Sliven Rally - IRC news before SS1

Iliev fastest IRC runner in Sliven Rally shakedown

Dimitar Iliev has underlined his status as a favourite for victory on the Mabanol Sliven Rally by going fastest in shakedown for the Intercontinental Rally Challenge qualifier earlier today.

Iliev, in a Vivacom Rally Team ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000, completed the 5.45-kilometre practice stage, which forms part of Saturday’s Mollova Gora test, with a fastest time of 2m29.1s.

The five-time Sliven winner was 0.7s faster than Peugeot 207 Super 2000 driver Petar Gyoshev with four-time Sliven victor Krum Donchev, in another Peugeot, third quickest in 2m30.5s.

Todor Slavov was the fastest IRC 2WD Cup runner in his Renault Clio R3, taking 2m34.1s to complete the stage. Class rival and IRC Production Cup contender Robert Consani clocked a time of 2m35.2s in his Renault Mégane RS. Marco Tempestini set a 2m37.9s best in his Subaru Impreza R4 STI with Martin Kangur the top Honda Civic Type R runner in a time of 2m39.3s.

Prime Yalta Rally winner Yağiz Avci recorded a 2m36.2s best in his M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000. Former IRC 2WD Cup champion Harry Hunt clocked 2m35.9s. Menya Krózser’s efforts in his Clio R3 were hampered by a fuel leak prior to his opening run. His car had to be towed back to the service park in Sliven for repairs. The Hungarian eventually recorded a 2m40.3s.

Top 10 shakedown times (IRC eligible competitors only, all times provisional)

1 Dimitar Iliev (ŠKODA Fabia S2000) 2m29.1s
2 Petar Gyoshev (Peugeot 207 S2000) 2m29.8s
3 Krum Donchev (Peugeot 207 S2000) 2m30.5s
4 Todor Slavov (Renault Clio R3) 2m34.1s
5 Robert Consani (Renault Mégane RS) 2m35.2s
6 Harry Hunt (Citroën DS3 R3T) 2m35.9s
7 Yağiz Avci (M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000) 2m36.2s
8 Marco Tempestini (Subaru Impreza R4 STI) 2m37.9s
9 Martin Kangur (Honda Civic Type R) 2m39.3s
10 Menya Krózser (Renault Clio R3) 2m40.3s

Q&A: Dimitar Iliev

Five-time Mabanol Sliven Rally winner and Bulgarian hero looks ahead to the IRC’s first visit to his homeland

This is the IRC’s first visit to Bulgaria for the Mabanol Sliven Rally. Tell us about the event?

“It’s a very exciting with very fast parts, slow parts, sometimes a lot of grip, sometimes very slippery. There is everything on this rally.”

What’s your tactic for the rally?

“We are in a situation that it is not possible to make tactics, we have to push from the start. I will try to be as fast as possible all the rally, maybe we have the chance to win for a sixth time. I believe we can.”

It will be a tight fight between the Bulgarian drivers, particularly with you and Krum Donchev, another multiple winner here. Do you agree?

“I think so. Unfortunately there are not so many drivers with Super 2000 cars from abroad. We have to think about the Bulgarian championship so we try to be fast.”

What do you hope for from this rally?

“Without problems to finish the rally in a good position. That’s everything I hope for, I hope everything will be working very well on the car.”

The ambient and ground temperatures are going to be high during the rally. What problems will this bring?

“For sure it can be a problem and I can tell you it’s not easy to have the right tyres for all the special stages. Some of the stages are very slippery and you need softer tyres, some of them have a lot of grip so it will be difficult for the tyres. Also for the brakes because there is very long and strong downhill so it will be hard for sure. We will drive with harder tyres because of the big downhill, it’s not so big choice.”

Hunt hopes Italy test will hand him the edge in Bulgaria

Harry Hunt hopes to build on confidence gained from a successful test in Italy last week when he resumes his bid for the IRC 2WD Cup on the Mabanol Sliven Rally in Bulgaria from 28-30 September.

Hunt ran in northern Italy last Friday as he worked on finalising a winning set-up on the Citroën DS3 R3T he shares with co-driver and fellow Briton Robbie Durant.

“We had a test in nothern Italy on Friday, which went very well,” said Hunt, who heads Robert Consani in the standings by a single point. “We tried to find a good asphalt set-up and it’s been good to get some extra seat-time in the car.”

Hunt’s team manager Iwan Evans said: “Despite the roads in Sliven being quite wide and smooth in some places, we understand that the grip level is quite low which calls for a specific set-up for the car to work at its best. We found a good test road in Italy which replicates the nature of roads we’ll see in Bulgaria next week, and after a full day’s driving, and some fine tuning, we are now confident with the set-ups we have.”

Teenager Simeonov first to tackle SSS Sliven

Sixteen-year-old Bulgarian driver Mihail Simeonov will have the honour of running first on the road through SSS Sliven, the opening stage of the Mabanol Sliven Rally, which gets underway shortly.

Simeonov only began competing in May but has already gained experience in circuit racing and hillclimb events. He will be one of the contenders for IRC 2WD Cup honours on the all-asphalt rally, which gets underway at 20:00hrs local time.

A total of 38 crews will start the Intercontinental Rally Challenge event with five-time Sliven winner Dimitar Iliev the last driver to tackle tonight’s 1.91-kilometre test after the seeded order for the rally was reversed for the run around Sliven’s Hadji Dimitar Stadium, which is set to attract thousands of fans.

Statement from Eurosport Events

A statement from Eurosport Events regarding the 2013 FIA European Rally Championship appears below.

The FIA World Motor Sport Council has confirmed at its meeting in Paris today an agreement between the FIA and Eurosport Events for Eurosport Events to become the promoter of the FIA European Rally Championship from the 2013 season onwards. The agreement will mean the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, which Eurosport Events created and has promoted since its inception in 2007, will not run next year in its current format across Europe. Eurosport Events is delighted to have secured this exciting opportunity and will announce full details, including the provisional calendar for 2013, at a later stage.

IRC ace Consani targets error-free Sliven debut

Robert Consani will make his Mabanol Sliven Rally debut tonight determined not to make a mistake in his bid to move to the top of the IRC Production Cup and IRC 2WD Cup standings.

Consani, from France, is eligible for both awards in the Renault Mégane RS he shares with co-driver Nicolas Klinger, who partnered Nicolas Vouilloz to the IRC title in 2008.

“Our aim for the rally is to win both categories, the IRC Production Cup and the IRC 2WD Cup but it’s important to drive at a slower pace to be sure to be at the finish,” said Consani, 30. “I hope to win both of the categories but the competition here is stronger than in Yalta, particularly in the IRC 2WD Cup with Todo Slavov, Harry Hunt and Martin Kangur hanging around.”

Klinger, meanwhile, pointed to the 19.95-kilometre Stara Reka test on Saturday as being potentially troublesome for the Renault crew. “The first two stages are good but the third stage on Saturday is bumpy with gravel on the road,” he said. “I don’t think this will be so good for us, particularly on the downhill sections. But we know we will have a good fight with Harry whatever happens. He is our friend and I think it will be between us.”

Donchev braced for strong competition in Bulgaria

Krum Donchev says the competitive nature of the Mabanol Sliven Rally entry means that he fears all drivers on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge counter in Bulgaria this week.

Donchev, who has won the Sliven Rally on four occasions in the past, will pilot a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 on the event.

He said: “When I started in rally I learned that you have to fight against all competitors so everybody will be a rival to me. I know the other drivers will push from the beginning and I will do the same. It’s going to be a very interesting rally but a very difficult rally too.”

Donchev is the fourth seed on the all-asphalt rally, which gets underway with a superspecial stage in host city Sliven at 20:00hrs local time tonight.

Avci heads strong Turkish line-up in Sliven

Seven crews from Turkey will contest the Mabanol Sliven Rally, round 11 of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, this week with Yağiz Avci one of the favourites for victory in his M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000.

Avci, who drives for Castrol Ford Team Türkiye, won the last round of the IRC, the Prime Yalta Rally earlier this month, and has high hopes of another strong result in Bulgaria from 28-30 September.

“My goal is to gain as much experience as possible on Tarmac but I also hope to be on the podium,” said the 28-year-old Istanbul resident, the reigning Turkish champion. “I know it won’t be easy but our team is well prepared for this rally and our car is good.”

He continued: “Yalta was a much more technical rally to here where the stages are more fast with different levels of grip. But I have good confidence and I hope it can be a good rally for us.”

In addition to Avci, Castrol Ford Team Türkiye is also fielding a brace of Fiesta R2s in the IRC 2WD Cup for Murat Bostanci and Bugra Banaz. Meanwhile, young female driver Simin Biçakçioğlu will make her IRC debut with the Pegasus Racing team.

Other Turkish drivers in action in Sliven include Neo Motorsport’s Tezcan Dalfidan and privateers Eytan Halfon and Nebil Erbil, with the latter chasing IRC Production Cup points in a Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII.

Kangur gets replacement co-driver for Sliven bid

Martin Kangur will be reunited with co-driver Ken Järveoja for this week’s Mabanol Sliven Rally as he bids for glory in the IRC 2WD Cup for Honda.

The Estonian teenager had been due to compete with Andres Ots in his Catwees Honda Racing Civic Type R. But with Ots not available, Kangur has recruited Järveoja, who navigated him on July’s Rally San Marino, instead.

"Andres wasn’t available for Sliven and I have worked with Ken already this year. He’s a brilliant co-driver and it’s great to drive with him again,” said Kangur, currently joint third in the IRC 2WD Cup standings.

“One thing is certain: it will be a tough battle,” Kangur continued. “But I’m going for victory and why not? Securing the third place on the final standings of the 2WD Cup would be fantastic."

Strong entry for IRC-counting Mabanol Sliven Rally

Forty-four crews are set to contest the Mabanol Sliven Rally in Bulgaria this week, round 11 of the all-action Intercontinental Rally Challenge season.

Drivers representing nine different countries will battle for glory on the undulating asphalt stages in mountains overlooking Bulgaria’s eighth largest city.

Heading the entry is multiple event winner and local hero Dimitar Iliev in a ŠKODA Fabia Super 2000. The second seeded driver is Yağiz Avci, from Turkey, who famously scored his maiden IRC victory on the Prime Yalta Rally in Ukraine earlier this month at the wheel of an M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000. Bulgarian Petar Gyoshev is the number three seed in his Peugeot 207 S2000 followed by Krum Donchev, another regular winner in Sliven in a Peugeot.

Marco Tempestini is the highest-placed IRC Production Cup entrant in a Subaru Impreza R4 STI with category rival and IRC 2WD Cup contender Robert Consani seeded number eight in his Renault Mégane RS.

Other drivers in action include Honda Civic Type R pilot Martin Kangur, leading female driver Ekaterina Stratieva, and former IRC 2WD Cup champion Harry Hunt.

The Mabanol Sliven Rally features 13 stages over a competitive distance of 197.32 kilometres. The action begins with the 1.91-kilometre SSS Sliven at 20:00hrs local time on Friday 28 September.

Bicakcioglu out to emulate Cetinkaya

Simin Biçakçioğlu will follow in the footsteps of countrywoman Burcu Çetinkaya when she makes her Intercontinental Rally Challenge debut on the Mabanol Sliven Rally this week.

Çetinkeya became the first female driver to score IRC points during her extended campaign in the series back in 2010. Biçakçioğlu is unlikely to achieve that same level of success in her two-wheel-drive machine in Sliven but will nevertheless be a contender for IRC 2WD Cup honours aboard the Pegasus Racing Abarth Grande Punto Super 1600 she shares with co-driver Cenk Ceylan.

The Turkish youngster, who began her motorsport career in touring car racing in 2008, will be using the IRC’s first visit to Bulgaria to gain more experience of competing on asphalt.

Consani can go top… twice!

Robert Consani starts the Mabanol Sliven Rally on Friday night with a strong chance to move to the top of the standings of the IRC Production Cup and IRC 2WD Cup.

Consani’s Renault Mégane RS is eligible for points in both categories and the French ace is well placed in both ahead of round 11 of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge.

In the IRC Production Cup, Consani trails Andreas Aigner by three points, while in the IRC 2WD Cup he is just one point adrift of Harry Hunt. Although Hunt is set to rigorously defend his title lead in Sliven, with Aigner not having nominated the Bulgarian round as one of this scoring events Consani is likely to take full advantage alongside co-driver Nicolas Klinger.

Sliven action will be hot in more ways than one

It won’t just be the action on the stages that will be hot when the Mabanol Sliven Rally joins the Intercontinental Rally Challenge schedule for the first time this week.

Ambient temperatures around the Bulgarian city, where the event will be based from 28-30 September, have peaked at 33 degrees centigrade with Saturday’s opening day taking place in temperatures of 30 degrees centigrade with only a five per cent risk of rain. The temperature on Sunday is set to reach 27 degrees centigrade, again with a minimal risk of precipitation.

Not only will the high temperatures put a strain on the drivers and co-drivers, their cars will also be subjected to a tough test with tyre wear also at a premium on the undulating asphalt stages.