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2008 World Rally Championship

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 2008 World Rally Championship was the 36th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 15 rallies and began on 24 January, with the 2008 Monte Carlo Rally. Frenchman Sébastien Loeb successfully retained the Drivers' World Championship, his and co-driver Daniel Elena's record-breaking fifth consecutive title, all of them attained driving Citroëns. In addition, Citroën secured their fourth Manufacturers' title, and their first since 2005, from 2006 and 2007 victors, Ford.

Rule changes

[edit]
The banning of tyre mousse made punctures much more common (pictured Jaan Mölder with a rear wheel puncture in Italy).

The running order for the first day is governed by championship position, with the championship leader running first on the road. For every other day of a rally, the order is decided by the previous end of day classification (with the leader on classification running first). The term 'leg' has been replaced by 'day' in order to sound more understandable. Extra 10-minute service prior to the finish podium has been added, intended to allow the service park to remain an attraction until the end of the event.[1]

With the switch to Pirelli tyres, tyre mousse (along with all anti-deflation devices) has been banned, and fewer compounds are available. Also the teams aren't allowed to modify tyres by themselves (e.g. by making additional cuts) anymore.[2][3] At the first event of the season, the available tires were the soft slick DS tire (Pirelli PZero[4]), the WX snow tire without studs, and the WX snow tire with studs (both variants of Pirelli Sottozero[4]).[5] The same snow tyres were used in Sweden as well. Later on loose surface tyres were introduced: Pirelli Scorpion, available in two variants – hard compound for abrasive surfaces, such as roads in Mexico or Greece, and soft one, for more muddy stages as seen on Welsh event.[4] Tire walls have been strengthened in order to endure long, rough gravel stages often full of sharp rocks. The tread on Scorpions is asymmetric and directional, as it has proven more efficient during the tests.[4]

Calendar

[edit]

The 2008 championship was contested over fifteen rounds in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Americas and Oceania.

Jean-Marie Cuoq and Jari-Matti Latvala on a transport section of the 2008 edition of the Monte Carlo Rally.

The 2008 season included 15 rallies, which was one less than the 2007 season. Rally Norway, Rally Portugal and Rally Ireland were dropped from the calendar for 2008. Rally of Turkey returned to the schedule, and Jordan Rally was part of the calendar for the first time. Rally Australia was planned to make a return after being absent in 2007, but the organizers submitted a request to the FIA to delay the event's return to the schedule until 2009.[6]

The events also part of the Production World Rally Championship were Sweden, Argentina, Greece, Turkey, Finland, New Zealand, Japan and GB.[7] The seven rallies also on the Junior World Rally Championship schedule were Mexico, Jordan, Italy, Finland, Germany, Spain and France.[8]

Round Dates Rally Support class
1 24–27 January France/Monaco Monte Carlo Rally none
2 8–10 February Sweden Swedish Rally P-WRC
3 28 February-2 March Mexico Rally Mexico J-WRC
4 27–30 March Argentina Rally Argentina P-WRC
5 24–27 April Jordan Jordan Rally J-WRC
6 16–18 May Italy Rally d'Italia Sardegna J-WRC
7 29 May-1 June Greece Acropolis Rally P-WRC
8 13–15 June Turkey Rally of Turkey P-WRC
9 31 July-3 August Finland Rally Finland P-WRC, J-WRC
10 15–17 August Germany Rallye Deutschland J-WRC
11 28–31 August New Zealand Rally New Zealand P-WRC
12 2–5 October Spain Rally Catalunya J-WRC
13 10–12 October France Tour de Corse J-WRC
14 31 October-2 November Japan Rally Japan P-WRC
15 5–7 December United Kingdom Wales Rally GB P-WRC

Teams and drivers

[edit]

In 2008 two categories are valid to compete for the Manufacturer's championship:

Manufacturer (M)

  • must take part in all the rallies of the Championship with two cars of the same make
  • must enter only cars corresponding to the latest homologated version of a World Rally Car in conformity with the 2008 Appendix J
  • must inform the FIA of the name of the first driver entered for the season at the time of registration for the Championship. No change of the first driver is authorised, except in a case of force majeure. The driver of the second car may be changed for each of the rallies in the Championship

Manufacturer Team (MT)

  • must take part in a minimum of 10 Championship rallies with two cars of the same make; those rallies must be nominated on registering for the Championship
  • cannot enter World Rally Cars homologated during the year 2008 and cannot use parts homologated after 2 January 2008
  • can only score points in the events it nominated on registering.

The teams and drivers for the 2008 season are as follows:

Manufacturers
Team Manufacturer Car No Drivers Co-driver Rounds
France Citroën Total World Rally Team Citroën C4 WRC 1 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena All
2 Spain Daniel Sordo Spain Marc Marti All
United Kingdom BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC 07
Focus RS WRC 08
3 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Finland Jarmo Lehtinen All
4 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Finland Miikka Anttila 1–11, 14–15
Belgium François Duval France Patrick Pivato 12–13
Japan Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza WRC 2007
Impreza WRC 2008
5 Norway Petter Solberg United Kingdom Phil Mills All
6 Australia Chris Atkinson Belgium Stéphane Prévot All
Japan Suzuki World Rally Team Suzuki SX4 WRC 11 Finland Toni Gardemeister Finland Tomi Tuominen All
12 Sweden Per-Gunnar Andersson Sweden Jonas Andersson All
Manufacturer Teams
United Kingdom Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC 07 7 Italy Gianluigi Galli Italy Giovanni Bernacchini 1–10
Belgium François Duval France Patrick Pivato 11, 14
France Denis Giraudet 15
United Kingdom Matthew Wilson United Kingdom Scott Martin 12–13
8 Belgium François Duval Belgium Eddy Chevaillier 1
France Patrick Pivato 10
Norway Henning Solberg Norway Cato Menkerud 2, 4–5, 7–9
United Kingdom Matthew Wilson United Kingdom Scott Martin 3, 6, 11, 14–15
Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Finland Miikka Anttila 12–13
Argentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC 07 9 Argentina Federico Villagra Argentina Jorge Pérez Companc 3–9, 11–12, 14
10 Norway Henning Solberg Norway Cato Menkerud 3, 6, 11–12, 14
Argentina Luís Pérez Companc Argentina Jose Maria Volta 4, 9
United Kingdom Barry Clark Argentina José Díaz 5
Republic of Ireland Paul Nagle 8
Greece Armodios Vovos Greece Loris Meletopoulos 7
Major entries not registered as Manufacturers
Japan Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza WRC 2008 14 France Brice Tirabassi France Fabrice Gordon 12–13
United Kingdom BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC 07 19 United Arab Emirates Khalid Al Qassimi United Kingdom Michael Orr 1–2, 5–7, 9–10, 12–13, 15
United Kingdom Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team Ford Focus RS WRC 07 14 Norway Henning Solberg Norway Cato Menkerud 1, 10, 13, 15
16 United Kingdom Matthew Wilson United Kingdom Scott Martin 1, 4–5, 7–10
20 United Kingdom Barry Clark Republic of Ireland Paul Nagle 13, 15
46 Italy Valentino Rossi Italy Carlo Cassina 15
Focus RS WRC 04 23 United Kingdom Steve Perez United Kingdom Paul Spooner 15
Focus RS WRC 05 24 United Kingdom Dave Weston, Jr United Kingdom Aled Davies 15
France PH Sport Citroën C4 WRC 15 Estonia Urmo Aava Estonia Kuldar Sikk 2, 5–13, 15
17 France Sébastien Ogier France Julien Ingrassia 15
18 Zimbabwe Conrad Rautenbach United Kingdom David Senior 3–15
Xsara WRC 21 1–2
Mexico Triviño Racing Peugeot 206 WRC 15 Mexico Ricardo Triviño Spain Sergio Salom 3
France Team Rallye Cuoq Peugeot 307 WRC 18 France Jean-Marie Cuoq France Philippe Janvier 1
Norway Adapta World Rally Team Subaru Impreza WRC 2007 18 Norway Mads Østberg Norway Ole Kristian Unnerud 2, 6–7, 9–10, 12–13, 15
United Kingdom Ramsport Ford Focus RS WRC 06 20 Finland Matti Rantanen Finland Jan Lönegren 9
23 Norway Andreas Mikkelsen Norway Ola Fløene 2, 8–10, 12–13
Sweden Maria Andersson 6
Netherlands Van Merksteijn Motorsport Focus RS WRC 06/07 22 Netherlands Peter van Merksteijn Jr. Belgium Eddy Chevaillier 10, 12
24 Netherlands Peter van Merksteijn Sr. Netherlands Hilco van Beek 2, 6, 10
Netherlands Erwin Berkhof 12
Netherlands Ipatec Racing Focus RS WRC 06 61 Netherlands René Kuipers Belgium Erwin Mombaerts 10
64 Netherlands Dennis Kuipers Netherlands Kees Hagman 10
  •  – indicates a car running with varying numbers during the season

J-WRC entries

[edit]
No Drivers Co-driver Car Rounds
31 Czech Republic Martin Prokop Czech Republic Jan Tománek Citroën C2 S1600 3, 6, 9–10, 12–13
32 Estonia Jaan Mölder Belgium Frédéric Miclotte Suzuki Swift S1600 3, 5–6, 9, 12–13
33 Germany Aaron Burkart Germany Michael Kölbach Citroën C2 S1600 3, 6, 9–10, 12–13
34 Italy Andrea Cortinovis Italy Giancarla Guzzi Renault Clio S1600 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
35 Poland Michał Kościuszko Poland Maciek Szczepaniak Suzuki Swift S1600 3, 5–6, 9, 12–13
36 Lithuania Vilius Rožukas Lithuania Andrius Šošas Citroën C2 S1600 5–6
37 Italy Simone Bertolotti Italy Daniele Vernuccio Renault Clio R3 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
38 Italy Francesco Fanari Italy Massimiliano Bosi Citroën C2 R2 3, 5–6, 10
Italy Dario Andrian 9
Italy Daniele Benedetti 12
39 Italy Stefano Albertini Italy Piercarlo Capolongo Renault Clio R3 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
40 Serbia Miloš Komljenović Serbia Aleksandar Jeremić Renault Clio R3 3, 5–6, 9
United Kingdom Kris Meeke United Kingdom Chris Patterson 12
France Arnaud Augoyard France Nicolas Baudin 13
41 Sweden Patrik Sandell Sweden Emil Axelsson Renault Clio S1600 3, 5–6, 9, 12–13
42 France Sébastien Ogier France Julien Ingrassia Citroën C2 S1600 3, 5–6, 10, 12–13
43 Germany Florian Niegel Germany Andre Kachel Suzuki Swift S1600 5–6, 10, 12–13
Suzuki Swift Sport 9
44 Netherlands Hans Weijs, Jr. Netherlands Hans van Goor Citroën C2 R2 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
45 Netherlands Kevin Abbring Belgium Erwin Mombaerts Renault Clio R3 5, 9, 13
Belgium Bjorn Degandt 6, 10, 12
46 Republic of Ireland Shaun Gallagher Republic of Ireland Michael Morrissey Citroën C2 S1600 3, 5–6, 10
Republic of Ireland Paul Kiely 9, 12
47 Luxembourg Gilles Schammel Belgium Renaud Jamoul Renault Clio R3 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
48 Italy Alessandro Bettega Italy Simone Scattolin Renault Clio R3 5–6, 9–10, 12–13
Additional guest entries
59 Finland Kalle Pinomäki Finland Matti Kaskinen Suzuki Swift S1600 9
59 Spain Sergio Perez Spain Oriol Julià Citroën C2 S1600 12
59 France Pierre Campana France Samuel Teissier Renault Clio R3 13
60 France Pierre Marché France Julien Giroux Suzuki Swift S1600 13

P-WRC entries

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No Drivers Co-driver Car Rounds
31 Japan Toshihiro Arai Australia Glenn MacNeall Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2, 4, 7–8, 11, 14
32 San Marino Mirco Baldacci Italy Giovanni Agnese Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4, 7–8, 11, 14–15
33 Czech Republic Martin Prokop Czech Republic Jan Tománek Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4, 7–8, 11, 15
34 Italy Gianluca Linari Italy Roberto Mometti Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2
Italy Gianni Melani 4
Italy Paolo Gregoriani 7
Italy Barbara Perugini 8
Italy Franco Giusti 11
Italy Matteo Braga 14
35 Russia Evgeny Novikov Russia Dmitry Chumak Subaru Impreza WRX STI 4
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 7
Russia Evgeny Kalachev 8
Australia Dale Moscatt 11, 14–15
36 Norway Eyvind Brynildsen France Denis Giraudet Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 9, 14
Sweden Maria Andersson 7–8
Australia Glenn MacNeall 15
37 Cyprus Spyros Pavlides France Denis Giraudet Subaru Impreza WRX STI 4, 7, 11
United Kingdom Steve Lancaster 15
Sweden Oscar Svedlund Sweden Björn Nilsson 9
Japan Yasunori Hagiwara Japan Koichi Kato 14
38 Jordan Amjad Farrah Italy Nicola Arena Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4, 7–8
Sweden Patrik Flodin Sweden Göran Bergsten 9
New Zealand Stewart Taylor New Zealand Warwick Searle 11
United Kingdom Darren Gass United Kingdom Neil Shanks 15
39 Qatar Nasser Al-Attiyah United Kingdom Chris Patterson Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2, 4, 7–8, 11, 15
40 Italy Stefano Marrini Italy Matteo Braga Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4
Italy Tiziana Sandroni 14
San Marino Loris Baldacci Italy Rudy Pollet 7, 15
Italy Riccardo Errani Italy Stefano Casadio 8
41 Austria Andreas Aigner Germany Klaus Wicha Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4, 7–8, 11, 15
42 Portugal Bernardo Sousa Portugal Carlos Magalhães Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4
Portugal Jorge Carvalho 7–8, 11, 15
43 Russia Evgeny Vertunov Russia Georgiy Troshkin Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2, 7–9, 11, 14
44 Hungary Gábor Mayer Hungary Robert Tagai Subaru Impreza WRX STI 4, 7–8
China Liu Chao Dong Australia Anthony McLoughlin 11
Sweden Patrik Flodin Sweden Göran Bergsten 15
Finland Tapio Suominen Finland Pasi Hedman Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 9
45 Finland Jussi Tiippana Finland Marko Salminen Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2
Slovenia Andrej Jereb Slovenia Miran Kacin 4, 7
Italy Francesco Trevisin San Marino Alessandro Biordi 8
Finland Teemu Arminen Finland Tuomo Nikkola 9, 15
46 Finland Jari Ketomaa Finland Miika Teiskonen Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2, 4, 7, 9, 11, 15
47 Italy Fabio Frisiero Italy Simone Scattolin Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 9
Italy Giorgio Bacco San Marino Silvio Stefanelli Subaru Impreza WRX STI 4, 8
Italy Fabio Pizzol 11
Czech Republic Jaromír Tarabus Czech Republic Daniel Trunkát Fiat Abarth Grande Punto S2000 15
48 Russia Evgeny Aksakov Estonia Aleksander Kornilov Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4, 7–9, 15
49 Italy Simone Campedelli Italy Danilo Fappani Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4, 7–9, 15
50 Portugal Armindo Araújo Portugal Miguel Ramalho Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 7–8, 11, 14–15
51 Indonesia Subhan Aksa Indonesia Hendrik Mboi Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII 2, 4
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 7, 9, 11, 14
52 Finland Juho Hänninen Finland Mikko Markkula Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 7, 9, 11, 14–15
53 Germany Uwe Nittel Germany Detlef Ruf Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 2, 4
Germany Michael Wenzel 7–8
Italy Giovanni Manfrinato Italy Carlo Pisano 9, 15
54 United States Travis Pastrana United Kingdom Derek Ringer Subaru Impreza WRX STI 4, 7
Finland Jussi Tiippana Finland Marko Salminen 9
United States Ken Block Italy Alex Gelsomino 11
Japan Hiroshi Yanagisawa Japan Osamu Yoda 14
United Kingdom Mark Higgins United Kingdom Rory Kennedy 15
55 Sweden Patrik Sandell Sweden Emil Axelsson Peugeot 207 S2000 2, 4, 7–8, 15
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 11
56 Japan Fumio Nutahara United Kingdom Daniel Barritt Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4, 7, 9, 11, 15
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X 14
57 Estonia Martin Rauam Estonia Silver Kütt Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4, 7–8, 11, 14
Estonia Egon Kaur Estonia Simo Koskinen Subaru Impreza WRX STI 15
58 India Naren Kumar United Kingdom Nicky Beech Subaru Impreza WRX STI 7–9, 11, 14
India Gaurav Gill 15
Additional guest entries
59 Sweden Patrik Flodin Sweden Göran Bergsten Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2
60 Sweden Oscar Svedlund Sweden Björn Nilsson Subaru Impreza WRX STI 2
59 Argentina Marcos Ligato Argentina Rubén García Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4
60 Argentina Sebastián Beltran Chile Ricardo Rojas Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 4
59 Greece Panayiotis Hatzitsopanis Greece Andreas Andrikopoulos Subaru Impreza WRX STI 7
60 Greece Lambros Athanassoulas Greece Nikolaos Zakheos Subaru Impreza WRX STI 7
159 Finland Juha Salo Finland Mika Stenberg Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 9
160 Finland Jussi Välimäki Finland Teppo Leino Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 9
59 New Zealand Hayden Paddon New Zealand John Kennard Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 11
60 New Zealand Chris West New Zealand Garry Cowan Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 11
59 Japan Katsuhiko Taguchi Australia Mark Stacey Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X 14
60 Japan Takuma Kamada Japan Naoki Kase Subaru Impreza WRX STI 14
59 United Kingdom David Higgins United Kingdom Ieuan Thomas Subaru Impreza WRX STI 15
60 United Kingdom Guy Wilks United Kingdom Phil Pugh Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX 15

All entries utilized Pirelli tyres.

Events

[edit]

The Rally Finland is notable this year for having dropped its famous Ouninpohja stage. This has been done for safety reasons, however this is likely to be a huge disappointment for race fans.[9]

Colour Rally Surface
Gold Gravel
Silver Tarmac
Blue Snow/Ice
Bronze Mixed Surface
Round Rally name Podium finishers Statistics
Rank Driver Car Time Stages Length Starters Finishers
1 France/Monaco Monte Carlo Rally
(24–27 January) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:39:17.0 19 365.09 km 47 34
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:41:51.4
3 Australia Chris Atkinson Subaru Impreza WRC2007 3:42:15.6
2 Sweden Swedish Rally
(8–10 February) — Results and report
1 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 07 2:46:41.2 20 340.24 km 61 49
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 2:47:39.5
3 Italy Gianluigi Galli Ford Focus RS WRC 07 2:49:04.4
3 Mexico Rally Mexico
(28 February– 2 March) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:33:29.9 20 353.75 km 40 28
2 Australia Chris Atkinson Subaru Impreza WRC2007 3:34:36.0
3 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:35:09.6
4 Argentina Rally Argentina
(27–30 March) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 4:05:48.6 21 347.91 km 56 31
2 Australia Chris Atkinson Subaru Impreza WRC2007 4:08:21.8
3 Spain Daniel Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 4:09:53.3
5 Jordan Jordan Rally
(24–27 April) — Results and report
1 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 4:02:47.9 22 359.26 km 54 33
2 Spain Daniel Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 4:04:03.6
3 Australia Chris Atkinson Subaru Impreza WRC2007 4:07:47.4
6 Italy Rally d'Italia Sardegna
(16–18 May) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:57:17.2 17 344.73 km 57 38
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:57:27.8
3 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:57:32.5
7 Greece Acropolis Rally
(28 May– 1 June) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:54:54.7 20 331.52 km 60 42
2 Norway Petter Solberg Subaru Impreza WRC2008 3:56:04.2
3 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:56:50.8
8 Turkey Rally of Turkey
(13–15 June) — Results and report
1 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 4:42:07.1 19 360.12 km 60 37
2 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 07 4:42:15.0
3 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 4:42:32.8
9 Finland Rally Finland
(31 July– 3 August) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 2:54:05.5 24 340.42 km 99 68
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 07 2:54:14.5
3 Australia Chris Atkinson Subaru Impreza WRC2008 2:57:22.5
10 Germany Rallye Deutschland
(15–17 August) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:26:19.7 19 352.89 km 81 57
2 Spain Daniel Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 3:27:07.4
3 Belgium François Duval Ford Focus RS WRC 07 3:27:39.7
11 New Zealand Rally New Zealand
(28–31 August) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:59:18.9 18 353.04 km 57 35
2 Spain Dani Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 3:59:36.4
3 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 08 4:00:00.4
12 Spain Rally Catalunya
(2–5 October) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:21:17.4 18 353.62 km 69 48
2 Spain Daniel Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 3:21:42.3
3 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 08 3:22:19.9
13 France Tour de Corse
(10–12 October) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:42:58.0 16 359.02 km 71 54
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 08 3:46:22.7
3 Belgium François Duval Ford Focus RS WRC 08 3:46:29.6
14 Japan Rally Japan
(31 October– 2 November) — Results and report
1 Finland Mikko Hirvonen Ford Focus RS WRC 08 3:25:03.0 29 343.69 km 86 57
2 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 08 3:25:34.1
3 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 3:27:33.6
15 United Kingdom Wales Rally GB
(5–7 December) — Results and report
1 France Sébastien Loeb Citroën C4 WRC 2:43:09.6 19 282.35 km 78 47
2 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala Ford Focus RS WRC 08 2:43:22.3
3 Spain Daniel Sordo Citroën C4 WRC 2:45:30.2

Standings

[edit]

Drivers' championship

[edit]
Pos. Driver MON
Monaco
SWE
Sweden
MEX
Mexico
ARG
Argentina
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
GRC
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
NZL
New Zealand
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
 Pts 
1 France Sébastien Loeb 1 Ret 1 1 10 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 3 1 122
2 Finland Mikko Hirvonen 2 2 4 5 1 2 3 1 2 4 3 3 2 1 8 103
3 Spain Daniel Sordo 11 6 17 3 2 5 5 4 4 2 2 2 Ret DSQ 3 65
4 Finland Jari-Matti Latvala 12 1 3 15 7 3 7 2 39 9 Ret 6 4 2 2 58
5 Australia Chris Atkinson 3 21 2 2 3 6 Ret 13 3 6 Ret 7 6 4 Ret 50
6 Norway Petter Solberg 5 4 12 Ret Ret 10 2 6 6 5 4 5 5 8 4 46
7 Belgium François Duval 4 3 Ret 4 3 Ret 6 25
8 Norway Henning Solberg 9 13 5 Ret 4 7 8 5 5 7 9 11 15 Ret Ret 22
9 Italy Gianluigi Galli 6 3 Ret 7 8 4 Ret Ret Ret Ret 17
10 United Kingdom Matthew Wilson 10 Ret 6 Ret 5 12 6 7 9 12 17 9 8 7 9 15
11 Estonia Urmo Aava 18 Ret 8 4 Ret 16 8 5 35 7 DNS 13
12 Sweden Per-Gunnar Andersson 8 Ret Ret 24 Ret 9 11 Ret Ret 15 6 32 17 5 5 12
13 Finland Toni Gardemeister Ret 7 Ret Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret 8 10 7 13 13 6 7 10
14 Argentina Federico Villagra 7 6 6 14 13 9 Ret 8 12 9 9
15 Zimbabwe Conrad Rautenbach Ret 16 16 4 26 13 10 8 10 13 Ret Ret 14 Ret 15 6
16 Norway Andreas Mikkelsen 5 Ret 19 12 11 8 11 5
17 France Jean-Marie Cuoq 7 2
18 Finland Matti Rantanen 7 2
19 Finland Juho Hänninen 8 21 13 14 29 24 10 Ret 1
20 Austria Andreas Aigner 31 8 14 11 Ret Ret 13 1
21 France Sébastien Ogier 8 11 22 36 19 Ret 20 26 1
Pos. Driver MON
Monaco
SWE
Sweden
MEX
Mexico
ARG
Argentina
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
GRC
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
NZL
New Zealand
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
Pts
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Did not finish (Ret)
Black Excluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
Blank Withdrew entry from
the event (WD)

Manufacturers' championship

[edit]
Pos. Manufacturer No. MON
Monaco
SWE
Sweden
MEX
Mexico
ARG
Argentina
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
GRE
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
NZL
New Zealand
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
Points
1 France Citroën Total World Rally Team 1 1 Ret 1 1 8 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 3 1 191
2 8 5 9 3 2 5 4 4 4 2 2 2 Ret Ret 3
2 United Kingdom BP Ford World Rally Team 3 2 2 4 4 1 2 3 1 2 4 3 3 2 1 8 173
4 12 1 3 7 6 3 5 2 8 7 Ret 4 3 2 2
3 Japan Subaru World Rally Team 5 5 4 8 Ret Ret 9 2 6 6 5 4 5 5 8 4 98
6 3 8 2 2 3 6 Ret 9 3 6 Ret 7 6 4 Ret
4 United Kingdom Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team 7 6 3 Ret 6 7 4 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 8 7 Ret 6 67
8 4 7 6 Ret 4 10 6 5 5 3 9 6 4 7 9
5 Japan Suzuki World Rally Team 11 Ret 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret 7 Ret 7 8 6 11 8 6 7 34
12 7 Ret Ret 8 Ret 8 8 Ret Ret 9 5 12 9 5 5
6 Argentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team 9 7 5 5 11 9 7 Ret 7 10 9 22
10 5 Ret 9 7 Ret 8 Ret 8 9 Ret
Pos. Manufacturer No. MON
Monaco
SWE
Sweden
MEX
Mexico
ARG
Argentina
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
GRE
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
NZL
New Zealand
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
Points
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Did not finish (Ret)
Black Excluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
Blank Withdrew entry from
the event (WD)
  • Citroën secured the manufacturers' championship in Wales.

Junior championship

[edit]
Junior world champion Sébastien Ogier competing in a Citroën C2 S1600 at the 2008 Rallye Deutschland.
Pos. Driver MEX
Mexico
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
 Pts 
1 France Sébastien Ogier 1 1 5 1 Ret 2 42
2 Germany Aaron Burkart 4 3 4 2 3 5 34
3 Czech Republic Martin Prokop 7 10 1 Ret 1 1 32
4 Republic of Ireland Shaun Gallagher 6 2 4 5 4 4 30
5 Poland Michał Kościuszko 3 Ret 1 3 9 Ret 22
6 Italy Alessandro Bettega Ret 2 Ret 3 2 Ret
7 Sweden Patrik Sandell 5 Ret 7 2 5 6
8 Estonia Jaan Mölder 2 Ret 9 Ret 6 11 11
9 Italy Stefano Albertini 5 6 13 10 7 9 9
10 Luxembourg Gilles Schammel 3 12 7 Ret Ret 10 8
11 Germany Florian Niegel 4 Ret 9 8 10 7
12 Italy Simone Bertolotti 6 Ret 10 5 8 Ret
13 Netherlands Kevin Abbring Ret Ret 6 6 11 8 7
14 France Pierre Campana 3 6
15 France Pierre Marché 4 5
16 Italy Andrea Cortinovis 7 11 DNS 7 DNS DNS 4
17 Netherlands Hans Weijs, Jr. Ret 8 8 Ret Ret 12 2
18 Italy Francesco Fanari 8 9 13 12 9 Ret 1
19 Serbia Miloš Komljenović Ret 8 Ret 11
Pos. Driver MEX
Mexico
JOR
Jordan
ITA
Italy
FIN
Finland
GER
Germany
ESP
Spain
FRA
France
Pts

Production championship

[edit]

Points table:[10]

Pos. Driver SWE
Sweden
ARG
Argentina
GRC
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
NZL
New Zealand
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
 Pts 
1 Austria Andreas Aigner 11 1 1 1 Ret 2 38
2 Finland Juho Hänninen 1 7 1 5 1 Ret 36
3 Finland Jari Ketomaa 2 3 Ret 3 6 4 28
4 Sweden Patrik Sandell 3 Ret Ret 2 2 22
5 Czech Republic Martin Prokop 4 7 14 DSQ 1 Ret 17
6 Estonia Martin Rauam 5 DSQ 4 3 Ret 15
7 Japan Fumio Nutahara 4 4 5 Ret 8 Ret
8 Portugal Armindo Araújo 7 3 5 12 9 7 14
9 Portugal Bernardo Sousa 8 8 2 11 7 9 12
10 Sweden Patrik Flodin 16 DSQ 1 10
11 San Marino Mirco Baldacci Ret Ret 3 Ret 6 Ret 9
12 Japan Toshihiro Arai 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret 3
13 Russia Evgeny Novikov Ret 15 Ret Ret 2 Ret 8
14 Argentina Sebastián Beltrán 2
15 Finland Jussi Välimäki 2
16 United Kingdom Guy Wilks 3 6
17 Russia Evgeny Aksakov 13 12 5 Ret 7 Ret
18 Russia Evgeny Vertunov Ret 6 6 Ret Ret Ret
19 Norway Eyvind Brynildsen 15 Ret Ret 10 4 5
20 Sweden Oscar Svedlund Ret 4
21 New Zealand Hayden Paddon 4
22 Germany Uwe Nittel 5 Ret Ret Ret 4
23 Japan Takuma Kamada 5
24 Czech Republic Jaromír Tarabus 5
25 Jordan Amjad Farrah 6 9 Ret 3
26 Cyprus Spyros Pavlides 11 Ret 10 6
27 Finland Jussi Tiippana 11 6
28 Italy Simone Campedelli 9 9 Ret 7 8 10
29 Japan Katsuhiko Taguchi 7 2
30 Italy Giorgio Bacco 13 8 Ret 1
31 United Kingdom David Higgins 8
32 San Marino Loris Baldacci 8 Ret
33 New Zealand Stewart Taylor 8
Pos. Driver SWE
Sweden
ARG
Argentina
GRC
Greece
TUR
Turkey
FIN
Finland
NZL
New Zealand
JPN
Japan
GBR
United Kingdom
Pts

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "FIA reveals regulation changes". Crash.net. 2007-10-24. Archived from the original on 26 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  2. ^ "New tyre rules good for WRC, says Mikko". Crash.net. 2008-01-15. Archived from the original on 18 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  3. ^ "Loeb: Tyre changes create a lot of unknowns". Crash.net. 2008-01-04. Archived from the original on 7 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  4. ^ a b c d "Third new Pirelli WRC tyre makes debut on Rally Mexico". WRC.com. 2008-02-15. Archived from the original on 18 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-16.
  5. ^ "Preview: Rallye Monte Carlo – Pt. 1". Crash.net. 2008-01-23. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  6. ^ "Australia return delayed, Mexico gets call". Crash.net. 2007-10-24. Archived from the original on 26 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  7. ^ "PWRC: 28 to battle it out in '08". Crash.net. 2008-02-13. Archived from the original on 7 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  8. ^ "JWRC: 16 competitors to contest Junior series". Crash.net. 2008-02-13. Archived from the original on 21 February 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-13.
  9. ^ "What's on Dave – 2008 WRC Calendar". What's on Dave. Archived from the original on 30 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
  10. ^ "2008 Production WRC Classification". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
[edit]