2006 Rally of Turkey
The 2006 Rally of Turkey was a motor racing event for rally cars that was held over three days between 13 and 15 October 2006. It marked the 7th running of the Rally of Turkey, and was the thirteenth round of the 2006 World Rally Championship season.[2] The event was also the eighth round of the 2006 Junior WRC. The 2006 event was based in Kemer in Turkey and was contested over nineteen special stages, covering a total competitive distance of 337.79 km (209.89 miles).
Sebastien Loeb, along with Kronos Citroën World Rally Team were the defending rally winners, but Loeb would not enter the rally after breaking his arm in a mountain biking accident.[3]Colin McRae would take Loeb's place, in what would end up being his last rally before his death the next year.[4] He would retire on the final stage with mechanical issues.
Marcus Gronholm and Timo Rautiainen won the rally, their first rally win since the 2006 Rally Finland.
Background
Entry list
The following crews were set to enter the rally. The event was open to crews competing in the World Rally Championship and its support category, the Junior WRC, as well as privateer entries that were not registered to score points in the manufacturer's championship. Fifteen were entered under World Rally Car regulations, as were seventeen in the Junior WRC category.[5]
| No. | Driver | Co-Driver | Entrant | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 |  Xavier Pons | Carlos del Barrio |  Kronos Racing | Citroën Xsara WRC |
| 15 |  Jan Kopecký | Filip Schovánek | Czech RT Škoda Kopecký | Škoda Fabia WRC |
| 16 | François Duval |  Patrick Pivato | First Motorsport Škoda | Škoda Fabia WRC |
Itinerary
All dates and times are EEST (UTC+3).
| Date | No. | Time span | Stage name | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 October | — | After 0:00 | Okić [Shakedown] | 3.00 km |
| 13 October | ||||
| SS3 | After 9:24 | Kumluca 1 | 9.90 km | |
 | 10:54 | Service A, Kemer | N/a | |
| SS5 | After 13:05 | Myra 2 | 10.93 km | |
| SS6 | After 13:48 | Kumluca 2 | 9.90 km | |
| 15:18 | Service B, Kemer | N/a | |
| SS7 | After 16:11 | Tekirova 1 | 5.50 km | |
| SS8 | After 17:09 | Phaselis 1 | 29.28 km | |
| SS9 | After 19:22 | Akdeniz University 1 | 5.20 km | |
| 20:42 | Service C, Kemer | N/a | |
| 14 October | | 8:00 | Service D, Kemer | N/a |
| SS10 | After 8:33 | Kemer 1 | 20.50 km | |
| SS11 | After 9:21 | Silyon 1 | 27.36 km | |
| 11:11 | Service E, Kemer | N/a | |
| SS12 | After 12:04 | Kemer 2 | 20.50 km | |
| SS13 | After 12:52 | Silyon 2 | 27.36 km | |
| 14:42 | Service F, Kemer | N/a | |
| SS14 | After 16:00 | Chimera 1 | 16.91 km | |
| SS15 | After 16:58 | Phaselis 2 | 16.58 km | |
| SS16 | After 19:11 | Akdeniz University 2 | 5.20 km | |
| 20:31 | Service G, Kemer | N/a | |
| 15 October | | 9:15 | Service H, Kemer | N/a |
| SS17 | After 9:48 | Tekirova 2 | 5.50 km | |
| SS18 | After 10:31 | Chimera 2 | 16.91 km | |
| SS19 | After 11:19 | Olympos | 28.55 km | |
| 12:42 | Service I, Kemer | N/a | |
| Source:[6] | ||||
Report
Overall
Summary
Before the event began, the service park and stages were hit with a large storm that damaged some of the teams' service areas. The rain continued throughout the shakedown, where Solberg was fastest.[7]
Friday saw more rain; stages 1, 2, and 4 were cancelled, and stage 5 was shortened, due to poor conditions. Many drivers commented on the slippery, muddy conditions. It was Gronholm with the fastest times in the first two legs, where conditions were the most treacherous. Rovanpera would lose a wheel on stage 3, while McRae was cautious due to his lack of experience in the car under such challenging conditions.[8] Petter Solberg would win all 3 stages in the final leg of the day, but it was not enough to catch Gronholm, who lead at the end of the day.[9]
Saturday saw dry conditions in the morning, but the roads remained difficult due to the rough nature of the stages. Gronholm, Hirvonen, and Solberg would trade stage wins throughout the day, until Solberg hit a rock and became stuck in a ditch on stage 14, forcing his retirement.[10] The second leg of the day saw rain return, as well as spats of hail and snow. With Solberg out of contention, Gronholm's nearest competitor, his teammate Hirvonen, was over two minutes behind. Gronholm would lead at the end of the second day, despite calling the nature of the rally a "nightmare."[11]
On the final day, Gronholm and Hirvonen would finish the rally with a Ford 1-2. Petter's brother Henning Solberg would round out the podium after surviving the terrible conditions of the previous few days. Petter would win two of the three Sunday stages, but it would not be enough to earn any points. Meanwhile, Atkinson, who had remained in a good position throughout the rally, would fall two places to 6th on the last day. McRae would approach the end of the day in 6th, only to retire due to electrical malfunctions on the last stage.[12]
Classification
Special Stages
All dates and times are EEST (UTC+3).
| Day | Stage | Time | Name | Length (km) | Winner | Time | Rally leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1(13 Oct) | SS1 | 07:58 | Perge 1 | 22.43 | Stage cancelled | ||
| SS2 | 08:41 | Myra 1 | 24.14 | Stage cancelled | |||
| SS3 | 09:24 | Kumluca 1 | 9.89 |  Marcus Grönholm | 7:42.7 | Marcus Grönholm | |
| SS4 | 12:22 | Perge 2 | 22.43 | Stage cancelled | |||
| SS5 | 13:05 | Mrya 2 | 24.14 | Marcus Grönholm | 8:54.0 | ||
| SS6 | 13:48 | Kumluca 2 | 9.89 | Marcus Grönholm | 7:21.3 | ||
| SS7 | 16:11 | Tekirova 1 | 5.50 |  Petter Solberg | 4:46.5 | ||
| SS8 | 17:09 | Phaselis | 29.28 | Petter Solberg | 24:17.1 | ||
| SS9 | 19:22 | Akdeniz University 1 | 5.19 | Petter Solberg | 4:12.6 | ||
| 2(14 Oct) | SS10 | 08:33 | Kemer 1 | 20.50 | Petter Solberg | 14:54.9 | |
| SS11 | 09:21 | Silyon 1 | 27.36 | Marcus Grönholm | 20:55.9 | ||
| SS12 | 12:04 | Kemer 2 | 20.50 | Marcus Grönholm | 14:26.7 | ||
| SS13 | 12:52 | Silyon 2 | 27.36 | Mikko Hirvonen | 20:21.4 | ||
| SS14 | 16:00 | Chimera 1 | 16.90 | Petter Solberg | 12:22.5 | ||
| SS15 | 16:58 | Phaselis 2 | 29.28 | Dani Sordo | 24:52.3 | ||
| SS16 | 19:11 | Akdeniz University 2 | 5.19 | Mikko Hirvonen | 4:06.5 | ||
| 3(15 Oct) | SS17 | 09:48 | Tekirova 2 | 5.50 | François Duval | 4:11.5 | |
| SS18 | 10:31 | Chimera 2 | 16.90 | Petter Solberg | 12:06.9 | ||
| SS19 | 11:19 | Olympos | 28.54 | Petter Solberg | 21:47.3 | ||
Championship Standings
| Pos. | Drivers' Championship | Manufacturers' Championship | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Move | Driver | Points | Move | Manufacturer | Points | |||
| 1 |  | Sébastien Loeb | 112 |  1 |  BP Ford World Rally Team | 153 | ||
| 2 | | Marcus Gronholm | 87 |  1 | Kronos Citroën World Rally Team | 145 | ||
| 3 | 1 | Mikko Hirvonen | 47 | |  Subaru World Rally Team | 83 | ||
| 4 | 1 | Dani Sordo | 43 | | OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team | 67 | ||
| 5 | |  Manfred Stohl | 34 | | Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team | 35 | ||
Junior WRC
Classification
Championship Standings
| Pos. | Drivers' Championship | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Move | Driver | Points | ||
| 1 | 3 |  Urmo Aava | 30 | |
| 2 | 1 |  Per-Gunnar Andersson | 29 | |
| 3 | 1 | Patrik Sandell | 28 | |
| 4 | 1 | Guy Wilks | 26 | |
| 5 | |  Conrad Rautenbach | 25 | |
References
- ↑"Itinerary Rally of Turkey 2006".
- ↑Shacki. "Season 2006 rally - eWRC-results". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
- ↑"Loeb to miss Rally of Turkey after breaking arm". ESPN.com. 2006-09-27. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
- ↑"Colin McRae, 39, World Rally Champion, Is Dead". The New York Times. 20 September 2007. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
- ↑Shacki. "Entry list Rally of Turkey 2006". eWRC-results.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
- ↑"Itinerary Rally of Turkey 2006".
- ↑Freemen, Glenn (October 12, 2006). "Storms hit service park". www.autosport.com. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
- ↑"Gronholm Dominates in the Wet". www.autosport.com.
- ↑"Solberg ends day on a high". Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2025-08-18.
- ↑"Subaru buoyed despite retirement". Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2025-08-18.
- ↑"Gronholm leading Ford one-two". Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2025-08-18.
- ↑"Gronholm takes vital Turkish win". Archived from the original on 2025-01-21. Retrieved 2025-08-18.
External links
- 2006 in Turkish motorsport
- 2006 World Rally Championship season
- Rally of Turkey
- October 2006 sports events in Turkey