# 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. 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. Colin McRae would take Loeb's place, in what would end up being his last rally before his death the next year. 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.
World Rally Car entries competing in the World Rally Championship :
| No. | Driver | Co-Driver | Entrant | Car | Tyre |
| 1 | Colin McRae | Nicky Grist | Kronos Citroën World Rally Team | Citroën Xsara WRC | BF |
| 2 | Dani Sordo | Marc Martí | Kronos Citroën World Rally Team | Citroën Xsara WRC | BF |
| 3 | Marcus Gronholm | Timo Rautiainen | BP Ford World Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 06 | BF |
| 4 | Mikko Hirvonen | Jarmo Lehtinen | BP Ford World Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 06 | BF |
| 5 | Petter Solberg | Phil Mills | Subaru World Rally Team | Impreza WRC 2006 | P |
| 6 | Chris Atkinson | Glenn Macneall | Subaru World Rally Team | Impreza WRC 2006 | P |
| 7 | Manfred Stohl | Ilka Minor | OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team | Peugeot 307 WRC | BF |
| 8 | Henning Solberg | Cato Menkerud | OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team | Peugeot 307 WRC | BF |
| 9 | Matthew Wilson | Michael Orr | Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 04 | BF |
| 10 | Kosti Katajamäki | Timo Alanne | Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 04 | BF |
| 11 | Harri Rovanperä | Risto Pietiläinen | Red Bull Škoda Team | Škoda Fabia WRC | BF |
| 12 | Andreas Aigner | Klaus Wicha | Red Bull Škoda Team | Škoda Fabia WRC | BF |
Super 1600 entries competing in the Junior WRC :
| No. | Driver | Co-Driver | Entrant | Car |
| 32 | Kris Meeke | Glenn Patterson | PH Sport | Citroën C2 S1600 |
| 33 | Urmo Aava | Kuldar Sikk | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 |
| 35 | Per-Gunnar Andersson | Jonas Andersson | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 |
| 37 | Pavel Valoušek | Zdeněk Hrůza | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 |
| 39 | Conrad Rautenbach | David Senior | Barroso Sport | Renault Clio 1600 |
| 41 | Patrik Sandell | Emil Axelsson | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 |
| 42 | Juliern Pressac | Jack Boyere | PH Sport | Citroën C2 S1600 |
| 43 | Jaan Mölder | Katrin Becker | JM Engineering | Suzuki Ignis 1600 |
| 44 | Michał Kościuszko | Jaroslaw Baran | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 |
| 45 | Jozef Béreš | Petr Starý | Styllex Tuning Motorsport | Suzuki Ignis 1600 |
| 46 | Andrea Cortinovis | Flavio Zanella | Power Car Team | Renault Clio RS |
| 48 | Guy Wilks | Phil Pugh | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 |
| 49 | Martin Prokop | Jan Tománek | Jipocar Czech National Team | Citroën C2 S1600 |
| 51 | Fatih Kara | Cerm Bakancocuklari | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 |
| 52 | Bernd Casier | Frédéric Miclotte | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 |
| 54 | Aaron Burkart | Tanja Geilhausen | OMV Rally Team | Citroën C2 S1600 |
| 55 | Fabio Fiandino | Sabrina de Castelli | PH Sport | Citroën C2 R2 |
Other major entries :
| 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 | SS1 | After 7:58 | Perge 1 | 22.43 km |
| 13 October | SS2 | After 8:41 | Myra 1 | 24.15 km |
| 13 October | SS3 | After 9:24 | Kumluca 1 | 9.90 km |
| 13 October | | 10:54 | Service A, Kemer | — |
| 13 October | SS4 | After 12:22 | Perge 2 | 22.43 km |
| 13 October | SS5 | After 13:05 | Myra 2 | 10.93 km |
| 13 October | SS6 | After 13:48 | Kumluca 2 | 9.90 km |
| 13 October | | 15:18 | Service B, Kemer | — |
| 13 October | SS7 | After 16:11 | Tekirova 1 | 5.50 km |
| 13 October | SS8 | After 17:09 | Phaselis 1 | 29.28 km |
| 13 October | SS9 | After 19:22 | Akdeniz University 1 | 5.20 km |
| 13 October | | 20:42 | Service C, Kemer | — |
| 14 October | | 8:00 | Service D, Kemer | — |
| 14 October | SS10 | After 8:33 | Kemer 1 | 20.50 km |
| 14 October | SS11 | After 9:21 | Silyon 1 | 27.36 km |
| 14 October | | 11:11 | Service E, Kemer | — |
| 14 October | SS12 | After 12:04 | Kemer 2 | 20.50 km |
| 14 October | SS13 | After 12:52 | Silyon 2 | 27.36 km |
| 14 October | | 14:42 | Service F, Kemer | — |
| 14 October | SS14 | After 16:00 | Chimera 1 | 16.91 km |
| 14 October | SS15 | After 16:58 | Phaselis 2 | 16.58 km |
| 14 October | SS16 | After 19:11 | Akdeniz University 2 | 5.20 km |
| 14 October | | 20:31 | Service G, Kemer | — |
| 15 October | | 9:15 | Service H, Kemer | — |
| 15 October | SS17 | After 9:48 | Tekirova 2 | 5.50 km |
| 15 October | SS18 | After 10:31 | Chimera 2 | 16.91 km |
| 15 October | SS19 | After 11:19 | Olympos | 28.55 km |
| 15 October | | 12:42 | Service I, Kemer | — |
| Source: |||||

## 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.
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. 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.
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. 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."
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.

#### Classification

| Position | Position | No. | Driver | Co-driver | Entrant | Car | Time | Difference | Points |
| Event | Class | No. | Driver | Co-driver | Entrant | Car | Time | Difference | Points |
| 1 | 1 | 3 | Marcus Grönholm | Timo Rautiainen | BP Ford World Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 06 | 3:28:16.3 | 0.0 | 10 |
| 2 | 2 | 4 | Mikko Hirvonen | Jarmo Lehtinen | BP Ford World Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 06 | 3:30:39.7 | +2:23.4 | 8 |
| 3 | 3 | 8 | Henning Solberg | Cato Menkerud | OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team | Peugeot 307 WRC | 3:31:22.3 | +3:06.0 | 6 |
| 4 | 4 | 14 | Xavier Pons | Carlos Del Barrio | Kronos Racing | Citroën Xsara WRC | 3:31:43.7 | +3:27.4 | 5 |
| 5 | 5 | 10 | Kosti Katajamäki | Timo Alanne | Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 04 | 3:31:44.8 | +3:28.5 | 4 |
| 6 | 6 | 6 | Chris Atkinson | Glenn MacNeall | Subaru World Rally Team | Subaru Impreza WRC | 3:31:52.8 | +3:36.5 | 3 |
| 7 | 7 | 2 | Dani Sordo | Marc Marti | Kronos Citroën World Rally Team | Citroën Xsara WRC | 3:32:41.1 | +4:24.8 | 2 |
| 8 | 8 | 7 | Manfred Stohl | Ilka Minor | OMV Peugeot Norway World Rally Team | Peugeot 307 WRC | 3:32:46.6 | +4:30.3 | 1 |
| 9 | 9 | 16 | François Duval | Patrick Pivato | First Motorsport Škoda | Škoda Fabia WRC | 3:33:51.9 | +5:36.6 | 0 |
| 10 | 10 | 12 | Andreas Aigner | Klaus Wicha | Red Bull Škoda Team | Škoda Fabia WRC | 3:35:13.7 | +6:57.4 | 0 |
| 11 | 11 | 11 | Harri Rovanperä | Risto Pietiläinen | Red Bull Škoda Team | Škoda Fabia WRC | 3:36:40.7 | +8:24.4 | 0 |
| 12 | 12 | 9 | Matthew Wilson | Michael Orr | Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team | Ford Focus RS WRC 04 | 3:38:08.2 | +9:51.9 | 0 |
| 13 | 13 | 5 | Petter Solberg | Phil Mills | Subaru World Rally Team | Subaru Impreza WRC | 3:38:08.2 | +10:02.2 | 0 |
| Retired SS19 | Retired SS19 | 1 | Colin McRae | Nicky Grist | Kronos Citroën World Rally Team | Citroën Xsara WRC | Mechanical | Mechanical | 0 |
| Retired SS15 | Retired SS15 | 15 | Jan Kopecký | Filip Schovánek | Czech RT Škoda Kopecký | Škoda Fabia WRC | Accident | Accident | 0 |

#### 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 | Stage cancelled | Stage cancelled |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS2 | 08:41 | Myra 1 | 24.14 | Stage cancelled | Stage cancelled | Stage cancelled |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS3 | 09:24 | Kumluca 1 | 9.89 | Marcus Grönholm | 7:42.7 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS4 | 12:22 | Perge 2 | 22.43 | Stage cancelled | Stage cancelled | | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS5 | 13:05 | Mrya 2 | 24.14 | Marcus Grönholm | 8:54.0 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS6 | 13:48 | Kumluca 2 | 9.89 | Marcus Grönholm | 7:21.3 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS7 | 16:11 | Tekirova 1 | 5.50 | Petter Solberg | 4:46.5 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS8 | 17:09 | Phaselis | 29.28 | Petter Solberg | 24:17.1 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 1 (13 Oct) | SS9 | 19:22 | Akdeniz University 1 | 5.19 | Petter Solberg | 4:12.6 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS10 | 08:33 | Kemer 1 | 20.50 | Petter Solberg | 14:54.9 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS11 | 09:21 | Silyon 1 | 27.36 | Marcus Grönholm | 20:55.9 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS12 | 12:04 | Kemer 2 | 20.50 | Marcus Grönholm | 14:26.7 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS13 | 12:52 | Silyon 2 | 27.36 | Mikko Hirvonen | 20:21.4 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS14 | 16:00 | Chimera 1 | 16.90 | Petter Solberg | 12:22.5 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS15 | 16:58 | Phaselis 2 | 29.28 | Dani Sordo | 24:52.3 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 2 (14 Oct) | SS16 | 19:11 | Akdeniz University 2 | 5.19 | Mikko Hirvonen | 4:06.5 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 3 (15 Oct) | SS17 | 09:48 | Tekirova 2 | 5.50 | François Duval | 4:11.5 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 3 (15 Oct) | SS18 | 10:31 | Chimera 2 | 16.90 | Petter Solberg | 12:06.9 | Marcus Grönholm |
| 3 (15 Oct) | SS19 | 11:19 | Olympos | 28.54 | Petter Solberg | 21:47.3 | Marcus Grönholm |

#### Championship Standings

| Pos. | Drivers' Championship | Drivers' Championship | Drivers' Championship | Manufacturers' Championship | Manufacturers' Championship | Manufacturers' Championship |
| Pos. | 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

| Position | Position | No. | Driver | Co-driver | Entrant | Car | Time | Difference | Points |
| Event | Class | No. | Driver | Co-driver | Entrant | Car | Time | Difference | Points |
| 16 | 1 | 3 | Urmo Aava | Kuldar Sikk | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift S1600 | 4:02:06.5 | 0.0 | 10 |
| 17 | 2 | 39 | Conrad Rautenbach | David Senior | Barroso Sport | Renault Clio 1600 | 4:02:37.2 | +30.7 | 8 |
| 18 | 3 | 45 | Jozef Béreš | Petr Starý | Styllex Tuning Motorsport | Suzuki Ignis 1600 | 4:02:46.0 | +39.5 | 6 |
| 19 | 4 | 48 | Guy Wilks | Phil Pugh | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 | 4:04:16.6 | +2:10.1 | 5 |
| 20 | 5 | 32 | Kris Meeke | Glenn Patterson | PH Sport | Citroën C2 S1600 | 4:05:20.9 | +3:14.4 | 4 |
| 21 | 6 | 49 | Martin Prokop | Jan Tománek | Jipocar Czech National Team | Citroën C2 S1600 | 4:07:55.0 | +5:48.5 | 3 |
| 22 | 7 | 42 | Juliern Pressac | Jack Boyere | PH Sport | Citroën C2 S1600 | 4:12:23.0 | +10:16.5 | 2 |
| 24 | 8 | 52 | Bernd Casier | Frédéric Miclotte | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 | 4:15:10.9 | +13:04.4 | 1 |
| 25 | 9 | 51 | Fatih Kara | Cerm Bakancocuklari | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 | 4:16:24.4 | +14:17.9 | 0 |
| 27 | 10 | 44 | Michał Kościuszko | Jaroslaw Baran | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 | 4:20:10.2 | +18:03.7 | 0 |
| 30 | 11 | 41 | Patrik Sandell | Emil Axelsson | Renault Sport | Renault Clio 1600 | 4:24:17.3 | +22:10.8 | 0 |
| 31 | 12 | 54 | Aaron Burkart | Tanja Geilhausen | OMV Rally Team | Citroën C2 S1600 | 4:29:53.9 | +27:47.4 | 0 |
| 32 | 13 | 37 | Pavel Valoušek | Zdeněk Hrůza | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 | 4:30:42.6 | +28:36.1 | 0 |
| 41 | 14 | 55 | Fabio Fiandino | Sabrina de Castelli | PH Sport | Citroën C2 R2 | 4:45:33.0 | +43:26.5 | 0 |
| 43 | 15 | 46 | Andrea Cortinovis | Flavio Zanella | Power Car Team | Renault Clio RS | 5:02:32.9 | +1:00:26.4 | 0 |
| Retired SS19 | Retired SS19 | 35 | Per-Gunnar Andersson | Jonas Andersson | Suzuki Sport Europe | Suzuki Swift 1600 | Excluded | Excluded | 0 |
| Retired SS18 | Retired SS18 | 43 | Jaan Mölder | Katrin Becker | JM Engineering | Suzuki Ignis 1600 | Engine | Engine | 0 |

#### Championship Standings

| Pos. | Drivers' Championship | Drivers' Championship | Drivers' Championship |
| Pos. | 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 |