Racing Lancer takes first win at 08 Baja Portalegre

FIA INTERNATIONAL CUP FOR CROSS COUNTRY BAJAS
BAJA PORTALEGRE 500
02 NOVEMBER 2008
DAY 3

NERPOR - NERPOR (Portugal):
Road section: 0.10km - Service (10 minutes) - Road section: 28.33km
SS4: 110.00km
Road section: 5.86km - Rally finish
Total distance: 144.29km

VICTORY FOR RACING LANCER OF TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART ON ITS FIRST EVENT

MITSUBISHI RACING LANCER'S FIRST VICTORY

A polished performance from Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (France) and everyone at Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart on this weekend's Baja Portalegre 500 has taken the brand new Racing Lancer to its first victory, straight from the box. Mitsubishi's latest cross-country rally car, which will take over from the successful Pajero/Montero Evolution on next January's Dakar, ran perfectly reliably throughout the three-day Portuguese event to win by the margin of 4 minutes 3 seconds after 515.16km of stages.

What counted possibly more than the final result, however, is the fact that the team was able to profit from the final round of the 2008 FIA Cup for Cross-Country Bajas to validate recent development work on the new car in the specific conditions of the fast, twisty mountain tracks near Portalegre.

The Racing Lancer also covered some 5,000km in southern Morocco shortly before the start of this weekend's competition and Team Director Dominique Serieys (France) is particularly pleased with the outcome of this solid, long-term groundwork: "Today's result rounds off another successful season for Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart which ends 2008 with three wins and two second places to its name. Everyone has done a tremendous job ths year. That includes the stafat MMSP, the people at MMC who look after the engines and, of course, our four crews. It was Stéphane who took the spoils today, but Nani Roma (Spain), Luc Alphand (France) and Hiroshi Masuoka (Japan) have all played vital roles, too."

This weekend saw Stéphane Peterhansel and his co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret recover from a harmless spin on Friday's super-special and a puncture on Saturday morning's SS2 to pull more than four minutes clear at the top of the leaderboard by the end of Day 2. A quick, yet safe pace then enabled the French pair to come through this morning's drier but equally tricky 110km stage to kick off the Racing Lancer's competition career on a high note. "After more than a year of hard work to make the Racing Lancer as competitive as it is today, it is a fitting reward for everyone in the team to have kicked off the new car's scorecard with a victory here in Portugal," observed the French driver. "It was an honour for me to be chosen by Mitsubishi to give the Racing Lancer its first outing, and it's nice to have succeeded in paying back that confidence with a win."

Having steered the petrol-powered Pajero/Montero Evolution MPR13 to victory on September's PAX Rally, which visited the same part of Portugal as this weekend's Baja, Stéphane Peterhansel is ideally qualified to compare the performance of the Racing Lancer with that of its predecessor. "I was especially impressed by two things over the past three days," he reported. "The first concerns the engine: the new 3-litre V6 marks a big improvement in all areas, but it is especially strong out of the slower turns. You can feel the torque and acceleration of the turbo-diesel powerplant pull you through the corner and give you the speed for the next straight� The car's other main strength is its chassis. An event like the Portuguese Baja calls for a specific configuration and we essentially defined a basic set-up for the weekend by extrapolating from what we learned in Morocco. Those settings worked extremely well, and I was pleasantly surprised by the ability of the suspension to soak up the terrain, as well as by the front-end's directional precision."

"Although this event was short, the conditions turned out to be quite varied, and that was obviously positive for our mission here in Portugal," added co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret. "The terrain was essentially twisty, but quite fast and very delicate, too, so we were able to establish some good benchmarks. We also succeeded in keeping to the initial game-plan to win with a big enough margin to cover a possible puncture on the final day."

Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart will remain in Portugal after the Baja Portalegre 500 for a little further testing before spending time in Spain, for engine calibration work at high altitude. With the 2009 Dakar fast approaching, the car which contested this weekend's event will continue to be used for testing duty, while the official shakedown of the four cars currently under construction for the rally itself will take place in France (Le Creusot), on December 15, before their transport to South America by plane five days later.

FINAL OVERALL CLASSIFICATION
Pos	Driver Co-Driver	Nat	Vehicle	Cat	Total Time	Diff Leader
1	Stephane Peterhansel Jean-Paul Cottret	F F	MITSUBISHI RACING LANCER	T1.2	6:11:48	**:**:**.*
2	Filipe Campos Jaime Baptista	P P	BMW X3	T1.2	6:15:51	4:03
3	Miguel Barbosa Luis Ramalho	P P	BMW X3	T1.2	6:22:25	10:37
4	Tonnie Van Deijne Wouter Van Deijne	NL NL	MITSUBISHI L200 EVO	T1.1	6:35:50	24:02
5	Pedro Grancha Paulo Primaz	P P	NISSAN NAVARA OFF ROAD	T1.1	6:37:06	25:18
6	Ricardo Leal dos Santos Joao Luz	P P	BMW X5	T1.2	6:38:39	26:51
7	Miroslav Zapletal Tomas Ourednicek	CZ NL	MITSUBISHI L200	T1.1	6:40:44	28:56
8	Joao Ramos Jesus Vitor	P P	TOYOTA RAV 4	T1.2	6:47:52	36:04

Racing Lancer takes lead in the 2nd day of Baja Portalegre

FIA INTERNATIONAL CUP FOR CROSS COUNTRY BAJAS
BAJA PORTALEGRE 500
01 NOVEMBER 2008
LEG 2

NERPOR - NERPOR (Portugal):
Road section: 0.10km - Service (10 minutes) - Road section: 7.17km
SS2: 140.00km
Road section: 5.86km - Service (40 minutes) - Road section: 7.30km
SS3: 258.98km
Road section: 5.86km - Service (3 hours)
Total distance: 425.37km

TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART'S NEW RACING LANCER TAKES CONTROL TO MARK ITS DEBUT IN PORTUGAL

The first full day of competition has seen Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (France) power the Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Racing Lancer to the top of the Baja Portalegre 500's provisional leaderboard. The Mitsubishi pair lost a little ground on Friday's short super-special but profited from this morning's 140km stage to the southwest of Portalegre to take control of the fifth and final round of the 2008 FIA Cup for Cross-Country Bajas.

The new Racing Lancer, which is making its competition debut this weekend in Portugal, continued to revel in the cold, damp conditions on the day's second test (258.98km) to pull even further clear and take the French crew 4 minutes 10 seconds clear of their closest chasers with just 110km of competitive action remaining on Sunday morning.

"I pushed quite hard on the first stage, although I tried to keep my driving as smooth and tidy as possible, because the conditions were extremely treacherous and I didn't want to take any risks," reported Stéphane Peterhansel at service this evening. "We dropped a little ground after stopping to change a punctured tyre after 25km but we managed to recover that time to claim SS2 by 32 seconds. The Racing Lancer feels really competitive. You can sense all the torque pulling you out of the tighter corners and up the steeper climbs. I was very pleased with the front suspension, too; I found it to be very precise and efficient on this type of terrain. We kept to the same sort of rhythm on this afternoon's longer test because that was equally as tricky, with lots of water on the ground. The problem was that the conditions weren't predictable, so you had to be on the alert all the time just in case you came across a big puddle under braking, for instance"

"There was effectively plenty of standing water about," confirms Stéphane Peterhansel's co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret. "The conditions were very slippery and it could have been so easy to get caught out in certain places. But like Stéphane, I thoroughly enjoy the relatively fast stages in this region which is basically the same part of Portugal which hosted the Rali Transiberico and the PAX Rally earlier in the year. On top of that, the fact that we lost time on Friday afternoon meant that we had a low start order, and that actually turned out to be a good thing: there was absolutely no dust, of course, and the first cars through tended to cut through the slippery top film to expose a firmer base underneath, which meant we benefited from good grip."

Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Director Dominique Serieys praised his crew for their brighten performance over today's challenging terrain, but repeated that the team is here in Portugal with a view to adding kilometres on the new Racing Lancer's clock: "The weather conditions really weren't nice, especially early on, but Stéphane and Jean-Paul did a fine job to come through the day unscathed. They are professionals and know what is expected of them this weekend, which is essentially to fine-tune the final details of the new Racing Lancer's development before January's Dakar."

The programme of the last day of the 2008 Baja Portalegre 500 features a single 110km stage before the finish ceremony in Nerpor/Portalegre later in the morning. Following the poor weather that has marked the event so far, crews could well be greeted by a little sunshine as they set off for the final leg early on Sunday morning.

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION AFTER LEG 2
Pos	Driver Co-Driver	Nat	Vehicle	Cat	Total Time	Diff Leader
1	Stephane Peterhansel Jean-Paul Cottret	F F	MITSUBISHI RACING LANCER	T1.2	4:47:33	**:**:**.*
2	Filipe Campos Jaime Baptista	P P	BMW X3	T1.2	4:51:45	4:12
3	Miguel Barbosa Luis Ramalho	P P	BMW X3	T1.2	4:57:33	10:00
4	Pedro Grancha Paulo Primaz	P P	NISSAN NAVARA OFF ROAD	T1.1	4:59:44	12:11
5	Tonnie Van Deijne Wouter Van Deijne	CZ CZ	MITSUBISHI L200 EVO	T1.1	5:04:03	16:30
6	Ricardo Leal dos Santos Joao Luz	P P	BMW X5	T1.2	5:10:08	22:35
7	Miroslav Zapletal Tomas Ourednicek	CZ NL	MITSUBISHI L200	T1.1	5:12:25	24:52
8	Joao Ramos Jesus Vitor	P P	TOYOTA RAV 4	T1.2	5:16:30	28:57

Racing Lancer makes debut on muddy Super Special

FIA INTERNATIONAL CUP FOR CROSS COUNTRY BAJAS
BAJA PORTALEGRE 500
31 OCTOBER 2008
LEG 1

NERPOR - NERPOR (Portugal):
Road section - 7.27km
SS1 (Super Special) - 6.18km
Road section - 6.71km
Total distance: 20.16km

THE NEW MITSUBISHI RACING LANCER MAKES DEBUT ON THE MUDDY SUPER-SPECIAL IN PORTUGAL SUPER SPECIAL CLASSIFICATION

The cross-country rallying career of the brand new Mitsubishi Racing Lancer kicked off today with the short super-special which served as appetiser for this weekend's 2008 Baja Portalegre 500. However, while Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart would obviously have preferred to have seen the new machine's competition record begin with a fastest time on the short, wet 6.18km test, Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (France) lost valuable seconds when they nudged a barrier shortly before the finish and were finally accredited with the day's 7th fastest time.

"With all the rain that has fallen in this part of the world recently, the cold, muddy conditions weren't easy, especially since we came here directly from a very long test in the south of Morocco. I was therefore a little short of match practice over this sort of narrow, slippery terrain," explained Stéphane Peterhansel who has been entrusted with the mission of giving the Racing Lancer its debut on the Baja Portalegre 500. "I failed to settle into a good rhythm straight away, and I slid into a barrier just a few corners before the finish line. It took me some time to manoeuvre the car back onto the stage and a few cars passed us in the process, so we've dropped several places overall."

"It's a shame, but by no means a catastrophe," observed Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team Director Dominique Serieys (France). "It's obviously never nice to drop time, but the running order of Stéphane and Jean-Paul on tomorrow's stage could actually give them an advantage for the big day they face. Although we would obviously like to mark the Racing Lancer's first outing with a win, the important thing for us this weekend is to learn as much as we can about the car on this sort of terrain and also validate certain aspects of the development work we have covered during the build-up to January's Dakar."

The French driver admits that he and his co-driver Jean-Paul were in two minds prior to the start of today's super-special whether it was preferable to go for a top time, or else take a safe approach to ensure they were not first on the road for Saturday's two long tests which make up the bulk of the Portuguese Baja's competitive distance. "This afternoon's incident means that the decision was taken for us," reflected Stéphane Peterhansel. "The route of this rally is secret, so we don't know what the conditions will be like exactly, but today's super-special didn't seem to cut up too much. Hopefully the same will apply tomorrow. Given the weather, at least dust won't be a problem."

The second leg of the three-day event is the longest of the weekend, with a total distance of 425.37km to cover, including two stages (140.00km and 258.98km) to the southwest and west of Portalegre respectively. Sunday's programme features a single 110.00km test before the official finish in Nerpor/Portalegre at the end of the morning.

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION
Pos	Driver Co-Driver	Nat	Vehicle	Cls	Total Time	Diff Leader
1	Boris Gadasin Vladimir Demyanenko	RUS RUS	NISSAN OVERDRIVE	T1	5:57.4	**:**:**.*
2	Pedro Gameiro Manuel Dominguez	P P	NISSAN NAVARA	T1	6:01.1	0:03.7
3	Ricardo Leal dos Santos Joao Luz	P P	BMW X5	T1	6:01.6	0:04.2
4	Filipe Campos Jaime Baptista	P P	BMW X3	T1	6:04.0	0:06.6
5	Miroslav Zapletal Tomas Ourednicek	CZ CZ	MITSUBISHI L200	T1	6:04.1	0:06.7
6	Joao Ramos Jesus Vitor	P P	TOYOTA RAV 4	T1	6:04.3	0:06.9
7	Stephane Peterhansel Jean-Paul Cottret	F F	MITSUBISHI RACING LANCER	T1	6:06.3	0:08.9
8	Tonnie Van Deijne Wouter Van Deijne	CZ CZ	MITSUBISHI L200 EVO	T1	6:06.3	0:08.9

TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART READY FOR RACING LANCER'S COMPETITION DEBUT

FIA INTERNATIONAL CUP FOR CROSS COUNTRY BAJAS
BAJA PORTALEGRE 500
30 OCTOBER 2008
PRE-START
TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART READY FOR RACING LANCER'S COMPETITION DEBUT

The Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart team has chosen this weekend's Baja Portalegre 500 in Portugal for the official competition debut of its latest cross-country rally car, the new diesel-powered Racing Lancer.

A single car has been entered for Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret (France) who will contest the three-day event which features a total route length of 589.82km, including 515.16km divided into four special stages. The fifth and final round of the 2008 FIA Cup for Cross-Country Bajas is based in Portalegre which is situated 230km northeast of the Portuguese capital Lisbon.

Mitsubishi's 3-litre V6-engined Racing Lancer, which delivers more than 280bhp (206kW), has come straight from a ten-day test session in the south of Morocco where the team was able to fine-tune its suspension and engine settings, as the countdown to the 2009 Dakar in Argentina and Chile enters its final phase. After the tests, the car was revised and prepared for the Baja Portalegre 500, in Morocco, before being transported by road to Portugal in time for Friday afternoon's start.

"This event is the final active phase in our Dakar 2009 preparations which began in earnest last May," observed Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart team Director, Dominique Serieys. "It comes immediately after our third test session of the year, in Morocco where we covered approximately 5,000km with the Racing Lancer. The conditions weren't at all easy on this last test session due to heavy rain, but the tests enabled us to evaluate and validate the latest parts and tunings. The Baja Portalegre 500 will give us a chance to complete our work and see where we stand compared to the competition.

"The choice of the Portuguese event was also a way of expressing our solidarity with the organiser, Jose Megre, who's fighting illness at the moment," continued Dominique Serieys. "Stéphane Peterhansel was chosen for this important job because he's been closely involved with the Racing Lancer project since the beginning. It wasn't simple to select one driver out of the four, but Stéphane has worked extensively on the new car's engine, transmission and suspensions.His long experience with the Montero/Pajero Evolution means he has a valuable benchmark in his mind which will facilitate comparisons."

"It's a privilege for me to have been given the opportunity to drive the new Mitsubishi Racing Lancer on its maiden competition outing. I'm proud and happy to have been given that honour," admitted Stéphane Peterhansel at the scrutineering on Thursday. "This is our only chance to drive the car on an event before it heads out to Buenos Aires...So we'll use it to validate all the latest evolutions that have been made during the course of its development which started more than a year ago. I find the mission very stimulating.

"Until now our work has focused on African Dakar-style terrain, so this weekend will give us a chance to work on a set-up for twistier, narrower stages which could well be on the menu of this year's Dakar" added the winner of September's thrilling PAX Rally which included similar territory in the mountains near Castelo Branco.

The 2008 Baja Portalegre 500 starts on the afternoon of Friday, October 31st with a short 6.18km super-special. Serious action begins on Saturday with a programme of almost 400km divided into two stages, and the event concludes with a final 110km selective section on Sunday prior to the official finish later the same morning in Portalegre. The conditions are expected to be wet for the first day, with the possibility of clearer weather as the weekend progresses.

Mitsubishi Racing Lancer to make competition debut on Baja Portalegre

New turbodiesel Mitsubishi Racing Lancer to make competition debut on Baja Portalegre
Tokyo, October 27, 2008 — Mitsubishi Motor Corporation (MMC) and its motor sports subsidiary MMSP have entered an all new turbodiesel Racing Lancer (FIA Group T1 Super Production Class) for Portugal's Baja Portalegre (Thursday October 30-Sunday November 2), round six of the 2008 FIA Cup for Cross Country Bajas.

The all-new Racing Lancer will be driven on the Portuguese event by Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart's Stephane Peterhansel (France) and loyal co-driver Jean Paul Cottret (France), with whom Peterhansel has shared all his cross-country rallying successes on four wheels. Peterhansel won six Dakars on two wheels before switching to cars in 1999. Since joining Mitsubishi in 2002, the Frenchman has claimed three further Dakar victories with different iterations of the Pajero/Montero Evolution (in 2004, 2005 and 2007) to become one of the annual marathon's top stars.

To boost power output at all engine speeds, the new Racing Lancer's diesel engine is equipped with a two-stage turbocharger which calls on small and large turbines in accord with engine speed and load. In addition, the team's partner Valeo contributed to the development of a particularly efficient cooling system to cope with the hot climates frequently encountered in cross-country rallying. The 3.0-liter V6 powerplant delivers maximum power of more than 280ps (206kW) and peak torque of 66.3kgm (650Nm). The new car's more aerodynamic body styling is derived from that of the production-model Lancer Sportback*1 in order to cope with the increasing speeds of cross-country rally events.

Other differences compared to the previous car include reduced weight thanks to a new, fully-integrated multi-tubular steel frame, and a lowered positioning of the fuel tank for a lower overall center of gravity. Handling has been further enhanced by the reduced moment of inertia resulting from the revised location for the spare wheels, as well as by significant modifications to the suspension geometry. Performance on rough terrain has been improved, thanks to BOS dampers which can be adjusted through a wider range of settings.

The Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart-run Racing Lancer is equipped with Valeo-developed lighting and Brembo brakes with 16-inch ventilated discs and six-piston calipers all around. Mitsubishi's new cross-country rally challenger sits on 7JJx16 OZ aluminum alloy wheels and BFGoodrich low rolling resistance competition tires (245/80-16).

*1 Scheduled for Japan market release before the end of 2008, the production car will be named Galant Fortis Sportback locally.

See the Mitsubishi Racing Lancer Gallery here: http://paxtech.blogspot.com/search/label/MRX09

[update 30-NOV-08] New Racing Lancer MRX09 Photos

Stephane Peterhansel wins PAX Rally Portugal!!

Stephane Peterhansel wins PAX Rally Portugal!!
Newflash: Stephane Peterhansel [Mitsubishi] maintained a steady push to exert pressure on rally leader Carlos Sainz [Volkswagen] until the very final kilometers of the PAX Rally Portugal. Stephane's victory is also the Mitsubishi Montero MPR13's final victory, as the vehicle will be retired after this rally.Carlos Sainz who was leading by a wide margin, making it almost impossible for Peterhansel to catch up. However the Mitsubishi team pushed hard to maintain pressure on the Volkswagen driver, and pressure finally caught up with Carlos, who rolled his Racing Touareg 2, handing over the victory to Peterhansel.

The PAX Rally Portugal has seen it's purpose being fulfilled. The rally promising intense action from start to finish, which is what exactly happened. The stages being few, the entire rally was fought until the very end. Mitsubishi wins the part 2 of the 2008 Dakar Series, while Volkswagen claimed victory in part 1.

The victory for Mitsubishi is sweeter as they retire a trusted and reliable rally machine, the MPR13. It will be succeeded by the MRX09 Racing Lancer in all future Cross Country Rallies and in the 2009 Dakar in South America.

Pictures and Full press release to follow later.

-= UPDATE =-
Official Press Release from MMSP

DAKAR SERIES
PAX RALLY EM
14 SEPTEMBER 2008
LEG 5

STEPHANE PETERHANSEL TAKES VICTORY IN PORTUGAL FOR REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART TEAM

Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team’s Stéphane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cottret (France) profited from the shortened final stage of the inaugural PAX Rally to clinch a dramatic win this afternoon in Portimao, Portugal. The French crew were fastest on two of the five-day event's six stages and stole victory from the grasp of former WRC champion Carlos Sainz by a margin of 16 seconds after almost 800km of against-the-clock action.

There was further cause for celebration in the Mitsubishi camp thanks to Luc Alphand/Gilles Picard (France) who came third to round off the Dakar Series event and mark the Montero/Pajero Evolution's last competitive outing with a double podium.

A time-consuming roll on Saturday afternoon put team-mates Joan 'Nani' Roma/Lucas Cruz (Spain) out of contention for a top finish, but the Spanish pair's run was rewarded with sixth place overall.

After more than 10 hours of competitive driving through central and southern Portugal since Wednesday morning's start, Peterhansel and Sainz were split by just 31 seconds in the Spaniard's favour going into this morning's stage. When the first half of this test was neutralised because of a nearby forest fire, it looked practically certain that the Frenchman would have to settle for second place, but Sainz went on to make a mistake after the re-start and the Mitsubishi driver pounced on the opportunity to steal first place in a breathtaking finale!

"I know it's a cliché, but an event is never over until the finish line has been crossed, and today's result has shown yet again that nobody should never forget that," beamed Peterhansel after the rally. "Although Carlos made an error, we were in a position to profit from it because we refused to give up trying. We pushed hard all the way and tried to keep the pressure on him as much as possible... It's obviously nice to have won, but I am actually happier with the fact that this victory is an ideal way to mark the end of the career of the Pajero/Montero Evolution. It's been a super car to drive over the years and I owe it so much. This is the best possible way to say thank you for all that!"

"It hasn't been an easy week," added Peterhansel's co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret. "The conditions were very slippery throughout, especially when we were running first on the road. It was vital to stay totally concentrated from start to finish and not make any mistakes"

Osamu Nakayama (Japan), the President of MMSP SAS, was also pleased to see the Pajero/Montero Evolution take its score to 20 cross-country rally wins since its maiden appearance on the 2002 UAE Desert Challenge, a record which includes five straight Dakar wins between 2003 and 2007: "It's the perfect way to send this great car into retirement and hand over to the brand new Racing Lancer’ which is due to makes its official debut in October," he said. "I am very pleased to have included this rally in our programme. It was very well organised and gave Stéphane, Luc and Nani a chance to showcase their ability and commitment with the 2009 Dakar fast approaching. That was the aim of coming here and everyone has fulfilled their mission to the letter."

Luc Alphand/Gilles Picard (France) join Peterhansel in the top-three after hitting the ground running on Day 1 (Wednesday) to give Mitsubishi an early lead following the opening stage in the mountains near Castelo Branco, northeast of Lisbon. The second leg saw the French crew maintain their advantage from the threat of Carlos Sainz and the two drivers completed Thursday's action exactly level at the top of the provisional leaderboard. The switch to sandier terrain on Friday enabled the former WRC champion to go clear in front, while Peterhansel eased into second spot, but Alphand successfully defended his footing on the podium all the way to the finish, helped on his way by an assertive second quickest time on Saturday's SS5.

"This is a great result for the whole team, and Stéphane did a fantastic job," acknowledged the French driver. "The pace was incredibly fast all week and I am pleased with my performance. We didn't make any mistakes, our Pajero/Montero Evolution ran like clockwork and our reward is a podium finish and three top-three times from six, including victory on Wednesday's stage. I would like to say a big thank you to everyone in the team. They have done a remarkable job."

Despite an eloquent second fastest time on SS2 (Thursday), Joan 'Nani' Roma and Lucas Cruz (Spain) were forced to settle for sixth place following a roll on Saturday afternoon. Their car was undamaged but the incident saw the Spanish pair drop almost 10 minutes which ended their challenge for fourth place. "We pushed as hard as we could all week and I am quite pleased with our performance, although I would obviously have preferred to finish higher up the order," remarked Roma after the finish in Portimao. "We end the event strongly but this is above all a great result for the team and a tremendous morale booster as we put the finishing touches to our preparations for January's Dakar"

The final event on Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team’s 2008 competition programme takes the squad back to Portugal for the Baja Portalegre (Thursday, October 30 - Sunday, November 2). The sixth round of the FIA Cross-Country Baja International Cup will mark the debut of the brand new diesel-powered Racing Lancer’ which is due to spearhead Mitsubishi's assault on the 2009 Dakar in South America. A single car has been entered for Stéphane Peterhansel and his co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret.

"We've won today, and I couldn't have wished for a better way to say 'adieu' to the Montero/Pajero Evolution which has enjoyed an exceptional career," concluded Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team Director Dominique Serieys (France). "I think the main lesson to come out of this rally is the fact that our drivers are as mentally and physically strong as ever, and clearly extremely competitive, too. The priority for us now is to use the coming weeks and months to prepare thoroughly for the 2009 Dakar, and our programme includes an important test session with the new Racing Lancer in October before the Baja Portalegre."

Gallery of PAX Rally Portugal Final Leg and Awarding Ceremonies




Podium Positions
1. Stephane Peterhansel/Jean-Paul Cotrett [Mitsubishi] -Mitsubishi Pajero Evolution MPR13
2. Carlos Sainz/Michel Perin [Volkswagen] -Volkswagen Race Touareg 2
3. Luc Alphand/Gilles Picard [Mitsubishi] -Mitsubishi Pajero Evolution MPR13

PAX Rally Scrutineering

DAKAR SERIES
PAX RALLY EM
09 SEPTEMBER 2008
PRE-START

TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART PREPARES FOR PAJERO/MONTERO EVOLUTION’S SWANSONG IN PORTUGAL

TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART

The petrol-powered Mitsubishi Pajero/Montero Evolution – which has built up a uniquely successful record in the world of cross-country rallying - will begin its final competitive outing tomorrow (Wednesday) when the 2008 PAX Rally kicks off in Lisbon, Portugal.

It will be an emotional occasion for Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team and its three-driver line-up who have notched up no fewer than 19 wins between them.

The current MPR13 version will pass the baton later in the year to the brand new diesel-engined ’Racing Lancer’ which is due to make its debut on October’s Baja Portugal in the hands of Stéphane Peterhansel (France). Before then, however, Peterhansel and his co-driver Jean-Paul Cottret (France), plus team-mates Juan ’Nani’ Roma/Lucas Cruz (Spain) and Luc Alphand/Gilles Picard (France) will attempt to profit from the second event of the newly-created Dakar Series to end the current car’s career on a high note.

"This rally is essentially an opportunity for the drivers and the team to stay match fit as our 2008 programme draws to an end and the countdown to the 2009 Dakar begins," notes Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team Director Dominique Serieys (France). "Apart from the fact that this is the Pajero/Montero Evolution’s final event and we would like to mark the occasion with a top result, there is no pressure on the drivers to bring back development information. They will therefore have a free hand to push as hard as they like, even though we are fully aware that they face some very stiff competition this week."

The PAX Rally marks the team’s second visit to Portugal this season following Luc Alphand’s victory earlier in the year on the Rali Transiberico, an event which also saw Nani Roma collect the first stage wins for the diesel-powered Pajero/Montero Evolution MPR14 interim car.

"I led the Transiberico for a short while before hitting mechanical trouble in May, so I will be out for revenge this time," warns Nani Roma. "That said, you only need to look at the entry list to realise that it won’t be easy against our rivals’, but we will keep up the fight all the way to the finish. I’ve competed in Portugal often enough now to have a good feeling for the terrain and I love the stages. I can’t wait to get started…"

Luc Alphand is equally fired up by the prospect of an exciting battle over the next few days: "The rally begins with the longest stage of the week, so it will be vital to hit the ground running and find a strong, quick pace straight away. A good rhythm calls for confidence in your car and the three of us know the Pajero/Montero Evolution by heart. I am clearly familiar with the terrain and that’s obviously a bonus, but then most of the front-runners have been here several times before. The entry list reads like a who’s who of cross-country rallying, so I think we’re in for a tremendous rally."

Like his team-mates, Stéphane Peterhansel is delighted to be back in Portugal and he, too, led the Transiberico early on. "Portugal is ideal territory for cross-country rallying," he observes, "and much of the route will be familiar, although the exact stages are kept secret until just before the start. Those to the north tend to be rocky, but the terrain will become sandier as we head south towards the Algarve region where the Dakar prologue was held two years ago. It’s going to be a technically challenging event, but very enjoyable, too. The weather for the Transiberico was horrible, so let’s hope today’s sunny conditions hold all week."

Competitive action begins tomorrow (Wednesday) and will take crews northeast from the Portuguese capital to Castelo Branco via a 223km stage which covers similar terrain to that seen on the Rali Transiberico. The route will then bring competitors south to Sunday afternoon’s finish in Portimao on the Algarve coast after a total distance of 1,583km, including 829km divided into six stages (one per day, plus two on Friday).

Mitsubishi's MRX09 "Racing Lancer" Competition Debut

2009 DAKAR RALLY

22 August 2008

TEAM REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART IS TARGETING NOVEMBER'S BAJA PORTALEGRE / PORTUGAL FOR THE COMPETITION DEBUT OF MITSUBISHI'S LATEST CROSS-COUNTRY RALLY CAR, THE TURBODIESEL "RACING LANCER"
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and its motorsport unit MMSP have developed a new cross-country rally car, the turbodiesel "Racing Lancer" which will be entered Baja Portalegre / Portugal.

The team's 2008 calendar also features selected rounds of the inaugural Dakar Series, the FIA Cross-Country Rally World Cup and the FIA international Cup for Cross-Country Bajas with the tried and tested Pajero/Montero Evolution.
In parallel to its competition activities, Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart is also furthering the development of the new "Racing Lancer" with the clear objective of winning the Dakar in 2009.

As officially revealed, the team's latest cross-country rally car will be powered by a new turbocharged diesel engine which has already been put through its paces in a specific version of the Pajero/Montero Evolution on the following races: the Central Europe Rally (the first event of the newly-created Dakar Series), the Rali Transiberico (second round of FIA Cross-Country Rally World Cup) and the Baja Espana (round three of the FIA International Cup for Cross-Country Bajas).

Competing at rally speeds against the sport's leading teams has enabled the team to gather a vast amount of valuable data which could not have been obtained through testing alone. Hiroshi Masuoka (Japan) has competed twice with the turbocharged Pajero/Montero Evolution and is typically enthusiastic about the newcomer's potential: "The diesel version is overwhelmingly easy to drive thanks to its tremendous torque which is available over an even broader rev-band," says Masuoka. "It outperforms the petrol-powered car in terms of controllability over challenging terrain, as well as when accelerating out of corners and along high-speed straights. With the right set-up it would be comfortably faster."

Joan 'Nani' Roma (Spain) drove a Pajero/Montero Evolution, with the new turbodiesel grafted into it, on the Rali Transiberico. He reported that he had to adapt his driving style to the new engine's torque characteristics. Roma succeeded in posting three fastest stage times on the Portuguese event and actually led at one point, speaking volumes for the potential of the new engine.

This experimental car covered more than 8,000km in testing and competition, and the engineers in charge of the program have profited from this opportunity to develop a new suspension geometry designed to cope with the different weight distribution and torque characteristics associated with the new turbocharged diesel engine. They have also worked on a new engine compartment layout which is aimed at ensuring better cooling for the engine and auxiliary components. Technical improvements to the turbocharger have produced improved response at low revs, as well as more power at high engine speeds, while reliability has also been enhanced.

The "Racing Lancer" took part in two one-week test sessions in Spain and Morocco towards the end of June following its unveiling earlier in the month. With the basic performance package now confirmed and initial teething problems cured, the team is taking advantage of the considerable experience obtained with the Pajero/Montero Evolution to accelerate the new vehicle's development.

Continuing the build-up to the 2009 Dakar, the team has entered three petrol versions of the Pajero/Montero Evolution for Portugal's PAX Rally, the second event of the newly-created Dakar Series (Tuesday September 9 - Sunday September 14). The three cars will be driven by Stéphane Peterhansel (France), Luc Alphand (France), and Joan "Nani" Roma (Spain). The outing will enable the team to carry out work on the suspension and tires which will be carried over to the Racing Lancer.

The Racing Lancer itself will undergo further testing in Morocco between the end of August and the beginning of September, as well as over the latter part of October. Each test will last approximately two weeks and the car will cover some 4,000km each time. Following its extensive development program, the Racing Lancer will make its official debut on the Baja Portalegre / Portugal, round six of the 2008 FIA Cross-Country Rally World Cup (Thursday October 30 - Sunday November 2). The car will be in the hands of Stéphane Peterhansel, the Dakar's most successful competitor with a total of nine outright wins - on two and four wheels - under his belt.

Mitsubishi MRX09 "Racing Lancer" Gallery