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2006 Acropolis Rally

Rally in Athens, Greece 2006


Rally in Athens, Greece 2006

FieldValue
name2006 Acropolis Rally
native_name53rd Acropolis Rally
round8
season_no16
championship2006 World Rally Championship
previous_round2006 Rally d'Italia Sardegna
next_round2006 Rallye Deutschland
imageXavier Pons - 2006 Acropolis Rally.jpg
captionXavier Pons during one of the super special stages
country
rallybaseAthens
startdate1
enddate4 June 2006
stages18
stagekm355.62
stagekm_note
transportkm923.67
overallkm1,279.29
surfaceGravel
driver1FIN Marcus Grönholm
codriver1FIN Timo Rautiainen
team1GBR BP Ford World Rally Team
time13:56:26.8
crewsreg84
teamsstart84
teamsfinish69

The 2006 Acropolis Rally was a motor racing event for rally cars that was held over four days between 1 and 4 June 2006. It marked the 53rd running of the Acropolis Rally, and was the eight round of the 2006 World Rally Championship season. The event was also the fourth round of the 2006 Production World Rally Championship. The 2006 event was based in the Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece and was contested over eighteen special stages, covering a total competitive distance of 355.62km (220.97 miles).

Sebastien Loeb, along with Kronos Citroën World Rally Team were the defending rally winners, having won the previous five rallies in a row. Loeb lead championship rival Marcus Gronholm in the championship by 31 points coming into the weekend.

Gronholm and co-driver Timo Rautiainen won the rally, their first win since the 2006 Swedish Rally and their third win of the season.

Background

Entry list

The following crews were set to enter the rally. The event was open to crews competing in the World Rally Championship and its support category, the Production World Rally Championship, as well as privateer entries that were not registered to score points in the manufacturer's championship. Twenty two were entered under World Rally Car regulations, as were fifteen in the Production WRC category.

No.DriverCo-DriverEntrantCarTyre
1FRA Sebastien LoebMON Daniel ElenaBEL Kronos Citroën World Rally TeamCitroën Xsara WRC
2SPA Xavier PonsSPA Carlos del BarrioBEL Kronos Citroën World Rally TeamCitroën Xsara WRC
3FIN Marcus GronholmFIN Timo RautiainenGBR BP Ford World Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 06
4FIN Mikko HirvonenFIN Jarmo LehtinenGBR BP Ford World Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 06
5NOR Petter SolbergGBR Phil MillsJPN Subaru World Rally TeamImpreza WRC 2006
6AUS Chris AtkinsonAUS Glenn MacneallJPN Subaru World Rally TeamImpreza WRC 2006
7AUT Manfred StohlAUT Ilka MinorNOR OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally TeamPeugeot 307 WRC
8NOR Henning SolbergNOR Cato MenkerudNOR OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally TeamPeugeot 307 WRC
9GBR Matthew WilsonGBR Michael OrrGBR Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 06
10FIN Kosti KatajamäkiFIN Timo AlanneGBR Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 06
11FIN Harri RovanperäFIN Risto PietiläinenAUT Red Bull Škoda TeamŠkoda Fabia WRC
12AUT Andreas AignerGER Klaus WichaAUT Red Bull Škoda TeamŠkoda Fabia WRC
No.DriverCo-DriverEntrantCar
31JPN Toshihiro AraiNZL Tony SircombeJPN Subaru Team AraiSubaru Impreza WRX STI
32ARG Marcos LigatoARG Rubén GarcíaARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
34ARG Sebastián BeltranCHL Ricardo RojasARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
35ARG Gabriel PozzoARG Daniel StilloARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
36SMR Mirco BaldacciITA Giovanni AgneseFRA Mitsubishi Paris West TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
37FIN Jari-Matti LatvalaFIN Miikka AnttilaITA Motoring ClubSubaru Impreza WRX STI
38POL Leszek KuzajPOL Maciej SzczepaniakJPN Syms Rally TeamSubaru Impreza WRX STI
39QAT Nasser Al-AttiyahGBR Chris PattersonQAT QMMFSubaru Impreza WRX STI
40ITA Stefano MarriniITA Sandroni TizianaITA Errani Team GroupMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
41JPN Takuma KamadaJPN Hakaru IchinoJPN Subaru Team QuasysSubaru Impreza WRX STI
42RUS Sergey UspenskiyRUS Dmitriy EremeevRUS Subaru Rally Team RussiaSubaru Impreza WRX STI
43SVN Andrej JerebSVN Miran KacinLAT OMV CEE World Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX
45FIN Aki TeiskonenFIN Miika TeiskonenJPN Syms Rally TeamSubaru Impreza WRX STI
46GBR Nigel HeathGBR Steve LancasterGBR PSM MotorsportSubaru Impreza WRX STI
60GRE Dimitris NassoulasGRE Mihalis PatrikoussisGRE Eko Racing TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo VII
No.DriverCo-DriverEntrantCar
14SPA Dani SordoSPA Marc MartíBEL Kronos RacingCitroën Xsara WRC
16FIN Toni GardemeisterFIN Jakke HonkanenITA Astra RacingCitroën Xsara WRC
17CZE Jan KopeckýCZE Filip SchovánekCZE Czech RT Škoda KopeckýŠkoda Fabia WRC
18BEL François DuvalFRA Patrick PivatoBEL First Motorsport ŠkodaŠkoda Fabia WRC
19GRE Armodios VovosGRE El-EmGRE Armodios VovosSubaru Impreza S11 WRC 05
20FIN Jussi VälimäkiFIN Jarkko KalliolepoGBR MMSP LTDMitsubishi Lancer WRC 05
66GRE Konstantinos ApostolouGRE Kriadis MihalisGRE Konstantinos ApostolouMitsubishi Lancer Evo VI
67GRE Manos StefanisGRE Konstantinos StafanisGRE Manos StefanisFord Focus WRC 02
78GRE Kirkos JuniorGRE Ioannis SengosGRE Kirkos JuniorMitsubishi Lancer Evo VII
96GRE Dionissis GazetasGRE Athanasios PapageorgiouGRE Dionissis GazetasMitsubishi Lancer Evo VII

Itinerary

All dates and times are CEST (UTC+2).

DateNo.Time spanStage nameDistance1 June2 June3 June4 June
After 8:00Amigdaleza [Shakedown]4.40 km
SS1After 18:00Athens Olympic Stadium 12.80 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]8:00Service A, Athens
SS2After 8:38Imittos 111.44 km
SS3After 9:56Skourta 123.80 km
SS4After 11:14Thiva 123.76 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]13:22Service B, Athens
SS5After 14:20Imittos 211.44 km
SS6After 15:38Skourta 223.76 km
SS7After 16:52Thiva 223.76 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]18:46Service C, Athens
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]8:00Service D, Athens
SS8After 8:57Mandra 112.60 km
SS9After 9:50Kineta 137.33 km
SS10After 11:13Psatha 117.41 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]12:51Service E, Athens
SS11After 14:08Mandra 212.60 km
SS12After 15:01Kineta 237.33 km
SS13After 16:24Psatha 217.41 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]17:44Service F, Athens
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]6:40Service G, Athens
SS14After 7:47Avlonas 123.90 km
SS15After 8:55Agia Sotira 124.77 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]10:08Service H, Athens
SS16After 11:35Avlonas 223.90 km
SS17After 12:43Agia Sotira 224.77 km
[[File:Icon tools.svg15px]]13:46Service I, Athens
SS18After 14:15Athens Olympic Stadium 22.80 km
Source:

Report

Overall

Summary

Petter Solberg would win the shakedown on thursday, beginning what would be his 100th world rally. But it would be Loeb that won the first stage of the rally, a short super special stage inside of the Olympic Stadium in Athens. Gronholn would end up second, while shakedown winner Solberg would end up thirteenth on the opening day.

Friday would be a display of absolute dominance by Gronholm, who won every single stage of the day. Petter Solberg would manage to end the day ahead of Loeb despite experiencing three punctures in the morning. Petter's brother Henning would suffer a tyre blow-out at high speed, dropping him to seventh overall, while Chris Atkinson was struck with a front differential issue, rendering his morning ruined. The afternoon section of the leg would be less chaotic, with Hirvonen ending the day in fourth ahead of the surprisingly quick Duval. Gardemeister would drop to eighth after hitting a rock and experiencing shoulder pain in stage seven, handing sixth to Stohl.

Saturday would entail a closer battle between Gronholm and Loeb; Gronholm would win four of the day's six stages, but crucially, Loeb would win the longest stage of the rally twice, limiting the damage and finishing the day within two minutes of the leader. Despite being second, a puncture resulting in heavy damage in the last stage of the day raised concerns that Loeb wouldn't be able to continue. Henning Solberg would lose much of his braking power, but still set a competitive third fastest time in stage ten. Petter Solberg, meanwhile, would be forced to retire after crashing on the road section between stages twelve and thirteen. This would promote Hirvonen to third overall.

On Sunday, Gronholm would extend his lead over Loeb despite overall driving cautiously to avoid a retirement on the rough Greek stages. It would be a recovering Petter Solberg who won all but the super special stage on the day, recovering to an impressive seventh after restarting in ninth. Loeb would not risk anything, continuing to fall behind Gronholm in order to protect his second place, which he successfully maintained. The tight battle for fourth would be interrupted by Stohl retiring after a roll and Sordo losing a minute with an engine issue. This would hand fourth in the rally to Gardemeister. Henning Solberg held fifth by under a second from the charging Sordo. After an impressive start, Duval would retire on Saturday to finish thirteenth overall.

Classification

PositionNo.DriverCo-driverEntrantCarTimeDifferencePointsEventClass1122334455667788991010111112121313141415151616261749185519Retired SS14Retired SS11Retired SS8
3FIN Marcus GronholmFIN Timo RautiainenGBR BP Ford World Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 063:56:26.80.010
1FRA Sebastien LoebMON Daniel ElenaBEL Kronos Citroën World Rally TeamCitroën Xsara WRC3:58:53.6+2:26.88
4FIN Mikko HirvonenFIN Jarmo LehtinenGBR BP Ford World Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 064:00:10.6+3:43.86
16FIN Toni GardemeisterFIN Jakke HonkanenITA Astra RacingCitroën Xsara WRC4:00:47.6+4:20.85
8NOR Henning SolbergNOR Cato MenkerudNOR OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally TeamPeugeot 307 WRC4:01:22.4+4:55.64
14SPA Dani SordoSPA Marc MartíBEL Kronos RacingCitroën Xsara WRC4:01:23.2+4:56.43
5NOR Petter SolbergGBR Phil MillsJPN Subaru World Rally TeamImpreza WRC 20064:02:01.2+5:34.42
2SPA Xavier PonsSPA Carlos del BarrioBEL Kronos Citroën World Rally TeamCitroën Xsara WRC4:04:45.8+8:19.01
20FIN Jussi VälimäkiFIN Jarkko KalliolepoGBR MMSP LTDMitsubishi Lancer WRC 054:07:55.5+11:28.70
9GBR Matthew WilsonGBR Michael OrrGBR Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 064:09:57.6+13:30.80
6AUS Chris AtkinsonAUS Glenn MacneallJPN Subaru World Rally TeamImpreza WRC 20064:10:28.6+14:01.80
11FIN Harri RovanperäFIN Risto PietiläinenAUT Red Bull Škoda TeamŠkoda Fabia WRC4:11:02.4+14:35.60
18BEL François DuvalFRA Patrick PivatoBEL First Motorsport ŠkodaŠkoda Fabia WRC4:14:31.2+18:04.40
12AUT Andreas AignerGER Klaus WichaAUT Red Bull Škoda TeamŠkoda Fabia WRC4:17:17.7+20:50.90
19GRE Armodios VovosGRE "El-Em"GRE Armodios VovosSubaru Impreza S11 WRC 054:23:17.1+26:50.30
17CZE Jan KopeckýCZE Filip SchovánekCZE Czech RT Škoda KopeckýŠkoda Fabia WRC4:24:45.6+28:18.80
10FIN Kosti KatajamäkiFIN Timo AlanneGBR Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally TeamFord Focus RS WRC 064:44:03.2+47:36.40
96GRE Dionissis GazetasGRE Athanasios PapageorgiouGRE Dionissis GazetasMitsubishi Lancer Evo VII5:38:38.9+1:42:12.10
78GRE "Kirkos Junior"GRE Ioannis SengosGRE "Kirkos Junior"Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII5:55:23.1+1:58:56.30
7AUT Manfred StohlAUT Ilka MinorNOR OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally TeamPeugeot 307 WRCAccident0
67GRE Manos StefanisGRE Konstantinos StafanisGRE Manos StefanisFord Focus WRC 02Fire0
66GRE Konstantinos ApostolouGRE Kriadis MihalisGRE Konstantinos ApostolouMitsubishi Lancer Evo VIAxle0

Special Stages

All dates and times are EEST (UTC+3).

DayStageTimeNameLength (km)WinnerTimeRally leader1
(1/2 June)SS118:00SS28:38SS39:56SS411:14SS514:20SS615:38SS716:562
(3 June)SS88:57SS99:50SS1011:13SS1114:08SS1215:01SS1316:243
(4 June)SS147:47SS158:55SS1611:35SS1712:43SS1814:15
Athens Olympic Stadium 12.79FRA Sébastien Loeb2:21.4FRA Sébastien Loeb
Imittos 111.43FIN Marcus Grönholm7:03.3FIN Marcus Grönholm
Skourta 123.79FIN Marcus Grönholm14:40.1
Thiva 123.76FIN Marcus Grönholm17:16.9
Imittos 211.43FIN Marcus Grönholm6:58.3
Skourta 223.79FIN Marcus Grönholm14:29.6
Thiva 223.76FIN Marcus Grönholm16:54.1
Mandra 112.6FIN Marcus Grönholm8:50.7
Kineta 137.33FRA Sébastien Loeb25:39.1
Psatha 117.4FIN Marcus Grönholm11:21.3
Mandra 212.6FIN Marcus Grönholm8:43.1
Kineta 237.33FRA Sébastien Loeb25:20.2
Psatha 217.4FIN Marcus Grönholm11:23.6
Avlonas 123.89NOR Petter Solberg14:07.2
Agia Sotira 124.77NOR Petter Solberg17:02.0
Avlonas 223.89NOR Petter Solberg14:00.6
Agia Sotira 224.77NOR Petter Solberg16:49.6
Athens Olympic Stadium 22.79FIN Marcus Grönholm2:21.7

Championship Standings

Pos.Drivers' ChampionshipManufacturers' ChampionshipMoveDriverPointsMoveManufacturerPoints
1[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]FRA Sébastien Loeb74[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]BEL Kronos Citroën World Rally Team96
2[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]FIN Marcus Gronholm45[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]GBR BP Ford World Rally Team81
3[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]ESP Dani Sordo33[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]JPN Subaru World Rally Team63
4[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 2FIN Mikko Hirvonen21[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]NOR OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team41
5[[File:1downarrow red.svg10px]] 1AUT Manfred Stohl20[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]GBR Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team17

Production WRC

Classification

PositionNo.DriverCo-driverEntrantCarTimeDifferencePointsEventClass17118219320421522624727829930103211331237134414Retired SS4
39QAT Nasser Al-AttiyahGBR Chris PattersonQAT QMMFSubaru Impreza WRX STI4:28:43.30.010
35ARG Gabriel PozzoARG Daniel StilloARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX4:28:55.3+12.08
45FIN Aki TeiskonenFIN Miika TeiskonenJPN Syms Rally TeamSubaru Impreza WRX STI3:46:19.0+1:01.26
36SMR Mirco BaldacciITA Giovanni AgneseFRA Mitsubishi Paris West TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX4:32:37.4+3:54.15
31JPN Toshihiro AraiNZL Tony SircombeJPN Subaru Team AraiSubaru Impreza WRX STI4:33:37.7+5:54.44
37FIN Jari-Matti LatvalaFIN Miikka AnttilaITA Motoring ClubSubaru Impreza WRX STI4:36:11.2+7:27.93
32ARG Marcos LigatoARG Rubén GarcíaARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX4:41:48.2+13:04.92
40ITA Stefano MarriniITA Sandroni TizianaITA Errani Team GroupMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX4:44:58.3+16:15.01
42RUS Sergey UspenskiyRUS Dmitriy EremeevRUS Subaru Rally Team RussiaSubaru Impreza WRX STI4:49:35.8+20:52.50
34ARG Sebastián BeltranCHL Ricardo RojasARG Tango Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX4:52:02.5+23:19.20
46GBR Nigel HeathGBR Steve LancasterGBR PSM MotorsportSubaru Impreza WRX STI4:58:07.0+29:23.70
41JPN Takuma KamadaJPN Hakaru IchinoJPN Subaru Team QuasysSubaru Impreza WRX STI5:03:11.2+34:27.90
43SVN Andrej JerebSVN Miran KacinLAT OMV CEE World Rally TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX5:10:08.6+41:25.30
60GRE Dimitris NassoulasGRE Mihalis PatrikoussisGRE Eko Racing TeamMitsubishi Lancer Evo VII5:21:50.1+53:06.80
38POL Leszek KuzajPOL Maciej SzczepaniakJPN Syms Rally TeamSubaru Impreza WRX STIAccident0

Championship Standings

Pos.Drivers' ChampionshipMoveDriverPoints
1[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]QAT Nasser Al-Attiyah34
2[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 1SMR Mirco Baldacci17
3[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 1JPN Toshihiro Arai15
4[[File:1downarrow red.svg10px]] 2POL Leszek Kuzaj13
5[[File:1rightarrow blue.svg10px]]JPN Fumio Nutahara10

References

References

  1. https://www.ewrc-results.com/timetable/8-bp-ultimate-acropolis-rally-of-greece-2006/
  2. Shacki. "Season 2006 rally - eWRC-results".
  3. Shacki. "Final results BP Ultimate Acropolis Rally of Greece 2006".
  4. Shacki. "Entry list BP Ultimate Acropolis Rally of Greece 2006".
  5. https://www.ewrc-results.com/timetable/8-bp-ultimate-acropolis-rally-of-greece-2006/
  6. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/solberg-tops-acropolis-shakedown-4401871/4401871/
  7. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/loeb-takes-early-acropolis-lead-4401840/4401840/
  8. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/gronholm-pulls-away-in-greece-4401842/4401842/
  9. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/gronholm-dominates-leg-one-4401813/4401813/
  10. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/loeb-closes-in-on-gronholm-4401824/4401824/
  11. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/loeb-fears-damage-is-too-severe-4403799/4403799/
  12. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/gronholm-moves-clear-in-greece-4403793/4403793/
  13. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/gronholm-extends-lead-further-4403772/4403772/
  14. https://www.autosport.com/wrc/news/gronholm-clinches-dominant-win-4403777/4403777/
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