Rally of New Zealand

The opposite side of the World beckons for the World Rally Championship's 10th round. From September 21-23 the competitors will do battle in New Zealand's springtime which will be a new experience for the crews. Usually the event has taken place in July when the roads can be alternately dry and hard or wet and muddy. The change of season therefore raises the possibility of dusty roads, albeit still smooth. It is therefore vital that the Pirelli PZero gravel range of tyres for New Zealand is at its most versatile on a surface where it usually excels.

Ford and Subaru have remained faithful to the K and KM pattern tyres that are, respectively, ideally suited to the likely mixture of hard and clean or wet but still smooth surfaces. However, in case of a rally where conditions change between wet and dry, the compounds available range from 2 (for hard surfaces) through 4 to 6, the softest compound available. Additionally, in case of heavy rain that makes the surface treacherously slippery, each tyre can be further hand cut to obtain optimum performance. All, of course, are fitted with Pirelli's EMI anti-deflation system.

Pirelli will fly to New Zealand the latest versions of the PZero gravel range that achieved second and third places on last month's Rally Finland thanks, respectively, to Richard Burns (Subaru) and the Ford (that now shares the lead in the World Manufacturers' Championship) of Colin McRae. The success of the PZero gravel tyres has already been enormous this season, winning the great majority of individual Stages and also taking three wins in succession for Colin McRae in Argentina, Cyprus and Acropolis.

TWO PATTERNS, MANY COMPOUNDS
To answer the challenge of coping with the varying climatic conditions that can be found during the Antipodean springtime, the Pirelli PZero range of gravel tyres for New Zealand will again concentrate on two tread patterns: K and KM, with evolutions and every possible compound from hard to soft. All are able to be hand cut and all are equipped with Pirelli's EMI anti-deflation system.

FOR HARD OR CLEAN SURFACES
K (Size 205/65-15)
Type A tyre for essentially hard surfaces
Compound options 2, 4 (with evolutions) and 6
Description Level 2 is for a dry surface and temperatures above 15 degrees, level 4 is for dry surfaces with low temperatures or for damp roads and level 6 for muddy conditions or with temperatures below 10 degrees.

FOR SMOOTH OR DAMP SURFACES
KM (Size 205/65-15)
Type Tyre for smooth and soft or sandy surfaces
Compound options 2, 4 and 6 with characteristics of compounds and suitability similar to those of the K-pattern tyre.
Description Level 2 is for a dry surface and temperatures above 15 degrees, level 4 is for dry surfaces with low temperatures or for damp roads and level 6 ensures maximum performance on wet roads or with temperatures below 10 degrees.
NOTE: The higher the compound number the softer the tyre.

THE PIRELLI TEAM FOR NEW ZEALAND
3 Ford Focus RS McRae-Grist, Sainz-Moya
& Delecour-Grataloup
3 Subaru Impreza WRC Burns-Reid , Solberg-Mills
& Arai-Macneall
3 Mitsubishi Lancer Group N Pozzo, Ligato & Trelles
plus other teams not regularly contesting the World Rally Championship.

OUR DRIVERS SAID
COLIN McRAE
New Zealand was the event where I won my first WRC rally and I've enjoyed it ever since, even though we don't use the Motu Road stage any more! It's a good 'driving' event and you can always make some very positive tyre choices. Although the date has changed and it's not a winter rally any more, I'd prefer it to be a little bit wet to keep the dust down. I've won each of the remaining rounds of the championship so I'm hoping to end the season with a real flourish.

CARLOS SAINZ
This should be a really good rally for both Pirelli and Ford. I don't expect there to be any major problems but, if it's dry then it'll be dusty and therefore it could be one of the worst events for the problem of cleaning stages.

RICHARD BURNS
I scored my first big win here and so I've got find memories of New Zealand. The thing about this event, though, is that it's pretty familiar to us all so the tyre choice isn't going to be difficult. We'll have the same two tread patterns as in Finland so we know that our performance will be right.

PETTER SOLBERG
It's a good rally and one that I really like. I don't care whether it's dry and dusty or wet and muddy. You've just got to go out there and drive whatever the conditions. I'm really looking forward to it, it's a fun event for me!

AROUND THE WORLD IN 14 EVENTS
Monte Carlo 19-21 January Asphalt/snow/ice
A great start to the season for Pirelli in Monte Carlo with the Ford Focus RS of Colin McRae leading after the second leg before having to retire with a mechanical problem. The PZero range proved to be efficient, competitive and wear resistant on all surfaces including the traditional Monte Carlo asphalt/snow/ice mixture.

Sweden 9-11 February Snow/ice/gravel
The most stage wins but no victory - that was the result for Pirelli in Sweden. If it were not for the time spent off the road on the first day, either the Ford of Colin McRae or the Subaru of Richard Burns would most likely have emerged as the winner along with the other Ford of long-time leader Carlos Sainz. It was a superb performance by the new PZero tyres with their Italian-made studs.

Portugal 9-11 March Gravel
Carlos Sainz drives his Pirelli-equipped Ford very close to victory, leading with just one stage to go before being narrowly beaten by Makinen's Mitsubishi. 4th place (and first points of 2001) for Subaru's ace Burns. Positive performance for the PZero gravel range of tyres, always used in the KM6 option with varying level of hand cuts.

Catalunya 20-25 March Asphalt
Near summer temperatures drastically altered the technical challenge in Spain while the situation was also affected by technical problems for both Ford and Subaru on the opening day. As a result the Pirelli drivers were forced to run further down the order on the second day where dirty roads prevented an effective attack. The PZero tyre range performed well but these problems ensured the results were inconclusive.

Argentina 4-6 May Gravel
Victory was secured for Pirelli with a dominant performance by the PZero gravel range of tyres that won all but four of the 21 stages. Colin McRae brought the first win for the Pirelli-Ford partnership ahead of Subaru driver Richard Burns and an injured but still impressive Carlos Sainz (Ford-Pirelli). This was a major result for the K and KM pattern tyres on a difficult event.

Cyprus 1-3 June Gravel
Once more the PZero range of gravel tyres dominated the first four places on the rally with Colin McRae (Ford-Pirelli) taking his second win in a row from Richard Burns (Subaru-Pirelli). Carlos Sainz's Ford finished third ahead of Toshihiro Arai's Subaru. This was a major result for the XR2 tyres used on every stage of the event to secure this top performance.

Acropolis 15-17 June Gravel
Another gravel victory for Pirelli and the third win in succession for the Ford Focus WRC of Colin McRae and Nicky Grist. The Pirelli PZero range's domination was almost total, winning all but one of the stages, with Petter Solberg's Subaru taking second and the Ford of Francois Delecour fourth. Only late mechanical problems for Richard Burns and Carlos Sainz denied them podium places.

Safari 20-22 July Gravel
Retirement from the contest by the Subarus of Richard Burns (suspension), the Fords of Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz (transmission and engine respectively). On the final day the Subaru of Petter Solberg (wheel bearing) retired to leave Pirelli with only the 4th placed Ford of Francois Delecour despite winning 7 of 12 stages. Group N saw another dominant performance with Gabriel Pozzo taking 6th overall.

Finland 24-26 August Gravel
The Peugeot of Marcus Gronholm dominated the contest but, thanks to a late technical problem that befell his team-mate Harri Rovanpera, Richard Burns (Subaru) and Colin McRae (Ford), claimed podium places respectively. Ford-Pirelli now shares the lead in the World Manufacturers' Championship. Group N was won by Marcos Ligato while second placed Gabriel Pozzo extended his series lead.

New Zealand 21-23 September Gravel

San Remo 5-7 October Asphalt

Corsica 19-21 October Asphalt

Australia 1-4 November Gravel

Great Britain 22-25 November Gravel