2005 Wales Rally GB

Last updated
2005 Wales Rally GB
61st Wales Rally GB
Round 12 of the 2005 World Rally Championship
  Previous event Next event  
Harri Rovanpera.jpg
Harri Rovanperä
Host countryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  GBR
Rally base Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom
Dates runSeptember 15, 2005 September 18, 2005
Stages12 (354.22 km; 220.10 miles)
Stage surfaceGravel
Overall distance1,168.02 km (725.77 miles)
Results
Overall winner Flag of Norway.svg Petter Solberg (driver)
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Phil Mills (co-driver)
Flag of Japan.svg Subaru World Rally Team
Subaru Impreza S11 WRC '05
Crews80 at start, 56 at finish

The 2005 Wales Rally GB (formally known as 61st Wales Rally GB) was the 12th round of the 2005 World Rally Championship. The race was held over four days between 15 and 18 September 2005, and operated out of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom.

Contents

Report

This rally saw the death of Markko Märtin's co-driver Michael Park of Peugeot after Märtin's 307 lost control and traction, causing it to go off-road and crash into a tree at Stage 15 of the rally. Peugeot decided to withdraw Marcus Grönholm from the event due to the accident.

Race organizers cancelled the rally's final two stages, when Sébastien Loeb, who was in the lead, decided to take a time penalty that gave Petter Solberg the victory in the race. Loeb’s victory would have earned him the 2005 world championship, but he decided he did not want to win the title in such tragic circumstances. As a result, Loeb deliberately opted to check in to the final time control late to incur a two-minute penalty which dropped him to third overall.

Competitors returned to Cardiff to a subdued victory ceremony, where the traditional champagne-spraying ceremony was cancelled and a minute's silence was held. [1]

Statistics

Entry list

No.DriverCo-DriverEntrantCarTyre
World Rally Championship manufacturer entries
1 Flag of France.svg Sébastien Loeb Flag of Monaco.svg Daniel Elena Flag of France.svg Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC M
2 Flag of Belgium (civil).svg François Duval Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Sven Smeets Flag of France.svg Citroën Total WRT Citroën Xsara WRC M
Source: [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petter Solberg</span> Norwegian rally driver (born 1974)

Petter Solberg is a Norwegian former professional rally and rallycross driver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wales Rally GB</span> Largest and most high-profile motor rally in the United Kingdom

Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calendar from the inaugural 1973 season until the rally's final running in 2019, and was also frequently included in the British Rally Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcus Grönholm</span> Finnish rally driver (born 1968)

Marcus Ulf Johan Grönholm is a Finnish former rally and rallycross driver, being part of a family of the Swedish-speaking population of Finland lineage. His son, Niclas Grönholm, is an upcoming FIA World Rallycross Championship driver. Grönholm's nicknames are either "Bosse" or "Magic Marcus". Grönholm is one of the most successful WRC drivers of all time, ranking third in rally wins (30), and winning two championships, in 2000 and 2002. After Peugeot withdrew from the World Rally Championship, Grönholm moved to Ford for the 2006 season and placed second in the drivers' world championship, losing out to Sébastien Loeb by one point. The next year he again placed second, four points behind Loeb. He and his co-driver Timo Rautiainen retired from rallying after the 2007 season but returned to the championship in 2009 driving a private Subaru for a short period of time, and in the 2019 World Rally Championship where he competed in a Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT-maintained Toyota Yaris under the GRX Team banner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sébastien Loeb</span> French rally driver (born 1974)

Sébastien Loeb is a French professional rally, racing and rallycross driver. He is the most successful driver in the World Rally Championship (WRC), having won the world championship a record nine times in a row. He holds several other WRC records, including most event wins, most podium finishes and most stage wins. Loeb retired from full time WRC participation at the end of 2012. He currently drives part time in the WRC for M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, and full time in the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) for Bahrain Raid Xtreme.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mikko Hirvonen</span> Finnish rally driver (born 1980)

Mikko Hirvonen is a Finnish former rally driver, and a current Rally-Raid driver, who drove in the World Rally Championship. He placed third in the drivers' championship and helped Ford to the manufacturers' title in both 2006 and 2007. In 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012 he finished runner-up to Sébastien Loeb. Hirvonen's co-driver was Jarmo Lehtinen from the 2003 season until his retirement in 2014, Lehtinen had replaced Miikka Anttila who co-drove with Hirvonen in the 2002 season.

The 2005 World Rally Championship was the 33rd season in the FIA World Rally Championship. The season began on January 21 with the Monte-Carlo Rally and ended on November 13 with the Rally Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harri Rovanperä</span> Finnish rally driver (born 1966)

Harri "Rovis" Rovanperä is a Finnish rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship from 1993 to 2006. He drove for SEAT (1997–00), Peugeot (2001–04), Mitsubishi (2005) and Red Bull Škoda Team (2006). Rovanperä was known as a loose surface specialist. He is the father of 2022 and 2023 World Rally driver's championship winner Kalle Rovanperä. He was married to Tiina Rovanperä.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford World Rally Team</span> 1978-2012 World Rally Championship manufacturer team

The Ford World Rally Team, also known as the Ford Motor Co. Team prior to 2005, is Ford Motor Company's full factory World Rally Championship team. In its current form, it has been a competitor since the 1997 season, when Ford Motor Company's motorsport arm selected the Malcolm Wilson Motorsport company to run its factory team, entering the Ford Escort World Rally Car. The new team took their first victory in the 1997 Acropolis Rally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peugeot 307 WRC</span> Peugeot World Rally Car

The Peugeot 307 WRC is a World Rally Car based on the Peugeot 307 road car. It was used by Peugeot Sport, Peugeot's factory team, and replaced the championship-winning 206 WRC from 2004 to 2005 in the World Rally Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citroën World Rally Team</span> World Rally Championship manufacturer team

The Citroën Total World Rally Team was the Citroën factory backed entry into the World Rally Championship (WRC), run by Citroën Racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sébastien Ogier</span> French rally driver (born 1983)

Sébastien Eugène Emile Ogier is a French rally driver, competing for the Toyota Gazoo Racing Team in the World Rally Championship (WRC), who is currently teamed with the co-driver Vincent Landais. He has won the World Rally Drivers' Championship 8 times, in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 Wales Rally GB</span>

The 2008 Rally GB was the fifteenth and final round of the 2008 World Rally Championship season and was held between December 5–7, 2008. The event was again held in Wales, with Cardiff being the host of the ceremonial start and finish, and Swansea providing the service park. The special stages took place on gravel roads on private land, owned either by the Forestry Commission or the Army. The event saw a return to the mid Wales stages of Hafren, Sweet Lamb, and Myherin for the first time since 2000. The rally was won by Sébastien Loeb in a Citroën C4 WRC. This was his eleventh win of the season - breaking his own previous record set in 2005. Second place went to Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala who was just 12.7 seconds behind. The final podium position was filled by Loebs teammate Dani Sordo. With this result Citroën clinched the manufacturers championship. This was the final appearance of the Subaru and Suzuki in the World Rally Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Wales Rally GB</span>

The 2010 Wales Rally GB, was the thirteenth and final round of the 2010 World Rally Championship (WRC) season. The twenty stage gravel rally took place over 11–14 November 2010 and was based in the Welsh capital of Cardiff. The rally was the final event for two-litre World Rally Cars as the 2011 season will see the introduction of 1.6-litre World Rally Cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thierry Neuville</span> Belgian rally driver (born 1988)

Thierry Jean Neuville is a Belgian rally driver who is competing in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. During his career, he has finished as runner-up in the drivers' championship five times. He helped Hyundai win their first manufacturers' title in 2019, as well as repeating the feat in 2020. His current co-driver is compatriot Martijn Wydaeghe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Wales Rally GB</span> Final round of the 2011 World Rally Championship season

The 2011 Wales Rally GB, formally the 67th Wales Rally of Great Britain, was the thirteenth and final round of the 2011 World Rally Championship season. The rally took place over 10–13 November, and was based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The rally was also the seventh and final round of the Production World Rally Championship, and the sixth and final round of the WRC Academy. The route returned to the Great Orme stage for the first time in thirty years, as well as the Dyfnant and Dyfi East and West stages for the first time in fifteen years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 World Rally Championship</span> 41st season of the World Rally Championship

The 2013 World Rally Championship was the 41st season of the World Rally Championship, a rallying championship recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile as the highest class of international rallying. The season was run over 13 rallies, starting with the Rallye Monte Carlo on 16 January, and finishing with the Wales Rally of Great Britain on 17 November. Volkswagen entered the series as a constructor with the Polo R WRC, while Ford and Mini ended their factory support for the Fiesta RS WRC and John Cooper Works WRC respectively, though both continued to make their cars available to customer teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 World Rally Championship</span> 43rd season of the World Rally Championship

The 2015 World Rally Championship was the 43rd season of the World Rally Championship, a rallying championship recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile as the highest class of international rallying. Teams and drivers contest thirteen rallies across four continents, competing for the FIA World Rally Championships for Drivers and Manufacturers. The WRC-2, WRC-3 and Junior WRC championships are run in support of the premier championship.

The 2005 Rally Japan was the 13th round of the 2005 World Rally Championship. It took place between September 30 and October 2, 2005. Peugeot's Marcus Grönholm won the race after capitalizing on then-leader Petter Solberg's accident after his Subaru hit a rock on the penultimate stage. It was Grönholm's 18th win in the World Rally Championship which he would dedicate to the late Michael Park, who was killed in an accident during the previous round, the Wales Rally GB.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Dakar Rally</span> 38th edition of the Dakar Rally

The 2016 Dakar Rally was the 38th edition of the event and the eighth successive year that the event was held in South America. The event started in Buenos Aires, Argentina on January 2, then ran through Argentina and Bolivia.

The 2004 Wales Rally GB was a rallying autosports race held over four days between 16 and 19 September 2004 and operated out of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom. It was the twelfth round of the 2004 World Rally Championship (WRC) and the 60th running of the event. Contested over 19 stages, the rally was won by Subaru World Rally Team driver Petter Solberg. Sébastien Loeb finished second for the Citroën World Rally Team and Ford driver Markko Märtin came in third.

References

  1. "Peugeot racer killed during Wales rally". Espn.com. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  2. "2005 Wales Rally GB Entry List". Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. Archived from the original on 29 April 2009. Retrieved 10 June 2014.