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Peugeot second in manufacturers’ championship
Season of bad luck ends with a retirement in Wales
Opening day in sunny weather
- roads yet treacherously slippery
Before the final round of the 2003 World Rally Championship, Citroën
was leading the manufacturers’ series by a difference of five points to
Peugeot. In Peugeot team, the hopes of taking the title were severely
shaken when Marcus Grönholm was forced to retire from the race after
breaking a suspension arm on stage 3. After that, Peugeot’s success
depended on Harri Rovanperä and Freddy Loix, who had been drafted in
at the last minute to stand in for Richard Burns. Subaru driver Petter
Solberg and Citroën’s Sebastien Loeb had their own fight for seconds to
win the rally, over a minute ahead of all the others. The third place,
instead, was fiercely struggled for by Subaru’s Tommi Mäkinen, in the
final WRC-rally of his career, and Colin McRae, who was driving his last
rally in Citroën colours.
Harri Rovanperä was not happy with his opening, even though he was in
fifth place after the first leg.
- I should have been able to go faster, but the conditions are really difficult.
We had chosen the wrong type of tyres. And I still haven´t managed to get
the suspension exactly the way I´d like it to be. However, we have
succeeded in staying on the road and I feel we have done as well as we
can under these circumstances, Rovanperä said.
Leg 1, 7 special stages, 164,24 stage kilometers
Positions after SS 7/18
1. Petter Solberg, Subaru 1h 32´ 37,2” (106,4 km/h)
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, + 00´ 08,0”
3. Tommi Mäkinen, Subaru, + 01´ 32,2”
4. Colin McRae, Citroen, + 01´ 43,6”
5. Harri Rovanperä, Peugeot, + 02´ 41,2”
6. Gilles Panizzi, Peugeot, + 02´ 49,3”
7. Francois Duval, Ford, + 03´ 35,2”
8. Roman Kresta, Peugeot, +04´ 05,2”
9. Freddy Loix, Peugeot, + 04´ 20,3”
10. Manfred Stohl, Peugeot, + 04´ 48,3”
Wild youngsters and old champions on the run
- Rovanperä fifth, at the head of the Peugeot front
Within the top five, positions remained unchanged during Saturday. By
choosing better tyres and by adjusting suspension settings, Rovanperä
managed to improve his speed compared to the leaders. He was still in
fifth overall, being the best positioned Peugeot driver.
The manufacturers’ title was inevitably going to Citroën, as Loeb was in
second and McRae in fourth place. Peugeot could only expect to get
points by Rovanperä, in fifth, and Loix, who had climbed up to seventh
overall.
- In the afternoon we finally got the suspension the way we like it, by
softening it a little. In the morning, the tyres didn’t work at all on the soft
surface, as we had estimated the roads to be drier, Rovanperä summed
up Saturday’s events at the end of the leg.
Leg 2, 8 special stages, 138,71 stage kilometers
Positions after stage 15/18
1. Petter Solberg, Subaru 2h 48´ 55,4” (107,6 km/h)
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, + 00´ 41,2”
3. Tommi Mäkinen, Subaru, + 02´ 25,2”
4. Colin McRae, Citroen, + 02´ 31,4”
5. Harri Rovanperä, Peugeot, + 04´ 33,9”
6. Francois Duval, Ford, + 05´ 53,7”
7. Freddy Loix, Peugeot, + 06´ 29,2”
8. Manfred Stohl, Peugeot, + 07´ 35,8”
9. Roman Kresta, Peugeot, +07´ 36,5”
10. Juuso Pykälistö, Peugeot, + 08´ 03,9”
Retirement ends an unsuccessful season
- new year and new car expected to bring reason for joy
Harri Rovanperä’s fifth place changed into a retirement when his car’s
transmission failed on Sunday morning’s first stage.
- I started to hear a noise from the gearbox and a couple of kilometers
later, a cogwheel broke in the transmission, so the rally was over for us,
Rovanperä told disappointed.
By taking the victory in the Rally of Wales, Petter Solberg clinched the
drivers’ world championship. Sebastien Loeb, finishing second, secured
the manufacturers’ championship for Citroën. In Peugeot’s silver medal
team, the first-timer Freddy Loix scored three points, so finally Citroën
took the title by a difference of fifteen points.
-After all, I don’t feel that disappointed actually, because we couldn’t have
made it onto the podium or in the manufacturers’ title anyway. The drivers
in our team have had too many retirements from top places, so getting
silver is a good performance. It’s best to forget this season as soon as
possible and to look forward. I’m confident that the new season with the
new car will give us many more reasons for joy, Rovanperä anticipated.
Leg 3, 4 special stages, 73,86 stage kilometers
The rally in total, 18 special stages, 376,81 stage kilometers
Final results after stage 18/18
1. Petter Solberg, Subaru, 3 h 28´ 58,1” (108,2 km/h)
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, + 00´ 43,6”
3. Tommi Mäkinen, Subaru, + 02´ 58,8”
4. Colin McRae Citroen, + 05´ 28,1”
5. Francois Duval, Ford, + 07´ 16,1”
6. Freddy Loix, Peugeot, + 08´ 06,5”
7. Manfred Stohl, Peugeot, + 08´ 48,4”
8. Roman Kresta, Peugeot, + 09´ 02,6”
9. Juuso Pykälistö, Peugeot, + 09´ 53,6”
10. Jari-Matti Latvala, Ford, + 12´ 25,3”
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