Cardiff, October 23 2009 – Pirelli places its trust in Scorpion tyres for the Rally of Great Britain, the last stage of the WRC, now having reached its 65th British edition. The rally takes place on the gravel roads around Cardiff, but at a different time of year from usual. This means that instead of the normal heavy rainfall, uneven roads, slippery land, mud and insidious special stages during the Rally GB, this year we may enjoy a dry rally in milder weather conditions. Pirelli will use soft compound Scorpion tyres as part of the key elements in the race to final victory.

The materials chosen by Scorpion for development and use in the World Rally are absolutely innovative in terms of resistance, with ‘run flat’ technological solutions that not only reduce the risk of puncture to a minimum, but also allow for special stage completion without excessive delays and without damaging the car’s mechanics and bodywork. The strengthened sidewalls resist cuts and abrasions, whilst the deeper grooves guarantee greater tyre endurance, and the angle of the oblique grooves increases the progressivity during cornering.

The Pirelli Scorpion looks set to be decisive in the fight for WRC world champion title, which currently sees Hirvonen (Ford) and Loeb (Citroen) in lead position, just one point apart, after eleven rallies disputed thus far. The Manufacturers and World Production title have, instead, already been assigned respectively to Citroen, one race ahead of time at the Spanish Rally, and to Armindo Araujo, who raced on board a Ralliart Italy team Mitsubishi Lancer. The Rally GB will also be the last race of the 2009 Pirelli Star Driver programme.

Mario Isola, Pirelli Rally Manager, said: “I have every confidence in the handling, performance and wear level of Scorpion ‘Soft’ tyres, although, very probably, we will be racing in very different conditions to those of past years. If it is true that the Welsh roads are rather abrasive, and the temperatures forecast significantly higher than those of previous editions, it is also true that the Pirelli Scorpion ‘Soft’ have been tested both by our engineers and by the teams, in both summer and severe conditions, always showing excellent resistance to wear and high performance levels”.

Milan, September 7 2009 – With a surprising finish decided by the race judges Rally Australia ended with Hirvonen extending his lead over Loeb who in the field had obtained his fifth victory in the World Rally Championship 2009. The non-conformity of the anti-roll bar fitted on the Citroens of Loeb, Sordo and Ogier decided the final results of the difficult Australian round which was a tough challenge for the teams supported by the Pirelli technicians. Pirelli, the sole tyre supplier of the WRC, for the occasion supplied Scorpion tyres, the most suitable for gravel tracks.

The Citroen drivers were penalized by a minute, overturning the finishing order: Hirvonen (Ford) went from second to first and Latvala (Ford) from 5th to 4th. Now, with only two rallies left, Hirvonen has a 5-point lead over Loeb, while Citroen is still leading the manufacturers’ table with a 13-point lead over Ford.   A nasty surprise for Loeb who hadn’t won since Argentina and who had driven an exemplary race in Australia.

Absent from the World Rally Championship calendar since 2006, Rally Australia moved to New South Wales for the first time this year, more than 3500 kilometres away from its former home in Perth. Consequently the gravel stages were a complete step into the unknown for both the competitors and Pirelli, which has an exclusive three-year deal to supply the World Rally Championship with tyres up to the end of the 2010 season.

Although the Italian tyre firm started the event with very little information about the conditions, Pirelli’s hard compound Scorpion rubber – which was being used for the last time this season – stood up to the task admirably. Among the many challenges faced by the crews were a wide range of weather conditions that varied from heavy rain to bright sunshine, sharp rocks, and changing grip levels. Despite these varying parameters, the competition was so close that the top three runners were covered by just a tenth of a second heading into the final day: a record for the World Rally Championship.

As well as counting for a round of the Production Car World Rally Championship, which is also supplied by Pirelli, Rally Australia was the venue for the Asia-Pacific selection in next year’s Pirelli Star Driver scheme. This programme aims to give five drivers from FIA regional championships the chance to contest six rounds of the World Rally Championship in identical Group N cars. New Zealander Hayden Paddon, aged 22, was chosen to represent the Asia-Pacific region on the scheme next year thanks to a strong performance that eventually won him the Group N category in Australia. Newly-crowned Junior World Rally Champion Martin Prokop from the Czech Republic won the Production Car World Championship class.

In a region that is well-known for its outstanding natural beauty, environmental concerns are high on the agenda. All Pirelli Scorpion tyres use oil-free compounds, which already conform to future legislation due to come into force next year.

Pirelli’s Rally Manager Mario Isola concluded: “I don’t remember ever seeing a rally that has been this closely contested between title rivals, underlining the durability and equality of our tyres. The Pirelli Scorpion gravel tyres also worked well on the all-asphalt Tweed superspecial stage, which was used no fewer than six times and formed a notable proportion of the competitive action. Despite some sections that were as rough as the classic Mediterranean gravel rallies, we encountered no major problems with punctures – which has set up a thrilling finale to the season.”

Despite having very little information about the eighth round of the World Rally Championship, which was run on gravel stages close to the holiday resort of Mikolajki, there were no problems with punctures or tyre wear for any of the leading competitors throughout the three-day event.

Conditions were cooler than expected at this time of year in Poland, with occasional rain. Nonetheless, despite the humidity, the stages remained in good condition even when they were used for a second time. Along with the traction and grip provided by the Pirelli Scorpion rubber, this allowed drivers to reach average speeds of close to 130 kph on some of the stages. Ford’s excellent result with its Pirelli tyres has set up a thrilling championship duel with just four rounds of the World Rally Championship left to run.

The new World Rally Championship leader and Rally Poland winner Mikko Hirvonen commented: “Actually, I was surprised by just how much traction and grip there was on the stages. I was definitely expecting worse. Even when I was running first on the road, it wasn’t really a problem for us. We had quite a wide variety of conditions here, but the car and the tyres coped very well with all of them. I’ve really enjoyed this rally, and of course it makes the championship quite interesting now…”
Poland was also the sixth round of the Junior World Rally Championship. A thrilling battle meant that the two candidates for victory – in an R3 car and a Super 1600 car – started the final day separated by less than a second. In the end, it was Kevin Abbring who triumphed at the wheel of a  Pirelli-equipped Renault Clio R3.

Pirelli’s rally manager Mario Isola concluded: “From our point of view it was a perfect rally. All we had to do was supply the teams with the tyres, and there were no other problems for us to deal with. The wear rate has been excellent, while providing everyone with plenty of grip, and there have been no punctures despite some tricky conditions. Our soft compound gravel tyre – which will be used again in Finland and Britain – is seeing much more use compared to last year, but it has shown itself capable of adapting to a very wide range of different conditions. There was a particularly good fight in the Junior World Rally Championship as well. Unlike the main series, competitors are allowed to cut their tyres in the Junior Championship – adding an extra tactical element.”

The next round the World Rally Championship, the legendary Rally Finland, takes place from July 31 to August 2 on fast gravel stages close to Jyvaskyla.