| The route for the 2003 Wales Rally GB was released in early June 2003 and will be subject to revisions in the months leading up to the event. As expected, the organisers picked a more compact course for the 2002 event (even more compact than 2001), as well as limiting the rally to just one service area, the same as in 2001. The route for 2003 is along the same lines, however with some interesting changes. |
| Rhondda, the very popular spectator stage is used again (twice) on the final day which wasn't used even once in 2002. There are also 2 services less than the 2002 event, and this means a very tough Saturday morning, where the drivers will negotiate Crychan and Halfway twice each before the first service of the day. Although this has been organised to improve crowd and competitor safety, to ease traffic congestion, and to make it easier for television companies to transmit the rally live, it has been met with criticism from many rally die-hards. | |
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| Nevertheless, the Wales Rally GB survives as the one of the best rounds of the World Rally Championship, and is proud to continue as the final round of the championship, where so much is at stake every year. However, make the most of it in 2003, as this will change in 2004, as the format of the World Rally Championship develops, with the Wales Rally GB moving to a September date, and hence losing it's position as last round of the WRC. | |||
The 2003 rally will start earlier this year, on the evening of Thursday November 6th with a Super Special stage in Cardiff. The rally will then go on to cover a total of 401 stage kilometres over another 17 stages (18 in total - 1 more than in 2002). With just one service area in Swansea, the lengthy road sections to and from service mean that the overall distance covered by the competitors will be 1600 kilometres. |
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Colin
McRae, who spectacularly rolled
out of the event in 2001 and came a disappointing 5th in 2002, is still
the fan's favourite to win the rally in 2003, blaming his exit in 2001
on a slight miscalculation cutting a corner, and the treacherous conditions
caused by running the stages twice. His "pedal to the metal"
style always makes him the fan's favourite, and his drive in his new Citroen
Xsara will be what the fans have come to see.
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Richard
Burns, the 2001 World Rally Champion, will
be challenging McRae again to win the rally, after a 3rd place in 2001
and a DNF in 2002, he admits that going through a stage twice puts extra
pressure on the cars. "They are always going to be tough stages",
said the Peugeot driver. "And if there are more repeated ones, it
will be even harder on the cars."
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