First stage win for Fabia WRC

From http://www.seventhgear.com/uk/en/news_view.asp?cid=4&nid=97897

The Skoda Motorsport World Rally Team has continued to set new records on the second day of Rallye Deutschland.

Armin Schwarz gained the first fastest stage time for the Fabia on a WRC event when he won a rain-soaked SS13 and set two other top three times. However his overall position in the rally had slipped when he suffered a blown turbo on the previous 40kms stage.

"This morning the conditions were really bad but the car felt fine and we had the perfect tyre choice," said Schwarz. "I was convinced that we could get into the top 10 but soon after the start of Panzerplatte we lost the turbo and there was no power any more. I thought we might not be able to continue but I am glad we did as getting the Fabia's first stage win was a good reward for everyone's effort."

Toni Gardemeister meanwhile enjoyed a solid and competitive drive today despite heavy rain and strong winds that made the 171.42kms of the Baumholder military area treacherous and saw several big accidents among the leading crews. He set top six times on six of today's first eight stages.

"It was very, very wet on the first two stages today but we had the same tyres as Armin and they were perfect," noted the Finn. "There is a good balance in the car and I have a lot of confidence in it. It's difficult to say how hard we are driving. You need clean lines when there is so much mud on the road. It feels really slow but then you are surprised how good the times are."

'Guest' driver Roman Kresta retired from seventh position after he slid off the road 7.5kms after the start of today's first stage and suffered minor damage to the suspension. With almost 80kms of stages to go before he could reach service it was not possible for him to continue but he has the chance to restart tomorrow's final leg under the new SupeRally system.

"The weather this morning was incredible! There was some fog and the road was so wet and muddy by the time I started the stage. It was a right hand bend and I just spun off the road," commented Kresta. "A part of the suspension was damaged so it was impossible to finish the stage and three more to service."

Following this evening's superspecial at St Wendel Gardemeister and Schwarz were seventh and 13th in the overall positions.

Team boss Martin Muehlmeier concluded: "Armin showed today that the Fabia can be very fast while Toni has been both quick and consistent in difficult conditions. Roman was unlucky that a small mistake brought a big penalty."