Three-way title showdown for S-WRC in Wales

Wales Rally GB - Preview

By Franck Drui

8 November 2010 - 13:04
Three-way title showdown for S-WRC (...)

Three drivers go into the final round of the inaugural Super 2000 World Championship on Rally Great Britain with a chance of lifting the title: in championship order Xevi Pons (Ford Fiesta), Jari Ketomaa (Ford Fiesta) and Patrik Sandell (Skoda Fabia).

To make things even closer, only nine points cover those top three - with 25 points up for grabs for a win.

Leaving all the complicated points permutations aside, it’s essentially a winner takes all situation although Pons can afford to finish second to Ketomaa and still win the championship. One mistake will more likely as not cost the title.

So all three drivers are presented with an infernal dilemma: is it best to go as quick as possible, in order to open up a gap in what is guaranteed to be a hotly-contested event? Or is it wiser to drive with something in reserve, keep your nerve, and wait for the others to make an inevitable mistake?

On paper Ketomaa looks to be the favourite, and his experience of rallying in China, where some of the stage surfaces are not dissimilar to Rally GB - with mud and soft gravel - are sure to stand him in good stead.

Ketomaa, who is undertaking a one-day pre-event test today said: “My only target is to win and I plan to fight from the beginning to ensure this is possible. I competed in Wales two years ago and I liked the stages - it is a legendary event in the WRC calendar.”

Pons though has some valuable experience of Rally GB itself, having contested the event as part of the Subaru factory squad in 2007, and he has been consistently strong throughout the season. Pons tested his Fiesta in Britain last week. The Spaniard said: “I remember the roads were very fast. It was a difficult event the weather can also be very challenging on this rally. I’m aiming to win - it would the perfect end to the season."

Sandell starts from a slightly weaker position, as he is behind the other two in a Skoda that is maybe not quite as cutting edge now. However, the Swede is firmly in a gravel frame of mind, as he will rush to the Rally GB recce straight from China, where he finished second over the weekend at the Loungyou China Rally, the final round of the FIA Asia Pacific Championship in a Group N Subaru Impreza.

“I’m just going to go into this with the aim of enjoying myself and getting the best result possible,” said Sandell. “I don’t really feel any pressure, because a lot of what happens in the championship depends on other people so it’s out of my control. All I can do is concentrate on doing my job; then we will see what happens afterwards.”

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