2014 World Rally Championship

[kober]

With Neuville's signing, the potential line-up might be the following:

VW:
- Ogier (no.1 driver) <<-- CONFIRMED
- Latvala <<-- CONFIRMED
VW II:
- Mikkelsen <<-- CONFIRMED

Citroen:
- Meeke (no.1 driver)
- Kubica
Abu Dhabi:
- Al Qassimi (five/six rallies) <<-- CONFIRMED

M-Sport:
- Hirvonen (no.1 driver)
- Novikov
Qatar:
- Al-Attiyah/Evans (shared car)

Hyundai:
- Neuville (no.1 driver) <<-- CONFIRMED
- Hanninen/Atkinson/Bouffier (shared car)

[cmk]

Would Citroen really take Meeke as #1 with the couple of prangs he's had when under express instruction just to keep it on the road? I could see him as #2 if Kubica doesn't end up there, at best.

No Ostberg? He hasn't quite lived up to expectations, but he'd not be a bad choice for anyone. Wish Atkinson and Evans were up for more than occasional rides, but not enough good seats even with Hyundai coming in.

[kober]

If Ostberg's results were the same as last year's, when he was constantly is top five, and sometimes on the podium, then he might be a smart choice. On a contrary, not only he made no progress this year, but his results are significantly worse - he has just recently outscored Loeb, in as many as thrice the number of starts.
Although, such a reasoning would imply that next year's drive in Citroen or M-Sport will be given based on a talent, not on a thickness of a wallet, which just might not be true.

[the sniper]

Rather depressing that I'm the first to post this, just a sign of how far the WRC has fell, but Kris Meeke and Mads Ostberg will be Citroen's drivers next year: http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/111801

Great to see a Brit in a top drive for a whole season. I was already looking forward to next season but this is brilliant news! Here's hoping this means we'll get a decent TV deal in the UK next year, but I won't hold my breath...

Hopefully M Sport will have Kubica alongside Hirvonen, just too bad it's not a works team anymore.

[tbtstt]

Originally Posted by the sniper

Rather depressing that I'm the first to post this...

It was only annouced yesterday, so I'm sure it would have been posted here eventually!

Great news. I'm a huge Meeke fan and it was a shame that BMW/Prodrive situation unfolded the way it did when he got the MINI drive. I hope this works out for him and he can get some decent results in 2014.

Shame to see Ostberg leave M-Sport as I had hoped he could put the Ford on the podium a bit more. As kober has already pointed out though, his results in 2013 have been pretty dire.

Does anyone else doubt that Kubica can deliver in a full WRCar? Can't help but think that seat would be better allocated elsewhere.

[BertMk2]

Good news for Meeke but it's a bit of a surprise to be honest - I guess we'll find out next year if he's step up from Hirvonen. I guess Citroen have seen enough of Hirvonen to know he's not going to be the next Loeb so are going to try someone else. I feel a bit sorry for Hirvonen, it's never quite come together for him for whatever reason - he's very much the 'nearly' man of the WRC. Ostberg is an interesting choice as well, he's been improving and has shown some real speed at times (but needs to work on his consistency). Kubica is an interesting one - I think for a team looking to win titles he's not a good choice (not enough experience) but for a team looking for a publicity boost he'd be ideal. For M-Sport Hirvonen and Kubica would be a good pairing - Hirvonen is reliable and Kubica has the public following and high profile.

[NaBUru38]

The second Hyundai i20 will be shared by Juho Hänninen, Daniel Sordo and Chris Atkinson.

The main sponsor of Hyundai will be... Shell!

[tbtstt]

If Ford go with Kubica I assume that leaves Novikov out in the cold then?

I just hope that Meeke can deliver a decent performance after waiting to see him in a factory seat for so long. I have my doubts as to whether Ogier/VW can be de-throned but, at the very least, I would like to see a good battle behind him.

[kober]

That updates the line-ups to the following:

VW:
- Ogier <<-- CONFIRMED
- Latvala <<-- CONFIRMED
VW II:
- Mikkelsen <<-- CONFIRMED

Citroen:
- Meeke <<-- CONFIRMED
- Ostberg <<-- CONFIRMED
Abu Dhabi:
- Al Qassimi (four rallies) <<-- CONFIRMED

M-Sport:
- Hirvonen ?
- Kubica ?
Qatar:
- Al-Attiyah/Evans (shared car) <<-- CONFIRMED

Hyundai:
- Neuville <<-- CONFIRMED
- Hanninen/Atkinson/Sordo (shared car) <<-- CONFIRMED

[kober]

Originally Posted by tbtstt

If Ford go with Kubica I assume that leaves Novikov out in the cold then?

Novikov pays for his drive, thus he doesn't need to be a part of the official team to be able to compete in all thirteen rallies. In an M-Sport Fiesta.

[BertMk2]

That Hyundai looks better than I thought it was going to. Good to see the drives being confirmed now, just need M-Sport to get their lineup confirmed.

[mountainstar]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Good news for Meeke but it's a bit of a surprise to be honest - I guess we'll find out next year if he's step up from Hirvonen. I guess Citroen have seen enough of Hirvonen to know he's not going to be the next Loeb so are going to try someone else. I feel a bit sorry for Hirvonen, it's never quite come together for him for whatever reason - he's very much the 'nearly' man of the WRC. Ostberg is an interesting choice as well, he's been improving and has shown some real speed at times (but needs to work on his consistency). Kubica is an interesting one - I think for a team looking to win titles he's not a good choice (not enough experience) but for a team looking for a publicity boost he'd be ideal. For M-Sport Hirvonen and Kubica would be a good pairing - Hirvonen is reliable and Kubica has the public following and high profile.

Hirvonen I'm convinced now is just a very good driver, but will never be a great one. He's had tons of chances in competitive cars and just can't get it together to win a title. And I don't think he ever will. I like Hirvonen a lot but like Latvala, who I also like, they are just very much off or on and just can't get it together to win titles.

Meeke has been pushed on us for years as the next great driver and this is his big chance.

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by mountainstar

Hirvonen I'm convinced now is just a very good driver, but will never be a great one. He's had tons of chances in competitive cars and just can't get it together to win a title. And I don't think he ever will. I like Hirvonen a lot but like Latvala, who I also like, they are just very much off or on and just can't get it together to win titles.

Absolutely - Hirvonen is an excellent number 2 driver for a team but he's not a title winner. Latvala is an interesting one - he is clearly very, very quick but he's still not got rid of the crashing problem. Until he does that he will never be a true championship contender.

Originally Posted by mountainstar

Meeke has been pushed on us for years as the next great driver and this is his big chance.

To some extent this is make or break for Meeke - he's been on the fringes for a while with many people touting him as the next big thing if only he got the chance. Well, now he's got the chance - he has to have a big year. I have to admit though I'm not 100% convinced by Meeke thus far is he a potential champion? I'm not sure.

[chunder]

Only one winner

Only ever going to be lets face it

[Audifan]

In my opinion both Citroen and Ford are gonna be weaker next year in compare to 2013...Hyundai got very strong line-up,Neuville is young and very fast,Sordo is maybe the fastest on asphalt...its gonna be a nice battle...

[mountainstar]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Absolutely - Hirvonen is an excellent number 2 driver for a team but he's not a title winner. Latvala is an interesting one - he is clearly very, very quick but he's still not got rid of the crashing problem. Until he does that he will never be a true championship contender.

To some extent this is make or break for Meeke - he's been on the fringes for a while with many people touting him as the next big thing if only he got the chance. Well, now he's got the chance - he has to have a big year. I have to admit though I'm not 100% convinced by Meeke thus far is he a potential champion? I'm not sure.

Latvala was talking up something the other day about how he was joint #1 with Ogier and was allowed to challenge him or wanted to be allowed to do so. . Not going to happen, regardless of how the team is structured.

I haven't seen every rally Meeke has been in, but have seen some of his IRC and WRC runs. He strikes me as a go hard or go home type in the vein of his previous mentor, Colin McRae. This is his big year and big break and if he goofs, he's going back to the fringes.

I like Ostberg. Used to watch him a few years ago when he ran in the Norwegian rally championship(which is a pretty cool championship IMO) and he's pretty good. Maybe never a world rally champion but a good driver and nice guy.

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by chunder

Only one winner

Only ever going to be lets face it

Well yes. But we're used to that in the WRC now (how many years has that been true for?)

Originally Posted by Audifan

In my opinion both Citroen and Ford are gonna be weaker next year in compare to 2013...Hyundai got very strong line-up,Neuville is young and very fast,Sordo is maybe the fastest on asphalt...its gonna be a nice battle...

That's a good point - it's widely accepted the VW will just steamroller everyone and be far and away the best. But behind them it really does look like it's up for grabs - neither Citroen or Ford look to be as strong and Hyundai are coming in with a good lineup. If Citroen have one eye on the WTCC then will they be putting as much into the WRC? It seems unlikely - I doubt they will be doing as much development as previously. M-Sport don't have the manufacturer money behind them so they could well slip back. Behind Ogier it could be an interesting year

[cg7aa]

Originally Posted by tbtstt

It was only annouced yesterday, so I'm sure it would have been posted here eventually!

Great news. I'm a huge Meeke fan

Same here, I have my fingers crossed for a consistent, error free season.

[kober]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Behind Ogier it could be an interesting year

I'd say: behind Ogier and Latvala - can't really imagine different championship result than 1 (Seb) - 2 (JM) for VW.

[AndyS]

Glad to see some drivers getting a chance next year. Kubica will be good PR for the sport, like others not sure he's a future WDC. Hananien (not sure I spelt that right) is long over due his chance. Nice to see Atkinson back and glad to see Meeke getting a full drive. I hope Meeke can step up to the mark, he has the speed just needs to keep it on the road.

As for the title, at the moment I can't really see anybody beating Seb Mk2 next year. As others have said Latvala has the speed just not the consistency. Having said that Hyundai are a bit of unknown, if they can be on the pace as quickly as VW then they might just mix things up a bit. Neuville thus far looks like a star of the future and the other three are very quick on their day and chosen surface in Sordo's case.

While there might be a clear favourite to win the title, it looks like the battle behind should be a little bit more entertaining. If some of the drivers perform as we hope then they might just give VW a bit more to think about.

[ArnageWRC]

Great news for Kris Meeke. I'm not sure many people realise that he's only ever done about 10 WRC events in a WRCar, all over a 8 year period. He's massively in experienced compared to his rivals, which makes his performance in Finland, after 18 months out, remarkable. To set top5 times, in Finland, is a sign of his talent. I think after a less than stellar 2013, Mads Ostberg is fortunate to get a drive, but does have talent - maybe a change from M-Sport is what he needs.

As for Hyundai, well, they are here to win; forget the 2000-2003 programme. I thought the presentation dragged on slightly; but, showed a company full of enthusiasm to grow bigger, using their Motorsport programme as part of this. Signing Neuville was an example of this

I am slightly worried about some of their driver choices: they signed Hanninen, Bouffier & Atkinson to do testing, etc Hyundai Australia have heavily backed Atkinson, as I can't see what he's done recently to warrant the drive. They then signed Sordo, and appear to have dropped Bouffier.....hmm If I was him, I'd be slightly miffed.

[JorritVD]

Will be interesting if Hyundai will be entering a third car later in the 2014 season or in 2015. They also got have a junior driver with Kevin Abbring. He tested the car, did shakedowns, and helped developing the car. But Abbring having won a prize with winning the a French Asphalt Cup, he will be racing a 208 R5 in a couple of events next season. So maybe we will see him racing in 2015 for Hyundai.

About the line-up for next year's second car.
Hänninen has been test driver, knows the car well, has been in a factory team before with Skoda and has some WRC experience. Probably a very good solid driver next to Neuville.
Sordo is always quick on asphalt. Only he needs the confidence that he can do it. The reason why they choose Sordo over Bouffier is I think because of experience. Sordo has experience with developing a car on asphalt, is quick on asphalt, etc. He did that with Citroën aswell with MINI. Those first events he did with the MINI on asphalt were very promosing. Shame that Prodrive/MINI didn't continue the story.
Atkinson is ofcourse Marketing reasons. But don't forget he outscored Solberg at Subaru in 2008, especially in the beginning of 2008 with the S12b. So he can be quite quick, but needs seat-time and confidence to be quick again. Besides Australia I believe I also read somewhere he would do the Mexico round aswell.

So it probably looks like this:
1 - Monte-Carlo - Sordo
2 - Sweden - Hänninen
3 - Mexico - Atkinson
4 - Portugal - Hänninen
5 - Argentina - Hänninen
6 - Sardinia - Hänninen
7 - Poland - Hänninen
8 - Finland - Hänninen
9 - Germany - Sordo
10 - Australia - Atkinson
11 - France - Sordo
12 - Spain - Sordo
13 - GB - Hänninen

Hänninen - 7x
Sordo - 4x
Atkinson - 2x

At the moment I just hope the car is quick enough for a top 6 and is able to score podiums at the end of the year. I already am glad to see Sordo back.

[apri]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Well yes. But we're used to that in the WRC now (how many years has that been true for?)

Since McRae/Mäkinen?

I've only just started watching the WRC again, and I don't know everyone right now... I don't know who to support just yet, but I definitely CANNOT wait for the 2014.

[BertMk2]

Kubica has now been confirmed at M-Sport

[Moneyseeker]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Kubica has now been confirmed at M-Sport

Great news. I wonder if he will get a run the Bentley GT car as well?