2017 WRC2 Championship explained

The 2017 FIA WRC2 Championship is the fifth season of the WRC2, a rallying championship organised and governed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, running in support of the World Rally Championship. The Championship is open to cars complying with R4, R5, and Super 2000 regulations.^[1] Esapekka Lappi did not return to defend his 2016 title as he left Škoda Motorsport for the top WRC category to become third driver of Toyota GAZOO Racing. However, Škoda Motorsport retained the title thanks to Pontus Tidemand who won the championship after Rallye Deutschland.^[2]

Regulation changes

Sporting regulations

• The format of the series will change to include three events nominated by the FIA that will be compulsory for all crews competing for points. This represents a change from previous years, where competitors were free to enter as many rounds of the championship as they wished, nominating individual rounds to count as their points-scoring events. The change was introduced to address concerns over the potential for an anticlimactic championship, where the championship could be resolved without the leading crews directly competing against one another. The Rallies of Portugal, Germany and Great Britain are the compulsory events for 2017.

Season report

The championship started with Andreas Mikkelsen, in a one-off outing with Škoda Motorsport after losing his WRC drive because of the Volkswagen Motorsport withdrawal from the sport, winning the Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo by more than 3 minutes from teammate Jan Kopecký. Mikkelsen won 10 out of 15 stages, and led from start to end. The podium was completed by Monte veteran and previous winner Bryan Bouffier. Eric Camilli finished fourth in his first outing with the M-Sport World Rally Team after being demoted from the team's WRC drivers line up.^[15]

Ole Christian Veiby was the early leader of the Rally Sweden, winning the first two stages of the rally, but a push by Pontus Tidemand in which he won five of the remaining six stages of the leg 1,^[16] made him the Leader of the rally, a position he would maintain for the rest of the legs. Tidemand's victory give Škoda Motorsport the second victory of the season in a row. The Podium was completed by M-Sport World Rally Team's Teemu Suninen and Veiby.^[17]

Rally Mexico was a two-way fight between Camilli and Tidemand. By the end of Leg 2, Tidemand was on top by just 2 seconds. Nevertheless, Camilli choose wet tires for the last leg, and could not match the times of Tidemand, thus the Sweden won his second rally in a row, and give Škoda Motorsport the third out of three win in the season. The podium was completed by local and former Production World Rally Champion Benito Guerra.^[18]

Andreas Mikkelsen returned to the Škoda Motorsport's team for the Tour de Corse, and dominated the event, leading from start to finish. Teemu Suninen finished second, taking the position after his teammate Eric Camilli hit trouble in the first leg. The podium was completed by local Yohan Rossel. Mikkelsen's win was his second in as many outings.^[19]

Pontus Tidemand won the Rally Argentina by more than 10 minutes from local Juan Carlos Alonso to continue Škoda Motorsport's winning streak. Tidemand found a trouble-free weekend in one of the roughest events of the year were only five WRC-2 Crews finished the event. Benito Guerra completed the podium.^[20]

Mikkelsen returned for the Rally de Portugal and looked set to take another dominant win, only to roll his car on the very last stage of the rally whilst holding a 3 minute lead. This subsequently handed Tidemand his fourth win from six rallies, with the podium being completed by Teemu Suninen and reigning Junior WRC champion Simone Tempestini.

Results and standings

Season summary

Round	Event name	Winning driver	Winning co-driver
1						4:09:36.3	Report
2		Pontus Tidemand		Škoda Motorsport	Škoda Fabia R5	2:45:14.7	Report
3	Rally Mexico	Pontus Tidemand	Jonas Andersson	Škoda Motorsport	Škoda Fabia R5	3:32:56.5	Report
4	Tour de Corse				Škoda Fabia R5	3:31:04.1	Report
5	Rally Argentina	Pontus Tidemand	Jonas Andersson	Škoda Motorsport	Škoda Fabia R5	3:55:42.7	Report
6	Rally de Portugal	Pontus Tidemand	Jonas Andersson	Škoda Motorsport	Škoda Fabia R5	3:54:17.6	Report
7	Rally Italia Sardegna	Jan Kopecký	Pavel Dresler		Škoda Fabia R5	3:36:36.5	Report
8	Rally Poland	Ole Christian Veiby		Printsport	Škoda Fabia R5	2:53:39.3	Report
9	Rally Finland	Jari Huttunen	Antti Linnaketo	Printsport	Škoda Fabia R5	2:39:30.9	Report
10	Rallye Deutschland	Eric Camilli	Benjamin Veillas		Ford Fiesta R5	3:08:16.0	Report
11		Teemu Suninen	Mikko Markkula	M-Sport World Rally Team	Ford Fiesta R5	3:09:43.8	Report
12	Wales Rally GB	Pontus Tidemand	Jonas Andersson	Škoda Motorsport	Škoda Fabia R5	3:07:12.2	Report
13	Rally Australia	Kalle Rovanperä	Jonne Halttunen	Kalle Rovanperä	Ford Fiesta R5	3:09:01.1	Report

FIA WRC2 Championship for Drivers

Points are awarded to the top ten classified finishers.

Position	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th
Points	25	18	15	12	10	8	6	4	2	1

Driver MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Drops Points 1 Pontus Tidemand 1 1 1 1 2 3 1 15 143 2 Eric Camilli 4 4 2 8 7 1 2 4 91 3 Teemu Suninen 2 2 2 7 1 13 0 85 4 Jan Kopecký 2 7 1 2 2 0 85 5 Ole Christian Veiby 3 5 2 1 WD DNS 16 68 6 Benito Guerra 3 3 11 4 9 3 WD 0 59 7 Simone Tempestini 4 3 10 5 6 5 20 0 56 8 Quentin Gilbert 5 Ret 3 2 4 0 55 9 Andreas Mikkelsen 1 1 Ret 0 50 10 Ret 6 10 5 7 5 8 0 39 11 Gus Greensmith 5 6 7 8 Ret 13 6 0 36 12 Tom Cave 3 3 0 30 13 Łukasz Pieniążek 10 5 6 11 12 6 9 0 29 14 Yohan Rossel 3 16 4 15 WD 0 27 15 Kalle Rovanperä 15 1 0 25 16 Jari Huttunen 1 0 25 17 Juuso Nordgren 9 4 5 0 24 18 Emil Bergkvist 6 6 9 Ret 10 Ret 0 19 19 Juan Carlos Alonso 2 0 18 20 Pedro Heller 4 Ret 8 9 18 0 18 21 Takamoto Katsuta 9 12 3 Ret 14 0 17 22 Bryan Bouffier 3 Ret 0 15 23 Osian Pryce Ret 4 0 12 24 Gustavo Saba 4 0 12 25 Miguel Campos 4 0 12 26 David Bogie 4 0 12 27 Hubert Ptaszek Ret 5 9 Ret 0 12 28 Yoann Bonato Ret Ret 15 5 13 10 11 0 11 29 Raul Jeets Ret 6 12 0 8 30 Wojciech Chuchała 6 0 8 31 Hiroki Arai 7 Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 6 32 Andrea Crugnola 7 0 6 33 Cristian García 7 0 6 34 Matt Edwards 7 0 6 35 Fabio Andolfi WD 13 Ret 8 Ret WD 12 10 0 5 36 Orhan Avcioglu 8 14 0 4 37 Eyvind Brynildsen 8 Ret 0 4 38 Marijan Griebel 8 4 39 Jon Armstrong 14 9 0 2 40 Jarosław Kołtun 10 Ret 0 1 41 Umberto Scandola 10 0 1 — Alexey Lukyanuk 11 — — — Max Vatanen 12 WD — — — Armin Kremer Ret — — — Ret — — — Quentin Giordano Ret — — — Anders Grøndal Ret — — — Martin Koči Ret — — — Laurent Pellier Ret — — — Max Rendina WD — — — Radik Shaymiev WD — — Driver MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Drops Points

FIA WRC2 Championship for Co-Drivers

Co-driver MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Drops Points 1 Jonas Andersson 1 1 1 1 2 3 1 15 143 2 Benjamin Veillas 4 4 2 8 7 1 2 4 91 3 Mikko Markkula 2 2 2 7 1 13 0 85 4 Pavel Dresler 2 7 1 2 2 0 85 5 3 5 2 1 WD 16 0 68 6 Giovanni Bernacchini 4 3 10 5 6 5 20 0 56 7 Renaud Jamoul 5 Ret 3 2 4 0 55 8 Anders Jæger 1 1 Ret 0 50 9 Daniel Cué 3 11 4 9 3 0 44 10 Vincent Landais Ret 6 10 5 7 5 8 0 39 11 Craig Parry 5 6 7 8 Ret 13 6 0 36 12 James Morgan 3 3 0 30 13 Przemysław Mazur 10 5 6 12 12 6 9 0 29 14 Benoît Fulcrand 3 16 4 15 WD 0 27 15 Jonne Halttunen 15 1 0 25 16 Antti Linnaketo 1 0 25 17 Tapio Suominen 4 5 0 22 18 Matias Mercadal 2 0 18 19 Pablo Olmos 4 Ret 8 9 18 0 18 20 Joakim Sjöberg 6 6 9 Ret 0 18 21 Marko Salminen 9 12 3 Ret 14 0 17 22 Denis Giraudet 3 Ret 0 15 23 Borja Rozada 3 WD 0 15 24 Dale Furniss Ret 4 0 12 25 Fernando Mussano 4 0 12 26 António Costa 4 0 12 27 Kevin Rae 4 0 12 28 Maciej Szczepaniak Ret 5 9 Ret 0 12 29 Benjamin Boulloud Ret Ret 15 5 13 10 11 0 11 30 Kuldar Sikk Ret 6 12 0 8 31 Sebastian Rozwadowski 6 0 8 32 Michele Ferrara 7 10 0 7 33 Glenn MacNeall 7 Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 6 34 Pablo Marcos 7 0 6 35 Patrick Walsh 7 0 6 36 Manuel Fenoli WD 13 Ret 8 Ret WD 0 4 37 Burcin Korkmaz 8 14 0 4 38 Anders Fredriksson 8 Ret 0 4 39 Noel O'Sullivan 14 9 0 2 40 Mikael Korhonen 9 0 2 41 Simone Scattolin 12 10 0 1 42 Ireneusz Pleskot 10 Ret 0 1 43 Ola Fløene 10 Ret 0 1 — Alexey Arnautov 11 — — — Jacques-Julien Renucci 12 — — — Pirmin Winklhofer Ret — — — Simone Scattolin Ret — — — Thomas Roux Ret — — — Roger Eilertsen Ret — — — Lukáš Kostka Ret — — — Benoit Neyret-Gigot Ret — — — Emanuele Inglesi WD — — — Maxim Tsvetkov WD — — Co-driver MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Drops Points

FIA WRC2 Championship for Teams

Team MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Points 1 Škoda Motorsport 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 193 2 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 155 3 Printsport 3 4 2 1 1 5 105 4 Motorsport Italia SRL WD 3 2 6 3 5 3 WD 81 5 Gekon Racing 3 3 5 4 3 4 10 80 6 Škoda Motorsport II 1 2 2 4 73 7 TRT Peugeot World Rally Team 5 4 4 6 7 5 58 8 Adapta Motorsport AS 5 2 6 Ret 36 9 7 Ret 3 8 7 WD 31 10 Tommi Mäkinen Racing 4 9 3 Ret 10 30 11 ACI Team Italia WD 8 Ret 4 Ret WD 9 6 26 12 Orlen Team Ret 3 5 Ret 25 13 Gemini Clinic Rally Team 2 Ret 8 9 24 14 Styllex Motorsport Ret Ret 3 15 15 Ret 4 12 16 C-Rally 6 Ret 8 12 17 TGS Worldwide 5 10 18 S.A. Motorsport Italia Srl 6 8 19 Toksport World Rally Team 6 8 20 Tehase Auto Ret 7 6 — BRC Racing Team Ret — — TAIF Motorsport WD — Team MON SWE MEX FRA ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER ESP GBR AUS Points

External links

• Official website of the World Rally Championship
• Official website of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2016 FIA World Rally Championship Sporting Regulations. fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 9 December 2015. 21 July 2016. 21 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160821002043/http://www.fia.com/wrc-sporting-regulations-and-appendices-english-2016. dead.
2. Web site: Tidemand Clinches Title. fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 20 August 2017. 8 October 2017.
3. News: Rallye Montecarlo Entry List. https://web.archive.org/web/20211104221941/https://acm.mc/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Liste-par-ordre-de-priorit%C3%A9-15_finalAC.pdf. dead. 4 November 2021. acm.mc. Automobile Club Montecarlo. 2 January 2017. 3 January 2017.
4. News: Rally Sweden Entry List. rallysweden.com. Rally Sweden. 16 January 2017. 16 January 2017. 14 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171214141437/http://rallysweden.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/official-entry-list-2017.pdf. dead.
5. Web site: Mexico Entry List. RallyMexico.com. 21 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170222055917/http://www.rallymexico.com/files/rep/EntryListMx17.pdf. 22 February 2017. dead. dmy-all.
6. Web site: Tour de Corse Entry List. tourdecorse.com. 17 March 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170318003201/http://www.tourdecorse.com/site/download/official_documents_uk/entry_list/Che-Guevara-Energy-Drink-Tour-de-Corse-2017-Entry-List-FIA-Approved.pdf. 18 March 2017. dead. dmy-all.
7. Web site: Rally Argentina Entry List. RallyArgentina.com. 4 April 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170405170146/http://www.rallyargentina.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Official-Entry-List-RA17-app-FIA-4-4.pdf. 5 April 2017. dead.
8. Web site: Rally Portugal Entry List. rallyportugal.py. rallyportugal.pt. 2 May 2017. 31 July 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731205144/http://www.rallydeportugal.pt/ResourcesUser/Documentos/Listas_Inscritos/2017/Entry_List_02052017_v4a.pdf. dead.
9. Web site: Rally Italia Entry List. rallylink.it. Rallylink. 19 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731185805/http://www.rallylink.it/pdf/2017/ris17.pdf. 31 July 2017. dead.
10. Web site: Rally Poland Entry List. rajdpolski.pl. 5 June 2017.
11. Web site: Rally Finland Entry List. nesterallyfinland.fi. 30 June 2017.
12. Web site: Rallye Deutschalnd Entry List. adac-rallye-deutschland.de. 31 July 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731200105/https://www.adac-rallye-deutschland.de/docs/wrc/2017/static/179/List%20of%20Entries_170726.pdf. 31 July 2017. dead. dmy-all.
13. News: Rally Spain Entry List. 19 September 2017. 19 September 2017. rallyracc.com.
14. News: Wales Rally GB Entry List. 6 October 2017. 6 October 2017. walesrallygb.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20171007021129/https://walesrallygb.com/documents/List_of_Entries_-_Approved_by_the_FIA_-_6-Oct.pdf. 7 October 2017. dead.
15. Web site: WRC-2 Monte Carlo Report. WRC.com. 21 January 2017 . WRC Promoter GmbH. 25 January 2017.
16. Web site: Friday WRC-2 in Sweden. WRC.com. 8 February 2017 . WRC Promoter GmbH. 12 February 2017.
17. Web site: WRC-2 Sweden Results. Ewrc-Results.com. 12 February 2017.
18. Web site: Sunday WRC-2 in Mexico. WRC.com. 12 March 2017 . WRC Promoter GmbH. 17 March 2017.
19. Web site: WRC 2 in Corsica: Mikkelsen seals win. WRC.com. 8 April 2017 . WRC Promoter GmbH. 13 April 2017.
20. Web site: Argentina Sunday Final. WRC.com. 30 April 2017 . WRC Promoter GmbH. 20 May 2017.