The latest auto news, reviews, prices, product and vehicle releases. Jun
24th
Stay connected Subscribe to our RSS feed
From WRC.com
Sebastien Loeb has extended the lead over his Citroen teammate Mikko Hirvonen in the FIA World Rally Championship drivers' standings following his win on this weekend's Rally New Zealand.
Finland's Hirvonen drove a faultless rally at the wheel of a Citroen DS3 WRC to help the Citroen Total World Rally Team claim their third one-two result in a row. Loeb tops the leaderboard with a total of 145 points, 38 points ahead of second-placed Hirvonen.
Ford World Rally Team's Petter Solberg has claimed the final step of the podium with his third place finish in a Ford Fiesta RS WRC. The Norwegian driver lost time due to a wrong tyre choice on the opening day but battled back to finish the event 1m36.4s behind rally winner Loeb.
Factory Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala had a bitter-sweet finish after claiming maximum points on the event's closing Power Stage. The Finnish driver was knocked out of winning contention following an off-road excursion on day one but battled back to finish seventh overall.
Russian privateer Evgeny Novikov drove a mature rally in his M-Sport Ford-run Fiesta RS WRC to finish fourth, 37.2s behind Solberg. Meanwhile, disaster struck for Rally New Zealand debutant Ott Tanak who had been running fifth for the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team.
The Estonian hit trouble on stage 20 when he rolled his Fiesta RS WRC and was forced to retire from the event.
Following a string of stage wins throughout today, Citroen Junior driver Thierry Neuville has shined on his debut in New Zealand. The 24-year-old Belgian finishes the rally in fifth place, and leaves the southern hemisphere with 10 well-deserved drivers' points.
Despite Dani Sordo's best efforts, the MINI WRC Team driver was unable to catch Neuville on the final day and reached the finish in sixth place. Fellow MINI John Cooper Works WRC driver Armindo Araujo has claimed eighth, despite suffering from damper-related problems throughout day two.
Rally New Zealand - Final classification
1. Loeb-Elena (Citroen DS3 Wrc) in 4h04min51.2s
2. Hirvonen-Lehtinen (Citroen DS3 Wrc) + 29.6s
3. P. Solberg-Patterson (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 1min36.4s
4. Novikov-Giraudet (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 2min13.6s
5. Neuville-Gilsoul (Citroen DS3 Wrc) + 2min42.4s
6. Sordo-Del Barrio (Mini Cooper Wrc) + 3min03.1s
7. Latvala-Anttila (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 4min52.9s
8. Araujo-Ramalho (Mini Cooper Wrc) + 9min36.4s
9. Block-Gelsomino (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 10min30.3s
10. Stohl-Minor (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 11min26.3s
Etc.
Championship standings
1. Loeb 145 points, 2. Hirvonen 107, 3. Solberg 90, 4. Ostberg 80, 5. Novikov 55, 6. Latvala 54, 7. Prokop 36, 8. Neuville 32, 9. Sordo 29, 10. Al-Attiyah 23, etc.
Sebastien Loeb has extended the lead over his Citroen teammate Mikko Hirvonen in the FIA World Rally Championship drivers' standings following his win on this weekend's Rally New Zealand.
Finland's Hirvonen drove a faultless rally at the wheel of a Citroen DS3 WRC to help the Citroen Total World Rally Team claim their third one-two result in a row. Loeb tops the leaderboard with a total of 145 points, 38 points ahead of second-placed Hirvonen.
Ford World Rally Team's Petter Solberg has claimed the final step of the podium with his third place finish in a Ford Fiesta RS WRC. The Norwegian driver lost time due to a wrong tyre choice on the opening day but battled back to finish the event 1m36.4s behind rally winner Loeb.
Factory Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala had a bitter-sweet finish after claiming maximum points on the event's closing Power Stage. The Finnish driver was knocked out of winning contention following an off-road excursion on day one but battled back to finish seventh overall.
Russian privateer Evgeny Novikov drove a mature rally in his M-Sport Ford-run Fiesta RS WRC to finish fourth, 37.2s behind Solberg. Meanwhile, disaster struck for Rally New Zealand debutant Ott Tanak who had been running fifth for the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team.
The Estonian hit trouble on stage 20 when he rolled his Fiesta RS WRC and was forced to retire from the event.
Following a string of stage wins throughout today, Citroen Junior driver Thierry Neuville has shined on his debut in New Zealand. The 24-year-old Belgian finishes the rally in fifth place, and leaves the southern hemisphere with 10 well-deserved drivers' points.
Despite Dani Sordo's best efforts, the MINI WRC Team driver was unable to catch Neuville on the final day and reached the finish in sixth place. Fellow MINI John Cooper Works WRC driver Armindo Araujo has claimed eighth, despite suffering from damper-related problems throughout day two.
Rally New Zealand - Final classification
1. Loeb-Elena (Citroen DS3 Wrc) in 4h04min51.2s
2. Hirvonen-Lehtinen (Citroen DS3 Wrc) + 29.6s
3. P. Solberg-Patterson (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 1min36.4s
4. Novikov-Giraudet (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 2min13.6s
5. Neuville-Gilsoul (Citroen DS3 Wrc) + 2min42.4s
6. Sordo-Del Barrio (Mini Cooper Wrc) + 3min03.1s
7. Latvala-Anttila (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 4min52.9s
8. Araujo-Ramalho (Mini Cooper Wrc) + 9min36.4s
9. Block-Gelsomino (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 10min30.3s
10. Stohl-Minor (Ford Fiesta RS Wrc) + 11min26.3s
Etc.
Championship standings
1. Loeb 145 points, 2. Hirvonen 107, 3. Solberg 90, 4. Ostberg 80, 5. Novikov 55, 6. Latvala 54, 7. Prokop 36, 8. Neuville 32, 9. Sordo 29, 10. Al-Attiyah 23, etc.