Suzuki proves a point in Corsica

The dramatic and challenging asphalt roads of Corsica have provided a stimulating challenge for Suzuki that has enabled the team to learn many valuable lessons for SX4 WRC's development in the future. Toni Gardemeister also added to the team's constructors' score after three tough days characterised by bumpy surfaces, unexpectedly warm temperatures and plenty of action.

Gardemeister finished 13th while his young team mate P-G Andersson was 17th, having been delayed by an accident right at the end of the second day. Despite this setback, it was a positive event for the Japanese team, which has learnt a lot more about the new SX4 WRC on asphalt and showed the pace to score points in both championships.

The final day of the Corsican event - which is the last asphalt rally of the year - took in four lengthy stages including the longest speed test of the entire event, making a total of 116 competitive kilometres on Sunday. Although this long stage was previously used in 2007, the twist this year was that it was run in the opposite direction, making it almost like a brand new road. Throughout this challenging final leg, both Suzuki SX4 WRCs displayed perfect reliability, adding to the impressive record of consistency that the car has displayed since the mid-point of the season.

Conditions were once more dry and warm for the final day of the rally, which took crews to the south of Ajaccio for two loops of two stages. During the repeated stages, the drivers had to contend with plenty of loose gravel that had been pulled onto the road by cars cutting the corners.

Car news - Suzuki SX4 WRC n.11 (Gardemeister), n.12 (Andersson):
Once more, both Suzuki SX4 WRCs performed impeccably - with only a minor fuel pressure problem delaying Toni Gardemeister at the end of day two. Prior to that, the Finn had been running consistently within the top eight despite starting the rally with a flu-like illness. Gardemeister experimented with different set-ups today to find more grip and traction, which will be extremely useful for the future development of the SX4 WRC.

P-G Andersson struggled a little bit with his confidence, having been caught out by a gravelly corner on day two that caused his car to slide into a bank. He started the final day under the super rally system, and used it to re-familiarise himself with the Corsican roads and refine his asphalt driving technique. The young Swede also changed the set-up on his car progressively, to find out more about how it behaves under a different set of parameters. With temperatures generally cooler than they had been on the previous day, the cars and Pirelli control tyres worked well over the four stages.

Driver news:

Toni Gardemeister: "I started the rally feeling really ill but it gradually got better over the next couple of days, which was a big relief as on Friday afternoon it felt nearly impossible for me to drive. On the whole the car was good and we made a lot of improvements over the course of the rally. Today's stages were nice and I really enjoyed myself, but for us it was mostly just a question of driving safely to the finish and making sure of the point. Now we get back to gravel in Japan, which I am looking forward to a lot!"

P-G Andersson: "The biggest problem I've had on this rally is with my confidence. I went off the road on the last rally in Spain and unfortunately the same thing happened again here. So on the last day I really wanted to make sure that I had a safe run to the finish with no further setbacks. Luckily the car felt very nice and I had a good feeling with it by the end. I tried some softer suspension settings as well, which gave us some interesting results. We're learning new things all the time, so I think we can head to the last two rallies with confidence."

Team news:

Shusuke Inagaki, Suzuki World Rally Team Director: "Corsica has thrown up a huge number of challenges as usual, including a differing selection of bumpy roads and surfaces that range from extremely slippery to very abrasive. This varied array of conditions has enabled us to test a large number of different parameters on the SX4 WRC, which has been very valuable for the continuing development of the car. Toni has struggled with illness on this event so he has done an excellent job under the circumstances. P-G has felt his lack of experience here, but he is improving a lot on this specialised surface. Next up is our home event in Japan, which will be a very exciting event for all of us. Of course we would love to do well on our home territory!"

Final result:
1 Sebastien Loeb 3:42:58.0 0.0
2 Mikko Hirvonen 3:46:22.7 +3:24.7
3 Francois Duval 3:46:29.6 +3:31.6
4 Jari-Matti Latvala 3:46:35.5 +3:37.5
5 Petter Solberg 3:48:33.4 +5:35.4
6 Chris Atkinson 3:49:08.4 +6:10.4
7 Urmo Aava 3:50:23.2 +7:25.2
8 Matthew Wilson 3:52:00.2 +9:02.2
13 Toni Gardemeister 3:57:29.2 +14:31.2
17 Per Gunnar Andersson 4:01:55.0 +18:57.0

Day 2: Up and down day for Suzuki on the twisty roads of Corsica

Having proved they have the pace for a points finish in Corsica, the two Suzuki SX4 WRCs of Toni Gardemeister and P-G Andersson hit trouble in separate incidents on the same stage at the end of day two. The yellow cars started the day in a strong position to score driver and manufacturer points, with Toni Gardemeister holding a points-scoring place for most of the day. Unfortunately he hit fuel pressure problems on SS11, which meant that he was forced to stop. He eventually rejoined the stage directly behind another competitor, but five minutes and the same number of places had been lost. The experienced Finn, who finished second on his last participation in the Tour de Corse three years ago, ended up 13th overnight heading into the final day. Nonetheless, he is still in a strong position to score precious manufacturer points for Suzuki on what is widely reputed to be the most fearsome and challenging asphalt rallies of them all.

With roads made dirty by the previous passage of cars on the stage, there was nothing P-G could do as his SX4 WRC skated into the side of the road, ending his day's work on the spot. The car was recovered to the service park in the port of Ajaccio, and he will re-start the final day of the Tour de Corse tomorrow under the super rally system.

Car news - Suzuki SX4 WRC n.11 (Gardemeister), n.12 (Andersson):
Neither of the Suzuki SX4 WRCs had any major mechanical problems throughout most of the day, until the troublesome stage 11, where a fuel pump issue cost Toni's SX4 WRC some time.

Driver news:

Toni Gardemeister: "I ended the day having a touring car race with Subaru driver Brice Tirabassi. It was incredible, I caught his car and drove to the end of the stage right behind him - it was like there was a tow-rope between the two cars. We'd lost a bit of time in the last two stages this afternoon, which wasn't so good, but this morning I was happy. The car was running well and we weren't having any trouble. I also felt a little bit better, which was quite nice for me."

P-G Andersson: "The morning had been okay for me. I was still trying to find the confidence after Catalunya. And, in all honesty, I wasn't pushing hard enough. I just wanted to get to the finish of the day - but it wasn't going to be that way. Not far after the start of the last-but-one stage of the day, I was going into a left-hander. I cut the corner, but the bottom of the car skated on the sumpguard. The car went across the road and off on the other side. We couldn't get back to the road, but the car was completely undamaged and we will start again tomorrow."

Team news:

Shusuke Inagaki, Suzuki World Rally Team Director: "Both drivers showed consistency today. Unfortunately, P-G has had a problem in stage 11 this afternoon, which was a shame because his confidence was coming back to him and he was setting better times. And Toni had gone really well, setting times always in or right on the edge of the top 10. We were happy with that, particularly as he has been struggling with his illness. Then he lost time in both the last stages. Toni and P-G will be back and fighting for Suzuki on these incredible Corsican roads tomorrow."

Day 1: Suzuki in the points after strong opening day in Corsica

The two Suzuki SX4 WRCs of Toni Gardemeister and P-G Andersson have finished the opening day of the Rallye de France-Tour de Corse within the points in seventh and 12th places, after a strong and reliable run. Corsica is arguably the most respected asphalt event of the entire calendar, with sinuous roads that test the performance of the cars and the bravery of the drivers to the utmost.

Corsica was also the scene of the SX4 WRC's debut one year ago, and the team has been able to take on board a number of lessons learned from its previous participation. Toni Gardemeister battled a flu-type illness throughout the day, which made life extremely difficult for him in the warm weather that characterised the day's action. Both drivers were committed straight out of the box to end the day's 119.92 competitive kilometres in the points. Once more, the SX4 WRC exhibited perfect reliability throughout the day, underlining the consistent progress that has been made since the start of the year.

The action was split up into two loops of three stages, with service on the harbourside at Ajaccio. The stages used today were quite varied, with some extremely bumpy and narrow roads as well as faster sections that are more reminiscent of the Rally de Espana, which finished less than a week ago. When the drivers tackled the speed tests for the second time in the afternoon, there was plenty of loose gravel to catch them out. This put grip at a premium, and also meant that there was a high risk of punctures. Tomorrow's day two takes in six more demanding asphalt stages before returning to Corsica's capital of Ajaccio for overnight parc ferme.

Car news - Suzuki SX4 WRC n.11 (Gardemeister), n.12 (Andersson):
Having completed some useful runs over the six-kilometre shakedown stage yesterday, the Suzuki SX4 WRCs started off with a good base set-up for today's action. During the morning's stages, both drivers reported that the car felt good on Pirelli's hard compound control tyres. At midday service in Ajaccio, the drivers made small adjustments to the suspension in order to optimise the car's handling for the repeated stages in the afternoon, which were held in warmer weather with more loose gravel on the roads. Both cars were entirely reliable from the start to the finish of the leg, despite the incredibly challenging nature of the roads on 'the rally of 10,000 corners' - as it used to be known.

Having finished the opening leg in a strong position, the Suzuki World Rally Team is now well-poised to attack the longest day of the rally tomorrow. No major changes are planned to the set-up of the cars for leg two.

Driver news:

Toni Gardemeister: "The biggest problem I had today was the fact that I was feeling really ill for most of it: I had a very sore throat and during the afternoon my legs felt like spaghetti! Under those circumstances it's quite difficult to drive flat-out, but I did my best and we are not in a bad position overnight. The car today has been very good and so we've ended up in the points, which is good. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel better and we will continue to move up the leaderboard."

P-G Andersson: "After going off the road in Catalunya, it was important for me to try and get my confidence back so I wasn't pushing so hard today. We steadily improved the car and I'm happy with the progress we made, after I carried out a few small suspension adjustments at service. The roads today were really tricky and surprisingly slippery, but now that I have a good feeling with the car I can push hard tomorrow."

Team news:

Shusuke Inagaki, Suzuki World Rally Team Director: "Once more, our SX4 WRC has been perfectly reliable all day. Toni has done a fantastic job to finish provisionally in the drivers' points at the end of the opening leg, despite his illness. As for P-G, he has built up confidence without putting a foot wrong and so he is now in the manufacturer points. To have two Suzukis in points-scoring positions at the end of such a tough first day is a solid achievement, and now we hope to build on this promising start over the rest of the weekend."