Reputed to be the most demanding event on the WRC calendar, the 2013 Acropolis Rally will nonetheless be contested at breakneck speeds. The Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team will be represented by the crews Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen and Dani Sordo/Carlos del Barrio for this, the sixth round of the season. Khalid Al-Qassimi/Scott Martin will be driving the DS3 WRC of the Abu Dhabi Citroen Total World Rally Team.
The legend of the Acropolis Rally has been built on the rough gravel roads of its stages, which make this rally a genuine test of endurance. Over the years, and as the gravel roads in Greece have been modernised, the average speed of the winner has gradually increased, now standing at around 90kph, like in Portugal, Argentina or Sardinia. These higher speeds have increased the stresses placed on the cars suspension systems and tyres, which are even greater still when air temperatures get close to 40C!
The 2013 programme serves up a compact event, with a revised breakdown that packs the qualifying stage, ceremonial start and two stages into Fridays leg. As night falls on Friday, competitors will set off on the 47km-long Kineta-Pissia test, the longest stage of the rally! Saturdays leg will be even livelier, with eight stages that make up half of the total distance of timed sections.
The Acropolis Ralllys new design makes it the shortest event contested so far this season. Which means that right from the word go, nobody can afford to lose any time! Having finished on the podium on the last four occasions herewinning in 2009Mikko Hirvonen is very familiar with the requirements of this event: The road surface can change quite dramatically from one stage to the next. Sometimes, the roads are very smooth and flowing, and sometimes they are totally rock-strewn and full of potholes. The reliability of the cars and the strength of the tyres mean that we are pretty much flat out all the time, but endurance is still a real factor here.
Having set some very good times in Argentina, the Finn hopes to put together the final pieces of the jigsaw to claim a win: We are working all the time with the team to improve the car. Actually, we completed a short, specific test session when we arrived in Greece. I hope that luck will be on our side and that we manage to secure another win for Citroen.
Meanwhile, after missing this rally for the last two years, Dani Sordo will have to familiarize himself with some of the stages held in the Corinthia region: I really like this rally, although I havent always been successful here. You need a bit of luck to get a good result in Greece but the key is to manage your tyres throughout each loop and, obviously, avoid picking up any punctures. Generally speaking, the roads provide a good level of grip. These are the kinds of conditions that I prefer and I hope to rediscover the same level of performance as in Portugal.
Back in the WRC after competing in the third round of the MERC in Jordan, Khalid Al-Qassimi considers this event to be somewhat special: I competed in my first World Championship Rally here in Greece, back in 2004. I have now taken part in four Acropolis Rallies. I like the roads here, because they are sometimes quite similar in character to those you get in the Middle East. The driver of the Abu Dhabi Citroen Total WRTs Citroen DS3 WRC finished sixth overall in 2009.
Citroen Racings line-up for Greece is completed by the DS3 RRC of Robert Kubica/Maciej Baran, who will be competing in the WRC-2 category.
THREE QUESTIONS FOR XAVIER MESTELAN-PINON
From a technical point of view, what have you learned from the last few rallies?Although this is the third year we have been running the Citroen DS3 WRC, the car changes at virtually every rally. Since the end of last season, we have secured homologation for new parts from the FIA. These parts concern both the engine, with the cylinder head, the intake manifold and the turbo wastegate, and the chassis, with the pivots and the steering rack. And yet it is to the set-up that the most sensitive changes have been made. We start with requests from the drivers, especially from Mikko Hirvonen. He has yet to reap the rewards for the work he has put in, but the direction we have taken has also been appreciated by Dani Sordo and Sbastien Loeb.
Do you expect to keep working on this in the coming months?We are primarily focussed on the Acropolis Rally. We expect the conditions to be similar to those we had in Portugal. We scheduled two days of testing just before the rally to confirm the validity of our work. We also have a few cards up our sleeves for the tarmac rounds. Citron Racing remains committed to an approach based on constantly reviewing and analysing what we do. For example, if we look at Mikkos puncture in Argentina. That led to part of the rear wing becoming damaged, meaning that some water got into the car when it went through a watersplash. That was what caused the electrical problems which resulted in the car having to stop for several minutes. Although all of this occurred as a result of an abnormal situation, its up to us to work on ensuring that it doesnt happen again. If we are going to win the title, then our cars must be completely reliable in all circumstances.
You presented a mock-up of the Citroen DS3 R5 in Portugal. Can you tell us a bit more about this new product?Citron Racing is continuing to roll out models based on the DS3. With R1, R3, RRC and WRC, we already have a solid line-up, but the new R5 regulations mean that we can now offer a more affordable product than the RRC. The winner of the Citroen Top Driver series, which is being held as part of the WRC-3, will be given a full programme in a DS3 R5, competing in the WRC-2 in 2014. Development work is continuing and initial road testing is scheduled to begin at the start of the summer.
