Sebastien Ogier added to his season tally and increased his lead in the World Rally Championship (WRC) this weekend when he won the Rally Italy. Held on the isle of Sardinia, off the coast of mainland Italy, the win gives the Frenchman and his compatriot co-driver Julien Ingrassia 20 victories in top-flight rallying.
For the most part of the weekend though, all eyes were on Ogier’s teammate Jari-Matti Latvala. The Flying Finn had Ogier’s number as their Volkswagen Polo WRCs vied for the lead. The Volkswagen Motorsport team did well not to bark too many team orders through – leaving the two drivers to determine the outcome of the event.
The gap was down to 12,3 seconds between the teammates when Latvala slipped up on the 13th stage and hit a rock, necessitating a wheel change. The Finn and co-driver Miikka Anttila did not give up the fight, and were hot on the heels of the Citroën Total Abu Dhabi Rally Team’s Mads Ostberg and Jonas Andersson who eventually finished second overall – with the Finnish duo completing the podium just nine seconds behind their rivals.
“Respect to the entire team, and congratulations to Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia,” said Volkswagen Motorsport director, Jost Capito. “I would also like to pay a big compliment to Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila. They led the rally for a long time and were involved in a spectacular duel with Sébastien Ogier. Unfortunately a skid brought that battle to a premature end. However, I am sure there is more of that to come over the rest of the season.”
Norwegian Andreas Mikkelsen was paired-up with long-time co-driver Ola Floene, and the two put in a good fight before hitting a rock and damaging their suspension on stage 12 and deciding to take it easy for the remaining five specials. They did enough to secure fourth overall.
“That was my third fourth place in a row. I would like to go at least one better next time out. I am confident we can achieve that. The only way is up now for Ola and me,” Mikkelsen said.
Brits Elfyn Evans and Daniel Barritt rounded off the top five in their M-Sport World Rally Team Ford Fiesta RS WRC.
The next round of the WRC happens just a little further inland, when the rallying circus stops for Rally Poland, between 27-29 June.
Standings
Driver’s championship
1. Sebastien Ogier – 138 points
2. Jari-Matti Latvala – 105
3. Mads Ostberg – 66
4. Andreas Mikkelsen – 63
5. Mikko Hirvonen – 40
Manufacturer’s championship
1. Julien Ingrassia – 138 points
2. Miikka Anttila – 105
3. Jonas Andersson – 66
4. Mikko Markkula – 63
5. Jarmo Lehtinen – 40
