Great Britain : Mitsubishi Motors - Preview
After tackling the varied and tricky asphalt in Germany two weeks ago, the Mitsubishi Motors Motor Sports WRC team heads back to gravel in the UK for Wales Rally GB (September 15-18) and the 12th round of the FIA World Rally Championship. The team will once again field a two-car entry with Harri Rovanperä/Risto Pietiläinen and “Gigi” Galli/Guido d`Amore behind the wheel of the Mitsubishi Lancer WRC05s.
“We are expecting to show our best performance before Rally Japan,” commented Isao Torii, Head of Mitsubishi Motor Sports. “Harri has always shown good pace on Rally GB, he has good confidence in the car and is ready to go for it now that we have also demonstrated our reliability. Gigi has only ever completed the recce for this event, so again it will be a rally to gain experience. But, he showed in Germany that he has regained his confidence and can go at a good speed. I am expecting him to finish the rally and we are not pushing pressure on him for a top result. We had a good test for this event, Japan and Australia, the team is very motivated and we have confidence in the technical side. My expectation is to take a good result to Rally Japan.”
Harri Rovanperä has contested Rally GB no fewer than nine times and the Finn has always had a good run through the British forests. His most notable results include a victory in the World 2-Liter category in 1997 and sixth overall in 1998. He was on the podium the following year, in third position, and went one better in 2001 when he claimed second overall. Last year he finished sixth.
“I like this rally and have good memories from the old times, when the weather made conditions so difficult and the rally was much longer; then, it was very interesting!” said Harri Rovanperä. “Now the event is much shorter and has the type of stages I really enjoy. Hopefully the weather will be good and, for the tires, as long as we have either dry or wet conditions, then the choices are quite clear. But, I think we have good Pirelli tires for this event anyway. Basically we will run the same car as Finland, with finalized settings from our recent test. I`m quite confident we can push hard in GB.”
Team-mate Gigi Galli has never previously competed in Rally GB, although the Italian has undertaken the recce twice, once with Pirelli (2003) and once for his own experience (2004). It will be another steep learning curve for the 32- year-old from Livigno.
“For me, I will have the same attitude I had in Germany, nothing more, nothing less,” said Gigi Galli. “It will be a case of being patient, learning, gaining experience and seeing how our pace compares. I think the stages are quite good, but for sure the rally is fast and I think quite difficult.”
Adding to the drivers` comments, Yasuo Tanaka, the team`s Technical Director said: “Our specification remains similar to Finland, with small set-up changes to suit the specific conditions. Weather conditions are always difficult on this rally, but during our test we confirmed all possibilities and with our good reliability, I have confidence for this rally.”
For the second year, Rally GB will be held in September and while everyone expected the date change to make a difference last year, the crews still experienced torrential rain during one of the oldest and most prestigious rounds of the FIA World Rally Championship. Large crowds are however always drawn to the Welsh forests and, despite the weather being one of the hottest talking points, few are disheartened by the potentially inclement end of summer weather. Whatever, the gravel stages in the Welsh forests always provide spectacular action and with everything still to fight for in the Championships, all the crews will be fighting their own personal battles.
The base for Wales Rally GB remains in the Welsh capital of Cardiff, 210 kilometers west of London and in the mouth of the Severn River, but the base for all the action is Swansea, 70 kilometers to the north-west. The event kicks off with an evening ceremonial start in Cardiff on Thursday September 15, with the crews then heading immediately to Swansea in preparation for Friday`s opening day of competition.
The first leg, to the north and east of Swansea, covers two identical loops of three stages totaling 136.74 competitive kilometers, the longest day of the event. Saturday takes the crews to the north-east of Swansea for another seven stages totaling 103.86 competitive kilometers before returning to Cardiff for an all-new 1.1 kilometer super special stage in the world-famous Millennium Stadium, host to numerous international sporting events and rally headquarters.
The final leg, on Sunday, moves directly east of Swansea for the closing four stages - two run twice - before the finish back in Cardiff at 14:00 hrs (local). In total, Wales Rally GB covers 17 very traditional stages and 354.22 competitive kilometers in a total distance of 1,252.25 kilometers.


Tags: wales, mitsubishi, rain, weather, great-britain,