World Rally News

The Richard Burns Tribute Bike has been causing a stir at the Goodwood Revival this weekend drawing huge crowds of motorsport fans to the Richard Burns Foundation area at the annual historic motor race meeting.

WRC event winner Francois Duval will return to the Intercontinental Rally Challenge on Rallye Sanremo in Italy next week - and he now wants to continue in the series next season too.

Luca Cantamessa has been selected to pilot the BFGoodrich Drivers' Team entry on Rallye Sanremo, the penultimate round of the 2009 Intercontinental Rally Challenge on September 24-26.

Dave Weston Junior has received the perfect 19th birthday present - confirmation of his entry into the Spanish round on the 2009 World Rally Championship calendar.

Toni Gardemeister will drive the Hankook Opel Corsa OPC Super 2000 later this month, when he takes in the next round in the 2009 Intercontinental Rally Challenge, the Rally Principe de Asturias in Spain.

The Federal Court in Sydney today dismissed a last-minute attempt to stop next week's Repco Rally Australia, the tenth round in the 2009 World Rally Championship. The court held an urgent hearing to hear an application for an injunction by Ms Katie Milne, a Tweed Shire Councillor.

Andreas Mikkelsen has completed his preparations for the Barum Czech Rally Zlin this weekend following a successful test with the Hankook motorsport team.

Toni Gardemeister has told Crash.net that he is 'working hard' to try and put together a programme that will see him back in action in 2010.

Conrad Rautenbach has admitted he and co-driver Daniel Barritt were lucky to escaped unhurt after their off in the penultimate stage of the Neste Oil Rally Finland, the ninth round in the 2009 World Rally Championship.

SS23 - Ruuhim?ki (6.50km): Latvala fastest in SS23; Ogier second - 0.5 seconds slower; Rantanen third and just holds on to P5 overall; Loeb fourth followed by Henning Solberg and Hirvonen; Prokop wins the JWRC category and takes the 2009 Junior title; Hirvonen secures the overall victory

Conrad Rautenbach has retired from the Neste Oil Rally Finland after crashing out in the penultimate stage. The Zimbabwean, who had been running ninth overall in his Citroen Junior Team-run C4 WRC, went off the road around halfway through the 15.06 kilometre Myhinpaa 2 test.

Giandomenico Basso leads the 50th Rali Vinho Madeira, round seven of the 2009 Intercontinental Rally Challenge, heading into the second and final leg today after an engrossing 13 special stages so far.

The five best contestants from the northern European Pirelli Star Driver Shoot-out qualifier in Finland have been confirmed.

Andreas Mikkelsen will compete on the Barum Rally Zlin later this month in an Opel Corsa OPC Super 2000, as MSD and Hankook step up their programme in preparation for a full assault on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge in 2010.

Khalid Al Qassimi will be back behind the wheel of the 'third' BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team Focus RS WRC car this week in Finland and having finished a career best sixth on the Acropolis last month, he will be going all out to replicate that achievement.

Kimi Raikkonen will make his debut in the World Rally Championship this week, when he takes in the Neste Oil Rally Finland, one of the fastest and oldest events on the WRC schedule.

Citroen team leader Sebastien Loeb will want to regain the upper hand in Finland next weekend and put the problems he has experienced in Poland, Greece and Sardinia firmly behind him.

Rally of Great Britain event co-ordinator Andrew Kellitt believes that the decision to base the service park in Cardiff Bay this year will definitely be a step forward.

Former Peugeot and Ford WRC ace Markko Martin sampled the new Ford Fiesta R2 recently and the Estonian was immediately impressed, declaring it 'very fast and fun to drive'.

New Zealand motorsport identity Malcolm Stewart passed away peacefully on Wednesday morning.

The organisers of the Rally of Great Britain confirmed the route for this year's event today at the official launch of the 2009 edition in the Wales Millennium Centre near Cardiff Bay.

Marcus Gronholm battled a problem with the engine on his Ford Fiesta to secure second place in the Unlimited Class on his debut in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.

The World Rally Championship candidate event in Bulgaria was cancelled over the weekend after a fatal accident during the seventh stage. The Peugeot 207 S2000 driver by Swiss driver Brian Lavio went off the road during the stage on Sunday morning and hit a rock on the side of the road.

BP Ford Abu Dhabi team director Malcolm Wilson reckons that everything is looking very positive for the World Rally Championship now following the measures announced by the World Motor Sport Council at the end of last month.