Following the premiere in 2016, the M1 Rallye-Masters are starting into their 2nd year.
Regulations are now fixed for 3 years, new is the category LG2 for lower-performing cars.
The calendar consists of 7 events but only the 4 best results are counted for the championship.
4 teams are starting at the first rally
First leader is Günther Knobloch in a Subaru WRX STi
Enrico Windisch (Renault Clio) wants to get experience this year.
Michael Röck starts into his first ever rally after winning a young-driver search
Martin Ritt (Mazda 323) shows how cheap you can do a rally.
Knobloch and codriver Jürgen Rausch are getting to know their new car and win the first rally.
Windisch and Röck are both finishing without any major trouble.
Martin Ritt and his codriver Anna-Maria Obernhuber have some health problems, but finish on P4.
At the second event in Lavanttal, 8 teams are starting.
Daniel Sattler is driving his first rally here
My car is a more-or-less stock Evo X GSR
GSR models are not homologated and therefore allowed im M1 category
I would be lying if I said "I'm not nervous"
It was a lot of preparation
Of course we don't want to risk everything, but we are not here to drive slowly
Last years' M1-winner Reini Sampl starts in his Audi TTS
Christian Zerzawy starts in a VW Lupo
and Christian Pirz built a new car
Of course the car got ready just-in-time for the rally
which means: Wednesday at midnight
we drove the first meters yesterday
Let's see...
"Let's see" is how it is on day 1.
The broken turbo can be fixed during the night and he finishes on P6
Italian guest Ruggero Ravaglioli doesn't have an easy rally
His Ford Mustang sounds good, but the gravel is doesn't suit his car
No chance to go further than P7
Windisch leads LG until an off-road in ss10, which drops him behind Röck
It was a really hard rally, especially the last stages were very long with lots of corners
First in LG2 is a really good result for my second rally, I'm happy
Onboard with Knobloch/Rausch on SS7
Daniel Sattler was even faster than 170kph here, but he couldn't keep it on the road
Electric problems force Sampl to settle for P2
Therefore we see the second Subaru-win
The points are much in favor of Knobloch after 2 rounds, but in LG2 everything is possible
3rd round in Wechselland: rain and fog make it very difficult
Michael Röck is realistic
It's good we have rain today, so I can get to know that as well
If it dries out tomorrow, I already have a little experience
Clean and safe is the favoured strategy, also in the Mazda 323
We already got used to it to go slower where it is dirty and wet
7 teams overcome the tricky friday, only Kurt Huber (Audi S3) has to give up with a technical problem
Sunshine on Saturday, but still challenging
That was too fast for sure
Luckily we found an emergency-route over the meadow and could continue
Christian Pirz could not continue after his off
Martin Ritt and Anna-Maria Obernhuber have the hardest accident
Luckily nobody got hurt in this accident
In the afternoon the biggest jump of the year is on the program
We can only lose in the 1st run. If we are too slow everybody is disappointed
But if we go flatout and destroy something it is even more shame
It is not that easy to get the right line
We don't want to destroy our Subaru there
Knobloch jumps to his 3rd M1-victory
Windisch on P2 gets the LG2-lead back
Harald Ruiner (Nissan Z350) has a little off before the jump
He finishes on P3
Michael Röck finishes 4th
behind him Christian Zerzawy on P5
Schneebergland Rally is 100% gravel
even more surprising that 2 RWD cars find their way there
Andreas Aigner (BMW 650i) sets a strong time on SS1
But a small error on SS2 forces him to retire
Martin Ritt changed got a more robust car after his accident
The Volvo 740 is a bit heavy uphill, but in the downhill parts it is working great
and brings him 25 points
In Weiz, the starting field is bigger again
Teammembers Windisch and Huber are driving as well
How did you come to the idea of presenting your team in that design on all cars?
We are all beginners by now and can't show off with strong results
So we thought with a proper team apperance we get recognized
We are getting better from rally to rally
We think that could go somewhere. It is great fun and that's what is most important
The times in Weiz are not bad. Windisch finishes on P3 and is again fastest LG2-car
After a puncture Kurt Huber finishes on P5
Between those to is Philip Hahn in his Mitsubishi Colt
Martin Ritt in the Volvo finishes on P6
The BMW from Andreas Aigner now is in tarmac setup, but still no luck for him
The help from the local farmer is nice, but not allowed. Aigner gets disqualified
Pirz and Röck both have to retire
A broken turbo sealing in the DS3,
and a damaged front suspension in the Fiesta
In the front Knobloch (Subaru) and Sampl (Audi) are fighting for the win
A broken sensor costs Sampl 2 thirds of his engine power
Therefore Knobloch drives to his 4th win and wins the Rallye-Masters 2017
Winner in M1 and ORC-category: Günther Knobloch - Jürgen Rausch
Günther, did you expect that?
M1 was more-or-less to expect, ORC was definitely more challenging
The new M1-winner can't compete in the 6th round in Liezen due to health problems
Therefore Sampl is the favourite in Liezen
Of course it's a pity that Knobi can't start here, but there are enough other competitors
We like Liezen, we have good memories here
But we still fight with some technical problems
Our goal is of course to be in front in M1
On his way to victory a stone damages the sumpguard on the Audi TT
Sampl has to retire from P1
Many problems also for Ruiner (Nissan Z350), but he finishes 3rd.
Behind him Zerzawy and Ritt have some different problems with their cars
One thinks his car is too short, the other thinks his car is too heavy and too long
But they both enjoy their rally
In front Enrico Windisch wins for the first time and secures his LG2-lead against Michael Röck
The last round in Waldviertel doesn't bring any changes
Ruiner is the only competitor in M1 and he retires in SS10
Here are the final standings
Knobloch wins with 4 victories, Windisch is second in the fastest LG2-car
As 3rd also on the podium is Michael Röck
13 different drivers competed in Rallye-Masters 2017.
Overall there were 107 starts with M1-cars in the first two years
The organisers are happy with that
The Rallye-Masters will continue in 2018
First round will be Rebenland Rallye, 16-17 March 2018
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