Thursday morning saw the drivers of the FIA World Rally Championship Vodafone Rally de Portugal give their cars an initial taste of speed during shakedown. The purpose-build Paredes stage was the venue, with eager crowds already lining the road.
At 4.61km in length, the stage gave the drivers a solid opportunity to ensure they were satisfies with the setup of their cars ahead of the official start scheduled for later in the day. It also provided a spectacle for the spectators thanks to it featuring a large jump into the final complex.
While times aren’t the paramount concern of a shakedown session, they can often be an indicator of things to come. As such, Hyundai Motorsport’s Thierry Neuville setting the quickest time over the stage, crossing the line in 3:11.3s, is good news for the team.
Teammate, Dani Sordo, was second fastest crossing the line in 3:11.6s. DMack’s Ott Tanak was third quickest, while Citroen’s Kris Meeke set the fourth fastest time.
Surprisingly, reigning champion Sebastien Ogier was the eighth fastest, though this was probably down to being more focused on the setup of the car rather than outright pace, that’s something the Volkswagen Motorsport driver will be saving for the official stages.
One of the most important elements of success on the Vodafone Rally de Portugal is tyre choice; in recent years, tyre choice and management has been one of the biggest talking points and major influences on the outcome of the event.
The tyres manufacturers – Pirelli, Michelin, Hankook and DMACK – accordingly take their trade seriously. Pirelli, for example, has some 600 tyres prepared for the nine to ten cars running on its products this weekend.
A spokesman for Korean manufacturer Hankook, said; “This year, the stages seem to be slightly softer than last year. This might be because there was rain in the area of the rally the week before.
“If the ambient temperature remains slightly lower than last year, then the softer tyre might work better. It may be a case of soft tyres in the morning and harder examples in the afternoon.
“However, if the temperature rises past around 25 degrees C, then drivers using the soft tyres will probably begin to have problems.”
The current weather forecast suggests Friday could be the warmest day, with temperatures expected to reach low to mid-20s while cooler days on Saturday and Sunday – 19 and 18 deg respectively – are predicted. There is currently a 50% chance of rain on Saturday night, which could affect the stages for the final leg of the rally.