1603651247 Clearly the work that was being done by his team in the interim had the car dialled in nicely for the rally proper, which opens with a ceremonial start at 18:00 this evening, and the opening stage an hour later. 1603651247 1602665627 Another classic intra-Mercedes battle for pole position at the 2020 Formula 1 Portuguese Grand Prix is the subject of discussion in the latest episode of the Autosport podcast. The opening 21km stage was won by Toyota's rookie sensation Kalle Rovanpera who moved to the top of the order while Lappi tumbled to seventh. Rally Estonia, the fourth round of this year’s FIA World Rally Championship, has got underway following the Covid hiatus with a 6.23 km pre-event shakedown stage at Abissaare. Buy tickets to Formula 1 races with Autosport's preferred ticketing provider, Experience it Live 1603659047 Fresh from victory in Argentina, Carlos Sainz Sr's World Rally Championship future was under serious consideration in 2004 as bigger priorities emerged. A revised calendar was confirmed by WRC organisers on Thursday, confirming a further five rallies will be run this season in addition to the three held prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Sebastien Ogier is confident a change in fortunes in this season's World Rally Championship will allow him to reel in Toyota team-mate and current leader of the competition, Elfyn Evans IndyCar, Buy tickets to Formula 1 races with Autosport's preferred ticketing provider, Buy tickets to races with Autosport's preferred ticketing provider, Discover the best motorsport videos on the web, The best photography from around the world, A new series from the ACO & Motorsport Network, The world's best motorsport stats database. 1602931590 Autosport 70: A world rally legend says goodbye? 1603411200 FIA rally director Yves Matton added: “I am pleased to announce the 2020 WRC restart calendar following a few months of discussions that have required a great deal of flexibility from all stakeholders in unprecedented times. From a surprise struggler to victory contender, 2020 has been a rollercoaster of a campaign for Honda and its riders. Kimi Raikkonen was predictably underwhelmed when he became F1's most experienced driver at the Eifel Grand Prix, but in an exclusive and revealing interview with Autosport, that could be part of the secret of his success F1, Norris: Stroll "doesn't seem to learn" following crash Estonia will become the 33rd nation to stage a championship round, with its debut set for early-September. Former Volkswagen and Hyundai World Rally Championship driver Andreas Mikkelsen is set to make his first rally appearance of 2020 on next month's Rally Hungary, The first examples of Hyundai Motorsport's newly-unveiled World Rally Championship support series challenger are set to be delivered to customers next summer once an "extensive testing" programme has been completed, Sebastien Ogier is confident a change in fortunes in this season's World Rally Championship will allow him to reel in Toyota team-mate and current leader of the competition, Elfyn Evans, The next generation of World Rally Car will adopt a bespoke 100Kw plug-in hybrid system after the final 'Rally1' technical regulations were agreed by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council, Fresh from victory in Argentina, Carlos Sainz Sr's World Rally Championship future was under serious consideration in 2004 as bigger priorities emerged. WRC cancels Rally Germany, moves Italy date to avoid F1 clash, Estonia WRC: M-Sport’s Esapekka Lappi takes early lead, IndyCar St. Pete: Newgarden wins race, Dixon takes sixth title, Ferrari rubbishes talk of F1 cars not being identical, Red flag at Texas as crash takes out several contenders. Estonia was the 600th WRC round since the championship began in 1973 and marked the championship's return after a six-month pause. The expectation there, and across the sport in general, will build rapidly from now ahead of September’s championship restart.” The Estonian event will comprise a shorter format with two legs on Saturday and Sunday after a shakedown and opening ceremony on Friday. Rory Butcher has received a verbal reprimand and a 'strike' following his last-corner clash with fellow title contender Tom Ingram in the final British Touring Car Championship race at Snetterton “WRC Promoter has worked tirelessly with the FIA, our competitors, teams and potential rallies, in exceptional circumstances, to revise the calendar. Tanak holds a commanding position going into the final day, with part-time team-mate Breen performing a superb job of riding shotgun. It will be based in Tartu, in the east of the country, with the service park at the Estonian National Museum. 1603650407 Scott Dixon clinched his sixth IndyCar championship in a thrilling final race of the season at St Petersburg, which was won by Dixon's main title rival Josef Newgarden In the WRC2 class, Norwegian veteran Mads Ostberg set the pace, clocking the 12th-fastest time at the wheel of his Citroen C3, almost a second clear of the Hyundai pedalled by Ole Christian Veiby. The championship will comprise at least eight events with advanced talks being held with with the Ypres Rally, with the aim of presenting Belgium as another available host country shortly. "I've been pushing [on a] couple of stages, you know, just to make some gap but this afternoon, especially the middle stages, got really rough so I know I can't risk anything," Tanak said after the final stage of the day. Senior government and tourism bosses in Northern Ireland are considering "in detail" a fresh business case for moving the UK World Rally Championship round across the Irish Sea in 2021 Rally Estonia will join the schedule for the first time ever, having previously been run as a promotional event in 2019. Van der Zande dropped from Wayne Taylor Racing line-up for 2021, Derani points finger for Petit Le Mans clash at apologetic Taylor, Covid-19 hits first 2021 event with Bathurst 12 Hours off, Honda to quit Formula 1 after 2021 season, Apologetic Corberi quits motorsport after Lonato incidents, Vettel came ‘close’ to retiring before Aston Martin deal, Hamilton accuses FIA of ‘trying to stop me’ winning after ‘ridiculous’ penalties, Stewart: Hamilton’s numbers helped by longer F1 seasons, Ferrari performance improvement ‘not day and night’, Hamilton battled ‘excrutiating pain’ during Portuguese GP win, Crutchlow to undergo MRI scan following shoulder ‘snap’ in Alcaniz GP. 1603637178 All remaining events are eligible for competitors in the WRC 2 and WRC 3 support categories. BTCC, Newgarden wins in St Petersburg as Dixon claims title F1, Perez close to grid penalty after second reprimand The expectation there, and across the sport in general, will build rapidly from now ahead of September’s championship restart.”. Experience it Live The WRC2 battle became a wild game of snakes and ladders early in the day as overnight leader Mads Ostberg lost half a minute to a puncture in his Citroen C3. The starting order was switched during the lunchtime service, giving points leader Ogier a break from sweeping the stages. F1, Why a decades-old tradition had to be curtailed Hyundai's Ott Tanak took the fourth round of the 2020 World Rally Championship in Estonia by the scruff of the neck and leads after Saturday's 10 stages. Just 0.1 seconds behind the Finn came Toyota’s teenage sensation Kalle Rovanpera, who is keen to pick up his debut season with the same pace and confidence that he showed when the season paused almost six months ago. As the rally began early on Saturday morning, overnight leader Esapekka Lappi's Ford Fiesta WRC was quickly engulfed. Podcast: F1 Portuguese GP Qualifying Report Lewis Hamilton triumphed in Formula 1's 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix ahead of Valtteri Bottas, with Mercedes recovering from slow, slippery opening laps, as Carlos Sainz Jr led the early stages WRC, Ogier needs "a little luck" to close in on Evans Talks with the Croatian Automobile and Karting Federation will also move forward. With the Skoda of Swedish privateer Pontus Tidemand picking its way carefully through the stages to avoid costly damage, the WRC2 leader's baton was briefly passed to the Ford Fiesta of Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux. Speculation linking Sergio Perez with Williams next year will make for uncomfortable reading for George Russell. 1603187105 Future dates for the FIA Junior WRC Championship will be announced separately. Full details will be announced shortly. The driver season standings are currently led by Frenchman Sebastien Ogier (Toyota) with 62 points, followed by Welshman Elfyn Evans (Toyota, 54 points) and Tänak's teammate, Belgian Thierry Neuville (42 points). Today’s news allows the WRC to restart at an appropriate time and ensure a season worthy of world championship status. Search from almost 4,500 motorsport businesses. Why history risks repeating itself for Mercedes' star F1 junior WRC, Ferrari dismisses talk of F1 cars not being identical In Autosport's 29 July issue, the Spaniard hints at what was to come both for himself and the WRC The Belgian began to close on Breen but slid wide on SS7, knocking the right-rear corner off his i20 WRC and forcing him to retire. 1603651117 1603647506 The reigning world champion survived a day in which many fancied runners found their progress stymied by tyre wear and punctures on the fast, flowing gravel stages. In the latest #ThinkingForward interview, Nathalie McGloin talks about helping people with disabilities make it into the world of motorsport. 1603497600 The Estonian event will comprise a shorter format with two legs on Saturday and Sunday after a shakedown and opening ceremony on Friday.