TWO AUSTRALIAN DRIVERS TO TACKLE THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RALLY OF FINLAND WITH THE CITROEN DS3
Australia’s leading rally driver, Chris Atkinson, will joining the country’s most promising young rally driver, Molly Taylor, in tackling this year’s World Championship Rally of Finland, the fastest event in the series and an event that is renowned for high speed ‘yumps’, at the wheel of the Citroen DS3 in August (1-4 August 2012)
Atkinson will be joining the Qatar World Rally Team, replacing its regular driver Nasser Al Attiyah who will be representing his country at the 2012 London Olympics in the shooting team. Molly Taylor will be driving for the Italian United Business Team in one of four drives in the Citroen DS3 which includes two World Championship rounds. Taylor and Atkinson will not, though, be in direct competition with each other, with Atkinson driving the same DS3 WRC that, in hands of eight time World Champion Sébastien Loeb, has been dominating the 2012 World Rally Championship. Like Loeb’s car, Atkinson will have the full support and expertise of the Citroen Racing Team behind it. Taylor will be at the wheel of Citroen DS3 R3T, one of the most popular cars for drivers making the step up into the highest levels of the sport and, therefore, the ideal vehicle in which to develop and hone her driving skills.
The event is not Atkinson’s Citroen debut, having driving the Citroen C4 WRC in the 2009 Rally of Ireland and it was skill he demonstrated in that drive that encouraged Citroen to offer him a drive this year.
“Ever since Chris Atkinson took part in the 2009 Rally Ireland in a C4 WRC, we have kept in touch and maintained good relations with him”, revealed Benoit Nogier, Head of Citroën Racing Technologies. “As Nasser’s Citroën DS3 WRC was available for this rally, we offered Chris the chance to lease the car and compete for the Qatar World Rally Team. We are therefore very pleased to have him back with us in one of our Customer Racing teams for one of the championship’s flagship events.”
After twice winning the Asia Pacific Championship (Super 1600 class), in 2003 and 2004, the Australian driver then went on to compete as a works driver in the WRC. He achieved some strong results throughout the four years he took part in the championship. An experienced and very quick driver on gravel, Chris will be a formidable rival for the rest of the WRC field in Finland.
“We are really looking forward to racing with the Qatar World Rally Team”, enthused Chris Atkinson. “Competing in the best rally in the Championship in the best WRC is a superb opportunity and I can’t wait to test the car to share my feeling for it with the team and give them my initial feedback. We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but we have got everything it takes to go after a good result here.”
(ends)
Picture Caption: Nasser Al Attiyahin this year’s Rally of Argentina at the wheel of the Citroen DS3 WRC that Chris Atkinson will use to contest the 2012 Rally of Finland
For further information:
Citroen Australia Media Web Site:
Miles Williams
/ Tel: (02) 8577 8020General Manager / Fax: (02) 8577 3555
CitroenAustralia / Mob: 0419 800 520
E-Mail:
Edward Rowe
/ Tel: (02) 8577 8015Public Relations Manager / Fax: (02) 8577 3555
CitroenAustralia / Mob: 0407 913 244
E-Mail:
Citroen Australia
Street Address: 862 – 874 Elizabeth Street, Waterloo, Sydney, NSW 2017Australia.
Postal Address: Ateco Automotive Pty Ltd,Pty Ltd,Locked Bag 5018, Alexandria NSW 2015, Australia
Telephone: 02 8577 8000; Direct Telephone 02 8577 8015 Fax: 02 8577 3555. Mobile +61 0407 913 244
A.B.N. 34 000 486 706
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EJR/ejr/1152
7/6/2012