RALLYE DE FRANCE – TOUR DE CORSE - October 20th-23rd 2005
RALLY DE CATALUNYA - ESPAÑA - October 27th-30th 2005
After its two wins so far this year, in Finland and Japan, the Peugeot 307 WRC will be looking for a good result in 14 and 15 of the 2005 World Rally Championship which take competitors to Corsica and Catalonia.
Despite the distinctive gravel feel to this year's calendar, the end of the season has a predominantly asphalt look to it, with two of 2005's last three rounds taking place on sealed surfaces, namely the Tour of Corsica and the Catalonia Rally. With the exception of the year's opening fixture, the Monte Carlo Rally, only one asphalt event has been contested to date. That was last August's Deutschland Rally, although the stages of the German round had little in common with those crews face in the two Mediterranean events.
With three rounds remaining, Peugeot is currently 2nd in the provisional Constructors' standings, 22 points behind its sister make Citroën. Despite the size of this gap, Peugeot Sport has no intention of giving up the fight so long as it stands a chance of adding a further world title to its record. In the battle for the Drivers' crown, however, the situation is already settled since Sébastien Loeb has now made sure of the crown. But Marcus Grönholm is provisionally 2nd with a cushion of 6 points over 3rd-placed Petter Solberg and therefore still has everything to play for in his bid to conclude the year as vice-Champion. The Finn and the Norwegian have both put in some top asphalt performances in the past and the expected scrap between the two in the forthcoming asphalt rounds promises to be particularly close.
Peugeot has carved out a highly successful record in Corsica over the years. The French event was chosen for the debut of the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 in the 1980s, kicking off a glorious chapter of the firm's history. In 1999, the French carmaker once again chose the Mediterranean island event to launch the career of the Peugeot 206 WRC which went on to win there twice, in 2000 and 2002. This year, the weather could well play a decisive role, notably on the tyre front, just as it promises to be an issue during the following weekend's Catalonia Rally which begins just five days after the finish of the Tour of Corsica in Ajaccio on Sunday October 23rd.
The programme of the 2005 Catalonia Rally marks a big shift compared with last year's event since all the action will take place entirely in the region of Tarragona, while the more compact format is more compliant with FIA guidelines. Peugeot has won the Spanish round on three occasions – in 2001, 2002 and 2003 – and finished 2nd in 2004 with Marcus Grönholm. The Finn, who has finished on the podium eight times so far this year, including two times on the top step, has an excellent card to play on both events.
Meanwhile, the outgoing Tour of Corsica and Catalonia Rally winner Markko Märtin has expressed his wish not to contest the last three rounds of the 2005 season. In his absence, it is the FFSA Equipe de France driver Nicolas Bernardi – co-driven by Jean-Marc Fortin – who has been nominated to drive the second 307 WRC in the two remaining asphalt rounds of this year's World Rally Championship.Nicolas Bernardi has worked his way up through the ranks of Peugeot Sport's driver promotion scheme, beginning with France's nationwide Rallye Jeunes talent-spotting operation in which he was a finalist in 1995. He went on to claim the Volant Peugeot 206 series in 2000 before becoming a works driver in 2001 contesting the FIA Super 1600 Championship with a 206.
After switching to a rival make for 2003 and 2004, the Frenchman finished 2nd in the 2004 FIA Super 1600 World Championship. Back again in the Peugeot Sport camp for 2005, Nicolas currently leads the French Rally Championship driving a 206 WRC.
