The speculation is over... (http://www.worldrallynews.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1071476322,13872,) :)

SWRT.com (http://www.swrt.com/469797.html)


[Edited by greasemonkey - 12/15/2003 9:18:39 AM]

JF's gonna be happy ! ;)

Shame for Shane though.

In all seriousness, good choice I think.

JF will probably be smiling nearly as broadly as Mikko! Seems like Christmas is coming early for a few people this year! :D

Bad choice.

Subaru said they wanted to go for the manufacturers title also, that ain't going to happen now. He doesn't have enough experience of the events, and the new recce rules aren't going to help him either. Subaru have went for the budget option.

Colin priced himself out of it, but there were still a couple of better options.

The manufacturers title will stay in France next year.

Very True DR Motorsport!

Solberg has another busy year ahead.. doing it all by himself. But at least some young blood has been let loose in the championship.

at least it wasnt rovampera

Well its saved Subaru £3 million plus parts not signing Colin.

Lets just hope that Subaru stand by Richard Burns if/when he is fully fit and give him his drive back.

bad move colin was the best chocie for scooby no only for the manuf chamionship but two of the best scooby drivers, in the team need i say more. colin would have brought so much more

Fantastic news. Mikko is a fabulous driver and has outshone some top drivers this year in an old spec WRC Focus. I have followed this guys progress ever since i saw him drive on the cambrian rally last year, where he smashed the record on the great orme stage the first time he attempted it then took another 5 seconds off it the second run through, and that was in the wet! He won that event by 2 1/2 minutes, 2nd was Latvala closely followed by Andy Burton. Those of you who know Andy know he is no mug in the welsh forests.

I had lunch with some of his backers in Finland and i was left with no doubts that he was going places, he has the right support, the right training (Pennti Airikala has been coaching him) and the right attitude to be very successful. I think Subaru in their public stance are taking presure off him, very smart move. Now anything is a bonus as far as the public are concerned. You guys are going to be surprised, he is very quick, has a spectacular driving style and is full of energy ready to go and get good results, a much better choice for SWRT than Colin.

A few pics of Mikko on various rallies.
Cambrian
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/british/cambrian/images/DCP04197.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/british/cambrian/images/DCP04156.JPG
Cyprus
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/cyprus_2003/images/DCP06395.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/cyprus_2003/images/DCP06396.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/cyprus_2003/images/DCP06123.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/cyprus_2003/images/DCP06173.JPG
Acropolis
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/acropolis_2003/images/DCP05586.JPG
Catalunya
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/catalunya_2003/images/DCP07218.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/catalunya_2003/images/DCP07330.JPG
Finland
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/finland_2003/images/DCP06669.JPG


[Edited by johnfelstead - 12/15/2003 4:33:58 PM]

I've heard that Mikko needs an operation before he can drive next year though...........

............it's to have someone's tongue surgically removed from a rather sensitive area......;)

LOL :D

I supose to keep this balanced i should show some pictures i have taken of Colin in a Focus WRC.

http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/McRae1.jpg
http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/McRae2.jpg
http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/McRae3.jpg
http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/McRae4.jpg
http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/McRae5.jpg
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/monte_carlo_2002/images/DCP02462.JPG
http://www.johnfelstead.co.uk/rally/wrc/monte_carlo_2002/images/DCP02463.JPG

LOL :D

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/maquettes.fred/expo_st_chamont_001.jpg

I agree with John. This will be a better move than signing Colin. I think Mikko finished almost every event he started last year, which is important for manufacturers points. Here's hoping he gets to grips with the car quickly.

;) Nice pictures, it's good to have a nice balanced point of view, and that is nothing like a nice...

Best wishes to the guy though, it would have been great to see Colin back in a Subaru but then it's good to see any driver in a Subaru.

Is it wrong to wish away Christmas because the season starts in January? :cool:

does anyone know of the type of contract mikko has signed? is it just for one year?

It would have been nice to see Martin Rowe or Mark Higgins get a works drive as Prodrive are a British run team and a signiificant market place into the bargain. But there's obviously more to the decision that we will know ie how much money was put on the table.

Hirvonen has not been that impressive in the M-Sport Focus this year and no doubt Subaru will be writing off a few bodyshells next season. He obviously wasn't picked for his Finnish personality. I agree with David Reid, as Subaru now have a more realistic chance of the Manufacturers Championship with 2 cars it would have been a better choice to have someone with WRC experience under their belt.

IMO they've f*****d around with the rules once to often, firstly they kill off the clubmen and sadly they're driving top drivers out of the sport aswell. Mr Richards won't be happy until there are 20 cars lined up to 'compete' in a televised procession around a spectator stage with a camera at every corner.

Good move :cool::D I look forward to seeing what he can do next year.

Much as I love watching Colin, he would have been expensive (in wages and repairs) and IMHO not what Subaru need atm :)

M J B

How :cool: is that car :D Where did you get that?

Paul :)

John

I remember the Wales one :( We were standing at builth wells waiting for him to return to service and he never appeared :( Then news came through of what had happened. Did you take those photos?

Paul :)

yes, he went off the road about 20ft from where i was stood. There was an escort cosworth off the road in a ditch, he went right over the top of that taking 2 of his wheels off (he totalled the cossie in the process, it was mint until then), somersaulted in the air, landed on its boot and then onto the floorpan.

Scariest crash i have ever seen. If you get the FIA oficial revue you can see me on the footage, running to check they are OK. I forced Colin's door open to help him out. Colin and Nicky walked off in diferent directions not talking.

Just before Colin did that Carlos had just got away with it, he almost did the same thing. It happened on an uphill section that went right over a crest, but the trees had been felled on the left so it looked like the road went straight on as the tree line did. I tried to get the marshals to put out a red warning triangle for the escort cossie but they wouldnt have any of it, i saw it coming before the stage ran, totally avoidable crash that was.

The Escort Cosworth they went over the top of :o

http://www.btinternet.com/~john.felstead/scoobynet/othercar.jpg

The other pictures i took at the top of the Col de Turini on the Monte Carlo 2002. Penny Mallory was stood a couple of feet from me, you see footage of her jumping up and down like a loon, thats where it was from. Tiery Boutson was stood the other side of me, awesome atmosphere up there.

I remember your photos from your Monaco thread but I didn't use scoobynet when did the above. I heard he hit another car but didn't realise it was as bad as that :eek:

Was that the 99 network Q?

Paul :)

Hey John, you're not one of those b*st*rds who goes round removing caution boards and chucking gravel on the road are you? It's just that I can't help but notice you always seem to be on hand with a camera whenever CMR punts it off the road... :D

lol :D

So what results did "Mikko Hirvonen" get this season, all i can find is 3 points for the whole season, he's a very lucky man to get such a top drive, IMO its like a minardi driver getting a ferrari drive in F1.

But remember how young he is ;) He is only 23 and has to come of age. Results will come but probably slowly and he probably cost 1/10th of what McRae would have been asking :eek: A driver link Hirvonen would cost £500,000 tops where as McRae was on £5,000,000 last year so probably want's the same again :eek: Then remember how much damage he causes to the cars :eek:

Paul :)

Not saying he wont be any good but there are alot of other drivers out there that have proven themselves with results in rallying that should also have been considered, especially when you look at the shoes that Mikko is filling. Cant see why it would have been the pay that Mcrae wanted that made Subaru change their minds, there must have been a considerable amount of cash on the table for Richard Burns?. Does Burns still get paid by Subaru next season? or would he have is own insurance?, that could be a big factor if Subaru have to fork out for Burnsie aswell as a replacement driver.

Oh well there wont be a "Colin Mcrae Rally 05" computer game next year, maybe they will do a Paris/Dakar game instead.

LOL I have a natural ability to find the action it seems. :D

How many points did Michael Schumacher have when he joined Benetton? Zero is the answer. He had driven in 1 F1 race for Jordan, and didnt even make the end of the first lap.

Using previous points scores is a non starter at the top of the sport when trying to spot tallent. The fact he outdrove Duval on some events who was in a 2003 spec Focus says a lot to me, he set a fastest stage time in Corsica, was fastest on shakedown for Catalunya and has won British and Finish events outright, the guy is quick. He also scored points in his first season in the WRC in a year old spec car, not as easy as you make it sound.

So what results did "Mikko Hirvonen" get this season, all i can find is 3 points for the whole season, he's a very lucky man to get such a top drive, IMO its like a minardi driver getting a ferrari drive in F1
Actually, with three points to his name it's probably more like a Sauber driver moving to McLaren, and we all know what happened the last time a spotty young Finn made that sort of transition. On that basis I fully expect Hirvonen to finish on the podium in the Monte. ;)

Cant see why it would have been the pay that Mcrae wanted that made Subaru change their minds,
It was no doubt a combination of factors. However, McRae's pay demands would, in context, have been an important one. Don't forget it's eminently possible that Hirvonen is actually costing Subaru nothing in terms of salary. If you're David Lapworth, you'd have to weigh up the pro's and con's of signing a Hirvonen, and having two or three million quid in the kitty for development, or signing a McRae, having less money in the bank, and a potential PR problem to boot.

there must have been a considerable amount of cash on the table for Richard Burns?
Of course. However, the market had changed totally in between he time that Burns was signed, and the time that McRae started negotiating with SWRT.

Burns is the 2001 World Champion, and was leading the 2003 championship when he resigned for Subaru, with nothing at that time to suggest that Solberg was going to do what he subsequently did.

McRae OTOH is a jaded-looking 1995 Champion who had no other options in the WRC, and was trying to get the last available front line seat in the 2004 championship in a context where Petter Solberg has just won the 2003 WRC for Subaru.

In short, his negotiating position was nowhere near as powerful as Burns's, and attempting to ask for the same sort of salary that had been agreed for Richard was a gross failure to recognise the reality of the market, and a tactic that was doomed to failure from the start. If you add in speculation that he was after a two year deal, as well as all the other baggage he brought with him, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to work out why Hirvonen, or the other driver that was in the frame, seemed like a far better deal.

[Edited by greasemonkey - 12/16/2003 6:33:44 PM]

and lets not forget Soberg won his first event in the WRC exactly a year before he won the drivers championship. I think Subaru sees good things in this young driver just like they did in Solberg, Burns, Mcrae, Marko Martin, et al.

GM's right.
I'm reliably told Hirvonen is being funded in his first year by his Finnish management and will only get paid by Subaru if he's successful. I'm also told he's been signed for 3 years.......the same as Solberg was initially.....and he became champ :)