60. Che Guevara Energy Drink Tour de Corse 2017
6. 4. – 9. 4. 2017, Ajaccio, Bastia, Porto-Vecchio • asphalt 316.80 km • total distance including road sections - 1080.73 km • Other years • Other years
Info
SS10
"I was aiming to fight for the first place this morning but we have just had a sudden transmission problem."
"We went fast to establish a good gap and I think we did an intelligent rally. We ran when we had to and were cautious when it was needed."
"The feeling is amazing. Special thanks to the team; they have always believes in me and kept pushing me after Monte Carlo and Sweden. I wasn't sure if we could win this event after the first day but we turned it around on the second and I'm very pleased."
"It's like before in the rally, everything was strange here. I'm happy with third place."
"It's been a tough rally so we're happy to be at the end. We didn't have any power, anti-lag, the diff was locked and we had no handbrake on the last stage."
"I tried my best and enjoyed the battle. We can take some positives from the weekend. We have so little experience and we didn't make a single mistake. We have to be pleased with that."
"I went lower with the car and did a crazy attack. Maybe it was too much because I was understeering in a couple of places. We'll see what the others do."
Overshooting at a left-hand bend and having to reverse. "The tyres were getting too hot on the brakes and I was never going to make the corner so decided to use the driveway as well. Time to go home and get my season on track."
"I think we had a puncture and we lost quite a bit of time."
"We've got to try and takes some positives. We've got a lot of info for the next asphalt rally so that's something."
"I had a bad vibration after 2km with my brakes. I finished with no risks."
"It's been a great weekend for us. We had a good gap and it was about maintaining that. I hope to be back in a WRC car soon! Things are looking better on that front and I hope to be back soon. Something is going on for sure."
"It's been my best race on the Tarmac so I'm happy with that. I've learned a lot and really enjoying driving this car."
SS9
Some electrical problems on his car.
"Amazing stage but lots of sand and gravel on the road – I've never seen it so bad. I didn't have the confidence to really push. I want to get to the finish."
"We didn't push so hard as we have nothing to win. This rally is now all about learning for me."
Problem with the throttle.
"Happy with that. We just need to keep an eye on what Terry is doing behind us."
Power steering problems
Puncture
"The beginning of the stage was good but the last few kilometres were tricky because of the gravel on the stage. No room for stupid mistakes."
"We went very safely and we're trying to maintain our good gap. Keeping the concentration because it will be nice to have the factory."
"Very enjoyable stage but I really just can't find the balance with the car. I've been looking a lot."
"I didn't push too much, I just tried to be efficient. Now we're really in a good position to finish the rally."
"The feel with the car is like yesterday. I don't know whether the stage time is going to be good or bad at the finish. It's a bit like a lottery. The rally's not finished yet."
"Very disappointed because I thought we had a good stage. I don't understand why. The time is not good."
"Before the half way it was good but after that I struggled a bit. I had a couple of big impacts at the front of the car and I thought I had a puncture."
"It's hard to enjoy when you're not so competitive. The mind's already on the next rally, to be honest."
stopped, continue
SS8
"We will try to catch second place tomorrow but it could be tough."
"We drove very good today and we've had a good battle with Nil today as well."
"This stage was really complicated for me but we're just trying to be safe and keep our lead."
"It happened 10km from the finish. I decided to drive through the stage. I let Rossel and Loubet pass me."
"We felt good. We have many places where we can go faster but we are trying to learn the car as much as possible and improve the situation."
"It wasn't so bad. We had a bit of a problem with the pop-off valve but we were okay."
"We lost a lot of time because we were driving 5km behind Stephane. There was nothing I could do."
"We had a clean run and went a bit careful with all the gravel pulled out. We can always go faster but in the situation we're in we have to be clever."
"The car has been really good. No problems today and really nice stages."
"After yesterday it's not so important to push hard so I'm just trying have a good, clean rhythm and to learn some more."
"At the end of SS7 we lost hydraulic pressure. The target was to finish the day and be back at the service. We don't have any diff, no gear shifting and we're a a proper rear-wheel-drive car. It behaved quite strangely!"
"I was pushing hard so hopefully it's good enough to keep the lead tonight. It will be tough tomorrow but hopefully we've increased the lead a bit more."
"It's different now I have a bit of volume in my ear! It was quite okay. We had a strong smell of fuel at the start and had to open all the windows as my eyes started to water."
"I can't do better. For me I can't do better. I'm at maximum, maximum, maximum. But it's still not good."
"It's feeling like a completely different car compared to the first day. I'm really enjoying the driving now."
"We're just trying to enjoy the driving, but we're in no man's land at the moment. The good thing is we're a lot closer than we were last year. The set-up is okay, but there's more to come from the driver."
SS7
"I pushed so much and I'm happy. It was much, much better than this morning."
The rally organisers have halted the stage so the medical crews can attend William Wagner's Fiesta R2. More as we get it...
"We spun in the first corner."
Stopped in stage
Stopped in stage
"Really careful on this one because it was our first pass. I'm quite happy with my speed."
Stopped in stage
Stopped in stage
"I take a lot of pleasure from this stage. I want to keep my position."
"I'm trying to improve my Tarmac driving but I'm also being a little careful to avoid any big mistakes."
"There's more to come but it's not necessary at the moment. I'm trying to push as hard as I can – but I'm also being prepared for any gravel that may be around the corner."
"It was not that good. I was a bit too careful on the gravel places and that's why the time is slower than this morning."
"It's a bit better now on the set up and I can trust the car a bit more now. I don't think I've ever tried so many set ups on a rally!"
"I did quite well but I spun at the first hairpin left. Then I had a lot of wheel spin from the rear diff."
"I think the next stage will be better. I drove a blinder without the intercom so hopefully it will be even faster with notes."
"I tried to push but it's not so good."
"Definitely a better run second time through this stage. Very demanding, lots of mud and dirt on the road."
"It didn't feel so bad but it's not the time I thought it would be. I can feel the tyres overheating a little in the middle of the stage – especially on the wide part of the road."
SS6
out of road
"It's not fast enough. I would like to know why. I can't really explain it. I didn't have the feeling to be so bad but obviously it wasn't good."
"The stage was good. I was touching the sump guard a bit in the cuts and that was pushing me off line, but I'm happy with the time."
"This is the worst place in the world to lose the intercom. I had to drive the whole stage blind. I never want to do that again!"
"In this stage I pushed more and the time appears to be worse than I was expecting. It's difficult to work out the driving style that's required."
"I'm trying to create more feeling for the braking. Finally, I now have an idea of what I need to do for this afternoon."
"The grip is a lot higher in this stage but we're in a bit of 'no man's land' at the moment in terms of our position."
SS5
"Tricky start to the morning. I went straight on in the first junction and had to reverse. I feel I improved a lot my driving on the slippery sections since yesterday so that makes me feel good."
"This stage is for men! The time is not bad and the car set-up is very good for me."
"The brakes were overheating and I didn't get a good rhythm."
"I was maybe a bit too careful on this stage. There's so much gravel being pulled out so, for sure, hesitant in many places."
"I am really surprised about the time. I just tried to drive smoothly and keep my tyres."
"The car sounded strange in the stage. Sometime's it was working and sometimes it wasn't. We must find out what the problem is."
"That wasn't too bad. It was very dirty and we had to be careful. Obviously Neuville's had a good time but I'm happy. I've increased my lead, that's the main thing."
"There was definitely some sections where I was not compatible with the car and couldn't push. I cannot find more. The car is touching the road too much for me."
"The conditions are very tricky with a lot of gravel. I tried to push hard and we have done the maximum."
"I struggled in the really dirty places and I lost the brake pedal a little towards the end of the stage. But I'm happy enough."
"The worst stage in my life – unbelievable. I can't push and was really slow. By kilometre three, I just wanted to get to the end of the stage!"
"It was slippery – not an easy stage. The surface was changing a lot with some nasty places. We're changing things, but it's not easy to do on the rally."
"We're trying things and using it as a bit of a test session but we've taken a bit of a step back this morning with the set up. I need the car to help me to give me the confidence, but now it's not giving me confidence at all."
"The car is working really okay. It's an enjoyable stage but some tricky loose bits that require you to be patient."
stopped
stopped in SS5 after hitting a little wall
SS4
"Everything is good. I think the tyres were overheating a little close to the end of the stage but it's okay."
"It's been quite difficult today, but it was important to get here and we'll try to do some times tomorrow."
"I had a spin on this one in a hairpin right. I'm running my set-up a little bit differently on this rally and that makes it easy to spin. But that was the only negative for today."
"Sometimes I push too much in the corners and understeer with the front. But it's been a clean day for me."
"We had a bit of a problem with the tyres after the first stage and that's mucked around with my plan on this one. But I'm not a million miles away from the podium so its been a good day."
"They were two tough stages this afternoon with a lot of pollution and I've enjoyed them. But you're always wary of Seb because he never gives up. I'm comfortable in my pace. Let's see what tomorrow brings."
"I'm running for my life. I feel like we're on the edge everywhere. We are close to the limit and we have to calm down a bit."
"It was a difficult day but I'm happy with myself. We will try to have fun with this car a bit and we will see tomorrow."
"Let's wait and see where we are at the end of the day. We should be in second place so not a bad day. Step-by-step the feeling is getting a bit better."
SS3
"I'm taking good steps all the time and this was a good improvement. It's important for me to finish and be here."
"The car feels better all the time. We made some changes and they seemed to work."
"This is crazy. With no power steering we go slow – like at recce speed – and we still pick up a puncture. We had to stop and change it. Unbelievable."
"It's been better than this morning but can improve the speed."
"The gap is quite big so I backed off. It's a shame because I was looking forward to a good fight."
"On the second half of the stage the tyres seemed to go off and the rear was sliding all over the place. We swiped a rock face."
"We're doing what we can do."
Stopped in the stage. Hit a bridge.
Stopped in the stage.
Stopped in the stage.
Stopped in the stage.
"That wasn't so bad. I was messing a bit with the diff maps in the stage and a more familiar setting close to the end of the stage seemed to work better for me."
"That was good. I had to slow down for Ott, but the stage had a nice rhythm for me and it was okay."
"I thought I'd done a very good stage. I slowed a bit where Tänak was off the road, but the gap is too big. I will try to push on the next stage."
"I try a different style of driving and we have a little bit of understeer in the corners. The feeling is not bad but the times aren't what we expect."
"A little bit better, but not what I was expecting."
"It was a bit better. I still don't have the car I'm dreaming of, but I'm fighting like I can with it."
Went off, car has no damage. Stuck in a ditch.
SS2
"Much better than the first stage so seems like it's going in the right direction."
"I'm doing my best but really struggling. Going wide on the corners and need to find a way to change that. It's not really good."
"There is something broken in the steering rack and we can't fix it. Quite interesting to drive so we have to go really slow."
"It was okay but I made a small mistake on a small road but I think the time is okay for me."
"This stage was cleaner so easier to drive safe and be quite fast."
"Yes, I pushed pretty hard in that one."
"It felt not so bad but the time's not anywhere so that's a bit surprising. We'll sit down with the data over lunch and see what's not working."
"I'm happy to be in and around the top places. Kris is on fire but I'm driving pretty safe and there's definitely room for improvement."
"We have an issue with the hydraulics."
"Really good. This is the stage where Ogier cleaned everyone last year. We had a good recce and it's showing in the times. Let's get a new pair of shoes and see what we can do this afternoon."
On his way to the service park. Retired.
"It was okay. I was struggling a but with rhythm and could go faster. But we will see what we can do later today after we make some more changes."
"The pace is very nice but in the wide roads I'm struggling with the balance. For sure, it's not so nice even though we made some changes after the first stage."
"It is better, I had a better stage. But I can still see that on dry Tarmac I'm not driving well enough. I'm still hesitating a bit with the notes in some places. I need to improve the driving. The car is fine but I know myself."
"Yes, a good feeling on this stage as the road was a bit smoother. We changed a few things on the car and it was better for this one. I had good fun."
SS1
accident
out of road
"I went wide on a corner and hit a bridge. The (steering) arm was bent so we stopped to see. There was then a fire on the right-rear and it too a long time to stop that."
"Wow. This one was not easy at all. The last 10km I was very nervous and kept it steady on the road."
"I had a very bad feeling which is a shame. I couldn't place my car very well and that meant I couldn't go on the throttle at the right time. I will change the set up."
problem with power steering
"Today was an okay stage but impossible to commit because we have no gravel crew. I backed off in every corner because I could see some dirt on the road. Not very enjoyable."
"The problem is all of the cuts are making the road wet. There's a lot of mud and that doesn't help the confidence."
"Pretty difficult and the grip is really, really low for us. Need to try and see what we can do. Would be nice to drive at full attack."
"Quite happy. I've changed my Tarmac driving style completely and quite happy with the time. I've tried to smooth my style a little bit."
"I enjoyed it. The car's working fantastic. Thanks to my team for the hard work we put in during the test. A good start, but there's a long way to go."
"The last part of the stage was very slippery and dusty as well. I tried to drive well but not 100% happy with the car and struggled with some understeer. I was out of the line a few times. It wasn't a perfect, clean run."
"In some places I didn't feel very comfy in the car and I didn't have the confidence. Some places were a little bit damp as well."
"The car balance was quite good but when the tyre warmed up it started to understeer a bit."
"I didn't drive too well on the bumpy section of the stage, so I took it easy."
"I was expecting we would lose. There was damp at the end of the stage and I had quite a lot of understeer and was hesitating. I knew I was losing time."