WRC Germany, GP2 Spa, IndyCar Pocono
Live Text
Sort by
Crash
WRC - Germany: Ford privateer Prokop has had a trip through a field, so that's dropped him behind Abbring in the fourth Hyundai, which is now working fine after differential repairs in service. They're 12th and 13th.
WRC - Germany: Kubica is having a really strong run, sixth-fastest on this stage means he's seventh overall... in the alternative world in which he doesn't have a five-minute engine-change penalty.
Instead he's 20-something overall (it'll be a long while before enough cars are through for us to judge where Kubica actually is).
Instead he's 20-something overall (it'll be a long while before enough cars are through for us to judge where Kubica actually is).
Checkered flag
GP2 - Spa:
Qualifying results:
1 Vandoorne 1m56.278s
2 Rowland +0.147s
3 Sirotkin +0.235
4 King +0.347s
5 Matsushita +0.381s
6 Evans +0.383s
Qualifying results:
1 Vandoorne 1m56.278s
2 Rowland +0.147s
3 Sirotkin +0.235
4 King +0.347s
5 Matsushita +0.381s
6 Evans +0.383s
WRC - Germany: It's closing up between the other Hyundais - Neuville was 2.1s faster than Sordo so the Spaniard is now only 1.4s ahead, and they're up to fourth and fifth thanks to Meeke's adventure.
Remember how those i20s just crept up and up the order last year as everyone else lost the plot...
Remember how those i20s just crept up and up the order last year as everyone else lost the plot...
GP2 - Spa: Marciello on that last run improved to jump up to ninth place.
Quote
WRC - Germany: Paddon, who will remain eighth subject to Sordo's pace, admits Waxweiler just isn't a great place for him.
"I don't know that it is about this stage. I don't enjoy it. It doesn't flow for me. It's particularly dirty, and that's where I struggle for confidence. We'll wipe this one off the board and start again."
"I don't know that it is about this stage. I don't enjoy it. It doesn't flow for me. It's particularly dirty, and that's where I struggle for confidence. We'll wipe this one off the board and start again."
GP2 - Spa: Sirotkin, who is currently third, decides not to go again but Rossi does as do Nato and Gasly.
WRC - Germany: Very little to choose between the M-Sport Fords and Neuville's pace on that stage, while Paddon is a bit slower.
And that means Tanak has got ahead of Paddon, and with Meeke delayed the Estonian has gained two places - ninth to seventh.
And that means Tanak has got ahead of Paddon, and with Meeke delayed the Estonian has gained two places - ninth to seventh.
GP2 - Spa: Here they all come now! No one can beat Vandoorne's time but Rowland closes the gap to just 0.147s
WRC - Germany: That's left Meeke 2m05s off the lead, but the bigger concern is whether there's deeper damage to the car that's going to really spoil his day.
Crash
WRC - Germany: Meeke has damage to the front left of his Citroen.
He admits that was a mistake, and he fears there are consequences for his DS3.
"I got caught out on a bit of gravel, slipped off into a field and had to get out.
"The car was fine but then something went and now I've got a problem."
He admits that was a mistake, and he fears there are consequences for his DS3.
"I got caught out on a bit of gravel, slipped off into a field and had to get out.
"The car was fine but then something went and now I've got a problem."
GP2 - Spa: Vandoorne comes into the pitlane and is out of the car, all he can do now is sit and cross his fingers. It's a tough time to beat though.
WRC - Germany: Meeke is through and he's lost 1m40s by the end of the stage. Waiting to hear from him...
That's going to drop him outside the top 10.
That's going to drop him outside the top 10.
Breaking news
WRC - Germany: Either a rogue split or a problem for Meeke - he's lost over a minute in the middle of the stage...
Quote
WRC - Germany: Mikkelsen says he's getting in the swing of this now, which bodes well for his battle with Meeke for third.
"We've got a good rhythm but we're not flat-out. It's a long time since I've been on Tarmac. It's going in the right direction."
And while Ogier was a bit scathing about his gravel crew's information, Mikkelsen is pleased with his:
"They're doing an incredible job - thumbs up to them."
"We've got a good rhythm but we're not flat-out. It's a long time since I've been on Tarmac. It's going in the right direction."
And while Ogier was a bit scathing about his gravel crew's information, Mikkelsen is pleased with his:
"They're doing an incredible job - thumbs up to them."
GP2 - Spa: Wow, Vandoorne improves with a 1m56.278s! Mega lap from the Belgian in clean air.
WRC - Germany: Mikkelsen is through within three tenths of Latvala's pace, but Meeke is only 0.3s off his Norwegian rival at split one.
GP2 - Spa: The majority of the field come in for their mid-session tyre change but Vandoorne is still out on track and he is being very, very aggressive, he really wants pole position here!
Quote
WRC - Germany: Latvala says Ogier is simply managing better when the road is dirty from cars cutting the corners, though he thinks the remaining two stages won't be so bad.
"I don't have the confidence. I can't go better when it's dirty. I do the best I can do, but I like the Tarmac more when it's cleaner. It just seems to be that I'm not confident in the dirty places."
"These first two ones are probably the more difficult in that sense."
"I don't have the confidence. I can't go better when it's dirty. I do the best I can do, but I like the Tarmac more when it's cleaner. It just seems to be that I'm not confident in the dirty places."
"These first two ones are probably the more difficult in that sense."
GP2 - Spa: Nick Yelloly is up into the top 10 behind Rossi.
2014 Spa winner Raffaele Marciello is having a tough session and is down in 22nd.
2014 Spa winner Raffaele Marciello is having a tough session and is down in 22nd.
WRC - Germany: Latvala is through and he's lost 2.3s to Ogier, so the overall deficit to his rally-leading team-mate is up to 4.7s.
He can't afford that to keep happening... but we are about to go to the stages where he was stronger this morning.
He can't afford that to keep happening... but we are about to go to the stages where he was stronger this morning.
Stopwatch
WRC - Germany: Ogier sets a 9m38.5s benchmark, and declares that it's more fun now as he's happier with the set-up after service.
At the final split, Latvala was 1.6s down, so he's stayed in touch.
At the final split, Latvala was 1.6s down, so he's stayed in touch.
WRC - Germany: Again Mikkelsen is matching Latvala now, he's only a tenth off his Finnish team-mate's pace at split one.
Mikkelsen was the one VW that Meeke thought he might have a shot at, but it's looking tough now.
Mikkelsen was the one VW that Meeke thought he might have a shot at, but it's looking tough now.
GP2 - Spa: Jordan King gets himself up there, he goes fifth 0.557s behind Vandoorne.
Stopwatch
WRC - Germany: It's Ogier fastest so far again, he adds another 1.5s to his lead over Latvala at split one.
Stopwatch
GP2 - Spa: Vandoorne goes fastest with a 1m56.518s while Rowland jumps into second, 0.419s off the current polesitter.
WRC - Germany: Ogier and Latvala are onto Waxweiler. They're 2.4s apart after Ogier's sprint on the last stage, so time for Latvala to strike back.
The pattern this morning was that Ogier had a big cushion on the first stage, a much smaller one on the second, and then Latvala turned the tables.
The pattern this morning was that Ogier had a big cushion on the first stage, a much smaller one on the second, and then Latvala turned the tables.
GP2 - Spa: Track temperature by the way is 40 degrees. Scorching.
WRC - Germany: Onto SS5, here's the description from Meeke's co-driver Nagle:
SS6 Waxweiler (10.19 miles)
This is the same nature of stage as the first one, but we're further from service this time, north of Bitburg. There's always a huge amount of cutting goes on in here.
This was the place where Ogier was able to make big gains in the wet, cutting the corner and pulling the mud onto the line.
But, with the weather expected to stay dry, the cuts will make the road quite dirty and dusty, but it shouldn't be too much of a bother for us.
Again, like Sauertal, there are lots of junctions in here, linking some really fast roads with some narrower more trickier ones.
SS6 Waxweiler (10.19 miles)
This is the same nature of stage as the first one, but we're further from service this time, north of Bitburg. There's always a huge amount of cutting goes on in here.
This was the place where Ogier was able to make big gains in the wet, cutting the corner and pulling the mud onto the line.
But, with the weather expected to stay dry, the cuts will make the road quite dirty and dusty, but it shouldn't be too much of a bother for us.
Again, like Sauertal, there are lots of junctions in here, linking some really fast roads with some narrower more trickier ones.
GP2 - Spa: Straight away traffic is a big problem as the entire field jostle for track position.
Green flag
GP2 - Spa: Here we go then, everyone is on the yellow striped soft tyre.
GP2 - Spa: Huge crowd sticking around here for the GP2, is it down to the sun? Who knows, this lot love their motorsport and I think they're in for a real treat here this afternoon.
GP2 - Spa: Welcome back to a sunny Spa for live coverage of GP2 qualifying.
Stoffel Vandoorne set the pace in practice on home soil ahead of Mitch Evans.
Formula Renault 3.5 championship leader told us after practice that he is targeting pole position and is confident he can pull it off, let's find out then shall we.
Stoffel Vandoorne set the pace in practice on home soil ahead of Mitch Evans.
Formula Renault 3.5 championship leader told us after practice that he is targeting pole position and is confident he can pull it off, let's find out then shall we.
Crash
WRC - Germany: Nasser Al-Attiyah is first of the WRC2 pack today in his new Skoda Fabia, but he's right back in 13th in the class in the standings right now after an eventful morning that started with a three-minute loss on the opening stage.
"We came to a corner maybe one or two kilometres into the first stage, ran wide and hit a tree," he explained to DAVID EVANS.
The Dakar winner remained typically philosophical about his debut in one of the Czech machines, adding: "Sometimes, this is life…
"We were actually quite lucky, it didn't hit the radiator, but we had to be careful turning the car because the tyre was catching on the chassis in some corners."
"We came to a corner maybe one or two kilometres into the first stage, ran wide and hit a tree," he explained to DAVID EVANS.
The Dakar winner remained typically philosophical about his debut in one of the Czech machines, adding: "Sometimes, this is life…
"We were actually quite lucky, it didn't hit the radiator, but we had to be careful turning the car because the tyre was catching on the chassis in some corners."
Nasser Al-Attiyah, damage, WRC Germany 2015
Breaking news
WRC - Germany - SS5 summary:
* Ogier quickest and retakes rally lead from Latvala by 2.4s
* Mikkelsen closer to team-mates' pace and gets away from Meeke a little
* Lefebvre flies to sixth-quickest time and is now back to 11th overall
* Tanak takes ninth from Ostberg
* Ogier quickest and retakes rally lead from Latvala by 2.4s
* Mikkelsen closer to team-mates' pace and gets away from Meeke a little
* Lefebvre flies to sixth-quickest time and is now back to 11th overall
* Tanak takes ninth from Ostberg
Checkered flag
WRC - Germany - SS5 results:
Stage times:
1 Ogier 7m56.4s
2 Latvala +2.5s
3 Mikkelsen +2.9s
4 Meeke +4.8s
5 Tanak +8.3s
6 Lefebvre +8.4s
7 Sordo +8.9s
8 Neuville +9.5s
Overall leaderboard:
1 Ogier
2 Latvala +2.4s
3 Mikkelsen +18.7s
4 Meeke +26.1s
5 Sordo +42.7s
6 Neuville +46.2s
7 Evans +53.4s
8 Paddon +54.4s
9 Tanak +1m00.0s
10 Ostberg +1m01.2s
Stage times:
1 Ogier 7m56.4s
2 Latvala +2.5s
3 Mikkelsen +2.9s
4 Meeke +4.8s
5 Tanak +8.3s
6 Lefebvre +8.4s
7 Sordo +8.9s
8 Neuville +9.5s
Overall leaderboard:
1 Ogier
2 Latvala +2.4s
3 Mikkelsen +18.7s
4 Meeke +26.1s
5 Sordo +42.7s
6 Neuville +46.2s
7 Evans +53.4s
8 Paddon +54.4s
9 Tanak +1m00.0s
10 Ostberg +1m01.2s
WRC - Germany: Citroen's rising star Lefebvre is back in business - he's just gone an excellent sixth fastest on this stage as he starts the second loop of his World Rally Car debut.
After a very fast first two stages this morning, he lost a bit of ground in the vineyards but is now back up to 11th, 13s behind 10th-placed Ostberg.
After a very fast first two stages this morning, he lost a bit of ground in the vineyards but is now back up to 11th, 13s behind 10th-placed Ostberg.
WRC - Germany: Robert Kubica declined the opportunity to go into the detail of the engine fault – and subsequent engine change – which forced him to take a five-minute penalty today.
The RK World Rally Team star told AUTOSPORT's DAVID EVAN: "If we had started, it would have risked the performance and durability of the engine. Now, we have the chance to test the car some more.
"To be honest, coming into the rally, I wasn't so happy with the balance: we have a lot of understeer in the car which we didn't have with the old one, so we want to find out why – that's what we will try to do for the rest of this rally."
The RK World Rally Team star told AUTOSPORT's DAVID EVAN: "If we had started, it would have risked the performance and durability of the engine. Now, we have the chance to test the car some more.
"To be honest, coming into the rally, I wasn't so happy with the balance: we have a lot of understeer in the car which we didn't have with the old one, so we want to find out why – that's what we will try to do for the rest of this rally."
Robert Kubica, RK Ford, WRC Germany 2015
WRC - Germany: Kubica's 'what might have been' rally continues. He's eighth quickest on the stage, but thanks to the five-minute engine-change penalty he started the afternoon 32nd overall.
WRC - Germany: Not quite, Neuville had the edge on Sordo on the early splits but it's the Spaniard who is the Hyundai pacesetter - by 0.6s - at the finish.
So the battle for the minor points now looks like:
5 Sordo +42.7s
6 Neuville +46.2s
7 Evans +53.4s
8 Paddon +54.4s
9 Tanak +1m00.0s
10 Ostberg +1m01.2s
That time from Sordo came despite a big moment when he hit a kerb hard. He reckons he's a bit lucky to still be in the rally after that.
So the battle for the minor points now looks like:
5 Sordo +42.7s
6 Neuville +46.2s
7 Evans +53.4s
8 Paddon +54.4s
9 Tanak +1m00.0s
10 Ostberg +1m01.2s
That time from Sordo came despite a big moment when he hit a kerb hard. He reckons he's a bit lucky to still be in the rally after that.
By: AUTOSPORT staff, Jack Benyon, Scott Mitchell, Mark Glendenning
Published:
Lap:
