DiRTKiNG808 15 Posted December 22, 2017 YES! Can't wait to see Ford back in game in 2018. That is exciting! First. On. Race. Day! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted December 29, 2017 So all seats accounted for except the third seat at M-Sport now, right?It's predicition time!It looks like the Yaris has gotten a nice tweak, so I bet on Toyota for the manufacturers this year. Looks like they have both the car and the lineup to do it.As for drivers, it feels even more open than last year. Ogier is still the man to beat, and he's still my predicted winner for '18. Main competitors are Neuville and Latvala in my view. Neuville had a season where he was the fastest but still lost, and I really do think he learned the lesson and will take a more intelligent approach this year. He showed great mental fortitude this season.Latvala showed a similar mental leap forwards, where he suddenly stopped making stupid mistakes (except for the last stage in australia which really cemented his lesson for '17) and showed great pace. If Toyota has made the car better in the rallies where it didn't do well the first time around and Latvala can keep his mind settled he'll be up there.Main jokers for me are Evans and Meeke. Evans comes off a real high, and now gets equal footing with the rest. And if the Citroën gets more predictable it's insanely fast and in that case Meeke will be up there depending on if he can stop crasching. Otherwise he'll win 2-3 rallies and DNF the rest.Mikkelsen and Tänak are my underdogs. Both are reasonably new to their cars and their teams, and while I think they'll both do great I have a feeling they might try too hard and crash too much. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbtstt 2,387 Posted December 29, 2017 DiRTKiNG808 said: YES! Can't wait to see Ford back in game in 2018. That is exciting! First. On. Race. Day! Fix. Or. Repair. Daily. ;)(I am just kidding, I am a big fan of fast Fords!) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqdstr 107 Posted December 29, 2017 Bryan Bouffier might get the 3rd Fiesta WRC for Monte Carlohttps://rallysportmag.com/provisional-monte-carlo-entry-list-released/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted December 29, 2017 sqdstr said: Bryan Bouffier might get the 3rd Fiesta WRC for Monte Carlohttps://rallysportmag.com/provisional-monte-carlo-entry-list-released/ Not sure how I feel about that. He's a talented driver but not really a name for the future. He could get some nice team points for Monte though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carpa 303 Posted December 30, 2017 sqdstr said: Bryan Bouffier might get the 3rd Fiesta WRC for Monte Carlohttps://rallysportmag.com/provisional-monte-carlo-entry-list-released/ A specialist of the Monte for the first rally could mean that they plan to give the third car to various different drivers during the course of the season, alongside the two official crews... it could prove a good idea, who knows Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqdstr 107 Posted December 30, 2017 Yes I've read somewhere that the 3rd car is up for anyone who pays for it, didn't they do that already once some years ago? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqdstr 107 Posted December 30, 2017 Yes I've read somewhere that the 3rd car is up for anyone who pays for it, didn't they do that already once some years ago? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Etirion 2 Posted January 10, 2018 Seems like Mads Ostberg will now be the official singer of the WRC https://twitter.com/MadsOstberg/status/951149940507598848 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carpa 303 Posted January 10, 2018 Etirion said: Seems like Mads Ostberg will now be the official singer of the WRC https://twitter.com/MadsOstberg/status/951149940507598848 Really looking forward to it :D I hope he'll announce his future, hopefully in WRC although I think it'll be in the WRC2 this season. Then again knowing Mads, it's possible he is actually going to sing Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RallyDriven 398 Posted January 10, 2018 Hyundai already revealed their car earlierhttps://twitter.com/hmsgofficial/status/951017222905966593Im a bit disappointed as a Hyundai fan, was hoping for something completely different, as barely anything has changed with the livery since the first season Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KingOfCoins 286 Posted January 10, 2018 I dont think any team will have a new livery next season. Maybe outside msport Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Porkhammer 78 Posted January 10, 2018 RallyDriven said: Hyundai already revealed their car earlierhttps://twitter.com/hmsgofficial/status/951017222905966593Im a bit disappointed as a Hyundai fan, was hoping for something completely different, as barely anything has changed with the livery since the first season If it works, why change it? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gfRally 449 Posted January 11, 2018 Dytut said: sqdstr said: Bryan Bouffier might get the 3rd Fiesta WRC for Monte Carlohttps://rallysportmag.com/provisional-monte-carlo-entry-list-released/ Not sure how I feel about that. He's a talented driver but not really a name for the future. He could get some nice team points for Monte though. Bouffier is suppository going to race here in the US, this season too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RallyDriven 398 Posted January 11, 2018 Porkhammer said: RallyDriven said: Hyundai already revealed their car earlierhttps://twitter.com/hmsgofficial/status/951017222905966593Im a bit disappointed as a Hyundai fan, was hoping for something completely different, as barely anything has changed with the livery since the first season If it works, why change it? I agree, but I didn’t really like last year’s until I saw it in person at GB Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbtstt 2,387 Posted January 11, 2018 RallyDriven said: Porkhammer said: RallyDriven said: Hyundai already revealed their car earlierhttps://twitter.com/hmsgofficial/status/951017222905966593Im a bit disappointed as a Hyundai fan, was hoping for something completely different, as barely anything has changed with the livery since the first season If it works, why change it? I agree, but I didn’t really like last year’s until I saw it in person at GB I think the i20 is the most understated of all the current WRCars, the livery reflects that as its quite muted: some change might have been nice though. Hopefully Hyundai have spent all their time working on mechanical improvements! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
juu1ius 5 Posted January 11, 2018 tbtstt said: I think the i20 is the most understated of all the current WRCars, the livery reflects that as its quite muted: some change might have been nice though. Hopefully Hyundai have spent all their time working on mechanical improvements! Really? Most forums i'm following are saying that Hyundai had fastest car last year and if all the reliability issues are worked out, they will be team to beat this year. They only struggled in Finland, where they lack speed (like in last couple of years). I'm quite sure they have toughen up tarmac suspension and with Mikkelsen and Neuville it's hard not to but them favorite team for this year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tbtstt 2,387 Posted January 11, 2018 juu1ius said: tbtstt said: I think the i20 is the most understated of all the current WRCars, the livery reflects that as its quite muted: some change might have been nice though. Hopefully Hyundai have spent all their time working on mechanical improvements! Really? Most forums i'm following are saying that Hyundai had fastest car last year and if all the reliability issues are worked out, they will be team to beat this year. They only struggled in Finland, where they lack speed (like in last couple of years). I'm quite sure they have toughen up tarmac suspension and with Mikkelsen and Neuville it's hard not to but them favorite team for this year. Apologies, my previous post could probably have been worded better: by "mechanical improvements" I meant beefing up the components that failed last year (specifically thinking suspension). I wouldn't argue that the Hyundai was the fastest car in 2018, but between Neuville's enthusiasm and the fragility of the car, it wasn't consistent enough for the win. If they can sort those issues for 2018 then they are definitely going to be the team to beat.EDIT: Just seen some pictures of the 2018 Yaris WRC online: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
juu1ius 5 Posted January 11, 2018 That Panasonic sticker I just painful to watch, it's like Tommy him self designed the livery in paint :/ M-Sport is my favorite one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted January 11, 2018 Wonder what the "all stages live" message means. If it's live video coverage of all stages on WRC+ then... WOW! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KingOfCoins 286 Posted January 11, 2018 I get the feeling it's some sort of livestream where all the cars will have a camera mounted on them. And it will be a live onboard or something. I dont think they will have a broadcast for all the stages like they did with the powerstages last year Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted January 11, 2018 KingOfCoins said: I get the feeling it's some sort of livestream where all the cars will have a camera mounted on them. And it will be a live onboard or something. I dont think they will have a broadcast for all the stages like they did with the powerstages last year Well live cameras on all the cars + WRC Radio with end of stage interviews combined would be pretty awesome :-) No need for road side cameras and helicopter coverage for all stages, leave that for one or two per day. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted January 11, 2018 Guess we got some answers :-)http://www.wrc.com/en/wrc/news/january-2018/wrc-all-live-launch--/page/5121--12-12-.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dytut 89 Posted January 11, 2018 Ahhh, we get to see Mads do Sweden with Citroën at least :-) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RallyDriven 398 Posted January 11, 2018 Wow, I’m going to be watching a lot of Rallying this year!one thing I noticed on Toyota, the Microsoft logo on the back is gone. I’m sure it’s probably nothing, but it still seems a little odd that it’s just disappeared and left a blank white patch, yet it’s still down the side. Maybe Microsoft only sponsored the sides this year Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
