Rally Japan
Encyclopedia
Rallying
Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...
competition held in Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. The event has been part of the FIA World Rally Championship
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
since its introduction during the 2004 season. From 2004 to 2007, the event was held on the twisty and narrow gravel roads of the Tokachi
Tokachi
may refer to:* Tokachi Subprefecture, Hokkaidō** Tokachi District, Hokkaidō* Tokachi Province, old province of Japan* Mount Tokachi , a volcano in central Hokkaidō* Mount Tokachi , a mountain in the Hidaka Mountains of eastern Hokkaidō...
region near Obihiro. For the 2008 season
2008 World Rally Championship season
The 2008 World Rally Championship season was the 36th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 15 rallies and began on January 24, with the 2008 Monte Carlo Rally....
, the event was moved to the region close to Sapporo, Hokkaidō's main city. Rally Japan was not held in 2009, but returned in 2010.
History
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, and was immediately part of the FIA World Rally Championship
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
schedule. The rally was won by the 2003 world champion Petter Solberg
Petter Solberg
Petter "Hollywood" Solberg , from Spydeberg in Østfold, Norway, is a professional rally driver. He debuted in the World Rally Championship in 1998 and was signed by the Ford factory team in 1999...
of the Subaru World Rally Team
Subaru World Rally Team
The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003...
. Prior to the introduction of the Rally Japan, the location had already hosted the Rally Hokkaido, which has been part of the FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
The Asia-Pacific Rally Championship is an international rally championship organized by the FIA. The championship was first held in 1988 and won by Japan's Kenjiro Shinozuka in a Mitsubishi Galant VR-4. Other winners include the two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz of Spain and the 1986...
since 2002.
The 2005 Rally Japan was held on September 30 through October 2. Headquarters and the service park were located in and near Obihiro, Hokkaidō
Obihiro, Hokkaido
is a city located in Tokachi, Hokkaidō, Japan. Obihiro is the only city in the Tokachi area. The next most populous municipality in Tokachi is the town of Otofuke, with less than a third of Obihiro's population. The city has approximately 500 foreign residents . The city contains the headquarters...
. The rally was won by Marcus Grönholm
Marcus Grönholm
Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship 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 the...
in a Peugeot 307 WRC 1:22.1 ahead of Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb is a French rally driver currently driving for the Citroën World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship...
in a Citroën Xsara WRC. This was the last of the three world rally wins for the 307 WRC, and also the last win for the Peugeot
Peugeot Sport
Peugeot Sport is the department of French carmaker Peugeot responsible for motorsport activities.-Beginnings in rallying:Peugeot Sport was formed in 1981 under the name of Peugeot Talbot Sport, after Jean Todt, a World Rally Championship co-driver for Talbot driver Guy Fréquelin, was asked by...
factory team. The 2006 event was won by Loeb 5.6 seconds ahead of Grönholm.
2007 World Rally Championship season
The 2007 World Rally Championship season was the 35th season in the FIA World Rally Championship. The season began on January 19 with the 75ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo and ended on December 2 with the 63rd Wales Rally of Great Britain. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the drivers' world...
. It featured 27 special stages
Special stage (rallying)
Special stages are the competitive sections of a stage rally event where the goal is to cover a stretch of closed road in the shortest time. On a special stage cars are set off individually at set intervals to reduce the chances of being impeded by other competitors. Each special stage is a...
, and was won by Mikko Hirvonen
Mikko Hirvonen
Mikko Hirvonen is a Finnish rally driver currently driving for the Citroën Total World Rally Team 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 and 2011, he finished runner-up to...
of BP Ford World Rally Team
BP Ford World Rally Team
The Ford Abu Dhabi 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...
. This win was third in Hirvonen's career as a top level rally driver. The 2007 edition of the event was also remarkable for the retirements of both 2007 title contenders on the same rally; Marcus Grönholm
Marcus Grönholm
Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship 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 the...
retired on the first day of the rally after heavily damaging the roll cage of his Ford Focus RS WRC 07 on stage four. Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb is a French rally driver currently driving for the Citroën World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship...
retired on the next leg
Leg (rallying)
In rallying, a leg is each day of the whole event. For example, as of 2005 each WRC event lasts over 3 legs - from Friday over Saturday to Sunday ....
of the rally after his co-driver Daniel Elena
Daniel Elena
Daniel Elena is a Monegasque rally co-driver, currently working with Sébastien Loeb. Between them, the pair have won the World Rally Championship eight times, and currently compete with the Citroën DS3 WRC...
called out the wrong pace note
Pacenotes
In rallying, pacenotes are a commonly used method of accurately describing the route to be driven in extreme detail. As well as dictating the general route to be taken, in terms of turnings, junctions, etc, all notable features of the route which might affect the way it is driven at speed are...
instruction for the first time in ten years.
In December 2007, Rally Japan organisers announced that for the 2008 WRC season
2008 World Rally Championship season
The 2008 World Rally Championship season was the 36th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 15 rallies and began on January 24, with the 2008 Monte Carlo Rally....
the event will move from Obihiro to Sapporo, the biggest city in Hokkaidō. The 2008 Rally Japan
2008 Rally Japan
The 2008 Rally Japan was the fourteenth and penultimate round of the 2008 World Rally Championship season. The event saw Sébastien Loeb clinch his fifth consecutive world drivers title with his drive to a third place finish. The event was won by Mikko Hirvonen in a Ford Focus, who led the event...
featured 29 stages, including five super specials at the Sapporo Dome
Sapporo Dome
The is a stadium located in Toyohira-ku, Sapporo, Japan, and is primarily used for baseball and football. It is the home field of the baseball team Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters and the football club Consadole Sapporo.-History:...
. The event saw Hirvonen take his second win in Japan in a row, ahead of his team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala
Jari-Matti Latvala
Jari-Matti Latvala is a Finnish rally driver competing in the World Rally Championship. His co-driver has been Miikka Anttila since the 2003 Rallye Deutschland...
and Citroën Total's Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb
Sébastien Loeb is a French rally driver currently driving for the Citroën World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship...
, who secured a record fifth title with his third place finish. The rally also featured a bad crash by François Duval
François Duval
François Duval is a Belgian rally driver.-1999–2004:With victories in four events Duval won the Belgian Citroën Saxo Challenge title in 1999...
, which left his co-driver Patrick Pivato in a critical condition.
Past winners
| Season | Driver Co-driver |
Car |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 |  Petter SolbergPetter Solberg Petter "Hollywood" Solberg , from Spydeberg in Østfold, Norway, is a professional rally driver. He debuted in the World Rally Championship in 1998 and was signed by the Ford factory team in 1999...  Phil MillsPhil Mills Phil Mills is a Welsh rally racing co-driver. He was winner of the 2003 World Rally Championship , as co-driver to Petter Solberg.... |
 Subaru Impreza WRC 2004 |
| 2005 |  Marcus GrönholmMarcus Grönholm Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship 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 the... Timo RautiainenTimo Rautiainen (co-driver) Timo Rautiainen is a Finnish former rally co-driver. He is best known for co-driving for Marcus Grönholm from 1995 to 2007. Rautiainen and Grönholm drove for Peugeot and Ford in the World Rally Championship, and won 30 world rallies and two drivers' world championship titles together... |
 Peugeot 307 WRC |
| 2006 | Sébastien Loeb Sébastien Loeb Sébastien Loeb is a French rally driver currently driving for the Citroën World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship...  Daniel ElenaDaniel Elena Daniel Elena is a Monegasque rally co-driver, currently working with Sébastien Loeb. Between them, the pair have won the World Rally Championship eight times, and currently compete with the Citroën DS3 WRC... |
Citroën Xsara WRC |
| 2007 2007 World Rally Championship season The 2007 World Rally Championship season was the 35th season in the FIA World Rally Championship. The season began on January 19 with the 75ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo and ended on December 2 with the 63rd Wales Rally of Great Britain. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the drivers' world... |
Mikko Hirvonen Mikko Hirvonen Mikko Hirvonen is a Finnish rally driver currently driving for the Citroën Total World Rally Team 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 and 2011, he finished runner-up to... Jarmo Lehtinen |
Ford Focus RS WRC 07 |
| 2008 2008 World Rally Championship season The 2008 World Rally Championship season was the 36th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 15 rallies and began on January 24, with the 2008 Monte Carlo Rally.... |
Mikko Hirvonen Mikko Hirvonen Mikko Hirvonen is a Finnish rally driver currently driving for the Citroën Total World Rally Team 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 and 2011, he finished runner-up to... Jarmo Lehtinen |
Ford Focus RS WRC 08 |
| 2010 2010 World Rally Championship season The 2010 World Rally Championship season was the 38th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 13 rallies, beginning with Rally Sweden on 11 February and ended Wales Rally GB on 14 November.... |
Sébastien Ogier Sébastien Ogier Sébastien Ogier is a French rally driver. He won the Junior World Rally Championship in 2008 and last drove in the World Rally Championship for the Citroën World Rally Team. His co-driver is compatriot Julien Ingrassia. They are set to join Volkswagen's WRC team when they enter the championship in... Julien Ingrassia |
Citroën C4 WRC Citroën C4 WRC The Citroën C4 WRC is a World Rally Car built for the Citroën World Rally Team by Citroën Racing to compete in the World Rally Championship. It is based upon the Citroën C4 road car and replaced the Citroën Xsara WRC... |