Elpa Rally - ERC - FinishOne more Elpa Rally, the 32nd, was over this afternoon at the Porto Carras resort at Halkidiki. According to many people, it was one of the best ever.
The special atmosphere of Sithonia, the top European and Greek entries as well as the revolutionary
mixed surface route, in combination with one more perfect event, composed a three-day rally which is undoubtedly one of he best in Europe.
The fast and spectacular 1st leg, which was held on tarmac stages, was replaced by the hard and demanding 2nd leg, which consisted of six gravel special stage.
After this hard day, Volkan Isik–Kaan Ozsenler were the proud winners in their Fiat Grande Punto S2000. The Turks managed to overturn the predictions and benefited perfectly from their rivals' problems to return at Porto Carras as winners, which lets them lead the standings of the European Rally Championship, one rally before the end in France.
In second place finished the experienced Renato Travaglia–Daniele Vernuccio in a Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX. The crew was fast on gravel but some misfortunes did not let them battle for first place. *
Third place belongs to Frenchmen Simon Jean Joseph–Jack Boyere. The crew of the small but very fast Citroen C2 Super 1600 were pushing to the edge both in tarmac (expected) and gravel (unbelievable for a 2WD car).
Behind them finished the experienced Polish Solowow–Maciek Baran (Fiat Grande Punto S2000), the steady Krum Donchev-Stoiko Valchev (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX) and Grigoris Nioras–Tasos Goussetis (Subaru Impreza), completing the top 6.
Volkan ISIK / Fiat Grande Punto S2000
"This was our first European Rally Championship win and the first for Turkey. The feeling is very nice. Also, we gained a lot of points for the ERC. Because we had more time than in the other rallies, we were able to concentrate especially for ELPA Rally, but we were not expecting to win here. The gravel stages were really difficult and the mixed surface seems nice, but it also has extra cost."
Renato TRAVAGLIA / Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX *
"In the penultimate stage of the rally we had a puncture and lost nearly a minute. The gravel stages were very hard. I had thought that the Halkidiki gravel SS were better, but I'm satisfied with the result."
Simon JEAN JOSEPH / Citroen C2 Super 1600
"Today was really hard for us. The roads were slow and twisty, which didn't help our car. But we pushed hard in order to secure 3rd place and finally we managed to achieve this. The ERC finish will be very nice."
Michal SOLOWOW / Fiat Grande Punto S2000
"Very difficult rally, especially today in the gravel stages. It was our first time in gravel with the Punto. We had not the proper setup but I think we will progress in the future."
Krum DONCHEV / Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX
"Six kilometers before the end of the last SS we had a puncture. Never mind, that's rallying. I am happy to have finished the event, because especially on gravel we haven't raced a lot. The mixed surface rally is nice but difficult and also makes the required budget higher."
Grigoris NIORAS / Subaru Impreza N11
"We are very happy about this result. The rally was tough, but fortunately the car was perfect due the excellent preparation our team made. Everything is fine. I think that especially in difficult events, we can be competitive."
*After receiving a report of the scrutineers, the Stewards summoned crew No2 for breaching Art 254.4 of Appendix J (inconformity mount of the rear differential). The driver informed the Stewards that he had to get his competition car in a very short notice and his intention was to get a 100% legal car. After hearing all statements by the crew and car owner and after due deliberation, the Stewards decided to exclude car No 1 from the event. The driver has appealed the decision. The case will be tried by the FIA's Court of Appeals in the near future.
