2006 Rallye Monte Carlo 20-22 Jan (Round 1 of 16)
CrónicaUnder the surface, there were murmurings about the fact that Sébastien Loeb, who had crashed out of the rally on the opening day, had rejoined the event on the Saturday with a mere five minute penalty. He recovered every single lost place with the exception of the winning one. True, to succeed in rallying you need luck. And also true that Loeb is probably the only driver who could pull back five minutes under Monte conditions. but the fact remains that, having been out of the rally, he was able to take 6 championship points. There are no rights or wrongs here - just a question of whether rally traditionalists see the current SupeRally regulations as being appropriate.OK - so let's see what happened on the event, day by day.
Leg 1
The opening day of the Monte Carlo Rally 2006 looked as though it was going according to everyone's plan. The pre-start favourite had been Sébastien Loeb. Unbeaten since he first attempted the event in a WRC car, he looked set to continue his record. Together with co-driver Daniel Elena, Loeb set the fastest time on the opening stage. He was beaten by Marcus Grönholm on stage two, but Loeb retained the overall lead. The final stage of the morning loop was cancelled. This was particularly frustrating for Xavier Pons and the rest of the lower-ranked WRC crews. The first stage had been abandoned when a truck driver blocked the approach road to the stage. And they had to miss test two as well. Now they had lost three stages in a row and, with notional times being allocated to them, they found themselves three minutes off the leading pace ... without driving evan a single competitive kilometer.
The afternoon loop was a repeat of the morning's stages - except that they actually ran ...
Loeb was fastest on the first stage. But the surprising Skoda of Francois Duval came home second-quickest. The Belgian had been pedalling like mad, and the car was reported to be full of brake smoke at the end of the stages. Remember that Duval wasn't driving a Red Bull car (the 'official' manufacturer-2 team) but the First Motorsport car. Duval went one better on stage 5, coming in fastest of all. But the big news came on the final stage of the day. Event leader Sébastien Loeb put his Kronos Racing Xsara off the road and into retirement. It wasn't a particularly big accident - but the car was stuck down a bank and couldn't get out without help. But Seb would be able to rejoin the rally for Leg 2. And then the race would restart. With a vengeance!
Leg 2
Sébastien Loeb goes into the final day of the Rallye Monte Carlo 2006 with a deficit of nearly 2¾ minutes to make up. Although the Frenchman is currently lying fourth overall, he should be able to claw his way to second place by the end of the event. But, to take his next win, he really needs Marcus Grönholm to hit serious trouble.
Loeb has dominated the middle day of the event. six stages had been scheduled, but with the cancellation of SS11 (La Tour sur Tinee - Utelle 2), only five were contested. The famous stage over the Cold de Turini was covered twice, and the difficult tyre choice that had to be made this year as in every year caught out more than a few. There were retirements during the day from Francois Duval who had impressed so much in the Skoda Fabia, and Gigi Galli.
Stéphane Sarrazin had a great day, and the large Irish contingent finished the day in the mood for a wild party - Gareth McHale had set a top ten stage time during the day, and Gareth, brother Aaron and Eammon Boland were hovering around the top twenty overall!
Leg 3
Marcus Grönholm had it all sewn up before the final day even started. Only a monumental mistake on his part, or a mechanical problem, would cost him the event win. But we have seen Marcus throw wins away in the closing stages, and the Focus is straight out of the box. So nothing could be taken for granted.
As always, tyre choice has a large part to play in the outcome of the Rallye Monte Carlo. THe final day was made up of two loops of the same three stages. The first and third were a mixture of dry asphalt, large areas of ice, and some snow. The difficult decision came with stage 2 - the short Lantosque stage. Short, but dry. Taking this stage on studs would cost a huge amount of time. But, without studs, the other stages would be impossible. In the event, only Henning Solberg chose studless covers for the first loop but, as the stages dried out, more drivers joined him for the final set of stages.
The story of the final day was all about Sébastien Loeb and his charge back to the podium. He started the day in fourth place. He could probably catch Manfred Stohl, and possibly Toni Gardemeister (both in Peugeot 307WRCs). But Marcus was way out of reach and the Frenchman could only hope that the Focus would hit trouble. Loeb started the day with a stage win. Gardemeister, recognising the challenge, reacted on the Lantosque stage, pulling further ahead of the Citroen. But, back on ice, Seb set another blistering time on the final stage of the morning loop, slipping past Stohl to take third place overall.
After a return to Monaco for a final service, the crews ran through the same stages again. To be truthful, everyone had understandably settled for their current rankings. Except for Loeb. He was on the podium and within sight of second place. He was fastest on Col de Braus - but the margin over Toni was slim and it started to look like Gardemeister would hold on. The dry Lantosque was taken by Manfred Stohl - some comfort for having lost his podium place - and Loeb finished 6 seconds clear of Gardemeister. That left the margin between Citroen and Peugeot at a tantalising 6.2 seconds. It was all down to the final stage. Could Loeb pull it off? Well, you know the answer. He didn't just sneak past Toni. He totally demolished the Finn. He couldn't beat Manfred Stohl on the stage, but he finished almost half a minute faster than Toni Gardemeister. A magnificent performance that gave Loeb second place overall. Behind the glare of the Loeb charge, Marcus Grönholm had kept it all together, enjoying watching the tussle and glad that he wasn't part of it. A great victory for Marcus and his Ford team.
The 2006 season will bring a range of challenges for teams and drivers,
with new technical regulations demanding the removal of several computer
controlled systems and a longer season stretching into December. The
16-round series kicks off with the classic three-day Rallye Monte Carlo,
renowned as the most prestigious event in the Championship calendar. But
bleak and inhospitable roads in the southern French Alps can provide one
of the hardest challenges of the year.Essentially an asphalt event on technically straight-forward roads, the
Rallye Monte Carlo can be hugely difficult because of the unpredictable
weather. Drivers can face bone dry roads, streaming wet asphalt and
treacherous ice - with the threat of snow on the highest ground. They
can often encounter all on the same speed test as the route climbs and
descends mountain cols, switching from southern facing roads sheltered
from the extreme weather to exposed northern ones.There is no perfect tyre choice for such mixed conditions, especially
when each group of special stages contains three tests which can offer
vastly different conditions and on rubber that must be chosen up to four
hours before the last action begins. Frequently, the secret for success
is selecting compromise rubber which loses least time in the 'wrong'
conditions.Monaco's famous Casino Square, home to celebrity gamblers and big bets,
is where the stakes will be raised at the ceremonial start on Thursday
evening. The rally is highly compact and is based in the mountains
above Monaco and Nice with competitors returning to the Principality for
service in the port area. The opening leg is based entirely to the
north of the Var river with the second day, the longest of the event,
generally located on the opposite side. The opening day includes a
brand new stage and another not used since 1994 while the second day
includes a stage not used for 14 years as well as a first pass over the
classic Col de Turini. The final leg has a more traditional flavour.
It is based in the mountains near Sospel and includes two further passes
over the Turini, with the spectacular gorge section near Moulinet again
run downhill. Drivers tackle 18 stages in total, covering 366.39km in a
route of 1336.84km.As well as the team entries, Gigi Galli takes to the event in a 2005
spec Mitsubishi Lancer WRC, Alexandre Bengue drives a Skoda Fabia WRC,
and so does François Duval and Jan Kopecky, Toni Gardeneister is entered
in an Astra Racing Peugeot 307, and a host of other drivers in WRC cars.
It looks to be a competitive Monte Carlo.Team Previews:
1. Kronos Total Citroen
2. OMV-Peugeot Norway
3. BP-Ford
4. Stobart VK M-Sport Ford
5. 555 Subaru
6. Red Bull-Skoda Team1. Kronos Total Citroen
The Kronos Racing Belgian team participates in the event with three
Xsara WRCs. Two of these will be entered under the colours of the Kronos
Total Citroën World Rally Team: one for two-times World Champions
Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena, and the other one for their Spanish
team-mates Xavier Pons and Carlos Del Barrio.Bearing number one and two on their doors, these Xsaras depend on a team
registered in the 'Manufacturers one' category, and comply with the 2006
technical definition. The most known measures of these new regulations
are the prohibition of the electronic front and rear differentials and
an increased restriction of the spare parts changes.After dominating in 2002, and winning three times consecutively in
Monaco, Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena cannot escape the fact they will
play the role of favourites for another victory. No matter how confident
they can be, they remain very cautious. Seb does not ignore that the
changes in the other teams' line-up - and how they will adapt to the new
regulations - raise many questions. In any case, some of the answers
will be given by the first stage times.Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena: "After clinching our second world title,
Daniel and I received a lot of various requests...and it was of course
really nice. But in this very busy period, we absolutely had to do two
big test sessions. The previous years, during the Monte tests, we were
just checking everything and fine-tuning the settings. This time, with
the comeback of the mechanical front and rear diffs, we had a lot to do.
We started from a basic definition and we worked mostly on the car's
balance which is our priority It took a while. In tests now, we don't
change the differentials' settings. We simply change it with a new one:
either the rear diff itself, or if it's the front one, the gearbox in
which it's located. In that case the car could be stopped for around an
hour."Xavier Pons/Carlos Del Barrio: "In 2004, I discovered the Monte in the
Super 1600's category. In very difficult conditions, we went off the
road and unfortunately we couldn't go any further. Last year was my
first outing with a World Rally Car. There was a huge difference. I
think we set some interesting times. Unfortunately, our engine broke two
stages before the end of the event. This rally is very difficult but I
enjoy it. You should remain calm and much focused due to all the traps
you can encounter."2. OMV-Peugeot Norway
Manfred Stohl and Henning SOLBERG will participate to the 2006 World
Rally Championship in a two car team at the wheel of BOZIAN RACING
Team's PEUGEOT 307 WRC"full spec 2005" ! Man fred and Henning who
already illustrated themselves in the BOZIAN RACING outfit aboard
PEUGEOT 206 WRC in 2004 (Henning finished 6 th overall in Rally Sweden
and Man fred 6 th overall in Acropolis Rally) will compete for
Manufacturer points in 12 events of the WRC within the "OMV Peugeot
Norway World Rally Team" regrouping both drivers in BOZIAN RACING
structure. Both cars will contest the rounds in Monte Carlo, Sweden,
Mexico, Argentina, Italy, Greece, Finland, Cyprus, Turkey, Australia,
New Zealand and Great Britain. Man fred STOHL, who will contest the
whole championship, will additionaly participate to Catalunya, Corsica,
Deutschland and Japon ! Former Ski Champion, Philippe ROUX will also
join the team with a Peugeot 206 WRC in Monte Carlo.Manfred Stohl/Ilka Minor: "The initial impressions of the Peugeot 307
WRC were fine but I've learned not to rely on feelings too much. The
first rallies will show how we really will be getting along," OMV driver
Manfred Stohl explains. In the beginning Manfred Stohl had to wrestle
with the vehicle length which is 20 cm longer than the one of his car
last year. But the problem was duly solved. Said the OMV driver, tongue
firmly in cheek: "After a few kilometre the front and rear bumper were
missing - and we were back at the old measurements."Henning Solberg/Cato Menkerud: Teammate Henning Solberg is impressed by
the engine power of his new vehicle: "I'm very confident for my first
start in Monte Carlo. The team has prepared the car perfectly."3. BP-Ford
Rallye Monte Carlo heralds a new era for Ford. An exciting new Focus RS
World Rally Car is complemented by a fresh driver line-up comprising the
experience of double world champions Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen
and the raw talent of rising stars Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen.
The new Focus RS WRC, based on the recently launched Focus ST road car,
encompasses the innovative design of BP-Ford World Rally Team technical
director Christian Loriaux, his team of designers and engineers at
M-Sport and the expertise of Ford TeamRS. After a test debut on the
Rally Australia last year, the car lines-up for the first time in
serious competition at the start of a 16-round championship which covers
gravel, asphalt, snow and ice across five continents.Marcus Grönholm/Timo Rautiainen: "The car is ready on asphalt," said the
37-year-old Finn. "Testing has gone well and I already have a good
feeling with the car. I feel excited about this season and I have been
counting down the days to the start since the end of last season. It's
best not to try too hard on Rallye Monte Carlo though. It's a tough
rally and my aim is to score a good result and avoid making any silly
mistakes in the unpredictable conditions. "The rally is historic and it
has to be in the championship, but it's far from being my favourite
event. It's scary to start a stage when you don't know what the road
conditions are going to be like. You can encounter asphalt, ice and snow
and when you know you don't have the perfect tyres for one of those, you
can't drive flat out. Some years I have driven in first gear on snow and
ice for 3-4km because I have asphalt tyres on the car and I don't like
that. You really don't know what to expect round the next corner," added
Grönholm for whom this will be his seventh start.Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen: "I want to be able to learn without the
pressure of having to deliver victories on my first few rallies," he
said. "This is a great opportunity for me at Ford and I want to make the
most of it. Testing has gone well for me so far. Asphalt isn't my
favourite surface but I scored my best result on an asphalt rally in
Spain last year so I know can drive well enough on it. "I've had no
problems settling into the team. Many of the faces are the same as when
I drove for Ford in 2003 and that has made it easier. I know testing is
different to the heat of competition, but I'm confident I can start the
season well and open the year with a good, solid result," he added.4. Stobart VK M-Sport Ford
Cumbria's Matthew Wilson will make history when he arrives in Monte
Carlo for the start of this year's World Rally Championship on Thursday
the 19th of January. The 18-year-old becomes the youngest driver ever to
start a full programme of events in the sport's global series. Despite
owning a driving licence for less than two years, Matthew will go
head-to-head with the best drivers in the world as he travels through 16
countries and crosses five continents in the next 11 months. And what a
place to start: right outside Monaco's iconic Casino. The World Rally
Championship might be new to him, but Matthew's already proved his
mettle in international rallying. He won Rally Yorkshire - one of the
highest calibre events in the UK - last October, driving a Ford Focus RS
WRC similar to the one he'll be driving in Monte Carlo. But for Matthew,
this year is what his whole life has been leading up to: the chance to
play his part in the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team. The chance to
take on the world. Matthew won't be alone in the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford
Rally Team this season. The team's second Ford Focus RS WRC will be
piloted by four drivers through the year. On round one, triple Belgian
champion Pieter Tsjoen takes the wheel of the number 10 Focus. This is
Pieter's sole 2006 outing with the Cumbrian team, but the 31-year-old
brings a wealth of experience. Along with a plethora of domestic
triumphs, he has also tasted victory on the world stage, having won a
highly competitive battle on the production car round of the 2002
Catalunya Rally.Matthew Wilson/Michael Orr: "This is an amazing opportunity that people
like the Stobarts and Steve Perez, from VK, have provided me with. I
certainly intend to make the most of it. Monte Carlo is a really tricky
rally to start the programme. Unfortunately, I was too young to do the
recce last year, you have to be 18 to drive on the roads in France - I
was only 17. I've heard all the stories about Monte, about the changing
road conditions and things like that. I think one of the hardest things
will be the first time I come across a patch of ice when we're on slick
racing tyres. I will have to slow to virtually walking pace, there'll be
no grip at all. Pyschologically, that's quite tough - you have to keep
telling yourself that everybody else is doing the same thing. The minute
you try to push a bit harder on the ice, you're likely to go off the
road. It's going to be very different to the events I've done before,
but right now I just can't wait to get started."Pieter Tsjoen/ Eddy Chevalier: "Since I started rallying in 1998, I've
been aiming for a drive like this. To be part of the Stobart VK M-sport
Ford Rally Team on what is probably the most famous rally in the world
is fantastic for me. Having driven in the Belgian Championship for so
long, I have a lot of experience of asphalt rallies. Some of those
events, such as Condroz, are run in wintry conditions similar to Monte
Carlo, but it's still going to be a very big challenge for me to take on
the best rally drivers around on round one."5. 555 Subaru
The Subaru World Rally Team launches its 2006 World Rally Championship
campaign in style next week in the glamorous principality of Monaco.
Commencing on Friday 20 January, the historic Rallye Monte Carlo will
see the competitive debut of the Subaru World Rally Team's latest title
challenger, the Subaru Impreza WRC2006. Petter Solberg, Stéphane
Sarrazin and Chris Atkinson continue with the team in 2006. Chris
Atkinson makes his Monte Carlo debut with in a Subaru Australia-entered
Subaru Impreza WRC2005.Petter Solberg/Phil Mills: "I hope a podium will be possible in Monte
Carlo, but it will be a very tough rally with lots of good cars and
drivers. Marcus and Sébastien will be our main rivals but we are well
prepared and I hope we'll be able to fight with them. The team has
worked hard to be ready and has planned everything very well. A lot will
depend on the weather as always in Monte Carlo. Cold, wet and snow would
be the best conditions for us."Stéphane Sarrazin/Stéphane Prevot: "This is my second Monte Carlo Rally
with the team and I'm more relaxed than last year as I have more
experience now. I know the team, I know the car so it is automatically
better. We did well on tarmac last year and I have a very good car so I
think we can have a very good event and get a good result. This is a
very exciting rally as you never know if you will have snow or patches
of ice or just the tarmac, making it very difficult for tyre choice. I
hope all the same to get some solid points. We could get in the top
four."Chris Atkinson/Glen MacNeall: "This will be my first Monte Carlo Rally
and I'm really looking forward to the challenges of the roads. To get
ready for the event I've been watching through videos of the stages to
get a feel for them. We're running last year's car, which will make it
easier for preparation as we won't have to get used to a new car and a
new rally. Of course Petter and Stéphane are nominated to score points
for the manufacturers' championship, but it would be nice for us to get
some points too. Overall though the goal is to get miles and experience
of this specialist rally."6. Red Bull-Skoda Team
Baumschlager Rallye Racing (BRR) is the name of the new Red Bull Skoda
Team that will be taking on the field of the Rally WC 2006. Gilles
Panizzi, Mattias Ekström and Andreas Aigner are the names of the
drivers, meaning the private BRR team will be represented at the Rally
WC 2006 with a promising mixture of experienced star pilots and powerful
youngsters.Experience is what the 40-year-old Frenchman Gilles Panizzi has in
spades. Panizzi was for years unbeatable on asphalt (earning him the
nickname "Tarmac Expert" in racing circles). As part of BRR, he will
compete in the WC races in Monte Carlo, Spain and Corsica, joined by his
brother Herve as co-pilot. It has also been announced that for the
second WC race in Sweden, "local hero" Mattias Ekström will be taking
the wheel. At 28, the Swede has already had a remarkable amount of
experience with winning: he captured the DTM in 2004 and finished second
behind Gary Paffet in 2005. Ekström, who has long displayed ambitions to
drift from the asphalt, was the Group N winner at the Sweden rally.The third man, and the rookie of the team, is Austrian rally talent and
Red Bull Rallye Junior Andreas Aigner. The 21-year-old was discovered
two years ago. This year, he's already made a name for himself at
several Rally WC races in Group N. "Andreas, in particular, will profit
from the experience of the two older pilots and learn a great deal,"
says team coach Raimund Baumschlager.Gilles Panizzi/Hervé Panizzi: illes Panizzi about driving the Skoda
Fabia WRC for the first time: "I got along very well with the car right
away. The mechanical differential worked faultlessly, and I was quite
happy with the times I achieved. Therefore it should be possible to get
a top result in Monte Carlo."Andreas Aigner/Timo Gottschalk: Junior Andreas Aigner, who in December
already completed a day of testing in the Czech Republic, was
enthusiastic as well: "We tried different setups and tested various tyre
compounds. I learned quite a lot, it was a perfect test session. That's
why I can hardly wait for the rally to start, although it is going to be
tough."
__________________________________________________________________Event Timetable
Thursday 19 January: Ceremonial Start
Start Place du Casino, Monte Carlo 18.30
Friday 20 January: Leg 1 Monaco - Monaco
Start Monaco 06.50
SS1 St Sauveur sur Tinee - Beuil 22.23km 08.33
SS2 Guillaumes - Valberg 13.60km 09.31
SS3 Pierlas - Ilonse 23.22km 10.19
Serv A Monaco (30 mins) 12.12
SS4 St Sauveur sur Tinee - Beuil 22.23km 14.25
SS5 Guillaumes - Valberg 13.60km 15.23
SS6 Pierlas - Ilonse 23.22km 16.11
Serv B Monaco (45 mins) 18.04
Finish Monaco 18.57Saturday 21 January: Leg 2 Monaco - Monaco
Serv C Monaco (10 mins) 06.00
SS7 Sigale - Bif. D10 / D110 22.54km 07.53
SS8 St Antonin - Toudon 20.22km 09.06
SS9 La Tour sur Tinee - Utelle 18.73km 10.19
Serv D Monaco (30 mins) 12.02
SS10 St Antonin - Toudon 20.22km 14.30
SS11 La Tour sur Tinee - Utelle 18.73km 15.43
SS12 La Bollene Vesubie - Sospel 31.25km 16.38
Serv E Monaco (45 mins) 18.03
Finish Monaco 18.56Sunday 22 January: Leg 3 Monaco - Monaco
Serv F Monaco (10 mins) 06.50
SS13 Col de Braus - La Cabanette 12.60km 07.55
SS14 Col St Roch - Lantosque 14.45km 08.23
SS15 La Bollene Vesubie - Sospel 31.25km 08.56
Serv G Monaco (30 mins) 10.19
SS16 Col de Braus - La Cabanette 12.60km 11.44
SS17 Col St Roch - Lantosque 14.45km 12.12
SS18 La Bollene Vesubie - Sospel 31.25km 12.45
Serv H Monaco (20 mins) 14.05
Finish Monaco 14.25
__________________________________________________________________2005 Championship Standings
Full Standings http://www.rallye-info.com/points.asp
__________________________________________________________________Event Statistics
- The total length of the 74th running of the championship's longest
running event is 1,336.13 km, including 366.39 km divided into 18
special stages (9 different).- Recce takes place over Tuesday January 17th (8.00 until 18.00) and
Wednesday January 18th (08:00 until 17:00).- The shakedown (Thursday from 08.00 until 12.00) uses the same stage as
in previous years (at the exit of the village of Sospel, Col of
Castillon-Col St Jean and finishes on the D54). The shakedown service
park will be settled in the village of Sospel.- On Thursday, after the traditional photo shoot for drivers and
co-drivers at 15.00 ("Jardins des Boulingrins" in Monaco), the FIA press
conference will be held in the media centre at the Sporting d'Hiver at
15.30- Thursday's programme ends with the ceremonial start (Place du Casino,
Monaco, 18:30).- Tyres: the authorised quota per driver is 80 asphalt tyres and 40 snow
tyres. The bar-code references of these tyres must be registered by
January 16th. Three tread patterns are permitted but all tyres must have
an interior diameter of 18 inches. The drivers will be allowed to use
only 50 tyres of their quota during the rally, shakedown included.- Both chassis and engine, which will be sealed in Monte Carlo, will
have to be used in Sweden too- Servicing: the event's single service park will be located on Monaco's
harbour front. The end of leg 1 and 2 services will use the
flexi-service system (cars of the same team serviced one by one). The
10-minute morning service and the 30-minute mid-leg services, and
20-minute (before the final podium) work according to the traditional
system.- Leg 1. Friday January 20th: 508.40 km including 118.10 divided in 6 SS
(3 different). Start in Monaco at 6.50. SS1 'St Sauveur sur Tinée/Beuil'
(22.53 km) - SS2 'Guillaumes/Valberg' (13.60 km) - SS3 'Pierlas/Ilonse'
(23.22 km) - Service A (12.12/30 min) - SS4 'St Sauveur sur Tinée/Beuil'
- SS5 'Guillaumes/Valberg' - SS6 'Pierlas/Ilonse' - Service B
(18.04/flexi-service, 45 min) - Last car due in parc fermé at 20.30- Leg 2. Saturday January 21st: 530.71 km including 131.69 divided in 6
SS (4 different). Start in Monaco at 6.00. Service C (6.00/10 min) - SS7
'Sigale/Bif. D10-D110' (22.54 km) - SS8 'St Antonin/Toudon' (20.22 km) -
SS9 'La Tour sur Tinée/Utelle' (18.73 km) - Service D (12.02/30 min) -
SS10 'St Antonin/Toudon' - SS11 'La Tour sur Tinée/Utelle' - SS12 'La
Bollène Vésubie/Sospel' (31.25 km) - Service E (18.03/flexi-service, 45
min) - Last car due in parc fermé at 20.30- Leg 3. Sunday January 22nd: 297.73 km including 116.60 divided in 6 SS
(3 different). Start in Monaco at 6.50. Service F (6.50/10 min) - SS13
'Col de Braus/La Cabanette' (12.60 km) - SS14 'Col St Roch/Lantosque'
(14.45 km) - SS15 'La Bollène Vésubie/Sospel' - Service G (10.19/30 min)
- SS16 'Col de Braus/La Cabanette' - SS17 'Col St Roch/Lantosque' - SS18
'La Bollène Vésubie/Sospel' - Service H (14.05/20min) - Finish of the
rally : TC out service H (14.25) - Podium on the "Place du Palais
Princier" at 15.25.- 'New this year' for the rally route : SS1/3 'Col de la Couillole,
which had not been used since 1994 - 'Guillaumes/Valberg' (SS2/4), was a
stage of the Antibes rally - Reverse direction 'Pierlas/Ilonse' (SS3/6)
- Comeback to the short classical version (without Col de Bleine) for
'Sigale' (SS7) - 'La Tour sur Tinée/Utelle' which was run for the last
time in 1992 - New versions of the 'Col de Braus/La Cabanette' (SS13/16)
and 'Col St Roch/Lantosque' (SS14/17).
