Corsica Rally
The first question to ask is, 'What conditions will prevail on this year's Corsica Rally?' Just five months after the 2001 edition of the 'Rally of 10,000 Corners' the World Rally Championship returns to the French island at the end of winter and some surprises can be expected. The higher Stages could easily run in wintry conditions and there remains the possibility of snow. Therefore between March 8-10, teams and tyre suppliers will be most carefully studying the sky and attempting to interpret the climatic and environmental conditions that will decide the destiny of the third round of the this season's championship.
"We are preparing our range of tyres for Corsica to try and cover every weather possibility from dry to wet,- says Pirelli rally manager Fiore Brivio-.The move from late October to early March will bring a much higher chance of rain and possibly even snow on some Stages. We've had wintry conditions before on this event and although the route does not go into the central area of the island this year, it could easily happen again on Stages where there is high altitude."
Most of the stages used to be narrow and extremely twisty with continuous curves in quick succession. However, while this has changed, it does not make the event any easier. 'The rally has changed a lot recently and some of the most narrow and twisty roads are not used any more. Corsica uses much wider roads and there is a lot of new asphalt that is not as abrasive as it used to be. High wear rates used to be a big issue here but this is not so much the case. Equally, when the event ran at the beginning of May it was quite common for high temperatures to further increase the demands on tyres (and drivers!) but this will probably not be a problem in 2002.'
The PZero asphalt range is fully competitive thanks to new methods of construction and materials. Long tests with Subaru and Ford, and also the performance of the tyres in Monte Carlo this year, have shown that the PZero tyres are particularly effective on abrasive asphalt - exactly the conditions that characterise the Corsica Rally.
Two Patterns For Every Situation
For the abrasive asphalt and the thousands of corners in Corsica, Pirelli has assigned a highly specialised range of PZero tyres. The objective is to ensure the optimum performance in any of the possible weather conditions and on all of the varied special Stages. Both Ford and Subaru have selected the RS and RE options, two patterns with vast experience (and already winners in Corsica) with several evolutions following extensive asphalt tests by both teams. All are equipped with Pirelli's EMI anti-deflation system.
From Dry To Damp
RS (Size 225/650-18)
Type A tyre for essentially dry asphalt
Compound options 50, 70 and 90 (with evolutions)
Description This tyre covers all the possible conditions ranging from dry asphalt to a damp surface, the 70 compound being the most likely base choice for the rally. The 90 compound is for use in cold temperatures or on damp and dirty surfaces.
From Very Damp To Wet
RE (Size 225/650-18)
Type Gomma intermedia e da bagnato
Compound options 70 and 90 (with evolutions)
Description This is a very versatile tyre, designed for very damp to wet surfaces. The very soft compound 90 option can tackle rain and low temperatures or even the presence of a little snow. The RE tyre can be further hand cut for heavy rain or where there is a lot of standing water on the Stages.
NOTE: The higher the compound number the softer the tyre,
The Pirelli Team For Corsica
2 Subaru Impreza WRC Makinen-Lindstrm* & Solberg-Mils*
4 Ford Focus RS Sainz-Moya*, McRae-Grist*, Martin-Park* & Duval-Fortin
7 Mitsubishi Lancer Gr.N Fiorio, Trelles, Ferreiros, Iliev, Rowe, Baldini e Manfrinato
* registered for Manufacturer Championship points
...plus other teams not regularly contesting the World Rally Championship.
Pirelli's Corsica Record
Colin McRae's back to back wins on this event in 1997 and 1998 underlined the performance potential of the PZero asphalt range. Although these were the high points of recent Corsica rallies, Pirelli's list of successes on the island include four wins in the first six years of the World Rally Championship when Jean-Claude Andruet, Markku Alen and Bernard Darniche all won on the island.
Recent winners
1990 Didier Auriol/Bernard Occelli (Lancia Integrale)
1991 Carlos Sainz/Luis Moya (Toyota Celica GT-Four)
1992 Didier Auriol/Bernard Occelli (Lancia HF Integrale)
1993 Francois Delecour/Daniel Grataloup (Ford Escort RS Cosworth)
1994 Didier Auriol/Bernard Occelli (Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD)
1995 Didier Auriol/Denis Giraudet (Toyota Celica GT-Four)
1996* Philippe Bugalski/Jean-Paul Chiaroni (Renault Maxi Megane)
1997 Colin McRae/Nicky Grist (Subaru Impreza WRC97)
1998 Colin McRae/Nicky Grist (Subaru Impreza WRC98)
1999 Philippe Bugalski/Jean-Paul Chiaroni (Citron Xsara kit car)
2000 Gilles Panizzi/Herve Panizzi (Peugeot 206WRC)
2001 Jesus Puras/Marc Marti (Citron Xsara WRC)
*Gara Valida soltanto per il Mondiale 2 Ruote Motrici
Contact website : www.ffsa.org/rallye-de-france
Around The World In 14 Events
Montecarlo 17-20 January Asphalt/snow/ice
The perfect start to the season for Pirelli with an historic victory going to the Subaru of Tommi Makinen and with four cars fitted with Pirelli PZero tyres in the top six places. The rally was run almost entirely without snow and saw a superb result the RS tyre in the level 9 'thermal' compound that gives maximum performance in conditions of dry asphalt with only a little ice.
Svezia * 1-3 February Snow/ice/gravel
Unfortunately early snow turned quickly into mud but already the Subarus of Makinen and Solberg had retired with engine problems and McRae's Ford suffered a heavy penalty, breaking a wheel after hitting a rock. Third place for Sainz in the other Ford was the best result although again the competition showed the positive steps forward made by the PZero studded tyres.
Corsica* 8-10 March Asphalt
Spagna 22-24 March Asphalt
Ciprus * 19-21 April Gravel
Argentina * 17-19 May Gravel
Acropolis 14-16 June Gravel
Safari * 11-14 July Gravel
Finland * 8-11 August Gravel
Germany 22-25 August Asphalt
San Remo 20-22 September Asphalt
New Zealand * 3-6 October Gravel
Australia * 1-3 November Gravel
Great Britain 15-17 November Gravel
* WRC Production Car World Championship (Group N) events