ekaterina Stratieva: Bulgarian Rally Rose. 11/ ERC Acropolis Rally
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HANDBRAKES &HAIRPINS



YOUR insight into the world of RALLY!

ISSUE 313/CONTENTS 01/ Cover 02/ ATS 03/ Editorial Information 04/ Opening Shot 05/ Dakar and the Lion 07/ BRC Media 09/ H&H Social Media Service 10/ Ekaterina Stratieva: Bulgarian Rally Rose 11/ ERC Acropolis Rally of Greece 13/ 1st Race 14/ Closing Shot

EDITORIAL INFORMATION Editor/ Evan Rothman Photojournalist/ Eva Kovkova Contributors/ Liga Stirna, Kris Karnitiss

CONTACT INFORMATION E-mail us/ [email protected] Call us/ +27 83 452 6892 Surf us/ http://wp.me/pkXc All content copyrighted property of HANDBRAKES & HAIRPINS, 2007-13. This publication is fully protected by copyright and nothing may be reprinted in whole or in part without written permission from the editor. While reasonable precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of information from sources and given to readers, the editor cannot accept responsibility for any inconvenience or damage that may arise therefrom.



#OPENINGSHOT

The countdown to the start 2014 British Rally Championship has begun: 6 weeks to the start! Picture: BRC/Jakob Ebrey Photography.

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#DAKARANDLIONS

The Dakar returns to the concept of a looped route, with the start and finish in Buenos Aires. The tracks and dunes of Argentina, Chile and Bolivia will also witness the return of Peugeot. Words: H&H / Pictures: Newspress.

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There will be a familiar tone at the opening ceremony on 03 January 2015, just before the start of the 37th edition of the Dakar. It was in Buenos Aires that the rally underwent a rebirth in 2009, with the start of a Latino era in its development. On this first journey to South America, the Dakar competitors were won over by the charm of the Argentinean landscapes, the Andes Mountains and the Atacama Desert in Chile. In 2015, a looped route with the start and finish in the Argentinean capital will again be on the programme to pay homage to this moment in the race’s history. Since 2009, the Dakar has been enhanced by the encounter with its hosts (with three times more vehicles ridden/driven by South Americans in 2014) as well as the discovery of new lands and countries. In addition to Argentina and Chile, which will see Iquique host the rest day for the first time, the route again includes an excursion into Bolivia. The country that enthralled the bike and quad riders last January will also enchant the car drivers during the next edition. The continent’s specific geographical features have won over the competitors and have also encouraged the organisers to try out new sporting challenges. After their extraordinary adventure in 2013, which saw them smash the record for the celebrated Pikes Peak Hill Climb, Peugeot Sport, Red Bull and Total have again joined forces for another exacting yet equally exciting challenge: the Dakar. To take on the 10,000km of the world’s longest and toughest cross-country rally 25 years after the French car manufacturer last contested the event, the team has recruited Carlos Sainz and Cyril Despres. Inevitably, the decision recalls a particularly successful period in the history of the French team which made an indelible mark on the Dakar by winning the legendary competition four years running from 1987 until 1990, first with the 205 T16 Grand Raid, then with the equally iconic 405 T16 Grand Raid. The Dakar will naturally be the chief focus of Peugeot’s new, multi-year programme which will also include a certain number of other events in order to help it to prepare for the annual South American marathon. The team’s driver lineup stars the 2010 Dakar victor Carlos Sainz, who brings his extensive experience and car-development skills to the table, as well as the event’s five-time winner on two wheels, Cyril Despres, who has chosen Peugeot to kick off a new career on four wheels. Bruno Famin, Director of Peugeot Sport, said: “The Dakar has changed a great deal in the past 25 years but you still design cars in the same way. We still have a certain amount of data from the late 1980s which we will be able to use. Above all, though, we have built up considerable experience of designing rally cars. Cross-country rallies and conventional rallies are effectively slightly different, but the approach and know-how are exactly the same. And that 06 H&H

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know-how is something we have.” Carlos Sainz: “I have often competed against Peugeot Sport in the past and I have known for years just how passionate it is about motorsport. I also know that when they decide on a programme, they put everything into it. I’m the same. Given how much I love the Dakar, it was too good a proposal to resist when Peugeot asked me to be part of its line-up for its comeback to this unique adventure.”

#BRCMEDIADAY

Mud, mud, glorious mud, there’s nothing quite like it for making a cracking MSA British Rally Championship Media Launch. Well, sunshine would have been nice, but after last year’s overnight snow cancelled the event – we’ll take the cold, wind and mud any day. Words: H&H / Picture: BRC/Jakob Ebrey Photography.

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With the Championship and Road to Wales contenders due to cross the start line in a little over six weeks, sponsors, competition winners and media from far and wide, local TV, radio, newsprint and photographers all grabbing the opportunity to meet some of the crews ahead of the 2014 season. A great mix of seasoned drivers and newcomers had a 1.9km forest stage to show off their skills in a great range of cars across the BRC classes. Arguably the highest profile of the drivers was former double British Rally Champion Jonny Milner, putting his development Abarth 500 through its paces between the trees whilst entertaining ITV Yorkshire. M-Sport showed off their stunning Fiesta R200, Pirelli Star Driver Daniel McKenna flew in from Ireland and expected front-runner Osian Pryce unveiled the new colourful livery on his rally-winning Citroën DS3. Hoping to follow in the footsteps of Ford’s WRC driver Elfyn Evans by winning the British Junior Championship, rising stars Georgia Shiels driving an Abarth 500 and Gus Greensmith’s Fiesta Zetec took the opportunity to entertain the media and dust off some cobwebs, providing a media day visitor and current Champion Ben McKay with some food for thought! The 2014 BRC calendar has been revised following the last-minute cancellation of the Rally North Wales (5 April) due to insufficient entries and the consequential potential loss of more than £10,000. “We needed 106 entries just to break-even this year. With less than 80 entries the Club was facing a potential loss of in excess of £10k, which we simply cannot afford. Cancelling last year’s rally cost the Club a similar amount and wiped out any contingency funding for this year.” said Guy Weaver, Chairman of W&SSCC Ltd. The event would have been the first of seven rounds in the 2014 MSA British Rally Championship and a qualifying round of the MSA Mintex British Historic and the MSA Pirelli Welsh Stage Championships. BRC Manager Mark Taylor said: “I feel for the organising team who have done all they can under the circumstances, committing many months of tireless work to run what was shaping up to be a first class rally. The forests are apparently in first class condition; arguably the best in Europe and it is a real shame that the rally has a significant gap in the finances to make it viable. It would seem that alongside current uncertainties and lack of available sponsorship, motorsport seems to be lagging behind in the economic recovery, taking its toll on stage rallying.” The first round of the Championship will now be the Pirelli Carlisle RB Foundation Rally on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th May. The Championship regulations provide for the loss of a qualifying round, which now means that the BRC will be decided over six qualifying events and seven rounds, with competitors discounting their two single worst scores. 08 H&H

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#BULGARIANROSE

Ekaterina Stratieva will promote her native Bulgaria through her exploits in the FIA European Rally Championship, which continue on this week’s Acropolis Rally in Greece. Words: H&H / Picture: ERC Media. Stratieva, a contender for ERC Production Car Cup honours, has launched a new initiative, the Bulgarian rose on the European rally stages, as she explained: “The idea of this project is that from now I want to present to all my friend, fans, competitors, organisers, media and other people from where I come what is typical for Bulgaria. “The name of my project comes not only from the fact that the rose is the symbol from my country. But many times people tell me that I am a flower of motorsport. This sport is very strong. Most of the competitors are men and the girl looks more like a flower.” Stratieva continued: “From now before every rally I will produce some news and a movie with something special about Bulgaria. Many times people, fans and other drivers ask me where is Bulgaria, how I write kirilica, why we have real Bulgarian cheese and other things. Now is the moment to show them.” A graduate in art and design, Stratieva has used her skills to create a new design for her race suit. “It will be with traditional Bulgarian motives. At this moment I am not ready with the design of my car but I still have a little time.” As well as targeting ERC Production Car Cup honours on the Acropolis Rally in her Napoca Rally Academy-prepared Subaru Impreza, Stratieva will chase ERC Ladies’ Trophy points on the mixed-surface contest, which takes place this weekend. Watch her video here: http://bit.ly/1pzHOY1

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#ACROPOLISRALLY

There will be serious competition ahead when the legendary Acropolis Rally returns to the FIA European Rally Championship roster for the first time in almost 50 years this weekend. Words: H&H / Pictures: ERC Media.

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While event base Loutraki on the banks of the Gulf of Corinth will be familiar to many, the switch to a mixed-surface format marks a return to past glories when sealed-surface sections were combined with the punishing gravel tracks that remain entrenched in Acropolis Rally folklore. Day One of the Greek event (Saturday) will use Tarmac stages only, with Day Two (Sunday) made up by the event’s more traditional gravel stages, with the exception of the all-asphalt superspecial in the town of Korinthos. The change of format for the 60th running of the Acropolis Rally is the result of the event’s earlier-than-usual March date. To counter the prospect of some of the more mountainous gravel stages becoming unusable in the event of heavy rain or snow, organisers have added an all-Tarmac opening leg to the itinerary. This will be less susceptible to inclement weather, thereby avoiding the risk of stages having to be cancelled if conditions deteriorate. Day One’s route takes in two loops of three high-speed asphalt stages south of Loutraki. At the completion of Leg One, teams get 90 minutes to service their cars and convert them to gravel specification for the loose-surface second leg, which takes in two loops of three gravel tests south and east of Loutraki, plus the all-asphalt Super Special Korinthos. The event takes in 238.84km of competitive action. While the M-Sport Ford Fiesta R5 is already a winner in the ERC, Peugeot’s 208 T16 will make its first competitive start in the Championship here having been trialled on last year’s Geko Ypres Rally. Kevin Abbring and Craig Breen will drive a brace of 208 T16s for Peugeot Rally Academy and will go up against the Fiesta R5s of Kajetan Kajetanowicz and Jourdan Serderidis. Two rounds into the new season and the race for the prestigious ERC title is already taking centre stage with Esapekka Lappi, 23, and Vasily Gryazin, 20, starting the Acropolis Rally just two points apart. Finn Lappi, who drives a factory Skoda Fabia S2000, won the last round in Latvia where he faced strong opposition from Russia’s Gryazin, who drives a Fiesta S2000 for Sports Racing Technologies. ERC event winners Bryan Bouffier and Bruno Magalhães will both be in action on the Acropolis Rally. Bouffier, in a Citroën DS3 RRC, will be gunning to avenge his early exit from Rally Liepāja last month, while Magalhães (Peugeot 207 S2000) is gearing up to tackle his first event away from Portuguese soil since 2011. Promising Skoda Fabia drivers Sepp Wiegand and Henk Lategan are among a number of Acropolis Rally debutant entrants. Wiegand, who competes under the Skoda Auto Deutschland banner, was a strong fifth on his first ERC start of 2014 in Latvia last month, while Lategan is embarking on only his fourth event outside of his native South Africa having made his ERC debut in Croatia last season. The teenager is 12 H&H

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also teaming up with new co-driver Klaus Wicha for the first time. The ERC Production Car Cup has attracted six entries with Mitsubishi Lancer pilots Vitaliy Pushkar, Tibor Érdi, Charalambos Timotheou and Martin Hudec among the leading contenders. ERC Ladies’ Trophy ace Ekaterina Stratieva will also be eligible for Class points following her step up to a Subaru Impreza on Rally Liepāja. Ioannis Zounis from Greece is another driver relying on Subaru power. Honda Civic Type R exponent Zoltán Bessenyey will face opposition from Alex Filip, Todor Slavov and Simone Tempestini as he bids to get his ERC 2WD Championship defence back on track following his leg-one retirement on the season-opener in Austria. Filip and Slavov are both armed with Renault Clio R3s, while Tempestini is Citroën DS3 R3Tmounted.

#CLOSINGSHOT

The FIA ERC’s Acropolis Rally this weekend is set for another celebration of rallying. Cut from the WRC calendar, the event organisers have now revamped the stages and thousands of fans are set to flock to asphalt and gravel speed tests. Picture: ERC Media.

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