GREECE [J] WRC - 23-26 Jun 05

Posted: June 28, 2005 1:02 PM

In the Junior World Rally Championship, it has become a well known fact that the Acropolis rally is a real nightmare for the small front wheel dive cars. The terrain is rough for the World rally cars but is even harder on the Super 1600s which start behind the powerful four wheel drive vehicles. The target on this event remains to get past the obstacles with as little damage as possible. Making it to the finish represents a real achievement and those who succeed are almost sure to score points.

Kris Meeke, Chris Patterson and their C2 Super 1600 of the Kronos Racing team got to the finish. Claiming sixth position, Kris scored three valuable points and cannot be unhappy : "I don't forget that after we broke the rear left suspension arm on Friday, we were almost last in the rankings. This morning (Sunday) I was lying in tenth ! These three points allow us to maintain a good position compared to the new Championship leader who has participated in one more event than us so far. I'm also satisfied that we experienced no other problem than the one previously described. We've found a performing set-up and we set three fastest times. Now the rough events are behind us and another part of the Championship begins. I'm confident for the rest of the season. "

"We are disappointed," admitted Engineer Alexis Avril. "We have experienced some problems here that we never did before or in testing, such as the big stones stuck in the rails. Maybe our test stages were too 'smooth' to prepare for such a fight on such severe terrain. We will naturally meticulously analyse the parts which have caused our problems and we will immediately work to prepare the rally of Finland."

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• Meeke looks to consolidate JWRC lead

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21/06/05
Meeke looks to consolidate JWRC lead
Rising British star Kris Meeke leads the Junior World Rally Championship going into this weekend’s Acropolis Rally in Greece (June 23-26th). There are eight events qualifying for the JWRC, which is the showcase for up and coming young drivers aspiring to graduate to the highest level of the World Rally Championship.

The drivers, however, can only score on seven rounds of the series. The Colin McRae Motorsport Driver, having chosen to drop the second round of the Championship in Mexico, is therefore in a strong position to challenge for the title as, unlike some of his major rivals, he is now able to score points on all of the five remaining events.

Meeke is hoping to keep his 2005 run of podium places intact when he starts the Acropolis Rally with the 2.4 km Super Special Stage in the Olympic Stadium in Athens this Thursday afternoon. The Team Kronos Citroen C2 Super 1600 proved 100% reliable on the last round in Sardinia where the conditions were similar to those that will be encountered in Greece this weekend. Rivals Suzuki had an extensive set-up test in Greece last week and should prove to be the major challengers to the Kronos Citroen C2 drivers.

Having competed on this classic event on two previous occasions Meeke and co-driver Chris Patterson are well aware of the challenges of this hot, rough and demanding rally. Kris has recently stepped up his fitness regime and is confident that this will ensure that he will be able to cope with the extreme physical demands and cockpit temperatures that have to be endured over the 4 days of the event.

More information and Regular updates will appear on

McRae Motorsport (Colin, Alister, Jimmy, & Kris Meeke)

throughout the event.

• 2005 World Rally Championship