Kris Meeke – Rallye Deutschland Mini Outing
Kris Meeke continues to shakedown the MINI Countryman in preparation for competing in 2012 season. Previous shakedowns in the MINI has proved that the car could be a strong contender for next years championship battle. ADAC Rallye Deutschland followed suit for another strong weekend for David Richards team until the the first stage of Sunday morning, were Meeke was forced to retire with a suspected alternator failure.
Rallye Deutschland is based out of Trier, Germany’s oldest city which is in the heart of German wine country. The stages do not fail to entertain spectators with various types of surfaces from narrow, stoney tracks to public roads with wooded tracks which prove treacherous in the wet and finally to Baumholder military land which prove the hardest test to both driver and machine. Each stage has something different to offer, which in turn gives the drivers an ever changing battle to keep pace.
The weather over the course of the weekend kept similar of being bright, sunny with cloud free skies until the final stages on Sunday morning when thunder and lighting storms prevailed making the stages difficult for each contender.
Kris Meeke showed an impressive drive in Mini till the penultimate stage were he was having a close battle for fifth place with Norwegian, Petter Solberg. Though Meeke was affected by this late problem, MINI had a successful weekend which saw team-mate Dani Dordo and Carlos del Barrio claim MINI’s maiden win. The success of this weekend of a car which is in shakedown mode before competing fully next year, gives us a chance to see how interesting the 2012 season will be.
Alastair Fisher shows potential in the FIA Academy Cup during ADAC Deutschland.
Rising star Alastair Fisher from Trillick, County Tyrone, competed in the FIA Drivers Academy, during the weekend of the ADAC Rallye Deutschland. Having not raced on any surface like this Trier based event, Fisher prepared as much as possible at Nutts Corner Raceway the week before giving a chance to adapt to the tarmac.
Fisher successfully lay down times to gain second fastest over the first day of the rally until a unpleasant knock in the afternoon with a kerbstone in the vines of SS6, lost almost three minutes to the stage winner. To gain back lost time from day one, Fisher adopted a strict ‘no-mistakes’ drive on the second day which was successful in the morning loops, which mean he gained times on everyone bar fellow Irishman, Craig Breen. The afternoon stages saw Fisher take another puncture, but from the successful mornings stages, Fisher finished 9th place in class of the WRC Academy earning himself 2 Cup points. Though Fisher’s weekend had some bad luck due punctures, the stage speeds showed a lot of what there is to come. With only two more rounds of the the FIA WRC Academy to compete we would like to wish Alastair Fisher all the best for successful racing.
Luck of the Irish prevails for Craig Breen
Craig Breen claimed his maiden win in the FIA Academy young driver-training category at ADAC Rallye Deutschland this weekend. Having finished second in the previous round in Finland, Breen was determined to finish first. The win was battled with Spainiard Yeray Lemes and triumphed by a close 15.1 seconds. Having claimed his first win, Breen decribed the win as, ‘That was absolutely incredible, I’m more than happy – I’m ecstatic.’ Breen pushed to the limit each stage and in the end was able to claim his maiden win which is completely deserving. We wish Craig Breen all the best in the final two round of the FIA Driver Academy and for the future.
