A VW double in the Rally Great Britain to round off a memorable WRC season

Finishing with a bang…..

The result at the Rally Great Britain in Wales was Volkswagen’s best since entering the World Rally Championship in January. As well as the second one-two in a row for Ogier and Latvala, Andreas Mikkelsen/Mikko Markkula (N/FIN) finished fifth in the third World Rally Car from Wolfsburg. The outstanding team result not only saw all three Polo R WRCs finish in the top five, but also included stage wins for all three works duos. Sébastien Ogier/Julien Ingrassia were unbeatable on nine stages, with Jari-Matti Latvala/Miikka Anttila triumphing five times and Andreas Mikkelsen/Mikko Markkula clocking the fastest time on two occasions. At least one of the Volkswagen drivers finished in the top three on all but one of the 22 special stages. The only exception was the Power Stage, on which World Championship points are awarded to the fastest three drivers.

The WRC season draws to a close with a classic
The Rally Great Britain puts both man and machine to the ultimate test as it winds through Wales. Only on day two of the rally was a remote midday service scheduled. On each of the remaining three days, the mechanics were only permitted to lay a hand on the World Rally Cars in the morning and after the final stage of the day in the evening. In the meantime, the drivers were faced with testing special stages through the Welsh forests, with deep water crossings and more than enough mud. As if this were not enough, ten of the 22 special stages were making their return after an absence of at least a year. Only two stages were held on asphalt – “Chirk Castle”, which the cars tackled twice on the penultimate day, and the concluding “Great Orme” stage.

Fairy tale with a happy ending
Sweden, Mexico, Portugal, Greece, Italy, Finland, Australia, France, Spain and now Great Britain: Volkswagen enjoyed a fairy-tale 2013 in the World Rally Championship, with victories at ten of the 13 rallies. The Wolfsburg-based outfit secured the titles in France and Spain, and went on to end the season on an absolute high courtesy of back-to-back one-twos in Spain and Great Britain. And all this after the original goal set for the 2013 season was to make it onto the podium without relying on mistakes from the opposition.

Quotes after day four of the Rally Great Britain

Jari-Matti Latvala, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #7
“Second place at the final round of the season is a decent result, but I had hoped for more at my ‘second home rally’. Our pace was basically okay, but unfortunately I made too many small mistakes to put Sébastien Ogier under any real pressure. I was really hungry to win this rally for a third time in a row, but Séb produced a perfect performance. When he is in this kind of mood, he is virtually unbeatable. Looking back on my first season with Volkswagen, it has definitely been a rollercoaster ride, but I now feel right home in the Polo R WRC. It was clear from the outset that 2013 would be something of a learning year. The way the season started in Monte Carlo, Sweden and my home rally in Finland was hard to take. In contrast, however, were my long-awaited first win in Greece, a further seven podiums and winning the Manufacturers’ World Championship. On top of that, I now have the confidence that comes with starting next season with far more experience.”

Latvala rounds off the season second to his team mate on the Rally Great Britain

Sébastien Ogier, Volkswagen Polo R WRC #8
“This is the perfect end to a perfect season. I am very happy, and extremely proud of this win, as the Rally Wales is one of the toughest on the calendar. Things have not always gone to plan here for me in recent years. We just tried to maintain the gap through to the finish today. Now that the season is over, I can look back on what has really been an incredible year. If anyone had predicted before the start of the season that Julien and I would end up with nine wins and the World Championship title to our name, we would probably have sent him straight to the team doctor. I may already have thanked the team in France, but I simply cannot say thank you often enough: the team did a fantastic job in our debut year. They made this fantastic success possible by providing me with a magnificent car.”

A brilliant end to an amazing season for VW & Ogier