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WRC stars ready to fly in Sweden’s winter wonderland

03-Feb-2023 17:00:00 | FIA

Sport news

Based in the university city of Umeå in the northeast of the country, Rally Sweden is the WRC’s only true winter event. It’s also one that never fails to deliver flat-out action, as drivers perfect the art of shigh speed action on ice-coated forest roads.

Recent heavy snowfall and sub-zero temperatures are set to combine to deliver a classic winter contest in Scandinavia, with the rally also marking the opening round of the 2023 FIA Junior WRC Championship for young drivers competing in identical Ford Fiesta Rally3s run by M-Sport Poland on Pirelli tyres.

Last year’s event earned Rally Sweden three-star environmental accreditation, the highest possible under the FIA’s framework, and sustainability remains a key focus of the event organising team, of whom the majority provide their time and expertise on a voluntary basis. The use of 100 per cent fossil-free fuel in Rally1 cars and a reduction in tyre quantity through new-for-2023 regulations are just two examples of how the FIA is working step-by-step to make rallying more sustainable.

What was an all-new route last season has been tweaked for the 2023 edition of Rally Sweden with three new stages added to the itinerary.

THE ROUTE IN SHORT

Eighteen stages over a competitive distance of 301.18 kilometres are in store on Rally Sweden with 62 per cent of the route different compared to 12 months ago. The 5.16-kilometre Umeå Sprint is up first on Thursday evening (February 9) with a spectator-friendly format helping to ensure large crowds follow the action.

Stages to the west and to the north of Umeå make up Friday’s itinerary and include the revised Brattby stage, plus Botsmark, an all-new test measuring 25.81 kilometres in length. The Brattby, Botsmark and Sarsjöliden stages are run either side of service in Umeå, while leg one concludes with a return to the Umeå Sprint for a total of 106.76 timed kilometres.

Crews journey north and east of Umeå for Saturday’s leg two – the longest of the rally at 126.22 kilometres – for three repeated stages. At 12.54 kilometres, Norrby is a Rally Sweden newcomer and is one of three stages to take place before and after the Umeå service halt. The 28.25-kilometre Floda stage is the event’s longest.

Sunday’s third and final leg is made up of two passes through the all-new 26.48-kilometre Västervik stage, plus the 10.08-kilometre Umeå Power Stage, a longer version of the Umeå Sprint, and used for the first time on Saturday evening.

RALLY SWEDEN DATA

RALLY1 CONTENDERS

-Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team: Thierry Neuville is joined by new-for-2023 recruit Esapekka Lappi, plus Craig Breen, who returns to the squad to drive the third Hyundai i20 Rally1 Hybrid after a season at M-Sport in 2022. All three are Rally Sweden podium finishers.

-M-Sport Ford World Rally Team: Pierre-Louis Loubet and Ott Tänak fly the M-Sport flag in their Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrids. Like Toyota's Lappi and Takamoto who are entered in Ralli Kuopio in Finland this weekend, Estonian Tänak is contesting Otepää Winter Rally as a practice event in his homeland to prepare for the Swedish ice and snow.