Gaurav Gill (co-driver Glenn Macneall) took a commanding 12-minute lead for the MRF Tyres Rally team after Day 1 of the Rally of New Caledonia, the second round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) here Saturday.
|Last Updated: Jun 15, 2013, 05:27 PM IST|Source: Bureau
Noumea (New Caledonia): Gaurav Gill (co-driver Glenn Macneall) took a commanding 12-minute lead for the MRF Tyres Rally team after Day 1 of the Rally of New Caledonia, the second round of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) here Saturday.
Held in the rugged hills north of Noumea, Gill ran at a steady no-risk pace in an S2000 Skoda Fabia factory-backed car while others, including teammate Esapekka Lappi (Janne Ferm) who retired, fell victim to the extremely demanding roads.
The day that began in bright sunshine saw the weather turning overcast and by late afternoon light rain began to fall, turning the gravel roads slippery.
Gill won the first two stages from Lappi and had built a 12-second lead. However, the Finn champion gained on Gill in the next stage with the Indian losing 30 seconds due to a spin.
The third stage was tight and technical, complete with 12 hairpins. It was on one of these that Gill had a half spin. “It was a silly moment, I could not select gears and lost 30 second getting going again,” said Gill.
The cars serviced and returned to do battle running over the same three high speed tests. On the very stage that Lappi felt most at home because it was wide and fast, he ran wide on a downhill section, hit a rock and tore the right rear suspension from the car.
“It was a mistake, completely my fault and I was not pushing because of the 20-second lead I had over Gill,” said a remorseful Lappi. “The service crew have a big job to fix the car, maybe it will be repaired by tomorrow and I can get some points from the event.”
Meanwhile, four of the other APRC contenders had crashed, all over jumps. It left another Indian Sanjay Takale (Sean Gregory), in a Subaru Impreza, in second place, over 12 minutes behind Gill.
The grin on Takale’s face said it all. “I am getting quicker as I get used to my Subaru but I did not think I would be in second place,” he said.
The event concludes Sunday with a further 113 kms of high speed stages run over the same tests but in the reverse direction.
IANS
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.