Fiesta to make its U.S. motorsport debut as the Olsbergs Motor Sport Evolution race team brings two Fiesta Rallycross cars for competition at Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb in July. High-profile event for Fiesta helps brand grow awareness among U.S. racing and performance enthusiasts.

The new Ford Fiesta may not be hitting the streets of America officially until next year, but high-performance motorsport examples of the car will make their U.S. racing debut this summer when the Olsberg Motor Sport Evolution team from Sweden, managed by Andreas Eriksson, brings two new Fiesta Rallycross cars to compete in the annual Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado on July 19.

“The new Fiesta is an engaging, fun to drive car that is off to a very successful start in Europe and Asia,” said Jim Farley, Group Vice President, Ford Global Marketing and Communications. “Thanks to Andreas Eriksson, we’re able to introduce the Fiesta to racing fans in the U.S. ahead of its launch in 2010.”

The Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb dates back to 1916, and is the second oldest motor sports event in America, taking its name from the famous mountain peak that towers above Colorado Springs in the Rocky Mountains and is often referred to as ‘The Race to the Clouds’. Ford cars have been at Pike’s Peak since the very first race in 1916, when four Ford-powered cars competed. In 1922, Ford scored its first victory when Noel Bullock took his 179ci, OHV, 50 hp Ford Special, nicknamed “Tin Lizzy” by the other competitors, to a surprise victory in the time of 19:50.9

The two Fiestas will be driven by Eriksson and rally legend Marcus Grönholm in the ‘Unlimited Class’ at Pike’s Peak, in an attempt to be the first team to break the 10-minute mark over the 12.4-mile, 156-turn pavement and gravel course.

Andreas Eriksson, 35, is a four-time Swedish rally champion, with multiple Rallycross victories, and Marcus Grönholm, 41, is one of World Rallying’s greatest drivers, with two world championships and 30 WRC victories on his resume.

“We’re pleased to have a top independent team like Olsbergs MSE coming to the U.S. with their Fiesta Rallycross cars to take on the challenge of Pike’s Peak,” said Brian Wolfe, director, Ford North America Motorsports. “This will be a great chance for enthusiasts here to see in this unique setting what a lot of the rest of the world is already talking about – that the Fiesta is a great road car and a great race car.”

Ford Motor Company’s director of Global Motorsport Business Development, Jost Capito, said: "The Pike’s Peak event is another step forward for the new Ford Fiesta as a core vehicle in Ford’s future global motorsport aspirations. We’re looking forward to seeing Andreas and Marcus in action on this unique event."

After finishing second in the Swedish championship last year, Olsberg’s MSE team debuted its new Fiesta Rallycross car for this season’s Swedish and European Rallycross championships, and it scored its first victory in just its second European championship event in Portugal this past month.

The Olsbergs MSE Fiesta Rallycross car is based on both the Fiesta hatchback model road cars. The all-wheel-drive Fiestas are powered by a 2.0-liter Duratec Ford engine capable of more than 800 horsepower. The Fiesta Rallycross car’s suspension system is the result of collaboration between Olsbergs Motor Sport Evolution, Öhlins and Ford of Europe’s Team RS engineers, who are responsible for Ford’s FIA World Rally Championship program.

“We worked night and day all winter to get the Fiesta ready on time for the European championships, and it was great to see it score a hard-earned victory in Portugal at the start of May,” said Eriksson. “We are excited to be bringing the car to Pike’s Peak and to be able to see what it can do in such a unique competition. It’s a legendary event, and we’ve already been there to take a look at the challenge we will face. I’m convinced we’ll be a top contender to break the 10-minute mark and give the Fiesta a proper racing debut in the U.S.”

Ford Racing North America, although not directly involved in the project, will assist the team with logistical support while it is in America.

Ο Σύλλογος Μηχανοκίνητου Αθλητισμού Κοζάνης ανακοινώνει τη διοργάνωση του 13ου Ράλλυ Σπριντ Ασφάλτου στις 20-21 Ιουνίου 2008. Ο αγώνας θα διεξαχθεί και πάλι στο φιλόξενο Βελβενδό Κοζάνης ενώ και φέτος προσμετράει στο Κύπελλο Ράλλυ Ασφάλτου Βορείου Ελλάδος και στο Κύπελλο του Συνδέσμου Οδηγών Αγώνων Βορείου Ελλάδος.

Ο αγώνας θα γίνει  και φέτος στη γνωστή διαδρομή Βελβενδό – Καταφύγι μήκους 12 χλμ με την υποστήριξη του Δήμου Βελβενδού και είναι εγκεκριμένος από την Εθνική Επιτροπή Αγώνων (ΕΘ.Ε.Α.) και το Υπουργείο Δημόσιας Τάξης.

Ο Σ.Μ.Α.Κ. συνεχίζοντας την παράδοση της άριστης φιλοξενίας αναγγέλλει τις εξής παροχές προς τα πληρώματα  που θα συμμετέχουν στον αγώνα: Φιλοξενία στα πληρώματα  που είναι εκτός Νομού Κοζάνης, Γεύμα στα πληρώματα μετά τον τερματισμό του αγώνα. (Για τις κρατήσεις των δωματίων θα τηρηθεί αυστηρά η προτεραιότητα ανάλογα με τον χρόνο δήλωσης συμμετοχής.)

Ο τεχνικός έλεγχος θα γίνει το Σάββατο 20 Ιουνίου 2008 στην Κεντρική Πλατεία του Βελβενδού, από τις 16:00μμ – 19:00μμ. Η εκκίνηση του αγώνα θα γίνει το πρωί της Κυριακής 21 Ιουνίου στις 10:30πμ, στην αφετηρία της ειδικής διαδρομής στο Μετόχι Βελβενδού. Το δεύτερο σκέλος θα πραγματοποιηθεί στις 13:30  και αφού πρώτα τα αυτοκίνητα επιστρέψουν με ανάποδη φορά στην αφετηρία. Η απονομή θα γίνει στο Μετόχι στις 16:00  και θα ακολουθήσει γεύμα στο Εστιατόριο «Μετόχι» που βρίσκεται στο χώρο απονομής.

Στη Λέρο πραγματοποιήθηκε το Σαββατοκύριακο 23-24 Μαΐου, παρουσία εκατοντάδων θεατών, ο 2ος γύρος του πανελληνίου πρωταθλήματος φουσκωτών σκαφών Offshore. Στον πρώτο αγώνα που ήταν τύπου σιρκουί, νικητές στην μεγάλη κατηγορία 2×300Hp αναδείχτηκαν οι Χαλκιόπουλος - Μπρόκος που συμμετείχαν με σκάφος SportRib 9 με κινητήρες 2×240Hp και χορηγό την εταιρεία πετρελαιοειδών Silk Oil. Οι Ροδίτες κατέκτησαν τη δεύτερη φετινή τους νίκη και άφησαν πίσω τους Νικολάου και Γραμματικάκη. Στις κατηγορίες Sport 300 και Sport 200 νικητές ήταν οι Μαρκόπουλος και Καλαφατάς αντίστοιχα, έχοντας και αυτοί την υποστήριξη της Silk Oil.

Στον δεύτερο αγώνα που πραγματοποιήθηκε με πέντε μποφόρ η πρώτη θέση δεν άλλαξε χέρια και οι Χαλκιόπουλος – Μπρόκος ανέβηκαν και πάλι στο ψηλότερο σκαλί του βάθρου αφήνοντας αυτή τη φορά πίσω τους, τους Μιχελαράκη και Νικολάου. Στις κατηγορίας Sport 300 και Sport 200, ταχύτεροι αναδείχτηκαν οι Λουλουργάς και Καλαφατάς αντίστοιχα.

Ο επόμενος διπλός αγώνας του πρωταθλήματος θα διεξαχθεί στις 13-14 Ιουνίου στη Θεσσαλονίκη.

BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team claimed a dominant one-two finish on Rally d’Italia Sardegna today with the Focus RS World Rally Car. Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila led from start to finish to claim their second career win in the FIA World Rally Championship. The Finns reached the podium in the resort of Porto Cervo with a 29.4sec advantage over team-mates Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen after three days of tough competition on the Mediterranean island.

Latvala’s victory was his first since his maiden WRC success in Sweden in February 2008 and it was BP Ford Abu Dhabi’s first one-two result since Rally Japan in November 2008. Ford, second in the manufacturers’ championship, closed the gap on the leader after six of the 12 rounds with a maximum points haul. Hirvonen climbs to second in the drivers’ standings with Latvala moving up to sixth.

Competitors tackled 17 speed tests covering 347.12km over narrow, flowing and rough gravel tracks near Olbia during three days of competition. Allied with searing temperatures, which topped 35ºC yesterday afternoon, the conditions placed big demands on cars, crews and Pirelli’s Scorpion tyres. However, neither Focus RS WRC missed a beat in the Sardinian hills.

Latvala’s win came the hard way. After leading throughout the opening leg, the 24-year-old had the disadvantage of opening the special stages for the final two days, sweeping them clear of gravel to leave a cleaner and faster line for those behind. He started today with a 9.9sec lead and feared he would be unable to hold off his team-mate. However, the still early morning allowed huge clouds of dust to hang in the air, slowing all those behind Latvala and he extended his lead.

“Last season I finished third here and I said to myself that I wanted to come back and win this year,” said Latvala. “It wasn’t an easy weekend being first through the stages and I’m surprised, but delighted, to win because I thought Mikko would catch me this morning.

“The dust was a surprise and I was lucky with that. This is a very important win for me. I’ve had many unhappy moments since my first win, but now I’m back on the top step of the podium. I was starting to question my role in the team but I’ve proved the team’s confidence in me was right and I thank Malcolm Wilson (team director) for that. You saw a new evolution of Jari-Matti here,” he added.

Hirvonen and Lehtinen both struggled with a fever during the rally and 28-year-old Hirvonen was exhausted at the finish. “I have no energy and I’ve never felt so tired after a rally,” he said. “This result, and the timing of it, is perfect for Ford. I thought I could fight for the win but the dust ended those hopes. Everyone behind Jari-Matti expected to have an advantage because he was sweeping the road but, ironically, he was the one who benefited because of the dust. I went off the road on a fifth gear corner in the first stage this morning because I couldn’t see so I stopped taking risks.

“Jari-Matti deserves the win after his problems this season and I’m delighted for him.  We had a great pre-rally test and the work we did there paid off on the event itself,” he added.

Abu Dhabi’s Khalid Al Qassimi and Michael Orr finished 15th in another Focus RS WRC.  After climbing to seventh, despite power steering difficulties, they retired late last night after problems in the final service. They restarted today under SupeRally rules and climbed to 10th until brake problems on the final test cost more than four minutes. “It was a difficult three days. We had a lot of bad luck with brakes and power steering, and then the problems last night in service. It’s a shame because we were going well yesterday and I felt we could have easily been in the points,” said Al Qassimi.

Malcolm Wilson was full of praise for his drivers. “They coped with whatever was thrown at them. It’s a dream to see Jari-Matti win after a difficult year and I’m delighted to see him full of confidence. Mikko did an outstanding job and if the conditions were different this morning, there could have been a different winner. It was a great team effort and my thanks go to everyone involved,” he said.

Ford of Europe motorsport director Mark Deans said: “I’m thrilled we’re back to the level where we can not only compete with, but beat, our rivals. We have a huge mountain to climb in championship terms but we’re back on top and it’s a large step in the right direction. We’ll go to the next round in Greece, for another hot weather, rough road rally, full of confidence after a weekend in which we were in control from start to finish.”

Stobart drivers Matthew Wilson and Scott Martin claimed sixth in a Focus RS, recovering well after losing time on the opening day when the hydraulic pipe split.  Team-mates Henning Solberg and Cato Menkerud took the final drivers’ point in eighth. They started under SupeRally rules today after retiring on yesterday’s penultimate test when they hit a tree and broke their car’s front right suspension.

The championship enters its second half next month when the action switches to Greece. The new base of Loutraki hosts the gravel Acropolis Rally of Greece on 11 - 14 June.

Audi managed a perfect start to the 2009 DTM season at the 100th race of the new DTM: Tom Kristensen (Denmark), Timo Scheider (Germany), Oliver Jarvis (Great Britain) and Markus Winkelhock (Germany) clinched a fourfold victory of the Audi A4 DTM and delivered the best start to a season in AUDI AG’s DTM history at the Hockenheimring in front of 91,000 spectators.

It could have even been a fivefold victory for the brand with the four rings but a puncture on the penultimate lap cost Mattias Ekström (Sweden) the win that already seemed sure. The two-time DTM Champion had been dominating the race after starting from the pole position and achieved a lead of more than ten seconds when debris on the track slit the rear left-hand tire of his Audi A4 DTM. Ekström had to come in for an unscheduled pit stop on the penultimate lap and dropped to seventh place.
For Audi, the win marked the 49th triumph at a DTM race, for Tom Kristensen the fourth after Oschersleben in 2004 and 2006 as well as Zandvoort in 2006. "Of course, Mattias (Ekström) would have clearly deserved this victory," said the 41-year-old Dane. "But I know only too well how Mattias feels now: In 2006, at Brands Hatch, I also lost a race I’d been leading with a dominant advantage almost up to the finish. But the crucial thing is that, today, only Audi drivers are on the podium. My thanks go to Audi, my team, my engineer and my boys – both pitstops were perfect."

Kristensen, who had announced on Friday that he would end his DTM career after the 2009 season, fought a duel with his team colleague from Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline, Timo Scheider, over the entire race distance. But the Le Mans record winner made no mistakes and did not offer the title defender any chance to pass him.
Oliver Jarvis was the driver primarily benefiting from Mattias Ekström’s puncture: The 25-year-old Briton in a year-old A4 of Audi Sport Team Phoenix finished third and thus clinched the first podium result of his DTM career. Markus Winkelhock (Audi Sport Team Rosberg) completed Audi’s exploit with a fourth-place finish and thus achieved his best DTM result as well.

"That was an incredibly strong team performance we showed this weekend," Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich summed up the positive result of the round. "As in the two previous years, the Audi A4 DTM was again the superior car here at Hockenheim. And Oliver (Jarvis) clinched a podium finish in last year’s A4. It was a fantastic race for Audi. It’s just a shame that Mattias (Ekström), who dominated the race, suffered such a really unfortunate mishap."

For Ekström’s team-mate Martin Tomczyk, the season opener was marked by misfortune as well: The German dropped from third to 16th place at the start but had already recovered to a place within the points when an electronic defect forced him to retire. For Alexandre Prémat and Mike Rockenfeller, the first race was just a short one: Both were entangled in a collision caused by Mercedes driver Gary Paffett on the opening lap and had to retire. Due to a collision with Ralf Schumacher, a drive-through penalty was imposed on Katherine Legge. The Briton subsequently recovered, passed her rival Susie Stoddart, and finished the race in twelfth place. The private team Kolles, which finished the race with its three 2007-spec Audi A4 DTM cars in eleventh, 13th and 14th place, showed a favorable performance.

The next DTM race will be held just 14 days from now at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz. In the meantime, Teams ABT Sportsline and Phoenix Racing will contest the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring with a total of four Audi R8 LMS cars. With Mattias Ekström, Mike Rockenfeller and Timo Scheider at the wheel, three DTM drivers will also start from the grid there.