The Oppo 2014 World Rally Guide&Resource

"Fred (FreddsterExprs)" (freddsterexprs)
01/15/2014 at 04:57 • Filed to: WRC, Guide, Resource, FreddsterEXPRS

I. What is WRC?

WRC is the FIA World Rally Championship. It is one of only 4 motorsport World Championships besides F1, WTCC (Touring Car) and WEC (Endurance sportscar).

II. What happens at a WRC event?

Okay, here's the very brief description: Take a twisty, hilly road near you. Preferably one that is only used by tractors and other offroad/utility vehicles. Close that road. Now invite the drivers with the most courage and car control in the world and let them drive the road 2 times in normal speed in a road car while taking notes with their co-drivers. They call that the recce and the teams use special, slightly modified road cars.

After you have done that, let them bring out their beefed up hatchbacks and go all mad over said route while having it described during driving by their co-pilot. Let them do this on about 18 roads in 3 days and you have yourself a WRC event.

Badass? You bet. There is a reason for the saying „ As a F1 driver you see one corner 1000 times. As a rally driver you see 1000 corners 1 time ."

Points are given out "F1 Style" for the best 10 drivers with the winner getting 25, the second place finisher 18, and the third best driver will get 15 points. WRC also has a Powerstage: On one of the last stages of the event the 3 fastest drivers on this single stage will get 3,2 or 1 bonus points. A perfect result therefore would be 28 points in total - 25 for the overall win, 3 for the Powerstage.

III. What cars are they using?

Hatchbacks. But they are modified heavily to handle heavy abuse. Basically only the raw body & chassis comes from the production car. The teams will weld in heavy duty roll cages and special suspension. Also 1.6l turbo engines are being fitted. Those little engines are powerful and make around 320hp and 420NM of torque. That's enough to move the 1200kg cars quickly and light up the Michelin tires. 0-60 mph? 3.9 seconds. Of course that just works thanks to AWD.

IV. Who is driving?

Oh, there is great variety. You have frenchman Sebastien Ogier, current title holder and dominant 2013 driver. Jari-Matti Latvala from finnland is his teammate, and while he is super fast, his favourite hobby is finding random stones and objects in the middle of the road to crash his VW against.
Ford will be trying to make it as hard for VW as possible with ex-F1 driver and GP winner Robert Kubica. He prooved to be super fast and recentley even could keep his car on the road. Mikko Hirvonen returns from Citroen and wants to prove that he is still one of the best rally drivers.
Citroen had a terrible year after 9-time-in-a-row-champion Loeb retired, and they will try to win single events with young talent Mads Östberg and not-so-young-but-talented Brit Kris Meeke.

And finally, newcomer Hyundai managed to secure the hottest driver on the transfer market: Thierry Neuville from belgium. He gave Ogier a run for his money in 2013 and managed to secure 7 podiums. The second Hyundai will be driven by different drivers, starting with asphalt ace Dani Sordo.

V. Where are they driving?

Everywhere around the globe. Traditionally Monaco is the opening round and will provide a great mix of tight mountain passes covered with asphalt, snow and ice. The night stages at legendary Col de Turini are called "Night of the long knifes" for a reason. Afterwards Sweden will set the stages for the only full snow rally of the year. The rest of the calender consists of tarmac and/or gravel rallys, for example the legendary "Finish GP" Rally Finland where cars will be jumping at 200kp/h through a forest.

Here is the whole 2014 calender:

VI. If it is that awesome, why can't I watch it anywhere?

That's because you just touched the WRCs main problem: Media coverage and public recognition. In Europe F1 rules everything and in the US NASCAR gets people to turn on the TVs.
All that has been made worse by non existent contracts with TV stations. Also the rally format itself is rather hard to capture in comparison to a traditional motor race on a circuit where everything happens on the same track at the same time.

So here is a quick action plan to get the best coverage possible:
1. Check your local TV stations for WRC coverage. For example, in the UK ITV4 is showing summaries according to this !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . Some Internet streaming websites also offer a program selection based on the sport you want to watch.
2. Live Timing of the stages is provided on the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and on the private, but excellent !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! site. Try to check it now and then.
3. Facebook and especially Twitter are great for getting interim results. Here are a few feeds, but please add your personal sources in the comments, I will happily edit them in.
Twitter: @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! @ !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!
Facebook: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!
4. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! always has short daily summaries, so make sure to watch them in the evening of every Event day.
5. Independent Youtubers do a great job of catching the greatest sights. They often are even more spectacular than the WRC TV's own videos. Definitely follow !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

VII. I love it. What else can I do to have some Rally fun here on Oppo?

You can should consider Fantasy WRC. Dusty Ventures has done a great job of setting up the rules. Go !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! for the Monte Carlo thread and join!

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VIII. Anything else?

Not from my side. But I bet I forgot something. Feel free to punish me for it in the comments.

This post has been written for Oppo/Jalopnik readers who like the idea of cars going fast through the wild but just couldn't get their heads around the concept of WRC. I have read a few questions about the championship and how to follow it last year, so that's why this article exists. I hope it helps.

DISCUSSION (46)

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 04:57

Double post, way to go Kinja. Anyways, Ogier was fastest in Shakedown, followed by Ostberg and Meeke in their Citroens and - surprise - Kubica as the fastest Ford driver.
Thierry Neuville put his Hyundai in 6th - a promising start for the new team.

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Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 04:58

As a bonus for making it through the whole bit of text, take a look at the different reece cars the teams are using:

VW has those dark blue Golf R's.

Kinja'd!!!

M-Sport Ford takes it to a whole new Jalop level with a fleet of AWD Volvos (and they even have a hydraulic handbrake fur U-turns):

Kinja'd!!!

Newcomer Hyundai meanwhile decided that Freude am Fahren would be the way to go:

Kinja'd!!!

I couldn't find anything about the Citroen Recce cars, but I know that Loeb turned up in a Aventador and a Nissan GT-R once. I just can't find any pictures.

Kookanoodles > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 05:23

Here's a video.

Krieger (@FSKrieger22) > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 06:51

Hang on a second, wasn't Red Bull roped in as a sponsor to help with the publicity issue WRC has been facing? Has something else gotten in the way of that?

Hoccy > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 08:15

Wonderful article, with basicly all the general info you'll ever need for the WRC. There are a few things though:

I: There are now 5 motorsport world championships, with the World Rallycross Championship added this year.

IV: I would add Andreas Mikkelsen (VW) and Elfyn Evans (Ford) as well, and the occassional Juho Hänninen and Chris Atkinson for Hyundai. There are also local privateers for each event.

VI: There will be some live stages this year, but we have to come back to how watch them. I know SVT will send two stages from Rally Sweden, and I think they have a free web player. Twitter and the WRC live radio are the way keep up for stages not on TV.

Dusty Ventures > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 09:01

Don't forget Colin Clark, @voiceofrally, and Becs Williams, @becsywecsy. Also I believe Motors Television just made a deal to air some of the rallies in the UK as well.

King Ginger, not writing for Business Insider > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 09:37

Should be FP'd to help the kids out there, but I would never wish that upon you haha.

Great summation.

Raptordd > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 09:53

RE independent Youtubers: Rallymedia is my personal favorite for very high quality video from WRC and other rally events.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Hoccy
01/15/2014 at 09:54

Thanks!

Totally forgot about Rally Cross, also a very interesting category.
I didn't add Mikkelsen and Evans because if I'm honest I don't think they will really matter for new WRC fans. The same goes for Hänninen and Atko, but I will add them as soon as I have a bit of free time.

I heard that the live stages will be only locally to spark interest, so that in Germany only German television will show live action. Just like it was in France last year.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Krieger (@FSKrieger22)
01/15/2014 at 09:57

Red Bull Mediahouse is a promotion partner, but so far only the website has been relaunched and that's about it. We will see if they can pull off proper TV coverage this year, the WRC definitely deserves it.

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > King Ginger, not writing for Business Insider
01/15/2014 at 09:58

Kinja'd!!!

Guess what just happened... let the games begin!

Phil_L > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:10

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Everywhere around the globe, EXCEPT THE US.

There, I fixed it.

I'd love the opportunity to take my kids to a WRC event...

Nuno Miguel Aguiar > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:14

I've loved rally for a long time and watching it in person you get a rush as the cars go by at speeds that you can't imagine yourself driving at on dry normal roads. Hyundai is back in WRC and hopefully this time they stay for a while.

vermes > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:27

Why doesn't Citroën have any Finnish drivers not even co-drivers?

TurboSloth > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:34

Whats the difference between WRC, WRC2, and WRC 3?

Also, it says that the Monte Carlo rally starts from 1/14-1/19. I tried looking at the itinerary, but it says that no one's started yet. When exactly does it start? Are these times on the itinerary in MonteCarlo's time zone or mine?

John Frame (formerly bearslayer) > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:36

I want to know more about the suspension / body lift? in the golf R recce's. I'm doing several TSD rallies this season and thats just exactly what I'm looking for, haha.

craig-oesterling > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:41

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Load up Dirt 3.

Yes, yes, I know you'll say it's not realistic, the physics are wrong, etc., etc. Well, having never driven a car like that, I wouldn't know. So for me, it's a blast! Especially with a wheel, pedals, and headphones. It's the closest I'll get to blasting through the forest in Finland or avoiding the walls on the Col de Turini anytime soon.

Or ever!

chezcliff > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:42

Might want to fix the Twitter links

Brazzzzzle > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:45

"Points are given out "F1 Style" ... " - I think "rewarded" might be a better way of putting it. When you say it that way, people might get the idea that drivers get points based on style or something other than fastest times. At least it might sound that way to someone wholly unfamiliar with WRC or F1. It is a Time Attack competition with cars sharing the same road, but spaced apart, so they are not directly competing for place, just for best time.

I hoon, therefore I am > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 10:46

I think a lot of the TV coverage issue has to do with the length of races. For example, the Rally Guanajuato Mexico is three months .

/backwarddateformat

King Ginger, not writing for Business Insider > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 11:04

Whoops haha

King Ginger, not writing for Business Insider > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 11:07

Already rolled my eyes out of the back of my head over one comment...

Echo51 > Raptordd
01/15/2014 at 11:17

I second this, he makes some quality stuff.

CelrDwelr > Phil_L
01/15/2014 at 11:29

I went to a rally event in the hills north of LA. It was fun but it was no WRC and it was sparsely attended. I'm not really sure how to make Americans into WRC fans. Maybe point out that moonshine runners were basically doing rally stages with a trunk full of booze back in the 30's?

speedkch > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 11:31

Velocity Channel presented the European Rally Championship (ERC) throughout the fall in 2013. Really a decent alternative since there was no WRC. Hope we can get that again this year!

Hoccy > TurboSloth
01/15/2014 at 12:02

The cars would be the difference between WRC, WRC2 and WRC3, where WRC2 and WRC are more entry-level cars.

The opening ceremony was yesterday, shakedown (in essence a warmup stage) was today and the first stages are tomorrow. Times on the itinerary are local times.

Limp Home Mode > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:03

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Fucking awesome!

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:18

MAV TV has shown highlights of last year's events.

Jonny683 > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:28

Wanna race the WRC cars? Well buy a sim racing game, rFactor for example, and download a mod with the WRC cars, then go out, get a few stages, and enjoy!

Jonny683 > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:28

Wanna race the cars from the WRC and WRC of years past?! Sim Racing!

TrackRatMk1 > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:35

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The WRC had a few rough seasons with major manufacturers dropping out and their corrupt promoter getting the boot. Last year was the first season that Red Bull Media took over the production with the goal of increasing WRC's commercial value... by all accounts access is definitely improving, and manufacturer battles are heating up. MINI, Hyundai, Ford, and VW all racing top tier. Looking forward to this year and it looks like WRC may even have a live stream on their site !

TrackRatMk1 > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 12:38

Here's a fresh preview of what to expect in Monte Carlo.

ILoveMyWRX > Phil_L
01/15/2014 at 13:05

I wish the WRC came here, but there is this - http://www.rally-america.com/

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Phil_L
01/15/2014 at 13:48

I totally agree. An US round is overdue. I imagine that some Baja roads would be perfect.
The only problem I see is that Citroen and Hyundai aren't selling that many i20s or DS3s in the US - Citroen doesn't even sell cars in the states I think.

OxygenStarvation > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 14:15

Read this: http://www.pistonheads.com/doc.asp?c=52&i…

Phil_L > ILoveMyWRX
01/15/2014 at 14:58

Yes, I've heard of them - but haven't seen a race. They have one event that's 4-ish hours from where I live.

Meanwhile, I make sure the kids know what's going on during the Dakar Rally!

Dusty Ventures > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/15/2014 at 17:39

We don't get the Polo here either

Dusty Ventures > TrackRatMk1
01/15/2014 at 17:47

Mini's out, they left at the end of 2012 and there are currently no Minis being run, even as privateers. Ford is also sort of out, M-Sport's carrying the banner there, Ford isn't even in the team name anymore. Citroen is still in though.

mrbwa1 > speedkch
01/15/2014 at 19:33

MavTV is currently showing WRC 2013 events. I assume it will eventually show 2014. Unfortunately it's not in hD (at least not in DirecTV) but I watch both ERC and WRC anyhow.

reddude7 > TrackRatMk1
01/15/2014 at 23:00

your comment says live stream but your link leaves a hole in my heart, as following the link reveals no live stream

edit: wait found it on the side. but will it actually work???

TrackRatMk1 > Dusty Ventures
01/16/2014 at 09:05

Thanks for the refresher!

Yaseen Syed > Fred (FreddsterExprs)
01/16/2014 at 14:00

Thanks for this article! I wanted to get into WRC, but there was lot I didn't know until reading this. Can you also do one for the GrandAm/ALMS merger?

Fred (FreddsterExprs) > Yaseen Syed
01/16/2014 at 14:05

Glad it helped!

I will consider one for the new TUSC series, it depends on whether I will have enough time to do the research.

FACEMAN. The man with a face. > CelrDwelr
01/16/2014 at 14:30

Hi there- socal rally driver. I suspect the event you went to was either Gorman Ridge, or depending on the year, Rim of the World. (And depending on the year, you may have even seen me!)

Regional events like those are rarely largely attended for a few reasons- first off its mostly just local guys. A big name drops by every once in a while (Petter Solberg was at Rim one year...not racing though..), but mostly its just small time people that dont generate a crowd.

The other reason is that events are put on completely by volunteers and adding large spectator sections is a lot more work and a lot more liability for the event coordinators, so instead of encouraging people to go stand in spectator sections, we encourage people instead to volunteer! You can get up much closer and get to go see the event from much better vantage points (especially if you're an armature radio operator).

On the other hand, the RA national events DO have huge WRC sized spectator sections if thats what you're looking for. Sadly the closest to socal is Oregon Trail, which is a bit of a trip.

You can hop onto the individual event websites for more info or jump on rallydata.com or http://www.californiarallyseries.com/ to find the calenders.

Hope to see you at GRR this year!

CelrDwelr > FACEMAN. The man with a face.
01/16/2014 at 14:47

Thanks for the details. Yeah it was Gorman. I actually liked the home-grown flavor of most of the entrants. It was pretty clear that for a lot of the teams the driver and mechanic were the same person. It made me feel like rallying was accessible to regular folks like me. I never feel that way about WRC (unless you're crazy...Caswell). I'll see if I can get up there for the next one.

FACEMAN. The man with a face. > CelrDwelr
01/17/2014 at 11:48

Absolutely! And in pretty much every case that is true.

As a rally driver you really do need to be able to disassemble and reassemble your car, blindfolded, drunk, in the dark, during a blizzard. WRC drivers are the same way, but when you have a big budget you pay a group of people to do it much faster than you can by yourself. All of my cars have been built in my back yard- whether or not it ends up being pretty depends entirely upon how much time and effort you want to put into it. You want fancy carbon parts? You either learn to make them yourself or pay someone else to do it. Same thing for tube subframes, powerful motors, fancy paint jobs. Most people at this level are fine with all go and no show. Most of us dont have anyone but ourselves to make happy about the outcome so most people would rather spend their time racing than making things pretty. Again, different when you have a huge crew of people that are paid to be there. (I pay my crew in food, beer, and a comfy hotel room floor.)

If you've got the means, you should come out to the CRS Rally School in early feb. Its about $150, single day event. You get a few hours in the classroom, a HUGE binder full of reference material and then you head out to a nice big dirt lot and learn to slide around and control you car (there is a codriver course as well where you learn to take and read notes instead of drive). Any car is welcome to come out- its a flat dirt lot, so the worst you'll do is a few scratches or a debeaded tire.

http://crsrallyschool.com/

I have taught in the driving portion the last two years- might be out there again this year.