Huge entry for World Rally Championship opener

The 2011 World Rally Championship is set to get off to a thrilling start in Sweden next month after all the series’ big guns lodged entries for the snow spectacular.

Nearly 130 cars will start the Karlstad event between the main international competition and the national-level Rally SM.

The Citroen Total World Rally Team has submitted a brace of entries for its factory DS3 WRCs that will be driven by Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier during the upcoming season.

The French make will also be represented by the new ICE 1 Racing squad headed by ex-Formula One world champion Kimi Raikkonen, while Norwegian Petter Solberg will drive in a fourth DS3 WRC.

Raikkonen’s entry was submitted shortly before this afternoon’s deadline and ends recent speculation that suggested the Finn would sit out the 2011 season following the death of his father prior to Christmas.

Ford has lodged entries for Finns Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala, who will campaign a pair of works Fiesta RS WRCs. Hirvonen won in Sweden last year while Latvala triumphed on the event in 2008, making the Blue Oval’s line-up one of the strongest in the field.

Khalid Al Qassimi will make his third start in Sweden in a factory-assisted Fiesta backed by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. The Stobart M-Sport Ford World Rally Team will also be returning to WRC duty with a trio of Fiestas for Mads Ostberg, Henning Solberg and Matthew Wilson.

American Ken Block will be making his Rally Sweden debut in a Monster World Rally Team Fiesta, while Dennis Kuipers will drive a similar car for the Dutch FERM Power Tools World Rally Team.

As well as hosting the opening round of the main WRC, Rally Sweden is the first of seven rounds for the Production Car World Rally Championship runners. Patrik Flodin, who took PWRC honours on his home event last season, is the stand out entrant in a Subaru Impreza, which is also the car of choice for Norwegian promise Anders Grondal.

Spain’s Alexander Villanueva, Finland’s Jukka Ketomaki and Martin Semerad from Czech Republic will also contest the class for two-litre turbocharged production cars.

Other notable entrants include leading Swedish driver Patrik Sandell, who has split from long-term co-driver Emil Axelsson and will now link up with the experienced Staffan Parmander. Swedish Touring Car Championship racer Richard Goranssson and WRC Academy runner Fredrik Ahlin provide added interest.