Ostberg tops Legends and Stars in Helsinki Battle

Mads Ostberg beat both the ‘Legends’ and the ‘Stars’ when he drove in to victory at Helsinki Battle on Sunday.

This friendly event was a great warmup for next week’s Rally Finland. On a track set up in the Hietalahti district of the city, six World Championship drivers were joined by past rally greats such as Markku Alen, Marcus Grönholm, Juha Kankkunen and Tommi Mäkinen. Huge crowds showed up at the event, with tens of thousands of fans came to see their heroes in action.

“It’s always good to win,” said Ostberg. “And this victory is a perfect warm-up for next week’s Rally Finland. The winning feeling will be great to bring with us when we again start the DS3 WRC for the rally. Also, this is the first victory for me with my team Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team.”

The Finland Grand Prix, to be held from 31 July to 3 August, is the fastest event on the World Championship calendar. The Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team enters the second half of the 2014 World Championship aiming for strong result.

“Technically speaking, the Finnish route calls for great precision in the set-up of the cars. It’s a very complicated rally to win,” admitted Didier Clement, the DS3 WRC’s chief operations engineer. “It took us several years before we managed to win here. You need to know the course very well and avoid making even the slightest mistake. It’s a sprint from start to finish and there is virtually no chance of making up any time lost though mistakes.”

To prepare for this round, a test session has been scheduled just before recce. “Nothing is left to chance. More so than elsewhere, the drivers must be able to feel confident in the car. It has to be particularly responsive. Usually, we always look for a balanced set-up, an effective compromise. In Finland, above all else, you need pure speed.”

During these tests, the Citroen Total Abu Dhabi World Rally Team will also be preparing for the future. Michelin will be providing new tyres, which will be making their competitive bow at this rally. The DS3 WRCs will also be equipped with several upgrades as part of the development programme initiated for 2015.