Vincent Verschueren finally wins in Flanders to top Belgian championship standings
Vincent Verschueren claimed victory at the Omloop van Vlaanderen (1st to 2nd September), the seventh round of the Belgian Rally Championship, to move the top of the championship standings.
Driving for the GoDrive Racing team alongside co-driver Veronique Hostens, Verschueren started well and after the opening four special stages sat in second place just 1.5 seconds behind fellow ŠKODA FABIA R5 driver and championship rival Kris Princen, who was driving for Bernard Munster Autosport alongside co-driver Peter Kaspers. But an accident on SS5 ended Princen’s involvement and led to Verschueren and FABIA WRC driver Andy Lefevere battling at the head of the field.
With WRC cars unable to score points in the Belgian championship, Verschueren’s priority was to remain in front of his other title rival Kevin Abbring, so he didn’t push too hard and Lefevere eased into the lead. But as heavy rain fell towards the end of the rally, he too crashed out on SS16 to leave the way clear for Verschueren to claim victory ahead of Abbring by a margin of 59.8 seconds.
Behind Verschueren, there was an impressive fourth place finish for the SXM Compétition FABIA R5 of Achiel Boxoen / Jasper Vermeulen. This is Boxoen’s first season driving an R5 car and this represents his best result in the Belgian championship so far.
2017 Omloop van Vlaanderen
Quentin Giordano on the podium at the Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine
There was a podium finish for Quentin Giordano at the Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine (1st to 2nd September), the sixth round of the French Tarmac Rally Championship. Giordano came home in third place overall and first in the Michelin Trophy standings, a result which leaves him second in the overall championship standings behind Yoann Bonato.
Giordano, who was driving a FABIA R5 for the Sébastien Loeb Racing team alongside co-driver Kévin Parent, drove a consistent rally, finishing in the top 4 in all but three of the twelve special stages driven. He was ultimately rewarded for his endeavours when rival Jérémi Ancian, who sat in second place, was forced to change his wheel after a crash and fell back to fifth.
Just 27 seconds behind Giordano, and in fourth place overall and second in the Michelin Trophy standings, was the FABIA R5 of Charles Martin / Thierry Salva. Driving for RTTC – Yacco team, in a car prepared and run by Team FJ, Martin was driving his first ever rally in a FABIA R5 and steadily improved his performance as he got more used to the car, culminating in second place finishes in the final two stages of the rally.
Further down the field, Michel Giraldo was making his first start in the French Tarmac Championship in a FABIA R5 after two previous victories with this car in French Cup events. Alongside co-driver Méryl Giraldo, he brought the car home in eighth position overall and fifth in the Michelin Trophy standings. Behind them, in tenth place overall and seventh in the Michelin Trophy standings, was the Team FJ FABIA R5 of Fabrice Bect / Arnaud Michal.
The next round of the French Tarmac Rally Championship will be the Rallye Coeur de France which takes place on 29th and 30th September.
2017 Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine
Two ŠKODA FABIA R5s on the podium at the Rallye Trebišov as Slovak Championship goes to final round
At the first ever Rallye Trebišov (1st to 2nd September), the sixth round of the Slovak Rally Championship, there were some impressive performances from FABIA R5 drivers.
Martin Koči / Filip Schovánek, who were driving for the Styllex Motorsport team, brought their FABIA R5 home in the runners-up position. Koči claimed victory in two of the event’s six special stages and finished just 5 seconds behind the overall winner Pavel Valoušek, who was in a more powerful WRC car.
Joining Koči on the podium was the Rufa Sport FABIA R5 of Polish duo Grzegorz Grzyb / Jakub Wróbel. They were just 20 seconds further down the round and managed to claim one stage victory of their own.
Further down the field in sixth position was the Drotár Autosport FABIA R5 of Igor Drotár / Tomáš Plachý. Drotár seemed happy with the result and was full of praise for the first running of this event.
2017 Rallye Trebišov
Vincent Verschueren finally wins in Flanders to top Belgian championship standings
Vincent Verschueren claimed victory at the Omloop van Vlaanderen (1st to 2nd September), the seventh round of the Belgian Rally Championship, to move the top of the championship standings.
Driving for the GoDrive Racing team alongside co-driver Veronique Hostens, Verschueren started well and after the opening four special stages sat in second place just 1.5 seconds behind fellow ŠKODA FABIA R5 driver and championship rival Kris Princen, who was driving for Bernard Munster Autosport alongside co-driver Peter Kaspers. But an accident on SS5 ended Princen’s involvement and led to Verschueren and FABIA WRC driver Andy Lefevere battling at the head of the field.
With WRC cars unable to score points in the Belgian championship, Verschueren’s priority was to remain in front of his other title rival Kevin Abbring, so he didn’t push too hard and Lefevere eased into the lead. But as heavy rain fell towards the end of the rally, he too crashed out on SS16 to leave the way clear for Verschueren to claim victory ahead of Abbring by a margin of 59.8 seconds.
Behind Verschueren, there was an impressive fourth place finish for the SXM Compétition FABIA R5 of Achiel Boxoen / Jasper Vermeulen. This is Boxoen’s first season driving an R5 car and this represents his best result in the Belgian championship so far.
2017 Omloop van Vlaanderen
Quentin Giordano on the podium at the Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine
There was a podium finish for Quentin Giordano at the Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine (1st to 2nd September), the sixth round of the French Tarmac Rally Championship. Giordano came home in third place overall and first in the Michelin Trophy standings, a result which leaves him second in the overall championship standings behind Yoann Bonato.
Giordano, who was driving a FABIA R5 for the Sébastien Loeb Racing team alongside co-driver Kévin Parent, drove a consistent rally, finishing in the top 4 in all but three of the twelve special stages driven. He was ultimately rewarded for his endeavours when rival Jérémi Ancian, who sat in second place, was forced to change his wheel after a crash and fell back to fifth.
Just 27 seconds behind Giordano, and in fourth place overall and second in the Michelin Trophy standings, was the FABIA R5 of Charles Martin / Thierry Salva. Driving for RTTC – Yacco team, in a car prepared and run by Team FJ, Martin was driving his first ever rally in a FABIA R5 and steadily improved his performance as he got more used to the car, culminating in second place finishes in the final two stages of the rally.
Further down the field, Michel Giraldo was making his first start in the French Tarmac Championship in a FABIA R5 after two previous victories with this car in French Cup events. Alongside co-driver Méryl Giraldo, he brought the car home in eighth position overall and fifth in the Michelin Trophy standings. Behind them, in tenth place overall and seventh in the Michelin Trophy standings, was the Team FJ FABIA R5 of Fabrice Bect / Arnaud Michal.
The next round of the French Tarmac Rally Championship will be the Rallye Coeur de France which takes place on 29th and 30th September.
2017 Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine
Two ŠKODA FABIA R5s on the podium at the Rallye Trebišov as Slovak Championship goes to final round
At the first ever Rallye Trebišov (1st to 2nd September), the sixth round of the Slovak Rally Championship, there were some impressive performances from FABIA R5 drivers.
Martin Koči / Filip Schovánek, who were driving for the Styllex Motorsport team, brought their FABIA R5 home in the runners-up position. Koči claimed victory in two of the event’s six special stages and finished just 5 seconds behind the overall winner Pavel Valoušek, who was in a more powerful WRC car.
Joining Koči on the podium was the Rufa Sport FABIA R5 of Polish duo Grzegorz Grzyb / Jakub Wróbel. They were just 20 seconds further down the round and managed to claim one stage victory of their own.
Further down the field in sixth position was the Drotár Autosport FABIA R5 of Igor Drotár / Tomáš Plachý. Drotár seemed happy with the result and was full of praise for the first running of this event.
