WRC: Volkswagen Duos at the Front in the Finland Shakedown

• 124.77 km/h average speed as warm-up – standard Neste Oil Rally Finland
• Mikkelsen in second is the fastest Volkswagen driver on the “Ruuhimäki” stage
• A tenth of a second separates Latvala in fourth and Ogier in fifth

Wolfsburg. High speed, long jumps – the Volkswagen drivers started the rally weekend well at the shakedown in Finland. In the “free practice session” for the eighth event of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) season, Andreas Mikkelsen/Ola Fløene (N/N) in the Polo R WRC got the second-fastest time. Last year’s winners Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila (FIN/FIN) finished the first competition in fourth place, forcing their Volkswagen team-mates Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia (F/F) into fifth place by just one tenth of a second – the smallest unit of time on the rally circuit.

The 4.62-kilometre stage “Ruuhimäki” – the Power Stage at last year’s Rally Finland – was a typical start to the fastest rally of the season. The best time of Mads Østberg/Jonas Andersson (N/S, Citroën) signified an average speed of 124.77 km/h. Numerous jumps, called “Yumps” in Finland, also gave a foretaste of the “air race on four wheels” that gets underway on Thursday evening with the first sprint stage “Harju” in the rally centre of Jyväskylä.

Quotes, shakedown Rally Finland

Sébastien Ogier, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #1
“The shakedown was more difficult than expected. I had thought that the grip would be better due to the heavy rain the day before. But it was still pretty slippery with a lot of loose gravel. The first pass almost ended badly for Julien and me. We came off the track and narrowly avoided having an accident. That was a real wake-up call. Later on, the track was slightly better in terms of grip. We are definitely extremely motivated to drive for the win here. Finland is one of my favourite rallies of all time – from the first time I ever drove a rally car here!”

Jari-Matti Latvala, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #2
“I am very pleased with the shakedown. It showed that we made the right decision for our basic setup. The conditions were difficult since the surface was very damp, which made it extremely slippery. Despite that, we managed to drive almost consistent times. The special stages are in good condition in general. I have a good feeling and can’t wait for the rally to get started.”

Andreas Mikkelsen, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #9
“The shakedown was a good start to the Rally Finland since the stage was typical of what we can expect in the coming days. We did a lot of work on the set-up. We didn’t have a perfect pass, but we are happy with second place. The Polo R WRC definitely feels right – bring on the Rally Finland!”

Jost Capito, Volkswagen Motorsport Director
“Standard Finland – that was the shakedown today. High speed and many long jumps require the drivers to trust their cars 100 percent and demand an extremely high level of driving precision. All three Volkswagen duos coped well with these unique conditions and are within a second of front-runner Mads Østberg. The Rally Finland promises to be very interesting. And we want to win it for the third time in a row. Our drivers and the whole team showed that they are in form in the shakedown.”

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FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), Rally Finland – TV broadcast

Western Europe

Andorra (Canal +); Austria (ORF, Servus TV, Sport1, N-TV, LAOLA1.tv); Belgium (Canal +, RTBF); Denmark (Viasat); Europe (MOTORS TV); Finland (YLE, Nelonen); France (Canal +, France TV, Léquipe 21); Germany (Sport1, N-TV, Servus TV, LAOLA1.tv, Sky); Greece (OTE); Italy (RAI, Fox Sports, Dinamica); Ireland (BT Sport); Lichtenstein (N-TV, Sport1, Servus TV); Luxembourg (Canal +, N-TV, Servus TV, Sport1); Israel (Charlton); Monaco (Canal +, France TV, Léquipe 21); Netherlands (RTL7); Norway (VIASAT); Portugal (Sport TV, RTP); Slovakia (Sport 5); Spain (Canal +, TVE, TV3); Sweden (SVT); Switzerland (Canal +, N-TV, Sport1, Servus TV); Turkey (NTV); UK (BT Sport, itv4); Wales (S4C)

Eastern Europe

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan (Auto Plus); Bosnia and Herzigovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia (Arena TV); Czech Republic (Czech TV, Sport 5); Hungary (Sport1); Lithuania (Auto Plus, BTV, LNK); Poland (TVP); Romania (Dolce Sport); Ukraine (First Automotive Channel, Auto Plus)

Middle East and Africa

Angola, Cap Verde, Mozambique (Canal +, Sport TV, SuperSport); Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, São Tomé, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe (Canal +, SuperSport); Ethopia, Mauritania, Seychelles (Canal +); Lesotho, Liberia, Mayotte, Reunion, Socotra, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, St Helena & Ascension, Sudan, Swaziland (SuperSport)

Asia Pacific

Australia (Fox Sports); American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Islands, Jarvis Island, Kingman Reef, Micronesia, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Norther Marianas, Palau, U.S. Virgin Islands, Wake Islands (MAV TV); China (PPTV); Indonesia (MNC); Japan (J Sports); Malaysia (Astro); New Zealand (Sky Sports, TV 3); Thailand (Truevision)

North and Latin America

Argentina, Uruguay (Channel 12, Fox Sports); Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago (MAV TV); Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Venezuela (Fox Sports); Mexico (Fox Sports, TV4); Paraguay (Fox Sports, Telefuturo), USA (MAV TV, Fox Sports)

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