ISRI, round one: Yvan’s perfect weekend

The trio's SEAT Cordoba finished ahead of Philippe Gache and Jean-Pierre Richelmi's Toyota Corolla, with Christophe Vaison and Jean Ragnotti's Renault Megane in third place.

Fresh from winning the latest round of the Andros Trophy in his Globalstar Astra, Yvan Muller made the long overnight journey from Andorra to start the first of the three final races from pole.

"It wasn't easy," Muller said. "I leapt into the car after the Andros podium, and drove the first three hundred kilometres. Then I rested for a while, then drove the last one hundred. We got to Chamonix just after 6 am. Then everyone was telling me what to do, how to drive - it was very difficult to concentrate on taking the start."

Despite not having previously completed a single lap of the track in the SEAT Cordoba, he made an excellent start, chased hard by his former team-mate Philippe Gache in his Toyota Corolla.

The fight continued at the front, Gache losing a second one lap, closing up the next. Further back, however, a spectacular three-way fight was going on between Zenere in the Techno-di-C Peugeot 206, the Trauberg's Ford Escort Cosworth, and the BMW 360 M3 driven by Marcel. This ended in spectacular fashion when the BMW caught fire, and the race was red-flagged.

At the restart, Pierre Colard, who was in the pits for the obligatory
Driver changeover at the time the race was stopped, was the only car that did not have to make a stop during the remaining 12 minutes.

Gache got ahead of Muller when the lights went green, but Muller showed the power of the SEAT Cordoba by pulling ahead on the uphill stretch, retaking the lead.

Muller handed over to Snobeck, Gache to Richelmi, but there was nothing they could do about Colard, who easily won in the Peugeot 206.

"It's great for my mechanics, who have been up all night and have worked like crazy on the car," Colard said afterwards. "This is really a test session for us, as we only just got the car finished in time for scrutineering on Friday. But despite various teething problems, the car has great potential and is really fast and nice to drive."

After 4 rounds, Muller and Snobeck had a ten-point lead over Gache and
Richelmi, with Chomat and Gatta's Peugeot 306 in third place. The fifth round was driven anti-clockwise, and Muller got to the first corner in the lead, while Christophe Vaison, in the Renault Mégane, made the most of his rallycross techniques and leapt up to second place ahead of Gache's Toyota.

Gache did everything he could to get by, but had to wait until the third lap until he found the way through. Muller was unassailable, however, and he handed the car over to Snobeck with a healthy lead, the duo taking full points in the round and extending their general classification lead.

By this time the cars - except for the immaculate SEAT Cordoba - began to look decidedly battered, with many bumpers and bonnets having been dislodged.

The final round saw another pole-to-chequered flag run for Muller and
Snobeck, although Gache managed to stick close to his great rival for much of the first half of the race. Pailler and Knapick's Peugeot 206, which had been lying third, stopped early on, thereby losing their third place overall to Christophe Vaison and Jean Ragnotti, who drove consistently throughout the weekend in their Renault Megane and took a well-merited podium finish.

Muller and Snobeck, assisted by Balas, might have repeated their 2000
Chamonix victory, but at the moment there are no plans to enter the SEAT Cordoba in the other rounds of the IRSI. This must leave Gache and Richelmi very much the favourites for the season, which continues at the German track of Oschersleben in two weeks, to be followed by rounds in Canada and Finland. However, the potential of the new Techno di C Peugeot 206 has been amply demonstrated, and once they get past the initial problems, Colard and Zenere could well put up a good challenge to the Toyota Corolla.