KATSUHIKO TAGUCHI / MARK STACEY
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JUSSI VALIMAKI / JARKKO KALLIOLEPO
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Mitsubishi cars filled four of the top six places in the Rally of Canberra, round 3 of the 2007 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship and with that result, Mitsubishi increased its lead in the Asia-Pacific manufacturer’s championship.
Rally of Canberra is held in the forests near the nations capital, this year running in winter like conditions with temperatures as low as zero degrees, but with sunny skies and dry conditions. After light rain a week before the event, the roads were in ideal condition.
Round one winners the MRF Mitsubishi team of Katsu Taguchi (Japan) and Jussi Valimaki (Finland) pushed hard all event, with Taguchi coming within 2 seconds of the Asia-Pacific lead. On the fast Canberra roads the Mitsubishi was the dominant car and new tyres from MRF helped the team get back on a winning pace.
However Taguchi’s challenge faulted when a turbo hose worked loose on the 2nd day and while the problem was quickly fixed, such is the pace in the event, that any chance of taking the lead was over and Taguchi then settled for 2nd and safe points. "We are disappointed not to have won, the car is going very well and my driving is too – but today we had the problem with the turbo pipe and the engine lost power. It was not difficult to fix, but we lost so much time its better to get the points for 2nd. The next rally is Hokkaido – my home event and I am looking forward to this. I feel confident as the team made a lot or progress this event" said Taguchi at the finish.
After a 2 day test prior to the event, Jussi Valimaki was confident that he could do well, but any chance of a good finish were lost with a puncture on Stage 7 on Leg 1. "lets wait and see for the next event. Canberra was always going to be difficult, but from now on in the championship everyone is equal. We won 3 stages here and I am confident the team can build on this progress for the rest of the year" said Valimaki.
Naren Kumar (India) in the Team India Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 was 5th in Asia-Pacific category, followed by his team-mate Brian Green (Australia) in a similar car.
The next round of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship is the Hokkaido Rally in Japan, from July 6-8.
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1
AP
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Cody Crocker
Ben Atkinson |
Subaru Impreza |
2:30:51.6 |
**.* |
2
AP
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Katsuhiko Taguchi
Mark Stacey |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX |
2:31:55.2 |
+1:03.6 |
3
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Dean Herridge
Bill Hayes |
Subaru Impreza |
2:32:43.4 |
+1:51.8 |
4
AP
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Jussi Valimaki
Jarkko Kalliolepo |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX |
02:33:08.3 |
+2:16.7 |
5
AP
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Rifat Sungkar
Herkusuma Mohamad |
Subaru Impreza |
2:38:31.7 |
+7:40.1 |
6
AP
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Naren Kumar
D. Ramkumar |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX |
2:41:09.2 |
+10:17.6 |
7
AP
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Brian Green
Fleur Pedersen |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII |
2:46:46.4 |
+15:54.8 |
8
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Denis Stevens
Frank Brookhouse |
Subaru Impreza |
3:01:09.7 |
+30:18.1 |
9
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Jun Mikami
Toshiyuki Kayahara |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII |
3:03:17.8 |
+32:26.2 |
