Rally-SM: Schmidlin/Götte start comeback
The 2016 Swiss Rally Championship kicks off this weekend with the Rallye Pays du Gier (F). Although the French outnumber the Swiss at their home race, the favorites for overall victory in this rally northeast of St-Etienne come from Switzerland. Among them are Urs Hunziker/Melanie Wahl, who open the race with start number 1, and [...]
Among them are two strong teams from German-speaking Switzerland, Urs Hunziker/Melanie Wahl, who will open the race with start number 1, and Ruedi Schmidlin/Roland Götte. The remaining 20 teams will travel from French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino. As reported in the March issue of AutoSprintCH, Hunziker is only after podium places and overall victories this year with his Mini Cooper WRC, which is not eligible for points in the SM.
Basel-Land team first to drive a Mitsubishi Evo X R4
Meanwhile, Schmidlin/Götte are making a comeback six months after their serious accident at the Rally du Suran. The Ford Fiesta S2000, which was badly damaged when it crashed into a tree, has been completely rebuilt, but in France the team from Basel-Landschaft will still be starting with the Mitsubishi Evo X R4 that they drove in 2014. "We only picked up the Fiesta last week and want to test with it first before the first race. It's better for Ruedi to first get used to rally pace again with the Mitsubishi, as the S2000 is much more pointed to drive. From the Critérium Jurassien in April, we'll be back with it," reveals co-driver and car owner Erich Götte.
Ticino took second place with a Ford Fiesta R5
Ivan Ballinari comes to France best prepared. The Ticino native contested last weekend's Rally dei Laghi in northern Italy, which was still part of the SM last year, where he finished second in class in his Ford Fiesta R5. Pascal Perroud also recently got his bearings for the new season at a race in France. Sébastien Carron, the 2014 rally champion, will bring a third Fiesta R5 with a new Evo version to the start. If Mike Coppens does not excel in the less powerful Citroën DS3 R5, one of the Ford trio will probably become champion. Grégoire Hotz will not defend his title; as AutoSprintCH reported, he is planning to return for 2017 with a new Hyundai i20 R5.
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