"I'll try to be in the top three for sure in Germany but we will see how it goes," Toni told
Crash.net Radio in an exclusive interview during the summer break. "I will test before and at the test I will try to drive more and push a bit more than at the other tests before the two other rallies [I have done this year]. I am quite happy to drive in Germany because I have normally got good stages times, never good results as we have always had problems, but my stages times have been good in the past there."
Other entrants at the wheel of a WRC car include: Jan Kopecky (Czech RT Skoda Fabia WRC), Francois Duval (First Skoda Fabia WRC), Gareth MacHale (Ford Focus WRC), Stepan Vojtech (Peugeot 307) and Peiter Tsjoen (Ford Focus WRC).
There will be around 15 local drivers, Matthias Kahle the most noticeable and likely to figure the most prominently in his Skoda Fabia WRC.
Schedule:
The rally shows few changes from 2005. It contains a mix of stages in the Mosel vineyards, on the Baumholder military land and in Saarland, each offering totally different characteristics. It begins with a ceremonial start at Trier's historic Porta Nigra on Thursday before venturing into the tricky vineyard roads on Friday where competitors tackle one new stage. The second leg is the longest of the rally. The bulk of the action is on Baumholder while the spectacular end of day test around the streets of St Wendel will be used in the opposite direction this year. The short final leg is centred in Saarland before competitors return to the Trier finish. Bostalsee hosts the single service park. There are 19 stages, eight of which are repeated, covering 351.55km in a route of 1300.48km.
Hot tip:
Pre-event
Sebastien Loeb is the undisputed favourite, given his form in the first half of the season and more importantly the fact he has won this event every year since it joined the WRC schedule back in 2002. Can anyone stop him from making it five in a row? Step forward Marcus Gronholm, who will be his main threat as usual and who needs the maximum ten points if he is to stand any chance of overhauling Loeb in the battle for the 2006 drivers’ title.
Last year:
Sebastien Loeb won the event in 2005 beating his then
Citroen team-mate,
Francois Duval, by over 30 seconds - it was his fourth win in succession in Germany. Marcus Gronholm completed the podium, with
Markko Martin and
Gigi Galli fourth and fifth respectively. There were only three notable retirements, namely Skoda trio, Jan Kopecky, Armin Schwarz and Alex Bengue. Antony Warmbold did not start after crashing in the recce.
