2014 WRC3 Championship

The 2014 FIA WRC3 Championship was the second season of WRC3, a rallying championship organised and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, running in support of the World Rally Championship. It was created when the Group R class of rally car was introduced in 2013.[1]

Sébastien Chardonnet started as the defending champion.[2] However, he did not defend his title as he competed in the WRC2 championship instead.[3]

The championship was won by Stéphane Lefebvre.[4] Alastair Fisher finished the championship second with Martin Koči third.[5]

Calendar

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Unlike its predecessor the Production Car World Rally Championship, WRC3 did not have a fixed calendar. Instead, teams and drivers competing in the series were free to contest any of thirteen rallies that formed the 2014 World Rally Championship. They had to nominate up to six events to score points in, and their best five results from these six events counted towards their final championship points score. The World Rally Championship was open to two-wheel drive cars complying with R1, R2 and R3 regulations.[6] The 2014 calendar was announced at a meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Croatia on 27 September 2013.[7] The 2014 championship was contested over thirteen rounds in Europe, the Americas and Oceania.

Round Dates Rally name Rally headquarters Surface
1 16–18 January   Monte Carlo Rally Gap, Hautes-Alpes, France Mixed
2 5–8 February   Rally Sweden Hagfors, Värmland Snow
3 6–9 March   Rally Mexico León, Guanajuato Gravel
4 3–6 April   Rally de Portugal Faro, Algarve Gravel
5 8–11 May   Rally Argentina Villa Carlos Paz, Córdoba Gravel
6 6–8 June   Rally Italia Sardegna Alghero, Sardinia Gravel
7 27–29 June   Rally Poland Mikołajki, Warmia-Masuria Gravel
8 31 July–3 August   Rally Finland Jyväskylä, Keski-Suomi Gravel
9 22–24 August   Rallye Deutschland Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate Tarmac
10 12–14 September   Rally Australia Coffs Harbour, New South Wales Gravel
11 3–5 October   Rallye de France Alsace Strasbourg, Alsace Tarmac
12 24–26 October   Rally de Catalunya Salou, Tarragona Mixed
13 14–16 November   Wales Rally GB Deeside, Flintshire Gravel

Calendar changes

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  • Rally Australia and Rally New Zealand abandoned the event-sharing arrangement established in 2008 that saw each event host a round of the championship every other year. After hosting an event in 2013, Rally Australia remains on the calendar throughout 2014 and 2015 before the arrangement is due to be renegotiated.[8]
  • The Rallye Monte Carlo relocated its base from Valence in the French province of Rhône-Alpes to the town of Gap in the neighbouring province of Hautes-Alpes.[9]
  • The 2014 calendar saw the Rally of Poland return to the championship for the first time since 2009.[8] The event also crossed the border into Lithuania for one day of competition.[7] Its inclusion came at the expense of the Acropolis Rally, which was removed after struggling with its financial obligations to the championship. The Acropolis Rally later moved to the European Rally Championship for the 2014 season.[10] The rallies of Brazil and China had also been considered for inclusion on the WRC calendar before the FIA approved of the Rally of Poland.[11][12]

Teams and drivers

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Constructor Entrant Driver Co-driver Tyre Class Rounds
Citroën
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
  Quentin Gilbert[13]   Quentin Gilbert[13]   Renaud Jamoul[13] M R3 1
  Simone Tempestini[14]   Simone Tempestini[14]   Dorin Pulpea[14] M R3 4, 7–9, 11
  Matteo Chiarcossi[15] 13
  Aron Domżała[14]   Aron Domżała[14]   Przemysław Zawada[14] M R3 4, 7–8
  Szymon Gospodarczyk[16] 11
  Kamil Heller[15] 13
  ADAC Team Weser-Ems e.V.[14]   Christian Riedemann[14]   Lara Vanneste[14] M R3 4, 7, 11
  Michael Wenzel[17] 9
  Quentin Giordano[14]   Quentin Giordano[14]   Guillaume Duval[14] M R3 4, 7
  Valentin Sarreaud[18] 8, 11, 13
  Thomas Roux[19] 9
  Martin Koči[14]   Martin Koči[14]   Lukáš Kostka[14] M R3 4
  Styllex Slovak National Team[20] 7–9, 11, 13
  Stéphane Lefebvre[14]   Stéphane Lefebvre[14]   Thomas Dubois[14] M R3 4, 7–9
  Molly Taylor[14]   Molly Taylor[14]   Coral Taylor[14] M R3 4
  Sebastian Marshall[20] 7–8, 13
  Team Jaga Motorsport[14]   Panikos Polykarpou[14]   Gerald Winter[14] M R3 4, 7
  Sylvain Michel[14]   Sylvain Michel[14]   Gwenola Marie[14] M R3 4
  Frederico Della Casa[14]   Frederico Della Casa[14]   Domenico Pozzi[14] M R3 4, 7–9
  Alastair Fisher[14]   Alastair Fisher[14]   Gordon Noble[14] M R3 4, 7–9, 11, 13
  Wurmbrand Racing Team[14]   Kornél Lukács[14]   Márk Mesterházi[14] M R3 4, 7–9, 11
  Czech National Team[21]   Jan Černý[21]   Pavel Kohout[21] M R3 4
  Simone Campedelli[21]   Simone Campedelli[21]   Danilo Fappani[21] M R3 4
  AKK Sports Team Finland[22]   Teemu Suninen[22]   Juha-Pekka Jauhiainen[22] D R3 8
  Abu Dhabi Racing[17]   Mohamed Al Mutawaa[17]   Stephen McAuley[17] M R3 9, 12
  Eric Camilli[17]   Eric Camilli[17]   Maxime Vilmot[17] M R3 9
  Rallye Jeunes FFSA[16] 11
  Yohan Rossel[16]   Benoît Fulcrand[16] M R3 11
  Frédéric Hauswald[16]   Frédéric Hauswald[16]   Olivier Ural[16] M R3 11
  Hannu's Rally Team[23]   Henri Haapamäki[23]   Marko Salminen[23] M R3 13
Renault
(Renault Clio R3T)
  Alain Pyrame[16]   Alain Pyrame[16]   Vincent Varetz[16] P R3 11
Icon Class
R1 Classification
within Group R
R2
R3

Rally summaries

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Round Rally name Podium finishers Statistics
Pos. Driver Team Time Stages Length Starters Finishers
1   Monte Carlo Rally
(15–20 January) — Results and report
1   Quentin Gilbert
  Renaud Jamoul
  Quentin Gilbert
  (Citroën DS3 R3T)
5:18:33.8 (15)1a
14
(383.88 km)1b
360.48 km
1 1
No further WRC3 entries.
2   Rally Sweden
(5–8 February) — Results and report
No WRC3 entries. (24)
23
(323.54 km)
312.22 km
3   Rally Mexico
(6–9 March) — Results and report
No WRC3 entries. 21 401.77 km
4   Rally de Portugal
(3–6 April) — Results and report
1   Stéphane Lefebvre
  Thomas Dubois
  Stéphane Lefebvre
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
4:02:51.8 16 339.46 km 14 12
2   Christian Riedemann
  Lara Vanneste
  ADAC Team Weser-Ems e.V.
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
4:03:54.5
3   Martin Koči
  Lukáš Kostka
  Martin Koči
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
4:06:22.4
5   Rally Argentina
(8–11 May) — Results and report
No WRC3 entries. 14 405.10 km
6   Rally Italia Sardegna
(6–8 June) — Results and report
No WRC3 entries. 17 364.54 km
7   Rally Poland
(26–29 June) — Results and report
1   Stéphane Lefebvre
  Thomas Dubois
  Stéphane Lefebvre
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
2:58:25.3 24 336.64 km 11 9
2   Alastair Fisher
  Gordon Noble
  Alastair Fisher
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:00:38.6
3   Quentin Giordano
  Guillaume Duval
  Quentin Giordano
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:01:51.2
8   Rally Finland
(1–3 August) — Results and report
1   Teemu Suninen
  Juha-Pekka Jauhiainen
  AKK Sports Team Finland
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:31:27.8 26 360.94 km 10 9
2   Martin Koči
  Lukáš Kostka
  Styllex Slovak National Team
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:31:59.7
3   Quentin Giordano
  Valentin Sarreaud
  Quentin Giordano
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:33:19.8
9   Rallye Deutschland
(22–24 August) — Results and report
1   Stéphane Lefebvre
  Thomas Dubois
  Stéphane Lefebvre
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:27:45.4 18 324.31 km 10 6
2   Christian Riedemann
  Michael Wenzel
  ADAC Team Weser-Ems e.V.
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:27:54.8
3   Quentin Giordano
  Thomas Roux
  Quentin Giordano
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:33:21.5
10   Rally Australia
(12–14 September) — Results and report
No WRC3 entries. 20 319.58 km
11   Rallye de France Alsace
(3–5 October) — Results and report
No results; all 7 finishers excluded for technical irregularities.[24] 18 303.63 km 11 7[24]
12   Rally Catalunya
(24–26 October) — Results and report
1   Mohamed Al Mutawaa
  Stephen McAuley
  Abu Dhabi Racing
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
4:51:22.6 17 372.96 km 1 1
  Alain Pyrame
  Vincent Varetz
  Alain Pyrame
(Renault Clio R3T)
Withdrew
No further WRC3 entries.
13   Wales Rally GB
(14–16 November) — Results and report
1   Alastair Fisher
  Gordon Noble
  Alastair Fisher
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:31:20.1 17 305.64 km 7 6
2   Martin Koči
  Lukáš Kostka
  Styllex Slovak National Team
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:32:38.9
3   Henri Haapamäki
  Marko Salminen
  Hannu's Rally Team
(Citroën DS3 R3T)
3:34:14.6
Notes
  • ^1  — The Monte Carlo Rally was shortened when a competitor stopped on Stage 14, blocking traffic and forcing organisers to abandon the stage.

Standings

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FIA WRC3 Championship for Drivers

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Pos. Driver MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
1   Stéphane Lefebvre 1 1 8 1 EX 79
2   Alastair Fisher Ret 2 5 4 EX 1 65
3   Martin Koči 3 4 2 Ret EX 2 63
4   Quentin Giordano 10 3 3 3 EX 6 54
5   Christian Riedemann 2 5 WD 2 WD 46
6   Molly Taylor 8 8 4 4 32
7   Simone Tempestini 6 Ret 6 5 Ret Ret 26
8   Teemu Suninen 1 25
9   Quentin Gilbert 1 25
10   Mohamed Al-Mutawaa Ret 1 25
11   Aron Domżała Ret 7 7 EX 5 22
12   Federico della Casa 4 9 9 Ret 16
13   Kornél Lukács 12 6 Ret 6 Ret 16
14   Henri Haapamäki 3 15
15   Simone Campedelli 5 WD 10
16   Jan Černý 7 6
17   Panikos Polykarpou 9 Ret 2
Pos. Driver MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Did not finish (Ret)
Black Excluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
Blank Withdrew entry from
the event (WD)

FIA WRC3 Championship for Co-Drivers

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Pos. Co-driver MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
1   Thomas Dubois 1 1 8 1 EX 79
2   Gordon Noble Ret 2 5 4 EX 1 65
3   Lukáš Kostka 3 4 2 Ret EX 2 63
4   Lara Vanneste 2 5 WD WD 28
5   Sebastian Marshall 8 4 4 28
6   Dorin Pulpea 6 Ret 6 5 Ret 26
7   Juha-Pekka Jauhiainen 1 25
8   Renaud Jamoul 1 25
9   Stephen McAuley Ret 1 25
10   Valentin Sarreaud 3 EX 6 23
11   Michael Wenzel 2 18
12   Guillaume Duval 10 3 16
13   Márk Mesterházi 12 6 Ret 6 Ret 16
14   Domenico Pozzi 4 9 9 Ret 16
15   Thomas Roux 3 15
16   Marko Salminen 3 15
17   Przemek Zawada Ret 7 7 12
18   Danilo Fappani 5 WD 10
19   Kamil Heller 5 10
20   Pavel Kohout 7 6
21   Coral Taylor 8 4
22   Gerald Winter 9 Ret 2
Pos. Co-driver MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Did not finish (Ret)
Black Excluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
Blank Withdrew entry from
the event (WD)

FIA WRC3 Championship for Teams

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Pos. Team MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
1   ADAC Team Weser-Ems e.V. 1 2 WD 1 WD 68
2   Styllex Slovak National Team 1 2 Ret EX 1 68
3   Wurmbrand Racing Team 4 3 Ret 2 Ret 45
4   AKK Sports Team Finland 1 25
5   Abu Dhabi Racing Ret 1 25
6   Czech National Team 2 18
7   Hannu's Rally Team 2 18
8   Team Jaga Motorsport 3 Ret 15
Pos. Team MON
 
SWE
 
MEX
 
POR
 
ARG
 
ITA
 
POL
 
FIN
 
GER
 
AUS
 
FRA
 
ESP
 
GBR
 
Points
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Did not finish (Ret)
Black Excluded (EX)
Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Cancelled (C)
Blank Withdrew entry from
the event (WD)

Regulation changes

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  • All competitors registered in the Manufacturers', WRC2, WRC3 and Junior WRC championships were obliged to use a colour-coded windscreen sticker to distinguish its category.[25]
  • Drivers were no longer assigned permanent numbers, except upon request.[25]
  • All competitors registered for the Junior WRC were registered for scoring points in the WRC3 Championship.[26]

References

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  1. ^ "New system to boost entries". WRC.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 22 November 2012. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  2. ^ "WRC 3: Champagne for Chardonnet". WRC.com. WRC.com. 6 October 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  3. ^ "Citroën Racing continues its involvement in rallying". CitroenRacing.com. Citroën Racing. 16 December 2013. Archived from the original on 18 December 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  4. ^ "Trio Fights for JWRC Runner-up". WRC.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  5. ^ "Fisher takes second Junior WRC Win in Wales". WRC.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
  6. ^ "2013 FIA World Rally Championship Sporting Regulations" (PDF). fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 17 December 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  7. ^ a b "2014 WRC calendar revealed". WRC.com. 27 September 2013. Archived from the original on 23 January 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  8. ^ a b Evans, David (25 September 2013). "Greece set to lose WRC slot to Poland in 13-round 2014 calendar". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Rallye Monte Carlo heads home for Ogier". WRC.com. 9 July 2013. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  10. ^ Evans, David (7 November 2013). "Acropolis Rally secures ERC slot for 2014". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  11. ^ Evans, David (29 May 2013). "2014 WRC calendar set to be confirmed in June". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  12. ^ Evans, David (10 July 2013). "Poland leads race as World Rally Championship plans new 2014 event". Autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
  13. ^ a b c "Monte-Carlo Entry List" (PDF). ACM.mc. ACM.mc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj "JWRC entries revealed". WRC.com. WRC.com. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Wales Rally GB Start List" (PDF). Wales Rally GB. International Motor Sports Ltd. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Entry List Update 16.09.2014" (PDF). Rallye de France Alsace. Fédération Française du Sport Automobile. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g "ADAC Rallye Deutschland Entry List". www.adac-rallye-deutschland.de. adac-rallye-deutschland.de. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  18. ^ "Rally Finland Start List" (PDF). Rally Finland. AKK Sports Oy. 31 July 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  19. ^ "ADAC Rallye Deutschland updated Entry List" (PDF). Rallye Deutschland. ADAC. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  20. ^ a b "Rally Poland Start List" (PDF). rajdpolski.pl. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  21. ^ a b c d e f "Rally Portugal Entry List". rallydeportugal.pt. rallydeportugal.pt. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
  22. ^ a b c "Draft Entry List - Neste Oil Rally Finland 2014" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  23. ^ a b c "Wales Rally GB Entry List" (PDF). Wales Rally GB. International Motor Sports Ltd. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
  24. ^ a b "News in brief: Kubica / Poland / Citroen". WRC.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014. Lefebvre and the other Junior WRC finishers were excluded from all rally results except the Junior WRC classifications, and therefore retain their points.
  25. ^ a b "World Motorsport Council December". FIA.com. FIA.com. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
  26. ^ "2014 FIA Junior WRC Championship". FIA.com. FIA.com. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
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