The DS3 WRCs prepare for their next challenge
With an extensively altered course, Rally Italia Sardegna serves up a new challenge this season. Three DS 3 WRCs will line up at the start of this, the sixth round of the 2015 World Rally Championship, driven by Mads Ostberg/Jonas Andersson, Kris Meeke/Paul Nagle and Khalid Al Qassimi/Chris Patterson.
The Citro�n Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team lies second in the Manufacturers' World Rally Championship a third of the way through the 2015 season. Following a podium finish in Mexico and an impressive one-two in Argentina, the DS 3 WRCs produced a solid performance in Portugal.
In Italy, Citro�n Racing returns to a venue that proved to be a happy hunting ground for Mads Ostberg and Jonas Andersson in 2014. The Nordic crew finished as runners-up at last year's Rally Italia Sardegna, one of their best performances of the season.
The technical upgrades introduced prior to the Portugal round will provide an extra advantage on the daunting roads of Sardinia. With a set-up close to that which enabled Kris Meeke and Mads Ostberg to grab stage wins in the Porto region, the DS 3 WRCs will be tackling some of the most demanding stages on the calendar.
On narrow, rough roads with plenty of exposed rocks, the drivers will need to manage their allocation of tyres in the high temperatures and throughout loops of up to 80 kilometres. The presence of dust, even more of a disadvantage than sweeping the road clear of loose gravel, may also play a key role during this incredibly tough event.
Mads Ostberg and Jonas Andersson are currently third in the World Championship, just ahead of Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle in fourth. Having competed in two rallies since the start of the season, Khalid Al Qassimi and Chris Patterson lie in twelfth position.
by: Becca Chaplin