RALLY ITALIA SARDEGNA 18-21/10/2012
After finishing in fourth place a few days ago at the Rallye de France, Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul are now looking for their first WRC podium finish. As was the case in New Zealand, the Belgian crew will be driving for the Qatar World Rally Team in the absence of Nasser Al- Attiyah. Another Citron DS3 WRC will be entered for Luca Pedersoli and Matteo Romano.
Nine months after getting underway in Monte-Carlo, the 2012 World Rally Championship enters the home straight:two weeks after Alsace, the WRC competitors head for Sardinia for the championship's penultimate round.Confirming the progress they have made with each race, Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul finished the Rallye deFrance in fourth position, claiming six stage wins in the process. Having achieved the best result of their short career,the Citron Junior World Rally Team crew can now set their sights even higher. My target is to finish on the podium atleast once, confirmed the Saint-Vith driver. The result achieved in France has boosted our morale. We proved that wecan go quickly without making any fatal errors. We managed to achieve this by working relentlessly with the team, butwe are still learning. Not a day goes by at a rally when we dont learn something!
Although Thierry has never competed in this rally in its WRC format, he did take part in the Rally Sardegna in 2010,when it was part of the IRC: It was only my third race in a Super 2000 and I finished fourth overall. I know more orless what to expect at this event. The course is very technical, and the gravel on some sections can be pretty rough. Justlike with all WRC rallies, well have to manage the race intelligently.
Although the Rally Sardegna was not originally part of Thierrys schedule, in the end, he has been able to take partthanks to Nasser Al-Attiyah: I am very pleased that Thierry will be driving the Qatar World Rally Teams car inSardinia. I am in the middle of preparations for the Dakar Rally and have to take part in a lot of testing, which means Icannot compete in the last two rounds of the championship. My WRC programme therefore ended in France and Iwould like to thank Citron for having given me the opportunity to race with them this season. 2012 was a trulyincredible year for me! Above all, more than any particular result, what Ill remember was the way the team welcomedme and the support I was given to help me to improve. What I have learned will be useful in the future, starting withthe Dakar Rally.
The no.7 Citron DS3 WRC will be driven at the Rally de Espagna by Dutch driver Hans Weijs Jr, who finished asrunner-up in the 2010 Junior World Championship in a C2 Super 1600.
A second Citron DS3 WRC prepared by Citron Racing Technologies will be entered in Sardinia. It will be entrusted tothe Italian crew Luca Pedersoli/Matteo Romano. Runner-up in the 2004 European Championship, the Brescia-borndriver took a break from driving before returning in 2009. Winner of the 2011 Trofeo Rally Asphalto in a C4 WRC,Luca sees this years Rally Sardegna as the highlight of his competitive season in 2012. Its an immense pleasure forme and a great honour to be able to drive what is currently the best WRC at my home rally, he confirmed. I donthave much experience on gravel and so its difficult to set a precise target. I first drove the car as part of a days testingin the south of France and I was immediately won over by its abilities. I know Sardinia well, but my recollections of itfrom a rallying point of view are pretty distant, because I havent raced there since competing in the Rally CostaSmeralda Terra Sarda on two occasions in the early 2000s. Well see what happens, but above all, Im determined toenjoy driving this fabulous car.
