End of an era this weekend. Firstly, Seb Ogier is retiring from full time competition (he’s coming back for a handful of rallies next season) and his co-driver is retiring for good. Going for their 8th title at Monza just now. It’s tight though, and I’m hoping Elfyn Evans can redeem himself after last year’s final rally disaster. I’d almost think he was a Scot, not a Welshman, the way he snatched defeat with both hands, with victory in sight.
Secondly, this is the last rally of the “stupidly powerful with amazing aero” era too. Which makes me sad. I’ve enjoyed these cars immensely. They’re spectacular in every aspect. So it’s on to hybrids after this, which I welcome, we need these things to happen, but I’ll miss these beasts.
The upside is that, from watching testing videos, the hybrids have ridiculous acceleration out of slow corners. Also, we’re going back to “proper’ gear sticks. I believe it’s H-pattern, but it might be sequential. So the potential for driver error might be enough to shake up an already much more interesting championship next year, with ogier gone, and the likes of Breen in a full time drive.
Aero is still great though I think, so it should still be great to watch.
I realised the other day that, based on having been subscribed to WRC+ since the VW era, that I must been subbed for 7 years now at least. It’s never got old in that time. Always been a highlight of my year and honestly, I have much more respect for these drivers than other formulas. Not just in terms of their complete commitment, but also their comportment.
The sportsmanship of Evans, last year, when he warned Ogier about ice on the corner that did his title run in; and teams banding together to get rivals back in the rally after shakedown disasters, is in stark contrast to what we’ve seen elsewhere of late.