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While he was unable to complete a Monte-Carlo in a Ford Puma Rally1, François Delecour will finally drive the new Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 from
@toksportwrt
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Sport Rally
@RallyeSport
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51m
While he was unable to complete a Monte-Carlo in a Ford Puma Rally1, François Delecour will finally drive the new Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 from
@toksportwrt
#WRC
For me question mark is also are they making that much benefit when renting the Rally1 cars: it has become some much expensive that I’m wondering if they don’t rent it at cost with very low margin sometimes, just to make them run.
And I would be a bit cautious, by experience, with Francois Delecour claims; all the more that he puts a message on his Facebook account about the Puma and then deleted it. Maybe things are not that simple (for example, a conditional possibility on a 3rd car if no better client, i.e. not a one-shot client, appears).
Last point is that I found it very surprising that we still don’t know the 3rd Puma driver if this rumor is true:
- either it’s like last year with M-Sport having entered a TBD car in the entry list because negotiations still ongoing (Greensmith or maybe Mikkelsen are the most obvious possibilities except a surprise?); this last minute call may explain some points about Delecour’s situation.
- or a pure client (maybe one of Serderidis rounds as he did it a lot of times in his R5 era?)
So that is already 5 new Fabias confirmed in Monte if I count correctly.
Carlos Sainz is testing his car before Rallye Monte Carlo :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HB9t64VgZcg
It is not strange that Delecour can’t get the Puma but goes with super rare new Fabia instead a Ford Fiesta?
I think Bulacia, Solberg and Delecour confirmed? Gryazin seems highly likely as he did the warm up event last week. Not sure on Lindholm or Pajari for Monte?
Seems Skoda were under-promising and over delivering on orders for the new car as Orsak and Eurosol have theirs already too.
No Lindholm at Monte, not sure about Pajari. Possibility that Miele will start with a new one there aswell.
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If you are a non works driver, and is to put together a program, trying to win a series/championship, very few will chose Monte.
To much of a gamble weatherwise, and great possibility of a non finish, with large sum of € to rebuild a car.
Day maps
I think a strong hypothesis about what happened could be:
- M-Sport has forecasted and ordered the logistics for 5 cars, Rally1+2 combined, for Monte-Carlo and the current logistics costs may make an additional car very expensive to run if lately organized. I wouldn’t be surprised, considering Millener and Wilson interviews, that they understood that they are not able anymore to manage correctly 7 cars in rallies (Rally2 included) or 5 Rally1 car at the same time as they did last year sometimes with the complexity of these Rally1 cars + the shortages in staff they did after Covid;
- with Greensmith and Loeb’s negotiations very hard for some times as we know + Serderidis reducing his program, they could have a car available potentially so they opened the discussions to rent it to a one-shot if no regular client is there
- Delecour was looking for it and obtained enough money to rent it for a one-shot (or close to it)
- finally, Serderidis decided to do Monte-Carlo and he has also backed Munster and the latter decided to take the Fiesta Rally2 (instead of the Hyundai)
- M-Sport preferred Serderidis over Delecour (understandable as the Greek has a larger program, is a long-time client and backs Munster in Rally2) and, except if Delecour pays an extra-cost for the logistics (and maybe Delecour didn’t have it or didn’t want to), it was not interesting anymore for M-Sport to run a 6th car
- So Delecour had a Rally1 drive budget for Monte-Carlo with no car quite lately: with this budget at the last moment, he was able to overbid to rent the new Skoda for Monte-Carlo against «*lower*» clients; and for Skoda, in Monte-Carlo between Delecour and an average foreign client not able to win, Delecour is a better marketing stuff.
Only my opinion but I think it can be one of the scenarios about what happened; in the end, it’s about business. I wouldn’t be surprised we saw less than 3 Puma in average during the season (against an average of 4 last year with Fourmaux-Loeb-Breen-Greensmith-Serderidis and the outings of Huttunen and Bertelli) with M-Sport clearly focusing on only Tanak-Loubet and clients paying all.
Not a question of number of cars (we know from Catalunya last year than they have at least 4 cars available + Serderidis’ one) but more of organization.
Clearly think M-Sport view right now is «*All on Ott*», Loubet in 2nd car because they needed someone to be registered as a manufacturer and he partially pays for it, and else, you pay all the costs + margin or you don’t drive.
Interesting also to see how it will finish with Greensmith; clearly, him being out of Monte increases a lot the probability about the Toyota rumors.
Can Delecour’s Puma not from M-Sport? But the Serderidis’ one? Cause the news have not M-Sport name. And i heard something about no M-Sport.
Serderidis’ car is managed directly by M-Sport and is kept in M-Sport location; so if it’s an issue of number of cars in the shipment and logistics, it’s not necessarily the car directly which is the issue.
And normally, Serderidis doesn’t rent his car directly (afaik at least).
Do you really think Mr. Wilson would let Delecour exit without a super deal to run Fiesta Rally2 instead?
Maybe Delecour or his backers didn’t want the Fiesta Rally2 and it’s quite understandable
Backing and sponsorship depends a lot of the advertisement you can give: being in the Puma Rally1 can give advertisement, being in one of the very first Skoda RS drives also, being in a Fiesta Rally2 ... well, when we know its level, clearly less and if Delecour has really a big budget for this rally, it’s clearly better to spend it on the new Fabia and I would have done the same if I don’t want to drive elsewhere and a company gives me the money only for this.
And as I said, it’s only an opinion and as I said before, we have only one side of the story, Delecour’s one: the only thing that sounds pretty sure is that he had a real budget considering the deal he gets with Toksport.
Was it enough for renting the M-Sport? Was it only a very conditional possibility with no real opening by M-Sport? A lot of question mark we may never have the answer.
It’s business, competition and the time frame was really short; sometimes, it’s a lot about opportunities, timing and a bit of luck.
Ouh!!! I'm just coming to see that I was confused, and I thought that repeated the stage St. Jeannet - Malijai, and now I see that it's Malijai - Puimichel.
Another stage, without intermediate access. What a rally......they try to make an itinerary without access for spectators.
Every year it's worst....
Shakedown
Attachment 2346
SERDERIDIS TO DRIVE PUMA IN MONTE
Jourdan Serderidis will drive an M-Sport Ford Puma Rally1 at next month’s Rallye Monte-Carlo (19 - 22 January).
https://www.wrc.com/en/news/2022/wrc...puma-in-monte/
Hoping for Loeb or in worst case Greensmith and you get........Serderidis :-D
Maybe the rumours of GG renting a Rally1 Yaris are true.
And he does spend quite a bit of time in Finland, the home country of his girlfriend, and the base of TGR...
No Loeb at Monte
https://fr.motorsport.com/wrc/news/s...gYv29bK6zcO0nA
I am suprised that MSport did not offer Fourmeaux a one-off Rallye 1 at Monte Carlo where he is very strong (I know he crashed heavily last year,but was there with the top dogs up to then). But i believe the "education" process Malcolm-style means one full year in WRC2 before, with no shortcuts ...
Surprised?
It’s the most difficult rally of the season so no surprise he won’t start in Rally1 car
There's a good virtual map on the website of the full route .
https://acm.mc/en/edition/91e-rallye...ocuments/maps/
Maybe it will work for him, just like it did for them?
https://dirtfish.com/archive/top-5-rally2-revivals/
There are now maps on the website on the Spectators section that are not password protected ;
https://acm.mc/en/edition/91e-rallye...ors-area/maps/
From Italy
Gino - Michi (Citroën c3 rally2)
Gamba - Gonella (Skoda Fabia rally2)
Miele - Beltrame (Skoda Fabia RS rally2 - WRC2)
Merli - XXX (Skoda Fabia rally2 evo)
https://www.rally-maps.com/Rallye-Monte-Carlo-2023
Seems that Col de Turini has a new narrow section in the beginning. Brianconnet - Entrevaux uses a different ending than before, sharing it with the longer Entrevaux stage (which is reversed from 2015-2017 opening stage)
Spectator information
https://acm.mc/wp-content/uploads/20..._GB_211222.pdf
A mention of two entries;
https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/s...-42236499.html
Delecour's Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 livery:
https://www.rallye-sport.fr/wp-conte...cour-2023.jpeg
From italy: Patera (fabia rally2)
https://itgetsfasternow.com/2023/01/...te-carlo-2023/
Here we go. Familiar stages from the recent years with just some updates.